Power of Words

Power of Words

Recently on Facebook, I updated a status of, "There is such power in words. Best to keep them few and well chosen." I think this resonates with so many of us.  With words, we can bring to life a story from our childhood. We can make someone feel so much happiness with just simple praise or we can tear apart a relationship with hurtful, cutting words like a sword. It's so easy to let your mouth run away but when words are out of your mouth, they're out there. You can't take them back. Sometimes, a person may be so deeply wounded by hurtful words, it takes years to repair the damage.

For this reason, think before speaking. Don't let anger or rage get the best of you. In a heated situation, give yourself time to cool off and then speak to the person with a cooler head. Remember, the bigger picture, which is to have a resolution, not necessarily to make the other person cower. A couple of years ago when I first started attending Chase Oaks Church, one of the first sermons I heard from Jeff Jones was about word power. I kept notes and he spoke about how lying takes away trust and how gossip leads to trouble. At the conclusion, he said that you should only speak words that are True, Helpful, Inspiring, Necessary, and Kind.

These days, many conversations are had through email which can be very tricky because there can be major misunderstandings in an email. If you do find yourself in "email argument" choose your words wisely. Some say give yourself 24 hours before sending a reply to a nasty email to someone.

Another way to use words is when speaking to yourself. Joyce Meyer's book, Change Your Words, Change Your Life, talks about speaking faith and not fear. She quotes scripture, "The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?" Psalm 118:6. A book I'm reading currently by Joel Osteen called, I Declare, has a positive declaration to speak over your life daily. Day Three says, "I DECLARE I have the grace I need for today. I am full of power, strength, and determination. Nothing I face will be too much for me. I will overcome every obstacle, outlast every challenge, and come through every difficulty better off than I was before. This is my declaration." Wow, after reading that, I'm excited. I'm fired up!

In the morning, speak words of truth and love to yourself. With the world being as hard as it is, why should we be any harder on ourselves? Instead, lets start each day with words like, "Today is a new day and it will be great!" And, "Thank you, Lord, for another day with my family. Thank you for giving me a job to go to so I can provide for my family. Thank you for giving me another day to live."