I couldn’t help but chuckle when I heard the old joke the other day about the wife who, eager for a compliment, asked her husband to describe her.
“You’re A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K,” he said.
“What does that mean?” she asked.
“Adorable. Beautiful. Cute. Delightful. Elegant. Foxy. Gorgeous. Hot,” he said.
“Oh, what a kind thing to say,” she said, “but what about the I, J, K?”
He said: “I’m. Just. Kidding.”
The last I heard, he was recovering fairly well, and the swelling in his eye has gone down a good bit, though his jaw still hurts.
That man would have been better off if he had stopped talking while he was ahead. But we’ve all likely been guilty of letting our mouths get us into trouble, despite well-known warnings from the Bible:
“Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble (Proverbs 21:23).
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Keeping our tongues is easier said than done, but scripture makes clear the Lord wants that for us. He has much to say on the subject. Listen to these bits of advice recorded for us by King Solomon, who the Lord blessed with great wisdom:
“When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever retains his lips is prudent (Proverbs 10:19).
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“Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent (Proverbs 17:28).
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“A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion (Proverbs 18:2).
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“Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him (Proverbs 29:20).
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We’d all avoid much trouble in our lives if we’d carefully follow Solomon’s advice about weighing our words carefully. I’m certain the husband in our opening story would vouch for that … once his jaw stops hurting.
Roger Alford of Owenton, Kentucky, offers words of encouragement to residents of America’s heartland. Reach him at rogeralford1@gmail.com.
