Words Matter

Scripture: "…he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth." Numbers 30:2

Observation: This is, quite honestly, one of those passages of scripture that I do not enjoy reading. I read through it, scratch my head, and wonder what the application is to me. As I reflect on it I notice a couple things. God takes our words very seriously. They mean something. They come together to create the scales on which our lives are measured. Now I do not enjoy this passage for entirely new reasons.

Application: As the situation worsens, the stress inside of me rises. Tension increases and before long I find myself in a place of desperation. I feel so uncomfortable and so very irritated that I honestly do not know if I am going to make it without snapping. Then it happens. In the heat of the moment, when I am at my weakest, I open my big mouth and say something to God that I mean at the moment, but I really did it just to improve my circumstances. FOREVER seems like a sensible trade for the absence of pain but once the pain subsides, I am tempted to fall back on my word. As I replay the vow I made, I almost always find a loop hole or I alter my thinking until my perception of the act I am contemplating conveniently bends around the vow that was made. I have become quite proficient at this play on words. It is frightening. Really frightening. Those words matter. God remembers them. He sees right through my junked up argument and recognizes it for what it is; sin. How many times have I lived this scenario out? I still have not learned.

Prayer: You are marvelous. Your beauty is something that I can't even begin to behold. Your statutes are right and lead to well being. My flesh is not so. It manipulates my thoughts and tries to manipulate you. I have broken far more vows than I have kept. The case against me is insurmountable. I have no defense. None. My only hope is in Jesus. I am so grateful that the work You did on the cross is bigger than the work of my lips. I live with the consequences of my actions, but I stand in the presence of God almighty without a blemish. All because of Your Grace. I have proven beyond all reasonable doubts my inability to keep all the promises my mouth can make. I can't even bend the truth to create an unreasonable doubt of my guilt. I confess to you tonight that the list against me is longer than I could recall. I rejoice in the removal of this guilt. Help me move forward with a heart that is contrite and broken. In the heat of the moment when I am surrounded by frustration and seek to escape, stir in my heart a desire to just draw close to You. There is no need to barter. You do what You do because You are who You are. It has nothing to do with what I do in return. In short, zip my lips and open my heart. Give me the courage to sit at Your feet and fully seek Your direction in all that I do.