Devotional 5/22/20
“Doing His Word”
by Dona Hake
We began a study yesterday on James 1:19–20. I found a translation that I really liked, and I would like to share it with you today.
“Listen, open your ears, harness your desire to speak, and don’t get worked up into a rage so easily, my brothers and sisters. Human anger is a futile exercise that will never produce God’s kind of justice in this world.”
James 1:19-20 – The Voice
James 1:19-20 – The Voice
Oh how we need to be careful, thoughtful listeners. It is a good thing to be more willing to listen then to speak. If while a person is speaking to you, and your mind is racing with how to reply…it is a good chance you need to work on the “listening” thing. We also need to carefully choose the words that we speak to those around us. Again I mention, our behavior can make or break our testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ in our life. This scripture specifically addresses how we hear things, how we project our thoughts in words, and how we need to control our anger. Let us address anger a bit closer….
The resentful, deep- seated anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. He desires we live by His Word that teaches us a standard of behavior. As we seek to grow in the fruit of His Spirit we will begin to get victory if we have weaknesses such as a poor listener, lack of control over our mouth, and a temper that is out of control. We need to ask God to open our eyes to those things that hinder our behavior, and with a humble spirit receive His instruction from His Word. It is then that we will prove ourselves to be doers of His Word as we actively obey Him.