Your Words Matter

Words. They bear weight. God created the entire universe with His words. God called Jesus “the Word” and the Bible “the word of God.” Words are how the disciples shared that Jesus had come to earth and died for the sins of the world, broadcasting the gospel all over the earth. And at the close of the Bible, it says believers will overcome the enemy by “the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony.” Clearly words can be immensely powerful and monumental in our relationship with God and the world.

That being said, I imagine we all grapple with words in some capacity. Maybe yours are excessive, or maybe you stuff the ones you know should come out. Whatever the struggle, the examples above give evidence that God sees the impact of words. He believes—and so should we—that words have the power to change people’s lives, even change the course of history, but only if we spend our words wisely.

In this day and age where words are so prevalent, how can we as believers practically use our words to make a positive impact in the world we live in?

  • We can choose words that give life today! Proverbs 18:21 says, “The tongue has the power of life and death….” We can encourage others, thinking about and talking about the best of the people around us.
  • We can think on, meditate, and memorize God’s word. “I have hidden God’s word in my heart that I might not sin against You,” says Psalm 119:11. Sin never comes without consequences, by hiding God’s word—the Bible—in our hearts, we will be much more likely to think of a verse that combats gossip or telling a lie when the temptation comes.
  • We can ask God to give us courage when we should speak. “On the day I called, You answered me; You made me bold with strength in my soul (Psalm 138:3).” Sometimes, we need to flat out share the gospel with someone or even speak hard truth into people’s lives. God promises to give us bravery with our words when we call out to Him.
  • We can pray, using our words on behalf of someone else—interceding for our friends, family members, or even someone we don’t know. In James 5 it says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.” Prayer is a mysterious powerful tool of God we have through the Spirit to use to accomplish His purposes and see Him in all of the circumstances around us throughout the day.

With all of this in mind, I want to finish with a prayer we can pray for our “words”.

Jesus, it says in Proverbs, “out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” Rid us of anything that would make yuck come out of me instead of life-giving words. Jesus, flood my heart with your spirit. Convict me of the sin in my soul that grieves your heart and help me to repent and turn back to You. Graciously give me open hands and a soft heart toward you, Lord. Empower us to hide Your word in our hearts so that when we are tempted to sin, Your spirit coupled with Scripture will help us combat our flesh.

Jesus, when we do need to be brave and tell someone about You or speak truth into someone’s life, give us the strength and power to do so in humility. And lastly, today, help me to remember to pray, talking to you about everything, trusting that communicating with you does make a difference in my life and in the lives of others as well! Thank you for giving me the ability to speak Jesus; please help me to honor You with the gift of my words!

Amen