“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.” Proverb 23:21

The story is told of a mother who was once eating a fish. A fish bone went the wrong direction in her throat. Under the pain, she beckoned to her little daughter to bring her a cup of water. At her age, little did the girl know about what her mother was going through. Hence, instead of rushing to satisfy her mother, she continued to play carelessly. The mother eventually managed to get water by herself and, out of anger, told the innocent girl “People have children so they can help them. Though I have you, you have proven useless. May you not have a child in your life”

I don’t know what kind of anger can bring a mother to ‘prophecy’ such outrageously bad thing on her daughter. Years passed and a couple of decades later, the girl was old enough and got married. For years, her husband and she had been looking for a child and could have none. They tried everything they could until it crossed their mind to visit a man of God. He started praying with them and suddenly received the revelation that what the lady was experiencing was but the consequence of something her mother said many years back. They went to the mother and asked her, but she seldom could remember anything. After days of reflection under the atmosphere of prayer, she eventually recalled those words she pronounced when her daughter was still a child. The mother was shocked to see how something she said out of anger could have that negative impact on her daughter’s life even after decades. They had to get the mother to cancel the curse she carelessly pronounced on her child before the lady could take in and give birth. Now, let’s imagine that the mother was no longer alive then!

As easy as speaking can be, beloved, let’s watch over our tongues so we don’t use that two-edged sword against ourselves or our loved ones. The Bible says in Matthew 12:37: “For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned” May our own words not draw condemnation and curse upon our lives or upon the lives of our loved ones. A special note to parents, anytime you feel angry, please, the best thing to do is to hold your peace lest you say something on your children that will negatively alter their destiny. Remain blessed!