HE IS THE LIVING WORD

Words possess a profound influence. They can either create or destroy. As Proverbs 18:21 states, the tongue wields the power of life and death, and we live out the consequences of our speech. This is why I hold music in high regard. It provides a platform to echo worshipful, truthful words, embedding them in our hearts and minds. Words serve as a compass, guiding us toward truth. David understood this in Psalm 42:5, when he preached to his own soul, Why are you in despair, my soul? And why are you restless within me? Wait for God, for I will again praise Him.

David heard his words. His soul listened to his reprimand and the reminder to wait for God. From his example, we can learn that our souls (mind, will, and emotion) hear our words and respond.

In psychology, there is a term known as catharsis. It refers to purging one's mind of what is troubling it by talking the situation through, releasing the burden from one's soul. The soul hears what comes out of our mouths, and we act per what our soul believes. It's a cyclical idea whereby what is in one's heart comes out through words. The soul hears the words and triggers the mind, will, and emotions to respond accordingly, confirming our beliefs.

If we walk in the fruit of our words, what must our words become? We already see that our personal salvation results from our spoken words and believing hearts (cyclical), so what else might we use our words for?

This is why the enemy works overtime, inserting his lies into our thoughts. He also knows the power of our words and wants us to speak wrong words.

He wants us to speak those lies out loud! When our soul hears lies, it responds accordingly and begins to act as though the lies are true. The lies might say, "Nothing ever works out for you; you should just give up," and so, the heart begins to believe that, and you might say no to opportunities that would be amazing. If you believe nothing ever works out for you, why bother trying?

However, if you take those lies and use God's Word against them, speaking the truth of Scripture instead, two things will happen over time. First, the lies will quiet down and eventually stop entirely; second, you will begin to find success in the avenue you pursue. According to Proverbs 18:21, we will walk in the fruit of your tongue.

The truth is that we all walk in the fruit of our tongue, whether sweet or sour. If we constantly walk around saying, "I'm such a loser; I never do anything right," we will live in that fruit: sour, rotten, stinking fruit.

However, if we change those words to align with the powerful truth of the Scripture, such as, "I can do all things through the strength of Christ Jesus. Even if it's difficult, the Lord will give me strength." Or, "The Lord will bless me coming in and going out. He is my rock, my fortress, and I trust Him," we will quickly begin to notice the lies fade, the fruit will become sweet and delicious, and we will see life begin to change.

It's not easy to change our words, but if we believe in the Word of God, He will help give us the rules: The power of life and death is in the tongue. To change our lives, we must change our words to match what God says and stop speaking the lies the enemy whispers because, as we've seen, our souls will hear and believe our words.

Words matter—choose yours wisely!

PRACTICAL APPLICATION:

Write this characteristic on a sticky note and place it where you’ll see it daily. WORDS MATTER.

Read the following verses on the power of words: Psalm 19:14, Proverbs 10:19, Proverbs 16:24, Eph. 4:29.

PRAYER:

You are the Living Word and have instructed us in Your Word to be aware of the power of the tongue. By confessing You are Lord, I have been saved. There is nothing I can do to make You cast me away, but You say that if I believe in my heart and speak it with my mouth, I am saved! How amazing You are, Father.

Bring to my mind an awareness of my words; when I say negative things about myself and others, highlight them so I can hear them and change my words. Father, You don't make junk, so remind me who I am in You and help me begin speaking those things. I want to live in good fruit.