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Hi there, boys and girls. Today I have another story for you. We are going to learn about some of the “Speaking Sins.” In James 3:10, the Bible tells us our mouths can bring blessings and cursings (bad things). We can use our tongues for talking that is pleasant and sharing and to praise God, the Father and His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, or we can use our tongues to put others down. “Gossip” is when we tell personal things about others. The Bible tells us not to be “busy bodies.” We need to control our tongues. “Maligning.” means we might like to hurt others by saying things about them that make them look bad. This could be a lie or the truth. These are both “Thinking Sins” which can run into “Speaking Sins.” When we judge others with our tongues, we can expect God to judge us in the same manner. This story is about Rita, a parrot who repeats all that she hears about others, and Nellie, the nosey elephant, who keeps her big trunk in everyone’s business. Lyle, the lying lion wears a crown which shows that he is King of the Jingle Jangle Jungle. However, when he lies, his crown keeps slipping off his head. So, on with our story. It was a hot day in the Jingle Jangle Jungle. Nellie, the nosey elephant and Rita, the repeating parrot were sitting under a shade tree discussing their problem with Lyle, the lying lion. “Lyle is king of the jungle,” agreed Rita. “But how can we respect him when he tells one lie after another?” “Ssh, careful, here he comes,” said Nellie. “He looks so strong and fearless, but every time he lies, his crown slips off his head.” When we find that those who are in authority aren’t perfect, what should we do? Discussing their sins isn’t the right thing. This sounds like judging others, doesn’t it? It is such an easy thing to do, but what does the Bible say about judging? James 4:11 tells us, “do not speak against one another or judge another believer.” We all sin because of our old sin nature that was handed down to us from Adam, but it is wrong to talk about others in a bad way. We should pay more attention to our own sins, and let God take care of the others. He is fair and has all the facts. But, let’s get back to our story. Lyle was listening to his iPod and humming along to the music. When he saw Nellie and Rita, he took his iPod from his ear and asked, “How are you gals doing today?’ “We’re a little warm right now,” answered Rita. “It is really hot today in the jungle.” Suddenly, there was a loud ringing sound. “What’s that?” asked Nellie. “Oh, it’s just my cell phone,” answered Rita. “I’m expecting a call from Mick, the monkey. There is a new gal who just moved here to the Jingle Jangle Jungle, and I am getting the scoop on her.” Nellie could hardly wait to hear about the new member. “What’s her name? Is she nice? Where is she from?” she wanted to know. “Whoa there Nellie,” said Lyle. “You are so curious about everyone. In time we will learn all about her, I’m sure.” “Hey, you guys! I can’t hear,” squawked Rita. Then holding her cell phone closer she said. “Really? Uh, huh, I see. Okay Mick. Thanks. Good bye.” “Rita!” complained Nellie. Before you start repeating all that you heard, tell us what Mick, the monkey said about the new gal. Now Lyle already knew some things about her, but pretended that he didn’t. “Well, Okay,” said Rita, becoming very excited. “Her name is Tillie, the tiger. She moved into Cave 24, down by the pond. Mick says she is very pretty, but thinks she may be a little stuck up.” Nellie thought about this for a minute, and then she said, “Well, if she is pretty, you can bet that she is probably a bit of a snob. Good looking gals seem to have that problem.” Oh, oh, children, do you see how easy it is to judge others even when you have never seen them? The Bible tells us in Proverbs 20: 19b, we are not to be around those who talk about others too freely. And in James 3:5b, it says, “The tongue is a small thing, but what a lot of damage it can do. So let’s get on with our story. Lyle waited for their talking to end, and then he changed the subject by asking, “Who won the spelling bee on Jungle Day?” “Oh, Mick, the monkey won easily,” answered Nellie. “You know how he is always on his lap top computer learning so many things. He is quite the student.” “Well, I am a good speller, and I’m sure I would have won the spelling bee, but I was sick that day,” Lyle said proudly as his crown fell right off his head to the ground. “We wondered why you didn’t show up for the spelling bee even though we know you aren’t a great speller,” said Nellie. “Are you Okay now? What kind of sickness did you have?” she asked. “I’m fine now,” Lyle answered as he picked up his crown and placed it on his head again. “That’s a lie! That’s a lie!” squawked Rita. “Why did you lie about being sick on Jungle Day?” Lyle looked very embarrassed. “What do you mean? What makes you think I lied?” he asked. “Oh,” answered Rita. “I have my ways of getting information about the other animals in the jungle. Mick was sitting down by the pond doing some research on his laptop, and he saw you with that new gal, Tillie, the tiger.” “Well, if you must know, I was helping Tillie move into Cave 24 on Second Street,” said Lyle looking very disgusted. “And I want you to know that she is very nice and thoughtful and not stuck on herself at all.” “Oh, boy!” said Rita picking up her cell phone again. “I can’t wait to tell all the animals why you weren’t at the spelling bee.” “Rita!” said Lyle in a very angry way. “Put that phone down, NOW! I thought that as the King of the Jungle, I should try to make a new member feel welcome. “But, why did you feel that you had to lie about it?” asked Nellie. “You see, this is part of the problem... Sometimes you tell the truth and other times, even when you don’t need to, you lie. That was a very thoughtful thing you did by helping a new member to the jungle.” “Why lie? Why? Why?” repeated Rita. Lyle looked very sad as he said, “Look, I know that, as a leader, I should be a good example to the other animals. I don’t know exactly why I lie. It has become a bad habit. I guess I want to impress everyone, and sometimes I lie about things even when I don’t need to. I know that I have lost the respect of the jungle, and I know that I must change my ways.” Nellie was thinking very hard. “You know we are all wrong. We have forgotten the Bible lessons that Pastor George, the giraffe, has taught us at church. He is the tallest of all the animals, and he is the highest spiritually. I know that I have been too nosey, and I am also guilty for telling the business of others. Then there’s Rita who has a bad habit of repeating everything she hears.” “Well!” said Rita, fluffing her feathers in an angry way, “I never thought that repeating information about others was a sin. I guess I have forgotten some of the lessons that Pastor George has taught us. So what are we going to do about all of this? We have all used our mouths for the wrong reasons. We all have been sinning against God.” You see boys and girls, we are hurting others and ourselves when we decide to use our tongues in the wrong way. If we are speaking of others, we need to ask ourselves. . . Is it true? Is it kind? Should we say it at all? “Maybe we could tape our mouths shut,” offered Nellie. “But then we wouldn’t be able to speak at all.” “Or we might just hold our tongues and beaks,” said Rita. “But then we couldn’t eat at all.” Then Lyle spoke up and said, “As King of the jungle, I believe that we have been going to church, but we are not using what we have learned about the Word of God. I say that we all need to use I John 1:9 to name our sins to God so that we can become friends with Him again. We have all been going on the wrong road and need to get back in fellowship with God. Then the Holy Spirit can help us to control our tongues.” As Lyle began to say these things, he felt better and better by the minute. He began to feel strong again, more like a leader and King should be. He knew that he was on the right road again. He also felt responsible for his sinning and knew that they could not control their tongues by themselves. He also knew that he didn’t need to worry anymore about His crown falling off his head because now he remembered how to get back in fellowship with God by naming his sins to Him. Children, isn’t it wonderful to know that when we do get on a wrong road, we can always come back to the Lord? If we were perfect and never sinned, we would not need a Savior. In Psalm 97, we see that light shines on those who do right. In Hebrews 4:16, we learn that when we draw near to God (by keeping His Word), we can receive God’s mercy for our failures and God’s grace to help us for our every need. When we obey God’s Word, then God can put His stamp of approval on us. Although the jungle animals talked about their sins with each other,we are to name our sins only to God, the Father, NOT to each other. Then Rita flew up onto Nellie’s back, and they all walked together down the path singing:
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