James 1:2-8 – “My brothers and sisters, consider it nothing but joy when you fall into all sorts of trials, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  ⁴ And let endurance have its perfect effect, so that you will be perfect and complete, not deficient in anything.  ⁵ But if anyone is deficient in wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without reprimand, and it will be given to him.  ⁶ But he must ask in faith without doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed around by the wind.  ⁷ For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord, ⁸ since he is a double-minded individual, unstable in all his ways.”

As I was reading, praying, and musing on the Word of God today, a thought kept echoing in the corridors of my mind – “Unfiltered, Unaltered, and Uncontrolled.“

The Book of James echoes a truth that the Bible is filled with—our words.  Words are expressions of thought.  Words are the fruit of contemplation, meditation, consideration, and examination.  Unfiltered words are evidence of uncommitted and uncontrolled hearts.

James 1:8 speaks of double-mindedness, which means having two hearts, two loyalties, or two visions.  That produces deadly instability, robs of faith, and makes obedience difficult if not impossible.  There can only be one controlling influence in our lives.   If we are divided, living lives driven by our desires, we are uncontrolled, and our tongue is unfiltered.

James said in James 3:2 – “In many things, we stumble.  Anyone who does not offend in word, this one is a perfect (mature, complete, whole) man and able also to subdue his whole body.”   If the tongue is unfiltered, it is evidence of a divided heart.   A divided heart lacks commitment and surrender.  It is driven by selfishness, following the desires of the flesh.

It is impossible to ask (pray and petition) effectively if our hearts are uncontrolled and our tongues unfiltered.  The loose tongue is the outward evidence of inward thoughts, evidence of a divided heart.

If God is first in All Things, others become extremely important to us because they are to him.    Some say, “I just tell it like it is.”   But the reality is they speak with an unfiltered tongue, evidencing an undisciplined heart that has not fully surrendered to Christ in ALL THINGS.   It is double-mindedness, and that is reflected in the unfiltered, uncontrolled tongue.

“Why aren’t my prayers answered?”   Maybe, just maybe, it is connected to the tongue, which reflects the surrender or lack thereof of the heart.  Perhaps it reveals a measure of selfishness that needs to be crucified.

James 4:7 gives a pattern for victory and answered prayer.  Submit to God (give Him EVERYTHING).   Resist the devil (give him NOTHING).  Draw near to God (take the time to fellowship with Him).  Put aside known sin and ask God to reveal hidden sin.   Purify the heart by commitment and surrender.   Focus on Who God is and thereby realize our insignificance, which produces humility.   THEN, God steps in, takes over, and victory comes.

Unfiltered tongues reveal an unaltered life that is uncontrolled.  Victory is in total surrender of Everything!    The tongue is a barometer of the heart.    It reveals what we need to do.   If it is unfiltered, we need to place it on the altar of surrender.   Victory is ours if we surrender totally!

May the LORD be with you, guide every word you speak, and let them be life-producing seeds!