“ME AND MY BIG MOUTH!”
I have said those five words before, and my guess is that many of you have done the same. Maybe we have said them when we “let the cat out of the bag.” Perhaps we heard others say them after they volunteered to help in some way, then to their regret, those that heard them offer their assistance immediately took them up on the offer. Or, it may be that we have said, “Me and my big mouth” on some occasion when we blurted something out that unnecessarily hurt someone’s feelings or revealed an unexpected, unpleasant truth. However, simply exclaiming, “Me and my big mouth” does not really remedy anything, does it?
Consider some truths that each of us should strive to learn and remember about the expression, often made with a voice of disappointment in self, “Me and my big mouth.”
1) We need to think before we speak. If we would develop this habit, we would less often be compelled to think to ourselves, “Me and my big mouth.” Proverbs 29:20 states, “Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? There is more hope of a fool than of him.” Does not James 1:19 exhort us to be “slow to speak?”
2) We need to avoid boasting in our speech. If we brag about our knowledge, ability, or experience, and someone calls our hand on it or challenges us, we could be quite embarrassed by the outcome. “Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift is like clouds and wind without rain” (Prov. 25:14). If we do not use our tongue to boast, then we can cut down the number of times when we feel like saying, “Me and my big mouth.” A boasting tongue comes from a proud heart, and,“Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD” (Proverbs 16:5).
3) If someone is going to control my tongue, it is going to be me. Others can exhort me and may even attempt to place restrictions on my speech, but when all is said and done, only I can keep my tongue in place. Jesus taught that if our hand, foot, or eye offends us by causing us to sin, then we should “cut if off” or “pluck it out” (Mark 9:43; Mark 9:45; Mark 9:47). Would that principle not apply to the tongue as well? If our tongue causes us to sin, then we need to “cut if off,” not by literally removing it from our body, but by taking whatever measures might be needed to keep it under control. We all recognize just how difficult it can be to keep our tongue in check. If we have gotten ourselves into trouble by opening our “big mouth,” then we must work diligently to discipline our speech over an extended period of time so that people will eventually be able to say, “He/she used to be a real big mouth, but not anymore.”
4) We should not make promises or commitments that we will be unable or unwilling to keep. We may at times be inclined to pledge that we will do something out of a desire to please others or else just to “get them out of our hair.” Our personal character is only as good as our integrity. “God is faithful” because, when He speaks, mankind can count on His fulfillment of that which He has stated. Are you and I known as people of integrity, whose word is dependable and whose word is their bond?
5) If I see I have a problem with my tongue, if I know that I am perceived to be a big mouth or speak loudly and non-stop, it is not something to try and laugh off. No, it is a matter that I must try to correct. “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin [sin is not lacking, NKJV]: but he that refraineth his lips is wise” (Proverbs 10:19). How we use our tongues is a matter of choice. That is right, you and I choose how we speak. If others form an opinion about us based solely on how we speak, then let us speak in such a way that they can truthfully perceive us to be people that speak with grace, seasoned with salt (Colossians 4:6), not as folks that have to constantly mutter, “Me and my big mouth.”
6) Control of the tongue begins in the heart/mind. Putting the clamps on a “big mouth” begins with proper thinking. “…Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things” (Matthew 12:34-35).
7) It is harmful to the reputation of the local church when a child of God is known as “a big mouth.” That description is often made of one that has a pattern of speaking loudly or non-stop. Am I “a big mouth?” If so, I am likely hindering the good name of the congregation of which I am a member. All of us need to work to show ourselves to be blameless, harmless, and without rebuke as we “shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15-16). If I have been a big mouth in the past, I need to learn to “tone it down.”
With more self-discipline, all of us can cut down on the number of times we are moved to say, “Me and my big mouth.” Surely all would admit that our physical mouth is not big one day and little the next. No, our speech is not at all about the size of our physical mouth, be it large or small. It is about the heart from which our words come. When it comes to our speech, let us take great care and proceed with caution. May each of us strive to use our tongue as an instrument of blessing rather than cursing (James 3:10).