Wash Your Mouth Out!

When I was a growing up it wasn't unusual for me to frequently hear the words, "I'm going to wash your mouth out with soap!" Normally, my mom wasn't talking to me but rather to my teenage brothers. As a young mother, I took great delight in following in her footsteps by coating my son's toothbrush with soap and making him brush his teeth (thus washing out his mouth) any time he back-talked me. The thought of it makes me grin even today.

Sadly, those of your generation are caught up in some really lousy language habits. Even Christian teenagers go around saying things that would make their mother's hair curl! When did it become okay to use such profanity, sexually explicit language, and bad mouth each other, often broadcasting your comments via text messages, Facebook, or email? Whether you write bad words on the hood of your friend's car as a joke, or use profanity and a disrespectful tone when talking to your parents, you are sinning in God's sight and hurting those around you. Although you may not realize it, some words you speak or write can be considered sexual harassment so be careful what you say and to whom you say it.

The Bible says a lot about our mouths, the tongue, and the wickedness of trash talking. In the third chapter of James we are told that "It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell (v. 6, The Message). "With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and blessings out of the same mouth! My friends, this can't go on" (vs. 9-10, The Message).

God wants us to use our words to edify people and praise him, not dishonor God and disgrace others. Which will you choose to do today? Talk like the rest of your generation, using language that is hurtful and disgraceful, or dare to be a little better than everyone you know and actually say things that are positive, uplifting, and God-honoring?

You are known not only by the company you keep, but also by the words you speak to others. "You have minds like a snake pit! How do you suppose what you say is worth anything when you are so foul-minded? It's your heart, not the dictionary, that gives meaning to your words" (Matthew 12:34). Oh, be wise, guard your heart, and choose your words carefully!