A Malaysian court has ruled that using derogatory and vulgar language about your superiors at work is acceptable, as long as you do it behind their backs. The Industrial Court ruled in the case of a secretary who was fired because she sent e-mail from the office computer to several friends, griping about her superiors.

In a twelve-page statement, the court said, "The court agrees that if derogatory, insolent, and impertinent (words) are used toward the superior officers directly it would construe a serious misconduct on the part of (the woman)". The court added, "But if those words or language are only used behind their backs and only between a few friends it would not be a misconduct. Those words are not meant to be heard by the senior officers." The court compared the woman's comments about her superiors to tea room chitchat. Though the court awarded back wages and compensation, the court said the company did not have to give the woman her job back because the trust between her and her employers had been broken.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061208/ap_onfe_st/abusing_bosses_2.. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

James 3:8-10 (HCSB) "but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. [9] With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men who are made in God's likeness. [10] Out of the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things should not be this way."

Along a windswept hill in a cemetery in Ireland is a tombstone with the following inscription: "Here rests in silent clay Mrs. Arabella Young/ Who on the 21st of May/ Began to hold her tongue.

One day, our tongue like Arabella Young's will cease to move, but in the mean time, the question remains, what will we do with it? Will we use it to praise God, proclaim his Name among the nations, encourage the fainthearted, or tell someone that we love them? Or will we use it to curse, blaspheme, spread discord, rumors and gossip?

Don't fall into the trap of thinking that what we say doesn't matter. It does. The tongue may be small, but it is powerful. And what we do with it does matter.

Proverbs 6:16-19 KJV "These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: [17] A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, [18] An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, [19] A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren."

More tapes from the days of Richard Nixon were released the first week of March 2002. On one tape, Billy Graham was heard telling President Richard Nixon that Jews had a "stranglehold" on the American media which needed to be broken because it was controlling the country.

Graham apologized for his remarks right away. He did not deny them, but said he could not recall making them. Though many people were shocked, no one considers Billy Graham a bigot. Most people will forgive Graham because of his spotless record. However, syndicated columnist Cal Thomas says this 30-year-old example is a reminder that "Political power can be corrupting and can even seduce the clergy."

In his commentary, Thomas asks an important question. "Who of us has not made a remark which, if recorded, might prove embarrassing?" He challenges believers who speak of revival to take their eyes off of Washington, and focus on personal renewal.

Controlling our speech is a lingering challenge for every person-even righteous people.

—http://news.crosswalk.com, Religion Takes Several Hits, March 5, 2002, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

James 3:6 NIV "The tongue is also a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell."

While America and the world focused on the Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, a wayward cow captured the attention of Cincinnati Ohio. The animal escaped from a slaughterhouse by jumping a six foot fence and then eluded police and animal control authorities for more than a week by hiding in a local park.

Harold Dates, the general manager of the Cincinnati SPCA said, "The problem is, this is a free range cow that isn't going to come to any human. And when you weigh 1,200 pounds, you can pretty much go anywhere you want to go." Papers and other news outlets chronicled the hooved fugitive's bid for freedom daily, until it was captured February 26th in the backyard of an area home.

The cow was given a permanent reprieve and taken to a local farm, instead of being returned to the meat packing company.

If a 1200 pound cow can escape by jumping a six-foot fence, how difficult is it for our tongues to get out of control? Even when we think we have our speech restrained, the tongue can suddenly break out and run rampant, inflicting damage and injury on the people around us.

—www.enquirer.com ( The Cincinnati Enquirer), February 27, 2002. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

James 3:7 NIV. "All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue."

An errant Valentine's gift caused a lot of sparks in an Indiana town. A heart-shaped metallic Mylar balloon drifted into an electrical substation and knocked out power to 2,100 customers. Phil Miller, general manager of the local utility company said the balloon was trailing a wet string, which caused a short in a bank of capacitors used to store electrical charges within the city's power transmission network.

Miller said the balloon had the words, 'I Love You' printed on it. He said, "It looks like someone didn't hold onto their Valentine's gift tightly enough. He added the balloon, "didn't look too pretty when we pulled it out of there." Power was restored within an hour.

—Associated Press, Valentine's Day balloon knocks out power to 2,100 people, February 16,2005. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

It is amazing the amount of damage a small thing like a Mylar balloon can do—which is why we have to be in control of everything in our lives—even small things like our tongue.

James 3:5-6 (NIV) "Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. [6] The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell."

Forty percent of the city of Phnom Penh, Cambodian lost their power when a 40-megawatt power plant south of the city short-circutited due to the mischief of a mouse about the size of one of your toes.

—http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2006-06-13T140932Z_01_BKK36971_RTRUKOC_0_US-CAMBODIA-MOUSE.xml Illustration by Jim L. Wilson

In this instance, it was a small thing that created a large problem. Actually, the same is true every day. Think about the amount of problems that you've encountered in your life that were created by something as small as your tongue.

James 3:5-6 "In the same way the tongue is a small part of the body, but it can brag about doing important things. A large forest can be set on fire by a little flame. [6] The tongue is that kind of flame. It is a world of evil among the parts of our bodies, and it completely contaminates our bodies. The tongue sets our lives on fire, and is itself set on fire from hell." (GW)

The town council of the Dutch village of Staphorst has approved a ban stating that its residents can no longer take the name of the Lord in vain. They passed the ordinance despite earlier rulings in that country holding that such regulations could be a violation of the right to free speech. When the council voted 13-4 to enact the ban, they recognized that the ordinance might be hard to enforce because Dutch law does not ban swearing when it is an expression of the constitutional freedom of speech.

Staphorst is located in an area known as the Dutch "bible-belt' where the Bible carries a lot of weight. One other town in the region has a ban on swearing. When they passed the regulation, the town council proposal said, "a ban on swearing can be seen as a signal." They added a change in moral values was needed to address the underlying problem. In addition to swearing bans, the Dutch association against swearing is currently running a national billboard campaign admonishing the Dutch to avoid the use of foul language.

—Reuters, Bible belt town bans blasphemy. June 2, 2005. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

James 1:26 (NKJV) "If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is useless."

A story labeled as an April Fool’s Joke drew a lot of nationwide attention and resulted in a retraction and apologies from Car and Driver magazine. On April 1, 2009, the magazine published a story on their website stating President Barak Obama had ordered Chevrolet and Dodge to pull out of their NASCAR sponsorships to save money. Since the White House had been involved in removing the CEO of General Motors a few days earlier, many media outlets took the story at face value and spread it. The resulting comments and fear forced Car and Driver to remove the story from the website.

In the retraction, the magazine claimed a "proud tradition of irreverent editorial and we amplify that each year with our April Fools' Day joke." Not everyone took such as light view of the story. Longtime racing public relations representative Denny Darnell of Darnell Communications said, "I've been in this business more than 30 years and I have never seen a story so irresponsible. It cannot be passed off as a joke.”

Car and Driver’s NASCAR joke retracted; http://www.myndytv.com/dpp/strange_news/strange/offbeat_dpgo_car_driver_obama_joke_lwf_0401092291654; April 2, 2009, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell

Be careful what you say, and what you repeat.

James 3:8 CEV But our tongues get out of control. They are restless and evil, and always spreading deadly poison.

As fire fighters began to get the upper hand on the huge Station Fire in Southern California, they learned the fire was arson. Investigators originally thought the huge fire had been started by lightning or another accidental cause. The fire destroyed dozens of homes and blackened over 148,250 acres, the equivalent of 232 square miles. The new evidence also turned the investigation into a homicide probe because two firefighters died while fighting the blaze.

Investigators say evidence at the Station Fire’s point of origin indicated the wildfire, the largest in the history of Los Angeles County, was arson. Sources say incendiary materials were discovered along a highway cutoff in the foothills north of Los Angeles. Though they did not elaborate due to the ongoing investigation, sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore said, “We believe that this was caused by someone intending to set a fire.”

This fire is a tragedy, but it also points to James’ illustration of the power of the tongue. Why would anyone intentionally commit such a destructive act? Be careful with your words, even an accidental slip can do great damage.

Station Fire Ruled Arson, Homicide Probe Launched, (updated Gov. Offers $100K Reward For Arrest Of Arsonist), http://cbs2.com/local/containment.FIRE.Watch.2.1163650.html, September 4, 2009; Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

James 3:5-6 (CEV) Our tongues are small too, and yet they brag about big things. It takes only a spark to start a forest fire! The tongue is like a spark. It is an evil power that dirties the rest of the body and sets a person's entire life on fire with flames that come from hell itself.

A southern California golfer is a good example of how a small spark can start a big blaze. The man was golfing at the Shady Canyon Golf Course in Irvine, and accidentally chipped his ball into the rough beside the fairway. On his next swing, his club hit a rock, which caused a small spark. The spark landed in the dry grass and set the rough on fire. Fire officials say 150 firefighters were called to battle the fire that quickly spread through vegetation next to the course and over two dry, brushy hillsides nearby. Authorities said the man, who was not identified, would not be charged.

--Golfer’s Swing snags rock, sparks fire in S. Calif, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100831/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_golf_fire, August 31, 2010, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

James 3:6 (CEV) “The tongue is like a spark. It is an evil power that dirties the rest of the body and sets a person's entire life on fire with flames that come from hell itself.”

Yahoo video clip news revealed that a postman threw a parcel box into the addressee's house compound and the antique contents were damaged. His negligence is on display for the world to see.

The same happens when we make an angry post on Facebook. What we do in the privacy of our living room suddenly is on display for our family, future employers and the world to see.

But long before technology magnified the power of the tongue, it was able to do mass destruction.

--http://tv.yahoo.com/daytime/usps-delivery-gone-wrong-27941614.html Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Bawm Luk Lagwi

James 3:5 (ESV) 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!

Linguists from around the world are rushing to get a recording of Gyani Sen. The seventy-five-year-old woman is the last fluent native speaker of a language that could soon disappear. Sen speaks Kusunda, a unique tongue spoken only in Nepal. The language is known as a language isolate because linguists cannot find any other spoken language like it. Kusunda does not have a written alphabet, so the only hope of saving it and perhaps one day classifying the language is to record Sen as she speaks and describes her memories of how the speech has been used.

Linguists say many other languages around the world are rapidly disappearing because younger people are choosing to learn broader global languages rather than maintain their native tongue. Researchers have created a scale to classify how endangered a language is. A “safe” language is one that they believe will be spoken by children 100 years from now. An “endangered language” is not likely to be spoken by children 100 years in the future. Languages like Kusunda are considered “moribund” because there are no children currently learning it or speaking it. When the last native speaker of a language dies, that tongue officially becomes extinct. –Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell

Obscure language isolate will die with this woman, http://hotword.dictionary.com/kusunda; Acessed June 3, 2012.

Revelation 5:9-10 ESV And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth."

Seattle Seahawks player Richard Sherman, in an interview following their January 2014 playoff win over the San Francisco 49ers said, "I'm the best corner[back] in the game. When you try me with a sorry receiver like Crabtree, that's the result you going to get." Sherman’s rant sparked responses from sports fans and non-sports fans alike. Each rant seems only to build on the other’s anger over this young man’s passionate uplifting of himself and denigration of a fellow athlete. Sherman later acknowledged his comments were misdirected or immature. --Jim L. Wilson and Ron Williams

-- http://www.huffingtonpost.com/isaac-saul/what-richard-sherman-taught-us_b_4631980.html
-- http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/richard-sherman-on-tirade-i-wasn-t-committing-any-crimes-012214?related=db72bcc2-9032-49ba-a513-b124f158ce37

Words spoken in the passion of the moment, are irretrievable, so tame your tongue by guarding your heart long before you speak.

James 3:8-12 (ESV) but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. (9) With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. (10) From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. (11) Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? (12) Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

In the United States, cigarettes are responsible for a quarter of fire related deaths and over half the fatalities in residential fires. Typically, cigarettes cause localized burns. But when cigarettes come into contact with certain materials and are allowed to smolder, in an instant the whole room can catch fire, burning down entire houses and claiming the lives of those inside. —Jim L. Wilson and Jonathan Sheng

James 3:5 (CSB) “So too, though the tongue is a small part of the body, it boasts great things. Consider how a small fire sets ablaze a large forest.”

A study by researchers at the University of California—Riverside found that people spend almost an hour a day gossiping. They also discovered that most of what is said is not necessarily negative. Researchers had 467 people wear portable recorders that picked up parts of their conversations over a period of two to five days. The recordings were analyzed for overall gossip content. They found that the average person gossips 52 minutes a day, but only 15% of that gossip was negative. The majority of the gossip was neutral focusing on more information based topics such as a friend’s job, or cancer treatment. The study found younger people tend to use negative gossip more and women tend to gossip more than men, even though the topics tend to be more neutral for women. They found people generally gossip more about people they know than celebrities, and undereducated people tend to gossip less than educated people. The study’s authors said, “These naturalistic observation findings dispel some stereotypes about this prevalent yet misunderstood behavior.” —Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2019/05/13/people-gossip-52-minutes-each-day-average-study-shows/1192549001/

Proverbs 26:20 (CSB)“Without wood, fire goes out; without a gossip, conflict dies down.”