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Parenting by the Book

Proverbs   Study
Study 122

STUDY 122

Text: Proverbs 15
26 October 2003

Dear Parents,

THE TONGUE AND THE HEART ARE CLOSELY RELATED
There is an obvious link between the heart and the tongue! Let us ponder the following texts.

The heart of the righteous studies how to answer,
But the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.

Proverbs 15:28

Note how the “heart” and the “mouth” are contrasted in this text. Let us look at two other texts that show the close relationship between the two.

The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge,
But the mouth of fools feed on foolishness.

Proverbs 15:14

The lips of the wise disperse knowledge,
But the heart of the fool does not do so.

Proverbs 15:7

Two areas of training must be borne in mind as we seek to guide our children on the use of the tongue.

1. The tongue itself

We must guide our children on the use of the tongue itself. Much of modern language accepts profanity as “normal” or “acceptable”.

2. The heart

This is the deeper level. If the lesson of the tongue is to be well learned, we would need to train the heart as well. If the heart is well instructed there is every likelihood that the tongue would be used wisely.

A GENTLE TONGUE
One of the challenges that we must look at is the ability to give “a soft answer”. Let us read the following text again.

A soft answer turns away wrath,
But a harsh word stirs up anger.

Proverbs 15:1

How we respond in speech reflects the kind of heart we have. The righteous will think things over carefully before he responds, and he will choose “a soft answer”.

Prayerfully,
Pastor Charlie

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