SWIFT TO HEAR BUT SLOW TO SPEAK

Therefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear; slow to speak, slow to anger. James 1:19

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Isaiah 20-25

In the head, we have the eyes, the ears, and the mouth. There is a reason why God put the ears at the sides and the eyes in the front. There is a reason why the eyes are above the mouth. He arranged them that way for a reason. Imagine if one had eyes at the sides, although one will be able to see opportunities lying around him, side distractions will also be inevitable. Let us imagine for a second that we have our eyes at the back, although we will be able to see the mistakes of our past and become wiser, we will never forget our past. To make progress in life, we need to forget our past and move ahead. To help man, God put his eyes in the front so he can focus more on his future not his past. He also put a neck under his head so he can take a quick glance at his past occasionally. If one spends too much time looking back, the neck begins to hurt signifying it is high time one looked forward again. We are to learn from nature and focus more on our future not our past mistakes. To see, we only need one eye but God has given us two for a reason. With one eye, one has many blind spots but with two eyes, the blind spots become less.

Let us imagine for a moment that we have our ears at the back. Although we will able to hear what people are saying behind our back, we will also live an unhappy life. People who speak behind one’s back always have negative things to say and if one listens to too much of negative things, it might affect one’s heart. Negative reports leads to sickness. Proverbs 15:30 says the light of the eyes rejoiceth the hearth and a god report maketh the bones fat. Someone once said, God envisaged that some brothers and sisters would wear glasses so He gave us ears at the side so the glasses can sit on the ear. I do not know how true this is but it makes logical sense. God gave us two ears so we can detect the direction of sound. Our ears transmit sound waves to the brain, and having an ear on each side of the head makes it easier for us to determine where the sound is coming from. Having two ears allows you to understand where someone is if he is talking to you in a social setting, where construction is, or who is honking his horn. God gave us one mouth and a tongue because of the potential in the tongue. Proverbs 18:21 says death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. With the tongue, one can start a war and with the tongue, one can put an end to war. James 1:19 says therefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear; slow to speak, and slow to anger. The reason why God gave us two ears and one mouth is so that we can do more hearing than speaking. For us to be able to speak on a matter once, we must have heard from at least two sides. One of the ways to identify a mature Christian is that they listen more and talk less. The more one talks, the higher the chances of one offending God. Proverbs 10:19 saysin the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please help me to tame my mouth

Bro Samuel – Reaching the world for Jesus.

I SHALL BE THE HEAD PT5

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Ex 5, Luke 8, Job 22, 1 Cor 9

Deuteronomy 28:13 and the Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the Lord thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them.

In these series we have been talking about what it means to be the head. Yesterday we talked about a part of the head which is the ear. We said to be the head means I will hear what the Lord has to say even if it is a rebuke. Ecclesiastes 7:5 says it is better to hear the rebuke of the wise, than for a man to hear the song of fools.

Today we will be looking at an important part of the head which is the mouth. From the mouth we eat, drink, e.t.c. What makes the mouth very important is the presence of the tongue. Proverbs 18:21 says death and life are in the power of the tongue. What the head does with the tongue will determine whether the body will live or die. What the head does with the tongue will determine if there will be peace in the family, church, work, e.t.c. A leader can get the people to do double time by what he says. James 4:2 says ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Using the tongue to complain never solves any problem, it only makes the problem look bigger; it is prayer that solves problem. To be head means instead of complaining, I will take everything to God in prayer. Psalms 50:14-15 says offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High: and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. What took David to the top? He was a forgotten boy in the farm. The father did not want him around. Bible scholars told us that he was an embarrassment to the father. The old man messed up with a woman and the product of the affair was David. So whenever the family was around they would keep David away because he represents shame. While in the forest, David began to praise God. He said it is true no one wants to see me but I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth, Psalm 34:1. The Lord decided that in that case, I will promote you. It is true that no one wants see you (David), but I will promote you so that you will be their head. He decided that it is true they have relegated you (David) to the background, but I will bring you (David) to the palace. Anyone who knows how to praise the Lord will be head. When you say I shall be head, what you are saying is instead of complaining, I will praise the Lord. There is a reason why the head has two ears and a mouth. James 1:19 says wherefore , my beloved brethren , let every man be swift to hear ,slow to speak, slow to anger .The Leader is expected see more, hear more and talk less.

KEY WORD: When you say I shall be the head, what you are saying is I will be quick to hear and slow to wrath.

GUARD YOUR MOUTH

 BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Gen 5, Matt 5, Ezra 5, Acts 5

Proverbs 21:23 whoever guards his mouth and tongue, keeps his soul from troubles.

Proverbs 18:21 says death and life are in the power of the tongue. With the tongue, one can either start a war or put an end to war. With the tongue, one can either ask for help or reject help. With the tongue, one gather people or scatter what has been gathered. The rightful use of the mouth can bring deliverance. In Acts 16:25-27, Paul and Silas were bound and put in prison. In the middle of the night, they began to sing praises to God and before you know it there was an earth quake which lead to their deliverance. The rightful use of the mouth can lead to healing. Joel 3:10 says let the weak say I am strong and Numbers 14:28 says whatever God hears you say is what He will do . Do you know that just by witnessing with your mouth, you can inherit glory and begin to shine like the stars? Proverbs 10:31 says he that winneth souls is wise. According to Proverbs 3:35, the wise shall inherit glory. In other words those that witness (the wise) will inherit glory. Daniel 12:3 says the wise (those that win souls) shall shine like the brightness of the firmament and those who turn many to many into righteousness like the stars forever and ever. There is an African proverb which says words can either bring kola from the pocket or clubs from the bag.

Proverbs 21:23 says whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from trouble. The mouth of many has landed them in trouble. A wise man once said “we may forget blows but not words”. Proverbs 6:1 warns us that our mouth can be snare to us. As powerful as Samson was, his unguarded mouth cost him his two eyes, Judges 16:4-21. Samson who was a terror to the Philistine became a grinder in the prison because he could not keep secrets. Proverbs 18:6 says the mouth of a fool calls for strokes. To have relationship with God, one must learn to guard his mouth. There is a time to speak and there is a time to be quiet. If one speaks at the time he is meant to keep quiet he will end up facing embarrassment. Many of the quarrels and the enemies we have today could have been avoided if only we guarded our mouth. They say silence cannot be misquoted. Proverbs 14:23 says in all labor there is profit: but the talk of the lips leads only to poverty. Unguarded mouth leads to unnecessary arguments and confrontation. Also the unguarded mouths of others can put us into trouble if care is not taken. Herod was an orator. He had his way with words. Because of his eloquence, some people with unguarded mouth started comparing him with God and instead of stopping them, he enjoyed it. They shouted “the voice of a god and not of man!” Right on the spot, the angel of the Lord struck him and he was eaten by worms alive (Acts 12:21-23). David suffered the same fate. After conquering Goliath, some ladies with unguarded tongues began to compare him to the king, I Samuel 18:7-9. Instead of stopping them, he too just enjoyed it and then the King went after him. The king that took him as a son started to throw javelins at him. Thank God he survived but he spent half of his life running from Saul all because of unguarded mouth.

PRAYER POINT : Father , please help me today to guard my mouth.

Gold in the mouth of fish

Proverbs 13:2 – A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, but the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence.

In Matthew 17:24-27 Jesus was asked to pay temple tax so He told Peter to go the sea, cast in a hook, and take the first the fish that comes up . There are several lessons from this passage. Firstly, through Jesus our needs are met. Ephesians 3:20 says He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. Secondly, With Him nothing is impossible. Luke 1:37 says for with God noting will be impossible. Jeremiah 32:27 says I am the God of all flesh, is there anything too hard for me? Thirdly God is all-knowing. He knows the location of our breakthrough; He knows what you need to do to breakthrough in your endeavor. Hebrews 4:13 says nothing is hidden before God but all things are naked and open to His sight. Deuteronomy 26:6 says before Him, Death is naked and destruction has no coverings. Jesus has the key to every information in the world. Fourthly, God’s word is settled. Once God speaks nothing on earth can change it. Psalms 33:9 says He spoke and it was done, He commanded, and it stood fast. If there is anything He has promised you, I can assure you that He will bring it to pass. He told Peter inside the first fish is money and so it was when Peter caught the first fish.

Lastly, present in every fish are resources to meet our needs. By fish, we mean soul meaning according to Luke 5:10. For every soul we win for Jesus, heaven releases resources to meet our needs. Proverbs 13:2 says a man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth. You want God to take you to the top, you want Him meet your needs, you want hunger to be a strange word to you? Use your mouth effectively for Him. Use it to win souls. Proverbs 11:30 says He that wins soul is wise. Proverbs 3:35 says the wise shall inherit glory or honor. When we combine both scriptures it means He that wins soul will inherit glory.

ACTION POINT: Use everything within your power to win souls for Jesus.