Mind Meld of A Different Kind

PROVERBS 10:19-21
Too much talk leads to sin.
Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.
The words of the godly are like sterling silver;
the heart of a fool is worthless.
The words of the godly encourage many,
but fools are destroyed by their lack of common sense.

Just shut up!
I need to hear these words routinely reverberate in my head and heart. Probably aught to make them into a screensaver for my computer! I make a living by talking. Talking is my calling, a key element in my personality, the defining feature of my primary spiritual gift, and the primary way I fulfill my life passion. While I like solitude with only the sounds of nature filling my ears with their music, the more I come to understand myself the more I realize I need conversation.

My mouth is the most in-shape part of my body! I exercise it daily by giving advice, proclaiming biblical truth, teaching biblical reality, active listening to parishioners (yes, this means talking with the goal of understanding what I hear), reporting, team leadership, problem solving, and more.

Sometimes I overuse my mouth. I’m too hasty to give advice or speak biblical truth into people’s lives who aren’t ready to receive it and into situations I haven’t yet come to fully understand. I fill awkward silences with words, some of which, when I look back at them, would have better been left unspoken. I’m tempted to speak beyond my knowledge or understanding.

Because I’m paid to speak countless hours every week, when it’s all added together, I find it easy to the abundance of words crowd out time needed to nurture my own godliness. I fear that many times my words have been less than “sterling silver” and more “worthless” because the man who spoke them suffered the accumulated affect of neglecting his own spirit.

So today I recommit myself to “be sensible and keep [my] mouth shut” more often; to listen more to God through reading, listening to the counsel of others, and time alone just thinking and saturating myself with life in Christ.

Lord of my mouth, grant me the supernatural gift of controlling my tongue and shutting my mouth. Increase my ability to observe, ask good questions, meditate on you, and spend time simply being. Your talkative child, – Mike Leamon

PROVERBS 10:16
The earnings of the godly enhance their lives,
but evil people squander their money on sin.

Spending that doesn’t squander
Karen and I just returned from a trip to Jamaica. In Jamaica there are plenty of opportunities to spend money on every indulgence and whim the human body can imagine. While many of these “opportunities” are exciting and fun in the moment, they often end with disappointment and shame upon returning home.

On the flip side, there were some awesome opportunities my dad and I took advantage of while we were in Jamaica that truly enhanced our lives. While there I had the chance to go deep sea fishing and golfing. These two excursions may not seem like life enhancing outings, but to my dad and me, they were experiences of a life-time. We bonded together as father and son, as well as gained an increased awe for God’s creation.

My dad’s hard work enabled us to go on this trip together, something I am very thankful for. His earnings enhanced our life with rest, relaxation, fun and learning. The work of others was squandered on relationship damaging flings and binges. Godliness should show up in our entertainment as well as in our activities at church. Are my earnings enhancing my life or being squandered?

God of work and rest, help me to use money in a way that enhances my life and the lives of others in my work and in my recreation. Keep me from squandering your blessings in sin by removing the desire for sin from my life. - Dan Jones