“Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it” (Psalm 34:13-14)
Happy New Year! Welcome to 2021!
Realized today that I have still been entering the dates as 2020 in my daily journal entries. It typically takes me a few days to get it through my head that tt really is 2021 and a beginning of a new year.
New beginnings is what God is about. If we are breathing today it’s because God is offering us a new day, a new year so we can begin again.
The verses from today are great advice for living a life that blesses others and for living in peace. Wouldn’t that be great if each of our lives blessed others and we were agents of peace?
First, we are told to keep our tongue from evil and our lips from speaking deceit. Few things have power to destroy as words. If you are a disciple of Jesus Christ, your words are to speak the truth in love. Speak words that build up. Speak words that offer life. Speaking evil about others and speaking deceit destroys peace and relationships. So, keep your tongue from evil and our lips from speaking deceit.
Secondly, we are told to depart from evil, and do good. Imagine looking back at 2021 in January of 2022 if you led a life that fled from evil and in all things, you pursued the good in all situations. Wow! You would be a brand new you! Not only that, every single person around you would have been blessed and impacted through you. That would be a terrific 2021!
Finally, seek peace and pursue it. Peace is not something that just happens or something that we run into. Peace is something that must be sought after and pursued. This means you can be the instigator of peace wherever you are as you seek and pursue it.
Keep our tongue from evil and our lips from speaking deceit.
Depart from evil, and do good.
Seek peace and pursue it.
Sounds like it’s going to be a fantastic 2021!
Happy New Year!
Praxis: Faith in Action 