Taming the tongue

"Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble." Proverbs 21:23
"There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." Proverbs 12: 18. 
"Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!"  Psalm 14:13




All these scripture passages say the same thing, if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. How many of you had your mother or father tell you that at some point in your life. I know I had my parents tell me all the time. I tell my children the same. However what do you do when another adult doesn't follow the scripture or what their parents told them. How do you react? Do you "take the high road" as my dad always told me? Or do you lash back with a snip or a quip of your own. How many times do you "take the high" road before you wonder why you are still taking this road that obviously doesn't lead you where you want to go.  Most people that know me well don't think I take the high road very often. That is the problem with being silent. No one knows when you've been hurt, offended or crushed by someones comments.  Don't get me wrong, I believe taking the high road is the way to go. I encourage my children to do it, even if it crushes me inside because I know what the other person said to them was extremely hurtful or down right rude but I smile and say, "don't worry about it". What am I teaching my children. Am I teaching them not to stand up for themselves or am I teaching them a valuable lesson about life, that even though people can be hurtful, you will survive and thrive by being the nice one. At what point do you stand up and express your feelings to the person who crushed you. Would it even matter? Maybe that person believes he/she didn't do anything wrong and therefore has no reason to apologize.  Am I overreacting? How do you call someone on something when you know down to the depths of your soul it won't matter or worse yet, you will cause them pain that can be avoided by taking the high road. 
It's usually always good to take the high road, according to society, the Bible and decent folks everywhere. Just remember this, taking the high road will eventually get you where you want to be. With the one who will take care of you, protect you from pain and love you unconditionally. 
(I just have to keep telling myself that to believe it right! )