Put a Lid on It

[soso]

Put a Lid on It
Sharon Jaynes

Today’s Truth

Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark (James 3:5, NIV).

Friend to Friend
From the time I could hold a crayon/ in my chubby little hand, I’ve enjoyed creating various works of art. For my family and friends, my annual endeavors usually found their way /under the Christmas tree and into their hands. One year it was macramé hanging plant holders /woven with wooden beads. Another it was a menagerie of decoupage wooden boxes. Then there were the years of framed cross-stitch, ceramic Nativity sets, and quilted pig and chicken pillows. (Can I apologize now /to any of my friends //who received a stuffed pig or chicken pillow?)

When I was 17, it was the year of the candle. Everyone from Grandma Edwards to my best girlfriends received praying hands candles. For weeks I slaved /over a hot stove, stirring [melted wax], meticulously centering the ten-inch wicks, and then slowly pouring the red, green, or yellow molten material /into an inverted mold /in the shape of praying hands. When the wax hardened, I burped the rubber mold and plopped the hands /onto the counter. My kitchen looked like a prostheses laboratory with hands /littering the counters.

* burp; 따독거려 나오게하다

v.tr.

To cause (a baby) to expel gas from the stomach, as by patting the back after feeding.

I was just cooking up my last batch of wax/ when the doorbell rang. I was having so much fun /in my laboratory, that I forgot the time. I had a date at 7:30, and here I was in pink curlers and a paraffin-covered sweatshirt. I rushed /through the kitchen, leaped over my dad, who had fallen asleep /on the den floor /in front of the television, and threw open the door.

“Hi, Jim. Come on in,” I said, out of breath. “I’m not ready.”

“So I noticed,” he said with a grin.

“I was cooking candles and lost track of time.”

“You were what?”

“Oh, never mind. Just come on in and have a seat /on the couch. I’ll be ready in a minute.”

I dashed /to my room, change clothes, took the curlers /our of my hair, ran a brush /through the tangles, swiped mascara /through my lashes, and placed a hint of gloss /on my lips.

Jim sat /uncomfortably /on the sofa, listening to my dad snore and Jackie Gleason yell at Ralph Kramden. After about 15 minutes Jim smelled something /burning from the kitchen. He didn’t want to call me /for fear of waking up my dad. (Teenage boys don’t like to wake up their date’s dad /if they can help it.) Instead, he tiptoed /into the kitchen and discovered a pot on the stove /with flames /shooting up about 18 inches in the air.

Sleeping dad or no sleeping dad, Jim yelled, “Sharon! [Whatever you were cooking] is on fire!”

“Oh my goodness!” I exclaimed. “I forgot to turn the stove off!”

Just as I burst /into the kitchen, Jim threw a cup of water /into the flaming wax. Rather than extinguish the flames, the fire exploded /upward. The flames shot /up the wall, across the ceiling, and down the other side of the room. Our screams alerted my father, who woke /to see his baby girl/ standing in a room /surrounded by flames. With the agility of Superman, Dad sprang /to his feet, ran /to the kitchen /faster than a speeding bullet, grabbed the lid of the pot, and clamped it down /on the source of the flames. Just as quickly as the fire had erupted, it seemed to recede back /into the pot/ like a genie returning to his bottle.

This all happened in a matter of seconds. We stood /in the middle of the room /like three stunned deer. I never did tell my dad that it was Jim //who threw the water /on the burning wax. Teenage boys already have two strikes /against them /just by walking through the doors /to pick up a man’s baby girl.

After the shock of the incident wore off, I had time /to reflect /on the speed //at which the flames blazed /around the room, the feeling of fire/ licking against my skin, the terrifying swooshing sound () the fire made.

I thought /about my words and how easily they can explode and singe those around me. I saw and understood the destructive power of our words and the speed //at which that destruction can spread.

But you know [what else I learned]? I learned just [how easy it is to stop the blaze…put a lid on it].

As soon as my father placed a lid on the pot and removed the flames’ source of oxygen, the fire went out.

Job had the right idea /when he said, “I will put my hand /over my mouth” (Job 40:4).

It is interesting that my hand fits perfectly /over my mouth. Give it a try.

I bet () yours does too. Perhaps God made it that way /on purpose.

Here’s [what I do know]:

[Some of the most powerful words] are the ones () we don’t speak. Sometimes we just need to keep a lid on it.

Let’s Pray
Dear Lord, set a guard over my mouth. Keep watch over the door of my lips. May nothing escape my mouth today that is not pleasing to You.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen.