Empowered Words

Empowered Words!

April 7 - May 16

The Elders have called the members of COTRM to a 40 day fast. This is not a food fast, but a season of fasting negative words or words that contradict the truth of God’s Word. We are calling this fast: Empowered Words! This will be a season of focusing on the words of truth we read in the Bible, as opposed to the lies we often believe about God, ourselves, others, and our circumstances.

This is not an exercise in positive thinking, but an exercise in biblical thinking. A time to make sure our thoughts align themselves with God’s Word.

Isaiah 55:8–9 (NASB95) - 8“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. 9“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.

The thoughts that we meditate on and the words that we speak can, and often do, direct the course of our lives. We want to bring our thoughts and our words into alignment with the heart of God for our lives and the lives of others. What we believe about God, ourselves, others, and our circumstances will affect the way we live and respond to life. The Christian life is in many ways a progression of replacing the lies we have believed with the truth of God’s Word.

Does this mean that we cannot talk about the difficulties we might be going through in our lives? We are not denying that problems exist in our lives, but there is a right way and a wrong way to talk about them. We want to focus more on God’s promises than on problems, and learn to speak hope into the most difficult situations. King David, in many of his psalms, gives us a perfect example of how we can handle negative situations in a God-honoring way. Psalm 13 is a short psalm that demonstrates David talking to God about His difficulties. This psalm does not describe his difficulties specifically, but he begins the psalm wondering if God is listening to his prayers...

1 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me?

Ever felt like David felt? But David does not leave it there. In verse 3 he asks God for help...

3 Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; Enlighten my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death.

He has expressed his thoughts and what he is struggling with to God, but he does not leave it there. He ends the psalm expressing his confidence in the lovingkindness of God even in the middle of his difficulties...

5 But I have trusted in Your lovingkindness; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. 6 I will sing to the Lord, Because He has dealt bountifully with me.

In verse 6 he reminds himself of the goodness of God in the past. This helps him to have faith that God will likewise be with him through his current situation.

It is also important during this season that we guard how we speak about other people. James makes an interesting statement concerning the use of our mouth...

James 3:9–10 (NASB95) - 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; 10 from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.

It is important that we do not gossip about other people inappropriately. First, we are called to pray for them. If this does not resolve the problem we are having in our heart with someone, then we might need to speak to them personally about it. There are many scriptures that deal with how we are to properly handle interpersonal relationships.

There are two verses God has spoken to me to use as a guide during this season. I would encourage you to consider memorizing them...

Psalm 19:14 - Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. 

God is concerned not only about what we speak, but what we think or meditate on. Why? Because what we think on often comes out of our mouth. (Luke 5:45) 

The second verse that God has given me for this season is found in Ephesians ...

Ephesians 4:29 - Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.

We want not only to refrain from speaking lies we have believed about God, ourselves, others, and our circumstances, we want to replace those lies with the truth of God’s Word. It is difficult to believe a lie when you are speaking truth over your life and the lives of others. Freedom comes from believing the truth, not lies. (John 8:31-32)

“There is a difference between believing in Jesus and believing like Jesus” (Steve Backlund).

Knowing the truth leads us to believe like Jesus. Jesus was free because He believed truth in every area of His life (provision, identity, health, power). We too are to renew our minds with the truth of God’s Word, so we can walk in the freedom and power of God.