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“Your life tomorrow will be determined by the words you speak today.” Mmmm. That’s deep, isn’t it? It’s a quote by Terry Savelle Foy, and it’s the perfect intro to the topic of today’s episode. Can words really change your life? Stay tuned to find out. You don’t wanna miss it.
Your Words Have Power
I want you to think about another quote from Terry. She says, “Change what you’re saying and you’ll change what you’re seeing.” And I think that quote is so profound because we are often tempted to speak idle words.
Sometimes it can be so easy to just speak without even giving our words a second thought. It almost makes me think of like a three-wishes situation. Have you ever seen those movies?
I love movies, and I’ve seen plenty of movies where a person gets three wishes and they’re not realizing that the things that they’re saying are actually counting against their wishes. And so they have a moment where they get irritated with another character and they say, “I just wish you’d go away. I just wish you’d disappear.” And the person that they’re speaking to actually disappears.
And then they’re all surprised and upset and say, “Ah, I didn’t mean it. That wasn’t supposed to be one of my wishes!”
The reality is that your words hold weight. They’re powerful. So, we need to make sure that we use them wisely. So let me ask you, what have you been speaking lately?
Can We Be Honest?
Are you using your words to build up or to tear down? Are you using your words to create or to destroy? Mmm. Are you using your words to encourage or discourage? Are your words life-giving or life-sucking? Wow! I’m gonna let that sink in for a moment.
Think about what you are speaking over your life, Mama. What are you saying to your husband behind closed doors? What are you saying about your kids? And oooh, what are you saying about yourself, Girl? There was a time when I really had to be intentional about that last one.
I’ll be honest. I would get compliments and I felt the need to offer some sort of rebuttal or explanation. Someone would come to me and say, “Wow, LaRissa, you look so pretty!”And I’d say, “Aha! I look like a hot mess today. But thanks?”
So, I worked on that one within myself, and I encourage you today to watch your words too. And next time someone compliments you, just say “Thank you!”, and maybe even return a compliment to them.
Words Are Powerful
When I was in the classroom, I would tell this story to each of my classes at the beginning of the school year.
The kids would sit quietly, eagerly listening. And I’d say there once was a man who was working and he walked into a large walk-in freezer. The door closed behind him and he realized it was locked. There was no way for him to get out. As time went on, his fear grew and he was convinced that this was the end of his life. So, he repeated to himself, “I’m gonna die.” Over and over.
Later, when others came and opened the freezer, they found the man was dead. The crazy thing about it though, was that the freezer wasn’t even turned on.
Now, first, let me say that this story may or may not be true, but many say that it’s an urban myth, and there are various different variations, but all that is beside the point. I simply used my version of this story to teach my students about the power of their thoughts and their words.
I would tell them, “Okay, so I want you to understand that your words and your thoughts are your greatest superpowers.” (The theme of my classroom was superheroes) So, it all just tied into the theme.
“You have to watch your words, and you have to watch what you think. You have to watch your beliefs.” And we would practice speaking and believing positive things throughout the school year.
To the extent that I actually witnessed some of my students accomplish that, which they were speaking, they saw for themselves that this was actually true. I remember there was a state test every year, and I would walk them through that whole process.
You Have What You Say
“Remember what we’ve talked about throughout this year? Your words are powerful. What your thinking is powerful. What you believe is powerful.”
And I would even have them touch their head right before the test because they’d be nervous and I’d say, “Okay, touch your head and repeat this after me. I will pass this test!” And I would lead them through just some positive affirmations. And they all felt really good after.
Now, the thing that was very interesting about this story is that the kids who walked through the affirmations with me, and touched their heads and they confidently said, “I will pass this test!” Those kids passed. Every time I got the scores back, those students were actually the ones who passed the test, and they were able to move on to the next grade level.
But of course, there were always one or two that would be silly, and they didn’t believe, and they would not participate, and they just look at everybody else and they wouldn’t open their mouths.
And those would be the ones that did not pass. And they had to go to summer school in order to avoid being held back. Isn’t that crazy? It’s real!
The truth is that your words really can change your life. So I’m answering that question. Can words really change your life?
Yes, girl, words can really change your life. In fact, I would dare to say that your life right now is being impacted by the things that you’ve said, the things that you’re saying, and the things that you’re allowing other people to speak over you. You are shaping your life.
Death & Life Are In the Power of the Tongue
Don’t say that your kids are driving you crazy if that’s not what you want. Avoid saying that you’re always broke because you’re going to have what you say and you’re always going to be broke. This is biblical, you know?
Proverbs 18:21 in the New Living Translation says,
“The tongue can bring death or life. Those who love to talk will reap the consequences.”
Don’t just say random things that you don’t even mean. Once you speak words out, you’re speaking them over yourself. You’re speaking them over your life or the people that you’re speaking about.
I mean, God himself even brought things into existence by His words alone and we are made in His image. So, if you don’t like what you’re seeing, it’s time to change what you’re saying.
We have to be so intentional about this. Like I said, just the way that our society is set up, the way that our world is set up. It’s almost like you come across people all the time that are just talking and don’t think anything of it.
3 Ways to Improve Your Life with Words
1. Understand that Death and Life are in the Power of Your Tongue
Now, we just read this in Proverbs 18:21. Before you speak, I want you to ask yourself, is that life or death? You only get two choices here. So choose carefully.
Words are not just words. Words work in our lives. Do you remember when Jesus cursed the fig tree in Mark 11? Did you ever slow down to think about the fact that he actually spoke to a tree? And it did exactly what he said. Jesus used His words and what He said actually happened.
You’ve got that very same power in your words too. So be careful.
2. Stop Complaining
Life presents us with many opportunities to complain. And sometimes those complaints can just spew out naturally when we are not even thinking about it.
But complaining doesn’t please God. Praise is what pleases God. He is looking for our praise. Gratitude and thanksgiving actually please God.
Hebrews 13 tells us to offer a continual sacrifice of praise to God and that such sacrifices please Him.
You know, a sacrifice is generally not easy, right? It’s an act of giving something up for someone else. When we praise God, instead of falling into the temptation to complain, we are offering a sacrifice to God and it pleases him.
In the grand scheme of things, when you think about the fact that Jesus laid down his life and was crucified so that we could have eternal life, I mean, that was the ultimate sacrifice, right?
The fact that we’re simply being asked to praise God instead of falling into the temptation to complain. I think we actually got a good deal, so stop complaining, Mama.
The children of Israel really struggled with this one when they were in the wilderness for 40 years. They complained a lot. Even when God demonstrated his faithfulness and power, they witnessed miracles.
God wasn’t pleased with this. And in the end, most of those Israelites didn’t even make it into the Promised Land. Their words impacted their lives. In the same way, your words can change your life.
Girl, do you really wanna forfeit your entrance into your Promised Land because you can’t control your tongue and you can’t stop complaining?
If you want to make it into the Promised Land or receive the promises of God for your life, you really gotta watch that tongue. Are you still stumbling around in the wilderness of life because you keep complaining?
If so, watch your words and begin to praise God every time you are tempted to complain. You know, another quote from Terry, (I’m just quoting all her quotes today.) She said, “Turn your complaints into praise and watch what God can do.”
3. Avoid Unproductive or Idle Speech
Did you know that we will have to give an account to God for every idle word that we speak? The Bible instructs us to avoid idle talk. Let’s be intentional with the words that we speak because we will have what we say.
Do you remember earlier when we talked about Jesus and the fig tree? Well, Mark 11:23, and the NLT says, “I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, may you be lifted up and thrown into the sea and it will happen, but you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart.”
Did you catch that? You will have what you say. It will happen if you believe what you’re saying.
And here’s the thing, you might say, “Oh girl, I don’t believe that. I didn’t mean that.” But out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. So, whatever is in your heart is what comes out. So you believe it. If you said it, you believe it.
And if it’s not what you really want, then just cut it out of your vocabulary. So scripture indicates that there is serious power in our words, whether you believe it or not, whether you think it’s real or not, it’s the truth.
It’s the Bible. Jesus said it. So it’s definitely true whether you choose to believe it or not, and you’re going to see it manifested in your life whether you believe that or not. Believing is super important, for sure, but speaking it is vital in the life of a believer. Let’s not neglect it. Use your words to change your life.
