Yesterday morning a Bible verse posted by a group on Facebook jumped out at me. What some would call a Rhema word, highlighted by God. Verse one of Psalm 144 stood out for me. In fact it did feel like it leaped off the page going right into that place in my heart for aha moments.
David was speaking about the battle ahead with Goliath, but for me these words gave way to recognition that what Joel and I write with our hands and our fingers fights against the enemy and gives God praise and glory. Sharing our stories, our thoughts, is a way to fight those battles that come. God has trained us and is still teaching us to write about what He has done, what He has planned. I believe we are all are "trained" and prepared. We all have power in what we say and what we write.....just look at the affects of social media. Yes, the power of our words, written and spoken greatly impact others.
Lately I have felt a deeper conviction than ever about the importance of our words. You can't turn on the TV, pick up a newspaper or book, scroll down Facebook, or read what people have posted on Twitter without being affected or impacted by the words of others. Good and bad. There are several scriptures that either warn us or teach us about the power of the tongue...speaking "life or death". So. very. true.
When I feel convicted I try to pay attention and I believe God is speaking to me here. Speaking about my words and the power they hold, whether spoken or written. And what about the running conversations we have with ourselves in our heads?
On Sunday morning Alex Trebek, long time host of Jeopardy! died after battling stage 4 cancer. We watched a special he had on ABC that same night that had been prepared knowing of his eventual death. He seems to have died the way he lived, with hope, kindness, thankfulness. He lived twice as long as predicted and one doctor at John Hopkins said (if I remember correctly) fighting terminal cancer is much about how you view and live your life now as treatments. Trebek's words echoed how he was living each day seeking the good. He worked up until 10 days before he died because he said going to work helped him to feel joy, gave him energy and inspired him to keep going. At the end of the special on his life, in his own words he says to viewers, "Thank you for a great life". Powerful.
For me his words connected to what God has been telling me about what we speak, think, and write. As people of God it all matters. You may question the idea that we are often fighting a war........fighting battles. Yet the Bible often speaks about it and tells us we are not fighting against people so much as the spirit realm. Obviously it can't be our only focus....on what comes against us......on the negative.............on Satan who is very real, people. No, it can't be our continual focus, but we cannot brush it aside either. We need to take God's word seriously and He makes it clear that our words, whether written or spoken, are very important and have power to change our lives, and impact others.
I am certainly mulling over this topic. A while ago I had a vision where I was riding on a white stallion with a large warring angel. It is one of two visions God has shown me lately that have me paying attention.
As we were sitting with our eyes closed, I first saw a white feather that was placed in my hand. It then transformed into a wing, an angel's wing that transformed into an angel on a white stallion. An angel with white wings and bare legs that were bronze in color. The feathers and wings I saw then transformed into armor. At this point I asked Holy Spirit if this was all from Him and He responded in my mind, "Trust what you are seeing". Then the angel pulled me up in front of him and then he raised a sword. He handed me a sword too. Looking ahead I saw many many creatures that looked like druids, with no faces just long hooded garments. The sword I was holding suddenly seemed to come out of my mouth and as I spoke words from this mouth sword the druids began to melt down and disappear. Then as I continued to speak from the sword it would actually come down and touch the ground, causing it to shake violently. Each time that happened I saw the horse I was on take a step forward. Another word came out, the sword would touch the ground and the horse would take another firm step forward. This is where what I was seeing ended.
In Ephesians 6 we are told that one of our weapons of warfare is the sword of the spirit which is the word of God. I believe that as I, as we all speak the word and declare the truths of God's promises, it affects us and the world. Look around us, it is quite evident how words impact us and others. During this time, this season in our country where there are continual battles being waged with words (and actions) in our government, our states, our cities, our neighborhoods, and even in some homes, we need to be intentional about what we say and what we write. Be intentional about what we listen to and Whom. Let God be the final Who. Let Him always be our guide. Don't get caught up in it all, don't let others tell us what to believe, trust God and let us prayerfully be an instrument of peace one word at a time.
Often I ask God for peace to come into my corner of the world. More than ever I need to be active in releasing that peace, through what I write, through what I speak, through what I believe. Let my words reflect His Word. Always.
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