Speak Life…
Several years ago, I struggled with debilitating fear.
It consumed every aspect of my life. I was afraid to take my kids to school, I was afraid to eat certain foods, I was afraid to travel, I was afraid something would happen to me, my husband, or my kids.
Honestly, fear ruled most of my childhood, teenage years, and well into adulthood.
Fear affected my relationships, my calling, my dreams and desires.
When I started reading the Bible back in 2012, I was determined to let God heal me from fear once and for all.
I began to memorize scripture, and I began to devour God’s word. I could not get enough.
Reading about Abraham, Moses, David, Peter, Paul, Rahab, Esther, Ruth….
They were human. They struggled too. I could relate to them in so many ways.
As I was reading my Bible one morning, I came across these words in Genesis as God was forming the world…
“and God said…”
“and God said…”
“and God said…”
Something in my heart burst! Wait, so God spoke and all of these amazing things happened.
He spoke the words of Creation out loud and the world formed!
For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command. Psalm 33:9
My mind was racing of all of the words I had spoken the day before, the day before that, the day before that….
I was speaking fear over my life. Day by day, year by year, decade by decade.
How many times had I spoken, “I am afraid! I am fearful! I cannot do this!”
Slowly, God was showing me how my words had created this prison cell of fear around my life.
From that day forward, I began to speak words of Life and courage over my life and my circumstances.
I memorized scripture on courage, strength, and JOY. I taped scriptures up all around my bathroom mirror to remind me the words I needed to say and to meditate on.
My entire life, I had been meditating on the wrong words. I had let my words be my existence.
As I was reading the book of Joshua, I came across this verse in chapter 1…
”Be strong and courageous!”
God tells Joshua this multiple times.
We have all heard that scripture before, but let’s see the very next thing that follows that command to Joshua.
“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
God doesn’t just tell Joshua to be strong, but He tells Joshua HOW to be strong and courageous!
He gives us instructions on how to put strong and courageous into action:
Obey God’s commands.
Meditate on God’s Words.
Day in and day out.
Surely, Joshua followed these instructions because He was so successful in entering the Promised Land!
Joshua wasn’t just courageous by nature. He was just like me and just like you.
The difference was…Joshua spoke words of faith over his life. He knew well, meditated on, and spoke words of courage and success!
As I read the story of Joshua, I thought how I had spoken words of fear and anxiety into every day of my life.
I had called my mom, my husband, my friends for years and years and just regurgitated fear to them.
My words had created this web of despair and fear.
The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences. Proverbs 18:21
I was certainly reaping the consequences of my words.
Our words are a reflection of our hearts and minds.
“For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” Luke 6:45
“But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:36
Friends, this doesn’t just apply to fear. It applies to every single sin and stronghold in our lives.
Depression, worry, failure, insecurity, gluttony, doubt, greed, pride…
We are condemned by our words.
What are you speaking day in an day out?
How are we speaking about ourselves, our spouses, our children?
Do our words bring life or death? There is no in between.
I read an article years ago about plants. There is scientific evidence that speaking nicely to plants can encourage them to grow and bloom.
Wow!
if plants are nourished by words, surely we are as well!
Are you struggling in an area in your life?
Stop now and find scriptures that annihilate whatever struggle you are dealing with.
Pray those scriptures over an over. Memorize them.
Do you have children that are struggling or just not being who God created them to be?
Pray LIFE over them. Pray all of the character traits you desire for them to have.
Do not let any unwholesome word about them or ourselves come out of our mouth anymore. No matter how hard it is, speak only GOOD.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29
Speaking only good and life building words will take much practice. Often, we have trained ourselves to be negative. It has become a bad and destructive habit.
The good news is, we can re-train our hearts and our mouths. It just takes practice.
Keep an inventory of your words today. See how often you speak things that are unwholesome or not life-giving.
Begin to speak what you want to be, what you want your kids to be, what you want your relationships to be.
Those words are seeds.
They will grow into beautiful blooms.
Remember the command to Joshua was followed by instructions.
Keep His commands.
Read and meditate on His Word.
Day in and day out.
speaking life,
jill
