YOUR WORDS

 YOUR WORDS

Words are things that someone says or writes and they are vehicles for communication.

Communication is the art of passing across news, information, feeling or whatever to someone else.

Words are powerful tools that can build, encourage and soothe. Words can also destroy, discourage and hurt. The words we speak can clarify or complicate a situation. Words have creative power with the ability to heal and also to help, to humble, and also to harm,  to hinder and to hurt, therefore words should be carefully chosen and spoken with wisdom.

Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Evil people have evil things in their hearts and so they speak evil things, while good people have good things in their hearts, so they speak good things; Matthew 12: 34-35.

Your words are what proceed out of your mouth to God, to others and to even yourself. They are what you communicate to others through verbal or through writing. For example, making speech, giving instruction, writing a request or making pronouncement over a situation.

The scripture admonishes that your speech at all times be gracious, seasoned with salt, to know how you ought to answer anyone, Col 4:6. And also, that no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying that it may minister grace unto the hearers; Ephesians 4:29.

Your words must never stir up anger, that is, your words should motivate, bring succour and solution, not confusion to situations. Your words should build relationship and express kindness and even impart grace to the hearers, and such words must not be false.

Your words create your world, so, choose and use them wisely. They are so powerful that they can kill or give life. Proverb 18: 21a; “The tongue has the power of life and death”. It is whatever you say that God will hear. For example, it was when blind Bartimaeus heard that Jesus was passing by that he cried out and said “Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me”. Despite the discouragement, he cried the more until Jesus attended to him. If he did not speak out, Jesus could not have heard and so he received his sight which was what he requested for. Mark 10:46-52

The Lord even declares “as surely as I live, I will do to you the very things I heard you say”; Numbers 14:28. Brethren, I admonish you to learn to say good things about your situation, family to God with faith, “for by your words, you will be acquainted and by your words you will be condemned”; Matthew 12:37.

Let us consider some words spoken by some characters in the Bible and the effect.

Number 13 and 14: When Moses sent 12 leaders of the Israelites to go explore the land of Canaan as directed by God, having explored for forty days, only Caleb and Joshua brought good report and God used their report to determine their fate and the other ten brought bad report which was also used to judge them. While Caleb said “we should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.” Numbers 13:30. The other men said, “We can’t attack those people, they are stronger than we are, the land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size, we saw the Nephilim there. We seemed like grasshoppers in our in own eyes and we look the same to them” Numbers 13:31-33. These men spread a bad report of the land among the Israelites, but Joshua and Caleb went further to nullify their report by saying “the land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us.’’ Numbers 14:7b -8. And God responded, “but because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me whole-heartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.” Numbers 14: 24. All the men with bad report were struck and died, only Joshua and Caleb survived.

Brethren, remember what God says in Number 14:28; “I will do to you the very things I heard you say.” God heard what Joshua and Caleb said, “we should go up and take possession of the land for we can certainly do it. The land is exceedingly good, flowing with milk and honey and the Lord will give it to us.’’ And the Lord gave it to them. Those who said they couldn’t and saw themselves as grasshoppers did not get there and they even died. The lesson we can learn from this, is that one’s words have influence on how far one can go in life. Since what you say is what God will hear, say exactly what you want with humility and faith.

Another example to consider is that of the woman with the issue of Blood. Mark 5:25-29: The woman said to herself, “If I only touch His cloak, I will be healed.” This woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years did not get healed despite the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better, she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came behind in the crowd and touched His cloak just as she said to herself; immediately, her bleeding stopped and she was healed.

Brethren, when you are passing through challenges, what do you say to yourself as regards those challenges? Learn from the woman with the issue of blood. Learn to say good things about your situation, yourself, to others and to your Lord and Saviour. Your words count and they create your world. Therefore, carefully and selectively choose your words and speak with wisdom at all times. No wonder David prayed, “Set a guard over my mouth, LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips”; Psalm 141:3. When you find yourself in a fix and you don’t know what to say, keep mute and ask the Holy Spirit to put words in your mouth.

PRAYER:

Heavenly father, grant me the grace to speak words that edify, encourage and soothe and give me the grace to be able to selectively choose my words and speak with wisdom always. Also, let my words not condemn me in Jesus’ name.

 Amen