Have you ever paid attention to the things that come out of your mouth throughout the course of a single day? For some of us it is really quite alarming to say the least. Or maybe you have noticed it when you listen to somebody else who is either a very positive or very negative person. You will hear it in their words all the time.

The Bible tells us in Proverbs 18:21 that “the tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit” (NIV).

There was a period in my life when I was extremely negative. Everything that could go wrong seemed to go wrong and I found myself in a hole. Depression started to set in. I was still a new Christian and hadn’t learned one of the most important lessons (for me) yet, which was to watch my mouth and the words that were coming out of it all day every day.

I had no idea how much death I was speaking until I really started to pay attention and to change my words.

“The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit”. Proverbs 18:21

Words have power. You can either speak life or you can choose to speak death but what you say matters.

In Genesis 1:3 God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. He created it out of nothing, simply by speaking it into existence. Imagine the creative power in the spoken Word of God!

I know you and I are mere humans, but there is still power in the things we speak over our lives and our situations, especially if we speak the Word of God over these things.

So when the enemy comes and tries to steal from you, kill your marriage or destroy your dream, don’t give into his lies and agree with him. Start speaking life instead. Declare victory over your issues. Speak God’s promises over your life and you will be amazed by the changes you will see.

It is so important to watch the words you speak, not just for yourself but also for the people you come in contact with.

Proverbs 15:1 tells us that “a gently answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (NIV). It is so easy to fly off the handle when something goes wrong, but other than voicing your frustration, it really doesn’t do you any good to use harsh words. So use wisdom when choosing your words.

Your tongue essentially becomes a sword. You can use it to cut down the people around you and wound them deeply with the words you speak to them, or you can use it to fight the enemy for the things God has promised to you.

Whether you are aware of it or not, you wield this weapon all the time, but if you’re not careful, you will do more harm than good with it.

For me personally, no matter how good I think I’m doing and how far I think I’ve come in my walk with the Lord, it is always an eye opener to see how much work still needs to be done in me, when I get really angry and I hear all these awful words come out of my mouth before I even realize what is happening.

Whatever fills our hearts is usually what eventually comes out of our mouths, whether that’s anger, frustration, hopelessness, discouragement, unforgiveness, disappointment, love or hope: “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of,” (Luke 6:45 NIV).

This topic is so important and so extensive that you could fill books with it (and there are already a lot of books that address this issue), so we will continue this at another time but today let me leave you with this:

When the devil tried to tempt Jesus in the desert, Jesus didn’t ponder on the things the devil said. He had been fasting so you know he was probably very hungry, weak, tired – he was at a vulnerable state and that’s the time the devil chose to tempt him. It would have been very easy to fall into the traps of the enemy but Jesus instead chose to speak the Word of God. He didn’t think it in his head and recalled the scriptures in his mind, but he spoke out loud and quoted scripture to the devil to put him in his place!

“Jesus said to him. ‘Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” (Matthew 4:10 NIV).

Your words are powerful, but the Word of God is your ultimate weapon. Learn how to wield it and take back what the enemy has stolen from you!