Complaining

“For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things stored up in him.“ Matthew 12:34b-35

I love using the dictionary even on words I know the meaning to. It seems to bring such a visual for me. So, lets start with a definition.
Overflow means to fill a space to capacity and spread beyond its limits.

I was at a restaurant the other evening and as I was filling my drink, the tray began to overflow because their was a problem with the machine. But if you know me, I was making a little scene and quickly told a worker. It did catch others attention due to my excitement … I mean come on, water was flowing everywhere. Would it have gotten my attention and everyone else’s if it weren’t overflowing? No! I would have filled my drink and I wouldn’t even remember the incident.

What overflows is definitely seen, whether good or bad.

Our heart is my personality, disposition, the emotional or moral as distinguished from the intellectual nature, one’s innermost character, the central or innermost part, the center.

Disposition is our temperamental makeup, the tendency of something to act in a certain manner under given circumstances mood, prevailing tendency, or inclination.

What is my tendency? How do I normally respond to situations? At home? Is it different than when around others? Who am I when no one look? Do I desire to change the way I respond to situations?

The mouth speaks..

Whatever is in my heart, whether good or bad, will overflow in the way I live my life, the words I say. It will get the attention of others, especially my children.

Good heart = good lifestyle

Bad heart = bad lifestyle

What do I store in my heart? Do I have my heart filled with God’s Word? Do I create an atmosphere for my children to have their heart filled with God’s Word? Do I fill their heart with things of this world? Do I fill their heart with too much tv? What do I expose my children to? Their actions will overflow with what’s in their heart. What is in their heart is a combination of all the things they experience. Only God’s Word can truly transform their hearts. But we have to have renewal time in Jesus.

We can’t solve our heart issues by cleaning up our speech and actions. We must follow the Holy Spirit to lead us to new attitudes and motives. When this happens, my life is cleansed at the source.
　

　

　

Final Thoughts on Anger

It is amazing how there are so many opportunities to get angry with our children. BUT the more time I spend in God's Word, the more peace He creates within me. The more peace He creates within me, the more peace my children tend to have. So, I must be a in the Word allowing Him to work through me!

 Does that mean that I never have trouble keeping my tone lower and speaking with gentleness (Proverbs 15:1)? From being quick tempered and displaying folly (Proverbs 14:29)? No, but that just means that I have God working through me. Colossians 2:10 says that "I have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority." So Christs' power in me can help me to overcome these things that try to consume me and lead me to tear down my children and stop them from being all that God created them to be.

One final thought, "It always protects. always trust, always hopes, always perseveres." 1 Corinthians 13:7