All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. James 3:7-8a

Lions tamed.

Cobras charmed.

But the tongue? Forget it!

Think about the phrases we use…

He has a sharp tongue… You need to hold your tongue… You speak with a forked tongue… Bite your tongue… It was a slip of the tongue.

And those are the nice descreiptions. But they all point to the same problem. Taming the tongue is impossible. So what do you do with the undomesticatable?

01: Be Alert

The tongue is a beast. Don’t let your guard down. Pay close attention to the words you use and what comes out of your mouth. I cringe most days when I do a review!

02: Learn some “commands.”

While you can’t fully overcome the tongue you can teach it some tricks. That’s how lions are “tamed.” It’s why Shamu splashes the crowd on command.

Mom told us, “If you can’t say anything nice; don’t say anything at all.” (And the world went silent.)

Another old stand by is “count to ten” before responding. (Of course, that gives some folks a running mental start!)

What command can you have in reserve?

03: Discipline

OK, so you lose it. What’s the result beside embarrassment? What’s going to be your punishment?

Run 10 miles? Give a friend $100 each time? Post an open apology on Facebook?

It may not be possible to completely tame the tongue, we can put in the effort to curb its enthusiasm.