“Mom, your breath stinks!”
I thought we were having a cuddle. A sweet over coffee and while watching the TV news… cuddle. The sun wasn’t quite up. My coffee was hot, we were still in our jammies, that’s when the little guy said it.
“Mom, your bweaf stinks”
“What?” asked the jammie (ok ratty sweats tank clad ) mom.
“You know— what comes from your mouth, your bweaf, it stinks.” He clarified.
Translation: from 4 year old to English:
“Mom, you need a “tic-tac.” Or something like that.
The worst part? He was probably right. Oh sure….. lots of excuses, “it was early, I had too much coffee, hadn’t brushed yet….” But he was right, probably in a lot of ways.
Lately, a lot of what has been coming out of my mouth, “stinks”. I’ve short tempered and long winded. Not a good combination. I’m tired, I’m frustrated, a little overwhelmed, and well, I’ve been yelling.
That stinks. I wish I could say that I’ve been yelling praises, or yelling prayers. NOPE. Just good old yelling at people. Yelling to clean up, yelling to hurry up.
Oh.. I have excuses.. stress, traveling husband, issues, frustrations. Too much coffee, staying in my jammies til 2 and waiting to brush my teeth til I shower….
But in the end? Noah’s (My little guy) right. I have bad breath. Not exactly what God has in mind for His believers and followers.
2Cor 2:14-15
“But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. “
The aroma of Christ? Not lately, not at home, where it matters most.
What SHOULD be coming out of my mouth?
Ephesian 4:29
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”
Orbit Gum has a ridiculous, and totally unscriptural commercial….it shows “Snoop Dawg” a “potty mouthed” rapper, being sucked to hell, where is is given “Orbit” to clean his mouth, and is promptly sent to “heaven”. The tag line for the commercial is “Fresh breath, No matter what”.
I think they make a point, ( just not the one they intended) we all need a mouth cleaning on occasion. And excuses aside, we want sweet truth and love to flow from our mouths. No-matter what.
My goal is- that what comes out of my breath would be fresh… no matter what. But,
like Snoop Dawg… I’m gonna need some help.
The thing is, it’s not gum that’s going to do it for us. It’s not us, either, Lord knows I’ve tried to tame this mouth.
It’s God. If I need something and don’t have it, it’s usually because I haven’t asked for it.
James 4:2
2You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.
I need help with my mouth… how bout you? Do you need help? Me too… let’s ask.
Dear Jesus, I want the words of my mouth to always be building others up… to speak the truth in love, no matter what. God- I need your help, and I ask you to change my heart, so that what flow out of it, and through my mouth would bring you glory and honor and praise- I love you Lord- and am so thankful that you love me, bad bweaf and all…amen
Thank you so much for this post, I can so relate. I hope it is ok that I linked it from my blogg. Anessa
oh I just loved reading this post, I go through the same thing with my dh and kids. What comes out of my mouth is what makes me unclean and that means words, thoughts and all. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Oh My! This is me, and funnily enough my five year old announced that she didn’t approve of my breath the other morning. Lol. But I have a problem with speaking before I think and for raising my voice at home rather too often. Thanks for this wonderful and much needed reminder! :o)
Lol, that was supposed to be a smiley face, looks like he’s shouting – how appropriate 😉
I usually find my kids are great about showing me spiritual truths, when I least expect them. Great Post!