Proverbs 18: 3-4, 6-8, 12-13, 20-21

3  When wickedness comes, so does contempt, and with shame comes reproach.

4  The words of the mouth are deep waters, but the fountain of wisdom is a rushing stream.

6  The lips of fools bring them strife, and their mouths invite a beating.

7  The mouths of fools are their undoing, and their lips are a snare to their very lives.

8  The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts.

12  Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

13  To answer before listening— that is folly and shame.

20  From the fruit of their mouth a person’s stomach is filled; with the harvest of their lips they are satisfied.

21  The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.

Prayer

The Lord our Father in heaven, we praise you. You created man in your own image. You are the Lord of all things, for you spoke and it came to be. We marvel at the power of your words. Thank you for being generous by giving us great power in the tongue so that we can verbalize our thoughts. Looking at the universe, we are even more amazed by the wisdom of your creation. The heavens can utter praises without words: telling your glory, proclaiming your greatness and witnessing your rich deeds. You also imparted this great power to us, enabling us to use words to record our thinking and even express our spirit with the language of our bodies.

Lord Jesus, please forgive our sins. Forgive us for despising the free will you gave us; turning blessings into curses; devoting our bodies to sins as tools of unrighteousness; condoning contempt, shame and insults that pollute the source of life. We become blind to justice and selflessness, only value ​​what we can see and no longer understand the true value of life. Even though we clearly know that anger, resentment and violence can never achieve God’s righteousness; we still hold onto them tightly and refuse to change. Lord Jesus, we ask you to save us from all these filth and overfull evil so we can have a gentle and upright heart to receive the way of life i.e. the Way that can save all our souls and lead us to eternal life.

Holy Spirit, please walk with us. Please always remind us not to stir up disputes, not to speak evil or arrogant words, refrain from grievances or spreading lies; so we can defuse anger and not to bring harm to ourselves and others. Please teach us to be cautious in our words and deeds so we will not sin with our tongues. Especially when we insist on our own opinions and become argumentative, please gird our mouths with a bridle. Give us a well- instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary and to speak “only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs.” Under the pressure of the unresolved pandemic, rising racial antagonism and unscrupulous political lies; we beg you to have mercy on us, the innocent and the helpless, and console us so we can see that peace on earth is at hand.

We pray in the holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!

Article quoted from：Ohana prayer