How Do You Keep a Rein on Your Tongue?

From the Book of Proverbs to the Gospels to James, Scripture devotes significant attention to the tongue and its dangers. Though small, the tongue boasts of great things and can set fire to the entire course of life (James 3:5–6). So how can Christians tame their tongues and guard against its perils?

In this new nine-minute roundtable, Jen Wilkin, Jackie Hill Perry, and Nancy Guthrie help us consider specific ways to control what we say. Wilkin shares a personal method she uses to control her speech; Guthrie reflects on the role of pride and the power of the Spirit to help us conquer our mouths, and Perry considers how to foster a love for God and others.

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Whether at church or in our homes, our words have the power to bless and to curse, to create and to destroy.

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Nancy Guthrie teaches the Bible at her home church, Cornerstone Presbyterian Church, in Franklin, Tennessee, as well as at conferences around the country and internationally, including through her Biblical Theology Workshop for Women. She is the author of numerous books and the host of the Help Me Teach the Bible podcast from The Gospel Coalition. She and her husband founded Respite Retreats for couples who have faced the death of a child, and they’re cohosts of the GriefShare video series.

Jen Wilkin is an author and Bible teacher from Dallas, Texas. She has organized and led studies for women in home, church, and parachurch contexts. An advocate for Bible literacy, her passion is to see others become articulate and committed followers of Christ, with a clear understanding of why they believe what they believe, grounded in the Word of God. You can find her at JenWilkin.net.

Jackie Hill Perry is a spoken word poet and hip-hop artist and the author of Gay Girl, Good God: The Story of Who I Was, and Who God Has Always Been. She and her husband, Preston, have three daughters.