Morning Devotional

July 10, 2005
"Glass Houses"    
    by Don Emmitte

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People can tame all kinds of animals and birds and reptiles and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it breaks out into curses against those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right! Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? Can you pick olives from a fig tree or figs from a grapevine? No, and you can't draw fresh water from a salty pool. (James 3:7-12 NLT).

When I was growing up in Galveston, Texas, My parents operated a small corner grocery store. In fact, we had a small living area above the store. The days were spent in school, sports, or working in the store. There were large glass windows in the front of the store with double glass doors leading into the store.

I don’t think I could ever forget the day that my older brother and I were scuffling over something and he, being bigger and older than I, literally threw me out the front doors of the store. I turned very quickly and put my hands out to keep him from shutting the doors behind me. From that moment on things got pretty bloody! With my arms straight in front of me, my hands went through the glass, shattering it and cutting me badly. I was taken immediately to the hospital, which wasn’t very far from our store and promptly treated to fourteen stitches, leaving a scar that I carry today.

I suppose I should be very thankful that it wasn’t any worse than it was! However, the scar serves as a reminder that glass is very fragile. No wonder the old adage is that throwing stones in glass houses is destructive. I can testify that throwing bodies against glass windows can be downright dangerous!

This is kind of like gossip: it is always destructive, and, many times, people are hurt. I may carry a scar, but others who have been the victims of malicious talk carry deeper scars. Someone once said that gossip is like taking a bag of feathers and scattering them on the wind from a tall building. You may both regret the act and attempt to gather all the feathers back, however you will never succeed in doing so. You simply cannot undo the destruction of an uncontrolled tongue.

God expects us to guard our actions and our tongues. Let us love others as ourselves, and treat them with respect. This behavior should be at work in our homes and our jobs. There is never a positive reason to gossip!