I’ve taken a break from my sprint to the finish line on manuscript #4 (It’s a marriage devotional for first responders and military, coming January 2019.) I have just returned home from giving a keynote at the University of Alabama. They were extremely hospitable to me and I enjoyed my time there! It was really a great time. Last weekend I spent a day and a half in Nashville, TN with Jimmy Meeks and the folks at Sheepdog Seminars. I had the pleasure of meeting Jimmy, seeing Lt. Col. Grossman again, Carl Chinn, and several other phenomenal people who are doing great kingdom things.
But this week as I have been writing the final portions of the next book, I have been reminded of the rejection I faced when I first started a few years back. I’ve never been known as someone who backed down from a challenge, so every no was a reason to regroup and give the editors no option but to say yes. Rejection still stinks though. If I would have chosen to sit around and complain and throw myself a long pity party, I wouldn’t be sitting here today finishing book four with books five and six under contract. In fact, I’d probably still be wandering around in the writer’s world trying to find my place. On the flip side of that, if I could have just spoke “positive affirmations” and “name” my blessing, for example, “I have a new book deal. The publishers accept my work willingly and are excited to work with me. God has shown His favor over me.” Those words sound great, but without action, they are useless. But, that’s really the power of our tongue, it often provokes action. It stirs us to do something other than talk about it.
James 3:2 is a phenomenal demonstration of what the power of our tongue looks like. Throughout the third chapter of James, we see a pattern of our inability to tame our tongue, and the power of our words. Can positive affirmations, declared blessings, or “name it and claim it” work? I believe there is a thread of truth in the effectiveness, but before you label me a heretic, hear me out.
It’s quite simple, actually. The process of the human brain is complex, well, at least most humans. That’s a joke, laugh. 🙂
In an extremely oversimplified explanation, what we read, watch, hear, listen to, think about, eventually becomes part of our chain of thoughts. This is why it is so important for the Believer to constantly fill their mind with the Word of God. What we put in our mind, becomes our thoughts. What we give attention to in our thoughts, we eventually communicate. After time, what we communicate will often become action. Now, those communications and actions can be positive or negative, depending on the seed. I believe it is imperative to look at the things we are giving our attention to and gauge it with this standard:
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- Is it honoring to God?
- Is it fruitful (will it help you be a more fruitful Christian?)
- Is it profitable for the kingdom? (Is it going to hinder or help you accomplish the mission God has given you?)
It may sound old-fashioned, but I have seen the massive transformation in my own life by applying these fundamental principles. At the end of the day, don’t talk to anyone in a hateful, spiteful, or demeaning way. Don’t speak negative junk in to your circumstances or life. No, I don’t believe it is some magical darkness that poisons your life, but I do see those words, whether spoken jovially or seriously, as seed in the soil fo your life. Choose to speak life, truth, and blessing. It won’t show a return right away, but if you are consistent, you will eventually begin to see a major shift in your life. Guard your untamed tongue! Take your thoughts into captivity under the authority of the Word of God. Speak life, wholesome, meaningful words, not foolishness! Walk what you speak.
