2 When the Lord began to speak through Hosea… Hosea 1:2a (NIV)
I was in the 4th grade. My friend Danny Oftidal and I decided to enter the Ernie Pyle School Talent Show. What was our act, you ask? Ventriloquism: the art or practice of speaking, with little or no lip movement, in such a manner that the voice does not appear to come from the speaker but from another source, as from a wooden dummy. The try outs were intense. There were plenty of break dancing acts (what do you expect, it was the 80’s), singing, dancing, a baton act, a guy with jokes, but no ventriloquist act. We were a shoe in. What’s a kid’s talent show without a subpar ventriloquist act with bad jokes? So me, my friend, and our two dummies attempted to dazzle the judges and we did! All 4 of us were able to share out “talent” with the whole school for a special assembly and that evening before all our parents for a special talent show night. We had so much fun.
When I got home I put Red, my dummy on the bed as if he was sleeping. He had a big night. But then I had this eerie thought as I looked at his happy, painted on face: Did he just move? It looked like he did. Then the next thought: If he starts talking to me I’m gonna wet myself. I was scared. As I looked at him more, I realized I couldn’t trust that happy painted on face. What evil was he hiding behind that smile? It didn’t take long for me to grab him and throw him in his case. But here’s the truth: Red can’t talk without someone talking for him. And I wish we were the same. We have little control over what falls out of our mouth at times. Then we wish we could take it back. We can’t. The tongue is a fire, uncontrollable. Yet here we read, “When the Lord began to speak through Hosea…” Imagine the wonderful things that would come out of a mouth surrendered to God’s use: Hope, faith, insight, answers, prophesy, God’s very Words bringing life changing truths to those around you. I’ve said it many times: This world is aching for a Word from the Lord. People are looking for answers. And you can be a “dummy” for God (that doesn’t sound as good as I thought it would).
Questions to consider:
Why is the tongue hard to control?
What does surrendering your tongue to the Lord look like?
What’s the benefit?
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