Do not curse the king, even in your thought; do not curse the rich, even in your bedroom; for a bird of the air may carry your voice, and a bird in flight may tell the matter.
Ecclesiastes 10:20
Recommended Reading: James 3:1-12
One of the unexpected surprises of the digital age is that our devices are sometimes “listening” to us. Our phones and household digital assistants have microphones that often respond to key words in our conversations—until we turn on privacy settings that prevent their unwanted participation.
Long before the digital age, Solomon warned against unguarded speech that you think is private but might be overheard. A good rule of thumb when it comes to speech is the less speech the better. “In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise” (Proverbs 10:19). If we are not talking, we can’t say things that we might come to regret. The apostle James wrote at length about the dangers of the tongue (human speech) in James 3:1-12. As a tiny spark can set a forest on fire, so the tiny tongue can set a life on fire with ill-spoken words.
Pray daily for wisdom, restraint, and edification when it comes to your words. You never know who (or what) will hear.
There are times when silence has the loudest voice.
Leroy Brownlow
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