Mean What You Say

Jason DeRulo got it right with his popular song 'Whatcha Say.' It speaks to the power of words. Whoever came up with the 'sticks and stones' phrase was wayyy off track. Words do hurt. We've all experienced that. But they also unleash power.

Late last year I did the Beth Moore 'Believing God' Bible study. I had always heard that our words have power, but don't think I quite knew the extent of it. It seems silly, doesn't it, that just by opening our mouths we can change things? But that's exactly what the Word says! Proverbs 18:21 "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." It doesn't say only if you speak right, will you reap what you sow, but when you speak defeat you reap that, too!

Ephesians 5:1 tells us to be imitators of God. What does that mean? Look at how we, as children, imitate our parents. Words and deeds. Babies start trying to make sounds like their parents from a very young age. Likewise, we are to imitate God. Our words should be His words! This means we are to KNOW the scriptures and their contexts, we are to speak things that are not as though they were!

That doesn't mean it won't be scary. When you're stepping out in faith, you're being vulnerable, opening yourself up to attacks from the world. But Jesus tells his disciples in Mark 11: 22-24 to have FAITH. He says when we live by faith, we can SAY to the mountain 'MOVE!' and it has to listen! But how often do we see that happening in our modern world? I don't know about you, but from where I'm sitting, the mountains ain't movin. Does that mean the time for miracles has passed? Some would like to think so because it scares them and because hoping for them would mean to leap out of one's comfort zone. But Jesus said we are capable of not only miracles, but even more than He did! John 14:12 "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these because I am going to the father." So why don't we see them? Jesus says we cannot have doubt in our hearts. And we ask for all things in His name - which means not just simply saying 'In Jesus' name,' at the end of prayers. When we say things in Jesus' name, it means it lines up with His word and His purposes. Miracles aren't simply for our comfort or our gain, but must glorify His kingdom.

So how do we unleash that power? Our words! There is power in the tongue! Jesus SPOKE to the wind and the sea, the fig tree, the demons and even to dead men. Sure, he could've just pointed at them, but he SPOKE. God SPOKE the earth into existence. The Bible says faith is HEARING the word. Jesus says Christians are given the keys to the kingdom - whatever we loose on earth will be loosed in Heaven and whatever we bind on earth will be bound in Heaven. (Matt 16:19)

Charles Capps said, "Words are containers, they carry faith or fear, and they produce after their kind." Don't take my word for it, try it for yourself! When worry tries to take over my mind, I speak scripture to it. Confess victory in the face of apparent defeat! Confess abundance in the face of apparent lack! Jesus tells us that we can have what we say (Mark 11:23), but we are saying what we have. Circumstances should not dictate our theology, but our theology should dictate our circumstances! Mean what you say and make it happen.