A little dose of James

I've been spending a lot of time in the book of James lately.  It's been my daily dose of scripture and I'm thoroughly enjoying it.  I have to say that James is one of my favorite books of the Bible.

Today's verses that have really gotten to me is at the end of chapter 1, verses 26 & 27.  It says...

"Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.  Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

Wow.  That to me speaks volumes about some of the current rhetoric of today, in both politics and church, though often these days the line between the two blurs a bit.

How often do we hear people talking about the poor in ugly, condescending ways?  How often do we hear hate being spewed out about this group of people or that?  How often do we hear these days, angry words, hate filled words being spat out in the name of religion, any religion, christianity included (and often the worst).

And yet, right here in James, we are told to keep a tight rein on our tongues and to not be polluted by the world.  I read that last part to say that in a perfect world, the one in which we might would find in the garden of Eden, we would all take care of one another and be kind and loving.

I realize we don't live in a perfect world, and that we all have free will to say and do whatever we please but that doesn't mean we should and if we are a religious person we definitely should NOT.

This is what I took away from my daily dose of James today.  I need to hold my tongue and chose my words carefully.  I need to speak words of love and care and I need to back up those words with my actions.

Just my two cents today.