Not So Perfect

People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. ~~ James 4:7-9 NLT

God blessed me with the gift of speaking. And because of that, I love to talk. I can talk about anything and everything with anyone anywhere.

When I ask my husband, "Why don't you say something?" He will just smile and sweetly reply, "I haven't had a chance."

Yes, I should let others share their thoughts. But where I really get into trouble is when situations do not unfold as I think they should. Before committing my life to Christ, if I received bad service, I would become so vocal about it that I would be asked to leave. I was far from perfect in this area with my mouth.

However, as I started growing in the Lord and maturing, I learned better ways to handle less-than-perfect scenarios. I became much better, but still not so perfect in using my words.

Occasionally I experience a relapse of my old way. Unfortunately for Christians, we come under much stricter scrutiny by others. That happened to me a few months ago when I unconsciously reverted back to the methods I used to use when I felt I was treated unfairly.

The person I unleashed unkind words on sent me an email that read, "The vitriolic words spewing from your mouth in the acrimonious tone of voice left me speechless. . . Take your hate and irresponsibility and ENGRAFT THAT ON YOUR BLOG so they can see what kind of person you really are."

Those words tormented me for days. For that, I confessed my sin to God, who is faithful to forgive. And I admitted I was wrong and apologized to this person. I apologize again, now--publicly. Will you forgive me? I'm definitely not-so-perfect.

The Scripture tells us that the tongue is hard to tame. We praise God with it and then curse others who are made in His image. That's what happened to this far-from-perfect being.

What are we to do? The Scripture in James continues by explaining that true wisdom comes from God. I should have paused, and in this situation, taken time to seek God for wisdom and not have returned the call right away.

James 4:17-18 tells us, ". . .the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness" (NLT). If I had applied God's wisdom, I would have been gentle with my words.

In this hurtful situation, this not-so-perfect girl learned a lesson. I needed a little grace. God's grace is abundant , so let's share it to other not-so-perfect people.