The following is an accompaniment to our 2024 Practical Proverbs Calendar. Each month focuses on a practical verse from Proverbs. The aim is to help families think about God’s word and how to apply it to their daily lives.
The one who guards his mouth and tongue keeps himself out of trouble.
Proverbs 21:23
Definitions of Key Words
Oxford Dictionary definitions:
Guards
watch over in order to protect or control
Trouble
difficulty or problems
Observations
I think this verse isn't hard to identify with! Who hasn't caused themselves trouble with things they've said? How many times have you said something and immediately wished you could take it back?
Proverbs tells us to guard our mouth and tongue. By the definition, that means we need to watch over, protect and control our mouth and tongue. We can't let our mouth speak whatever we feel like without thought and consideration. Otherwise, we can get ourselves into difficulty or problems.
And we know it's true, right? We've all experienced this first hand.
Things to look for this month
- Situations where you've been provoked to saying something, where you haven't taken the opportunity to pause before speaking in order to guard what you say.
- Situations where you've actually paused and reconsidered what you speak. What trouble did you avoid by guarding your mouth?
- Listen to your children. Look for opportunities to call them to pause and consider what they say.
Things to think about and discuss
- Recall a time when did NOT guard your mouth. What was the consequence? What difficulty or problem did it cause? What could you have said, instead? Or would it have been better not to say anything at all.
- Discuss how hard it is to guard the things we see. Pray for the Lord's help in this area, and find other bible verses that can help with this challenge.