Lava Lips

"Hi, Mom," said Journee as she opened the front door. "We had the best class today! We learned about volcanos.""That sounds interesting," said Mom. "I remember studying them in school. They're a fascinating part of nature."Journee nodded. "My teacher had a small model of a volcano. She could even make it erupt! Do you know what erupts from a real volcano?""Lava, hot gasses, and rock fragments," answered Journee's brother, Nash, who had also just gotten home from school.Journee frowned. "I asked Mom, not you," she snapped. Then she went on telling her mom more facts about volcanoes. "Pressure builds up, and the red hot ash blasts through the surface. Do you know where it erupts from?" she asked, looking at her mother. Nash answered again. "It comes from the mouth of the volcano. That's at the top of a cone-shaped mountain."Journee scowled at him. "Wrong!" she declared triumphantly. "That's what it looks like, but the actual opening is lower than the top. It's called a vent." She made a face at her brother. "Shows how much you know, dummy. Next time mind your own business.""Journee," said Mom sternly, "a volcano isn't the only thing with a mouth--we have mouths too, you know. Eruptions may not come from the mouths of volcanos, but our mouths can erupt with hot, vicious, unkind words that hurt other people. We sometimes vent our feelings by spewing out angry words--like what you're doing right now.""Well, I wanted to talk to you about volcanoes, not Nash," said Journee. "That doesn't make it okay for you to talk the way you did," said Mom. "When volcanoes erupt, the lava destroys whatever gets in its way, and the words that erupt from our mouths can do the same thing to people's feelings. We can't control volcanic eruptions, but we can control the words from our mouths. The Holy Spirit helps us do that so we can speak to others in a way that reflects the love of Jesus, who is always patient and kind with us."Journee sighed and turned toward her brother. "Sorry, Nash," she said. "I'll trust God to help me control my lava lips."-Nance E. Keyes