What's In Your Bucket?

How many times have you said something to someone and immediately wished you could take it back? Whether it was in the "heat" of the moment, the result of pent-up frustration, or we were just simply having a bad day, I would guess most, if not all of us, have had that experience at least once. Some have called it "a slip of the tongue", but is it really? The more I think about it, I keep coming back to Jesus' words to the religious rulers of the day; "O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things." (Matt. 12:34-35, KJV).

Sometime ago I heard a Pastor say that the words we speak are like water in a bucket. When someone bumps our "bucket", i.e. offends us, whatever is inside will flow out. There is quite a lot of truth in that statement. In the Proverbs we read, "Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water..." (20:5), and I would guess, so are other things, good and bad. The condition of our hearts is of such that Jeremiah wrote it is "deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (17:9). Unless the love of God fill our heart continuously, and without the exercise of much diligence, the things that pour out from it can be very destructive. As we read also in the Proverbs, "...grievous words stir up anger" (15:1). On the opposite side, "A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!" (15:23).

I quite like David's prayer request in Psalm 19:14, "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer." Paul beautifully encouraged us when he wrote, "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." (Philippians 4:8). God is so good He even tells us the things we should think / meditate on. What's in your bucket? Are your words / meditations pleasing to God? As we make David's prayer our prayer, may we take Paul's words to heart as well. Today is as good a time as any to start doing so.