Ears Open and Mouth Closed

James 1:19-20 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

So then...because God has given us eternal life and justified us, or declared us "not guilty", in Christ Jesus; we are then to put to practice today's commands. "Be swift to hear", or be ready, be quick, to listen and understand. My question for us to consider is this, "Who are we quick to listen to during trying times?" There are many voices that speak to us. Our enemies, the devil and his demons, are shouting accusations and lies about God, and how He no longer loves us, never loved us, and has forsaken us. In all that noise, there is another voice. That voice is a still small voice that is whispering ever so gently, reminding us that God's love is unshakeable, and that God is keeping His promise that He never forsakes us. It is in the midst of the noise that the greatest temptation pushes us to speak out and give everyone a piece of our mind. It is in the midst of being stressed, pressured, and stretched, that we can easily become short-tempered, and lash out at those closest to us. We put ourselves in a position to ruin our testimony in front of someone we may have been trying to win to Christ. In the midst of trials is not the time to make hasty decisions about how to resolve the problem(s); for it is likely that these decisions will be made in anger and haste. The end result will not be one that glorifies God, because it will not promote the righteousness of God. Instead, it will only temporarily satisfy the flesh, and complicate the situation. This often happens during times when we feel persecuted, or during times when we are dealing with those who offend us, because they have sinned against us. The Lord wants us to slow down in our responses during difficult times, and learn to trust Him. Rather than lash out, He may be teaching us to love our enemies. He may be teaching us how to truly forgive. Most of all, He may be teaching us to block out all nonsense the enemy is shouting in our ears, and learn to pick out and listen to His voice. The best way to do that is to slow down, take a deep breath, and open up the Word of God. Be quick to seek, and listen to, His voice. Be slow to open our mouth and say something we will forever regret, and remember that our sinful temper will never cause us to say or do something that is God honoring. We need to open our ears, close our mouth, and be careful not to let our anger lead us to sin.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).