Hold your tongue

Here’s an old Jewish story: “In a small community, one fellow is  known as  the  town gossiper. He  has  thoughtlessly told and retold some stories that have caused others to feel pain and  shame. When  his rabbi confronts  him about the damage he has  done,  the man is shocked and sorry for being hurtful. He asks  what he can do to make amends.

"The rabbi tells him  to  take some pillows out into  a field, to cut them  open, and to shake all the  feathers out  into the field. The man thanks the rabbi  and runs off to do what he said. Later he returns and reports that the wind has taken the feathers to all parts of the field. The rabbi tells him this is good and  now he must go  back to the  field  and collect all the  feathers. The gossiper knows  that is an impossible task.”

What is the moral lesson of the story?  The Spirituality.org declares, "Hurtful words  once spoken cannot be retrieved. It’s  better to take custody of your tongue in the first place.”

A daughter confided that she  almost committed suicide   when her mother scolded her without pity just because she tore one of the pages of desk calendar. No matter how she  reasoned  out, her mom  kept on lashing her with  her  tongue. When  her mother turned her  back, she  decided to end her life with the use of a knife. It was a good thing that a close  friend  dropped by to invite her out for dinner.

Lina Abujamra of Christian Living commented, “It’s wise to hold your tongue." It is in this message  that she cites the following situations  wherein   it’s better to refrain from talking.

When you have  no idea what to say.  Proverb 17:28, "Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise;  when he  closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.”

When you’re wrongly accused. Isaiah 53:7, “He was  oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth.”

When you’re mad. Proverbs 25:28, “Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks  self-control.”

When you wouldn’t  want someone  else to find out you  said it. Luke 12:3, “Therefore whatever you have  said in the dark shall  be heard in the light, and what you have  whispered in  private rooms  shall be   proclaimed on  the housetops.”

When you don’t really  mean it. Proverbs  3:28, "Do not say to your neighbor ‘Go, and  come again,  tomorrow I will give it,  when you have it with you.”

When you have a lot to do    and you don’t like it. Philippians  2:14, "Do all  things without grumbling  or complaining.”

When the timing is wrong. Proverbs 25:11, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in setting of silver.”

When you  don’t have anything to say that gives grace. Ephesians 4:29, “Let  no corrupt talk come out of your mouth,  but only such as is  good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear it.”

As Proverbs  21:23 declares, "Watch your words and hold your  tongue; you’ll save yourself a  lot of grief.” [email protected].