The Twouble with Tweeting
I have been reading the Proverbs lately. The older I get the more I realize my lack of wisdom. James promises us that if we ask God will give wisdom to us. One continual prayer for my children is that God would give them wisdom - the skill to navigate the world in which they live. Tim Keller says wisdom isn't so much knowing the right answer, knowing what to do and not to do, but the gospel recreating us to be people who will not only know the right thing to do but do it.
The Proverbs say much about the tongue. As I read them many areas of my heart are exposed. Why are words many and sin not absent in my life? Why do I always feel the need to talk? To inject noise when the conversation goes silent? I am warned about being a chattering fool. The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked. Why am I tempted to have a violent mouth? A quarrelsome tongue? Why does my heart want to stir up trouble? The tongue of the righteous is choice silver but the heart of the wicked is of little value. It's amazing how our tonges reveal what's inside us. Jesus said something about that. There is so much about silence, holding the tongue, not deriding your neighbor with your mouth, on and on and on...James echoes the words in the New Testamnet - be quick to listen and slow to speak...and a whole lot more!
I have a quiet student. In fact, at the two campuses I've worked many times I'll get a call about an incoming freshmen who is described as quiet or shy. This particular student isn't shy but he is quiet. He holds his tongue. I'm sure he has thoughts and things he could say but often he doesn't. He holds his tongue. My daughter recently asked why he was so quiet. Her question revealed the uniqueness and rarity of a quiet person. I said, "Maybe he is wise." He is quiet. He holds his tongue. In fact, he would not make a good tweeter.
Tweeting is the opposite of holding the tongue. It is our way of getting out there what we think before we think about it. Blogging can be another venue that encourages speaking without considering. We don't consider our words. Thinking is harder. Concentration is slipping. A.D.D. describes our entire generation. I find it hard to finish books, complete articles in one sitting, follow arguments. A friend of mine recently quoted an article entitled, "Is Google Making Us Stupid?"
It's a good question as I type on my computer! My youngest daughter got an old school typewriter for her birthday. We have white-out in our house again! Ribbons for the typewriter! She has to think carefully before she presses a key. She may even have to handwrite a rough draft first and possibly rewrite it before typing.
May God help me to consider what I say and WHY I say it. May he make my words a fountain of life. May he make my tongue choice silver as He presses on the keys of my growth in Christ. His words are choice silver. His words to me in Christ are the fountain of life.
The Proverbs say much about the tongue. As I read them many areas of my heart are exposed. Why are words many and sin not absent in my life? Why do I always feel the need to talk? To inject noise when the conversation goes silent? I am warned about being a chattering fool. The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked. Why am I tempted to have a violent mouth? A quarrelsome tongue? Why does my heart want to stir up trouble? The tongue of the righteous is choice silver but the heart of the wicked is of little value. It's amazing how our tonges reveal what's inside us. Jesus said something about that. There is so much about silence, holding the tongue, not deriding your neighbor with your mouth, on and on and on...James echoes the words in the New Testamnet - be quick to listen and slow to speak...and a whole lot more!
I have a quiet student. In fact, at the two campuses I've worked many times I'll get a call about an incoming freshmen who is described as quiet or shy. This particular student isn't shy but he is quiet. He holds his tongue. I'm sure he has thoughts and things he could say but often he doesn't. He holds his tongue. My daughter recently asked why he was so quiet. Her question revealed the uniqueness and rarity of a quiet person. I said, "Maybe he is wise." He is quiet. He holds his tongue. In fact, he would not make a good tweeter.
Tweeting is the opposite of holding the tongue. It is our way of getting out there what we think before we think about it. Blogging can be another venue that encourages speaking without considering. We don't consider our words. Thinking is harder. Concentration is slipping. A.D.D. describes our entire generation. I find it hard to finish books, complete articles in one sitting, follow arguments. A friend of mine recently quoted an article entitled, "Is Google Making Us Stupid?"
It's a good question as I type on my computer! My youngest daughter got an old school typewriter for her birthday. We have white-out in our house again! Ribbons for the typewriter! She has to think carefully before she presses a key. She may even have to handwrite a rough draft first and possibly rewrite it before typing.
May God help me to consider what I say and WHY I say it. May he make my words a fountain of life. May he make my tongue choice silver as He presses on the keys of my growth in Christ. His words are choice silver. His words to me in Christ are the fountain of life.