"Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord." To boast means to talk with great pride with self-satisfaction about one's achievements; to brag or to glorify. Sometimes we brag about others in regard to something they've accomplished. There is nothing wrong with acknowledging another's achievements, skill, or elevation in life. It's the attitude with which we do these things. Some of us smote our breast, so to speak, with pride when we speak about the things our children are doing, the colleges or schools they attend, how many grandchildren we have, the house we bought, the car we drive and the vacation we took. Nothing is wrong with any of these things in themselves, it's how we speak of them and the attitude we display to others while speaking about them. In Psalm 34, David boasts and brags about how God delivered him when he was in trouble. He mentions with great fervor how God answered him when he cried to Him. We may boast about many things like: 1. The restaurants we like and the cuisine we enjoyed there 2. Friends who are doing impressive things 3. Our plans 4. Vacations we took and the places we've been 5. Our job position and how much money we make 6. Our homes 7. Our church/pastor 8. Celebrities we've met 9. People we admire 10. The things we can afford As Christians, our boast should be in the Lord God. But how can we boast in Him if we're not experiencing Him on a personal level? The list above describes things we brag about because we have had some first-hand experience with them. We've given them five stars as it were, that show they met with our approval. We're glorying in them. So, what about what God has done for you and for me? What are we bragging about where God is concerned? Has He met with our approval? There are those in the Bible who made their boast in the Lord: 1. Mary, the mother of Jesus (The Magnificat) in Luke 1:46-55) She certainly had something grand to boast in God about! 2. Hannah, Elkanah's wife, Samuel's mother (1 Samuel 2:1-10). What a powerful expression of praise and thanksgiving for answered prayer and the miracle of opening her womb! 3. Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Moses and Aaron. She is the first praise and worship leader in the Bible. She takes her timbrel in hand and leads the praise in Exodus 15:20-27. 4. Naomi, Elimelech's wife, mother-in-law to Ruth, the Moabitess offers us her boasting when she returned to Bethlehem Judea from Moab in Ruth 1:22. May we make our boast in the Lord. Brag on Him by lifting Him up to those we come in contact with - in hopes that they may desire Him. Our boasting will only be as strong and deep as our appreciation is of Him and as strong as our relationship is with Him. Are you and I 'Surfacy' in our walk with Him, or do we have testimony for days of enduring many things and coming out on the other side?
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"Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking lies." Psalm 34:13
God has created every human with the ability to talk; there may be a few exceptions due situations one is born with. However, even the deaf manage to communicate using their hands. We all have the privilege to express ourselves and to have verbal exchange. As Christians our words should encourage, edify and enrich others. This is what God expects of us. In the above verse David is giving good advice concerning the tongue. He is speaking from personal experience. He pretended to be crazy in order to avoid danger and Abimelech dismissed him. David had no business in the environment he was in, but he was reacting out of fear. This caused him to deceive those around him. Deception is a lot like lying because it leads others to think that what they are seeing is the real deal, when it's a cover for something else. If it isn't the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, it's a lie. Don't ever forget that! We are told to keep our tongue from evil speaking. Evil speaking involves words that are injurious, intentionally hurtful and words that can ruin a person's reputation. It is also called speaking ill of others. We are to make an effort to avoid using our tongue in this manner. Negative words end up bringing harm to the speaker by eventually making life difficult for them. What goes around does come around. What a man sows, he will also reap. Those same negative words will have consequences on the one who put them out there. An evil speaker will lose the trust and respect of others. They will not have good days. Trouble will follow them wherever they go. Evil speaking causes disunity (discord) among God's people and God hates this immensely. It is an abomination, as well as lying lips (Proverbs 12:22). In Proverbs 6:16-19 God lists six things that He hates and the seventh one in verse 19 says, "he that soweth discord among brethren." Lies and deceit create offenses, and it separates relationships that otherwise would be harmonious. There are different types of liars. There are prolific liars who lie easily at the drop of a hat. They have mastered and developed such a habit of lying that it becomes a part of them. They believe their own lies. They don't lie necessarily with the intent to do harm, but they do cause harm. Some are pathological liars in that they are aware of what they are doing. They mean it for harm. Let us judge our tongues and think twice before speaking. Let us hold our negative views of others and keep our thoughts to ourselves. Let us honor the Lord God in all that we say and do. |
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