Issue 1484 – Moose Lake Ballet – June 26, 2024
You’ve heard of the Swan Lake ballet, but you’ve probably missed the Moose Lake Ballet. It’s not as graceful as the former, but it’s far more fun.
I wasn’t there, but let me describe this ballet as a participant described. The setting is a dark country road. The players are a moose, a frozen lake (actually a pond, but give me some room for an artistic license on that point), a teenage driver, and a car.
One evening, our youngest son, Kyle, came home roaring with laughter. He had been driving home from a friend’s house after dark. As he approached a corner, he saw a moose coming across the lake and towards the road.
At the same time he braked, the moose saw the car. The moose quickly applied his own brakes but couldn’t maintain his balance on the ice. His front legs buckled under him, and he crashed onto his face with a very loud grunt, sliding on the ice face first.
With God’s protection, both driver and moose left the scene of a potentially hazardous accident unharmed.
After he got over the fright of the near miss, Kyle could see the humour in the moose and his fall.
Moose are not the most graceful animals in the forest, but falling like that is ungraceful even for a moose. I’ve seen a lot of moose in my time, but I confess I’ve never seen one do a lip stand on the ice. I wish I had been there to watch it.
Like the moose and his sudden stop, sometimes, as Christian people, we’re far less than graceful. Sometimes, that’s a lack of physical grace; more often, it’s a lack of grace in our words and general attitudes.
Our words can do tremendous damage. It’s no wonder Scripture is full of admonitions about the tongue.
So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water. James 3:5-12
If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. James 1:26
I will confess that many are the times I have wished my tongue had an undo button to retrieve the words I have spoken. I take heart in knowing I am a work in process and the Spirit is at work in me.
How’s your tongue? As graceful as a charging moose on ice? Or does it bring forth wells of love, blessing and life?
Until next time, may your tongue bring blessings, not curses.
Hallelu Yah / Praise God
Kevin
Gleanings From The Word
Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life.
Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone)
Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. Your value in God’s eyes is so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. You are so precious to God that his plan for heaven will not be complete without you.
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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the English Standard Version (ESV)