Our lips are our own -- who can stop us?

Help, O Lord, for the godly are fast disappearing! The faithful have vanished from the earth! Neighbors lie to each other, speaking with flattering lips and insincere hearts. May the Lord bring their flattery to an end and silence their proud tongues. They say, "We will lie to our hearts' content. Our lips are our own -- who can stop us? " Psalm 12: 1-4 NLT

Our lips are our own -- who can stop us?

We can do so much damage with what comes out of our mouths. And it is true, who can really stop us when we can't even stop ourselves? Sometimes it feels as though our lips are not even our own but belong to someone else entirely! We tend to have such a disconnect between what we say and how what we say can hurt others.

I admit that I have succumbed to the hoof in mouth disease, sometimes even when I think I am helping others. I tend to speak what I think before letting my brain and my conscious edit what is being said. Just because a thought is on my mind does not mean I have to repeat it. All my thoughts are not godly - perhaps a few are but mostly they are all about me. How else would I have the overriding need to continue to speak when I should be listening? I have embarrassed others, hurt others, made others angry and turned friends into enemies: all with just the ability of my mouth.

God, our lips are our own but we constantly need you to prevent us from telling lies or saying things that are not spoken out of love. We need you to stop us. Help us, Lord, help us. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Copyright 2011 Amelia G. Sims