Last week, a woman in Edinburgh, Scotland, pleaded guilty to biting off part of a man's tongue during a quarrel and spitting it on the ground. A seagull dashed down and grabbed the tongue before flying away! The worst thing is that the two people did not know each other at all before the incident. They walked past each other in the street before an argument ensued. It ended in the tongue-biting episode.

 

Shocking, right? Yet we also act in strange ways at times if we do not control our anger and choose self-control in challenging situations. Is it easy to turn the other cheek, to not take offense in situations where you feel you have every right to do so or to remain silent when you know your words will ignite further anger? No. It's incredibly difficult and yet it is possible.

 

In Matthew 5: 9, Jesus says, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”It is also written in Proverbs 15: 1: “A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.” And in Proverbs 16:32 we read: “Better to be patient than powerful; better to have self-control than to conquer a city.”

 

To make peace, to turn the other cheek, to choose not to take offense and to end conflict with a soft word, does not make you "weak". It rather demonstrates how strong you are because of the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life – after all, self-control is a fruit of the spirit.

 

Let us ask God to fill us anew with His Holy Spirit so that we too can escape any “tongue-biting” episodes in our lives! God bless.

 

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