Easter 2014 - The Christian and his lips

This year we had a conference at church from Good Friday to Resurrection Sunday. The theme was 'The Consecrated Christian life' and the speaker was Rev Jack Sin. Yes you may laugh that his last name is Sin but it's a chinese last name~ Anyway he's a speaker that I really respect because he's so clear and good at teaching and the best thing of all is that he's approachable and friendly.

There were 6 messages:
1. The Christian and his life
2. The Christian and his links
3. The Christian and his lips
4. The Christian and his love
5. The Christian and his labours
6. The Christian and his longings

Things I learnt! There were heaps of relationship things to think about as he talked about dating and marriage for a Christian. But above all the message on 'The Christian and his Lips" spoke to me the most. This is the verse I have prayed daily since the conference.

"Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips" Psalms 141:3

In James 3:1-6, the power of the human tongue described like the way a bridle in a horse's mouth steers it's whole body and a very small helm steers a great ship...

"Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature, and it is set on fire of hell."  vs 5-6.

verse 7 talks about how mankind has tamed every beast  in the earth, sky and sea...

"But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison." vs 8

There is a destructive power of the tongue that can create a world of iniquity, or a world of sin. We can destroy each other's lives through our deadly poisonous words. We can crush a person's spirit and heart through insults and an unruly tongue.

And the next few verses is targeted especially to Christians:

"Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be" vs 9- 10

My mouth and tongue is something that I need to learn how to control, especially in anger. My mouth is really full of deadly poison when I'm angry and yet how can it be that out of the same mouth comes out blessings to God? It shouldn't be this way. My mouth and tongue should be used only to glorify God and edify those around me.

One thing Pastor Jack Sin said in this message really struck me:
No one can make you angry, only you make yourself angry. I'm still coming to grips with this statement and don't fully understand how to apply it to my life yet.
Anger is an emotion that reacts to situations and I know that I definitely overreact in anger to certain situations. But I can choose better ways to react to things, and gradually I have been building up my temperance and patience to react in a nicer way. But I find that eventually my anger accumulates and builds up. Especially towards people I've forgiven so many times. And yet this teaches me about how merciful and graceful God is to us. Because day after day we sin against him and never learn. Yet when we repent God always forgives. He always forgives us though we don't deserve it at all. And that is because if confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

SO...before I speak, I must THINK! Are my words...
True?
Helpful?
Inspiring?
Necessary?
Kind?

And by the help of the Holy Spirit, I will one day speak more gracefully and kindly to others.