THERE IS 

 POWER IN YOUR WORDS 

"Indeed, we put bits in horses mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body."

(James 3: 3) 

A snaffle horse bit. 

 Most of us are familiar with the scripture about bits in horse's mouths found in the book of James. However, unless you're familiar with the mechanics of horse bits, you may not understand how a little piece of metal that weighs far less than a pound can actually turn the entire body of a 1200 pound horse. In order to teach us about the phenomenal power that resides in our own mouths, James drew the comparison of the bit in a horse's mouth to that of our own tongue. Even if we've not seen a horse bit before, we've all seen the direction of a horse's body be turned completely around by this amazing little apparatus that is in his mouth. In the same way, our tongue is a tiny member in comparison to the rest of our body, but it sure can pack a punch with the words that we speak. And it can even set our world on fire if we're not careful of what we say!

REACTIVE WORDS 

VS

THINKING WORDS

The first step I do before bridling and putting a bit in my horse's mouth is to place my hand on the opposite side of his head, and ask him to "come to me" willingly. 

I know that it's popular today to ride horses without reins and bits, and I confess, I enjoy doing that, too. However, I'm only willing to attempt such liberating feats of horsemanship in a controlled environment such as an arena or round-pen. Would I ride my horse bridle-less and with no bit on a trail out in the middle of the woods? Absolutely not! And why not? The obvious reason is the inherent nature of the horse as a prey and flight animal. But there is even a deeper reason. A horse, by nature, is a reactive animal, first, and a thinking animal, second.  Reacting to circumstances comes natural to the horse. It is what has kept him alive for countless thousands of years. However, although a horse's first instinct is to react, we can teach horses to use the thinking side of their brain. In other words, we can teach horses to replace their natural instinct of reaction with actual thought processes that help to keep them, and especially ourselves safe. Unfortunately, for those of us who ride and/or train horses, teaching them to use the thinking side of their brain is not a "once and done" thing. Simply put, every new circumstance with a horse calls for a brand new lesson, and another opportunity for the horse to choose the thinking side of his brain over the reactive side. In many regards, that's exactly how it is for you and me, too. Whether or not we choose to speak reactive words, or thoughtful words, is a choice. And it is a choice that will ultimately determine the direction of our life.

WORDS DETERMINE THE DIRECTION OF YOUR LIFE  

The second step in bridling my horse is to place my hand on the top of his poll using slight pressure, and then gently ask him to lower his head in order to accept the bit. My goal is not to force the bit in his mouth, but have my horse be responsible for accepting the bit, himself. 

They say confession is good for the heart. I confess, when I was a young woman, I never fully understood the power of my own words. Instead of choosing my words thoughtfully and carefully, I was quick to say whatever crossed my mind. Of course, the problem with saying whatever crosses your mind is that there is no governor on your tongue for protection - yours, or others! And, of course, when there's no guard on duty, there's no telling what may roll out of one's mouth at any given time. It also means that you're giving the whole world a "freeby" look right into your brain and its most inner workings. That, in itself, ought to be a scary enough to stop most of us from opening our mouth so wide! But I was a free-spirit with little discretion back in the days of my youth, having moved from my southern home in Tennessee to Santa Cruz, California in order to "find" myself. Of course, I never found myself. But I did lose myself to the seemingly care-free bohemian lifestyle. It was the wild and crazy hippie era in full bloom, and I was feeling quite electric most of the time, and "groovey" with flowers in my hair! As for my mouth, I was like a horse who couldn't be bridled, not even with a snaffle bit. That's because I wasn't interested in thinking about what I was saying. In fact, I didn't want to think at all! I just wanted to do and say what I felt. Never mind the fall-out. So, what's the problem with that? The problem was, the power of my words were at work, whether I knew it or not. And those careless words always kept me going in the exact opposite direction of where I really wanted to go.

LEARNING TO SAY WHAT GOD SAYS, INSTEAD OF WHAT

 YOU SAY

By tilting my horse's head towards me, and asking him to lower his head, I am setting him up for success. Instead of doing it his way, I am teaching him a better way - my way. 

I wish I could report to you that I not only survived my flower-child years, but outgrew my foolish and reactive mouth, as well. The truth is, I did survive those years and lived to tell about it, thanks to God. But left to my own devices, I never would have outgrown my foolish and reactive mouth. That took a major God-intervention. I've known people who are in their 90's who continue to speak as foolishly and "reactively" as they did when they were youths. Their lifestyle may have changed, but they still talk the same. For me, I grew older and left my flower-child years behind by choice, but it took a real "born again" salvation experience, and the work of the Holy Spirit in my life to put a new way of talking, and a new word in my mouth - the Word of God. Sorry, but will-power won't do it. And a change of address won't do it, either. Even growing older won't change your words. Only a radical change of heart will change the words that come out of your mouth. And that change of heart only comes when you accept Christ as Lord, not only of your life, but Lord of your mouth, too!  

For years after I was "born again", I dedicated myself to learning a new language - the language of Faith. That meant that I had to read and study my Bible in order to learn to talk and say "what God says". Unlike my old language, I had to learn how to use new words - words that expressed hope instead of hopelessness, compassion instead of anger, and love instead of hate. I also had to replace the words of doubt that I had spoke so habitually with words of encouragement. In many ways, that was a hard habit to break. It always is for those who like to call things as they see it. I'll never forget the day the Holy Spirit whispered to me, "Stop calling things the way you see it, and start calling things the way I see it. Who but the Lord your God can see tomorrow?" Talk about a cold splash of water in the face and a wake-up call, His words opened my eyes to a new and higher reality. The reality is that God is not concerned with how things look right now to us. That's because He always sees beyond that, and He calls things the way they are going to be. And the good news is - you and I can do that, too!

PAVING YOUR FUTURE WITH 

GOD'S WORDS

Silly as this analogy might sound, my horse doesn't choose his own bit. Because he belongs to me, I decide which bit is best for his mouth. In the same way, once we are born-again, you and I are no longer our own, nor is our choice of words. We belong to God, and because we are His, we must learn to speak His Word.  

 I want you to think about something for a moment. Your words have the power to shape your daily life, and they have the power to shape your future, as well. The reason your words have such incredible power is because God has chosen to empower you and me with the ability to "decree" a thing, and see it come to pass. And how do you decree a thing? You decree a thing with your words! Think about this - you can't decree a thing with words unless your words have power. If you are a born-again child of God, then you have power - a delegated power that has been given to you through the name of Jesus Christ. And that delegated power brings your words to life!

 The problem for some people is that they do not fully recognize or understand the power that has been delegated to them as Christians. They often wield their "word-power" recklessly by speaking things over their own life that they wouldn't dare speak over their worst enemy! For many, it's just a habitual or reactive way of talking. But it carries serious consequences, just the same. In the same way, there are folks who "habitually" say the opposite of what they really want to happen. Let me give you some examples what I mean by that. We want a new career, and we have the right qualifications. But instead of confessing that we are going to land an excellent job in our chosen field, instead, we confess doubt, and decree that we're probably not really qualified, after all. In fact, there's probably somebody much better for the job out there. Or perhaps we desire a mate, - someone to share our dreams and our future with. But instead of confessing that God is going to bring a wonderful partner into our life, instead, we confess that we'll probably never find that special someone. And on and on it goes...

Some people consider this kind of "talk" as proof that they are simply "being real".  To their way of (wrong) thinking, to confess something wonderful about themselves, or their present circumstance, or their future, or even about others, is simply to invite a "jinx", and set themselves up for the possibility of failure, or the possibility of being hurt. Instead of choosing to speak God's Word with confidence over their situation, they choose to speak a prophetic word of defeat! It's amazing to me how many people are quick to tell you that they don't believe in prophecy while at the same time they are speaking forth their future every day! 

As a writer, and a minister, I love words, especially powerful words. What are powerful words? Powerful words are affirmative decrees that are full of hope and point to the future, irregardless of the present circumstance. And powerful words change people's lives. When I was growing up, my mom always spoke powerful words over me. I can still hear her saying to me with confidence, "You can do anything you want to do in life!"  I certainly hadn't proven that when she spoke those words over me. I was a skinny, knock-knee'd, often fearful, and backwards kind of kid. I wasn't good at sports, and wasn't particularly good at school work, either. There certainly wasn't anything about me back then to convince my mom that I would ever be anything different. But she remained convinced, just the same. And she continued to speak life over me with her words - words that went beyond what she saw in the natural, and choosing instead to speak to the future of a little girl who would one day grow up to believe every word her mama said. Today, I've discovered I really can do anything I want in life. And so can you! Why? Because Christ strengthens you and me, and through Him we have the power to decree a thing and become all we were purposed to be!

Today, I want you to think about the words that you speak. I mean, really think about them. I also want you to broaden your tent posts, and speak to the future, instead of just today. What do I mean by that? Let me give you a quick example. Everyone has heard the story of Abraham. But did you know that long before his name was Abraham, his name was Abram? One year before the birth of his son, Isaac, God changed Abram's name to Abraham, and told him that he would be the father of a multitude. You see, God wasn't calling things as they were right then. He was calling things as they were going to be. God's Word always has creative power! Here's another example. In the book of Genesis 1: verses 3, and 14-19, God "spoke" light into existence. But here's the miracle beyond the miracle. It wasn't until four days later (after He spoke it) that He actually created a source of light! You see, He "sent forth His Word", and it was His Word that created the actual source of light! Words are extremely important to God. That's because He uses His Word to decree a thing. And words have "creative power". And so I challenge you. Let today be the day that you start speaking a new word - God's word. A word that is not stuck in today, or bound by what it sees, but a word that is liberated, and free to go forth and create a brand new future for you in every way. Are you ready for that future? Then let today be the day that you start saying what God says!

"As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations, before him who believed even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were."

(Romans 4: 17)   

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