Wow.
Do you know the power of your tongue?
No i mean really, do you?
If you think you do, try not using it for awhile.
You'll begin to realize that you had no idea how much power such a tiny muscle holds, and the effect your words have on people.
Last week, i felt God calling me to a speech fast. I jumped on board pretty quickly, but had NO idea what i was getting myself into. I'm mean seriously, not talking for three days straight!? It's harder than you think!
But in all honesty, it has been the best three days I've had in a really long time.
I can't tell you how refreshing it's been to just shut my mouth and listen to Him. He knows so much more than i do! And He's so kind to tell me what's on His heart.
Our problem today isn't that God doesn't speak, it's that we don't listen. We have no idea how to calm down and just be still before Him.
After three days of silence i haven't even begun to scratch the surface! I still have no idea how to 'be still and know that He is God' (Psalm 46:10) But i can tell you that once i stopped talking, and just sat and listened, He talked, A LOT.
You know...God's REALLY talkative-who knew?
And you know something else? He's funny. Yes, He has a great sense of humor, He's witty and fun, and loves to tease. He's all about laughter.
I want to know that side of God better. The One Who laughs and jokes, teases me and smiles all the time. If there's one thing I'm really learning from this fast, it's that my view of God is all wrong!
Ever heard this verse; "So then my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God." James 1:19+20
God doesn't give us a whole bunch of rules to follow because He's mean. He's giving us guidelines that will make our life ten times better! I am so grateful that God is quick to listen to me, that He's full of wisdom (slow to speak) and not quick to judge or impart wrath on me. But when do i ever extend that kindness to others?
We're so quick to form opinions about matter that we don't understand fully, to jump to conclusions and judge others unfairly. We don't seek God's wisdom on the matter, we just rely on our own weak fleshy "wisdom" not stopping to think there could be a better answer. What a sad day it is when we value our own opinions higher than God's. (Really speaking to myself here!)
In the past three days, I've had my fair share of seeing many different examples of how words can be used to speak life or death. We really have no idea the power that our tongues hold.
Words effect people. They HURT.
When we speak too quickly, they hurt. When we're dramatic or unrestrained in our use of them, they hurt. When they're spoken without love, they hurt. When used in sarcasm, they hurt. When spoken in anger, they hurt. The list could go on forever...
Words have the power of life or death, but do we truly believe that? Do we practice what we preach? What good is preaching if our words are tainted with death? We can't go all week speaking coarsely, gossiping, lying, and then expect to preach salvation to someone and have any power behind our words!
We need to take a lesson from Jesus on this one (and everything else in life) He never spoke a mean word to anyone, and the Bible repeatedly tells us that people were in awe at the power of His preaching. Did you know He healed people just by speaking it out? (Matt 8:5-13) Jesus packed a serious punch behind His words.
Our words have more power than we can even comprehend. They can open doors in the spiritual and shut them. They have the power to bring love or hate, freedom or bondage, peace or strife-how are you using your words?
We've got to being to take back to control over our tongues, and the power of our speech! I've been so convicted about my speech, and the best part is, i haven't been talking! It's crazy to me how it took not talking to realize i was talking too much, that i was wasting my words and speaking negatively all the time. I think we all need to take a step back and consider the way our words are affecting our lives (and the lives of those around us) on a daily basis.
You want to see a change in your life?
Start taking your words seriously.
SPEAK LIFE!
