Do you ever feel sometimes that you need a shake to wake up? Well, I do, and that is why I always go back to the Book of James to read words which have a rude-awakening effect. Perhaps James is addressing issues that he has learned from personal experience. He writes in ch 1:19 that we should be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath . What he writes about the tongue later are some of the strongest words in the New Testament. I wonder if he was somewhat vocal against the Lord’s teaching and that is why the Lord specifically appeared to him after His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:7)? Every verse in James is packed full of practical truth and wisdom. This morning I was reading verses 22-27 of the first chapter and again I am deeply challenged by the LIVING Word of God: Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after lo...