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Shopping can be so
much fun--especially when you have plenty of money. Imagine
browsing in your favorite boutique; inspecting all of
the beautiful and useful things the store has to offer.
You've made your selections and now it's time to check
out. The clerk rings up all of your items and presents
you with the total. You confidently hand her a wad of
bills. "What's this?" she asks with confusion
as she hands the money back to you, "We don't accept
foreign currency here." Surprised and embarrassed
you leave the store empty-handed with a pocketful of worthless
currency.
Now, think of
the words coming out of your mouth the same way you
think about the money in your pocket. In Heaven,
coins, paper and credit cards are not used to make an
exchange for goods and services--words are. When we
pray to our Father in Heaven, he receives our words
and converts them to the results we need on earth. If
we want to do business with Heaven, we must speak. Unfortunately,
sometimes our words are as foreign and useless to God
as counterfeit dollars are to a bank.
From our perspective,
it seems as if our prayers go unanswered and God is not listening.
In reality, God heard our prayers, but they were ineffective.
God always hears our
prayers. But, to receive answers, our words must line up with
the Word of God and the will of God. The Bible tells us
in James 3:2...
"We
all stumble in many ways. Those who are never at fault in
what they say are perfect, able to keep their whole body
in check." (King James Version)
The Message Bible puts
it this way...
"We
get it wrong nearly every time we open our mouths. If you
could find someone whose speech was perfectly true, you'd
have a perfect person, in perfect control of life."
(The Message Bible)
Consider Jesus. Not only
was he the Son of God, he was a perfect person. Every word
he spoke was true and in line with the will of God and the
Word of God. Most of the miracles he performed were the result
of a few choice words like, "Take up your bed and walk,"
"Peace be still," or "Lazarus come forth."
What if we could heal the lame, calm the sea and bring the
dead back to life just by the words coming out of our mouths?
We can.
Before returning to Heaven,
Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, anyone who believes
in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater
works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask
for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son
can bring glory to the Father." (John 14:12-13, New Living
Translation)
The Bible tells us that
we have the right to speak and have those words produce results
just like Jesus did. So, why aren't we getting the results
Jesus got? Sometimes our words are devalued.
What devalues our
Currency (Words)?
- Speaking mixed
words. (Examples:
Telling the truth sometimes and lying at other times; being
encouraging one minute and then gossiping the next; saying
"I love the Lord" one day and then cursing someone
out the next day, et cetera) Because the words are mixed
(sometimes they line up with the Word of God and sometimes
they don't), they have mixed results--sometimes we get what
we pray for, sometimes we don't.
- Living an ungodly
life. Not only should our words line up with the Word
of God, but our inner thoughts and motivations should as
well. Our prayers must be motivated by good intentions,
not greed or selfishness. Nor can we hold on to unforgiveness,
bitterness, offense and hatred in our hearts or live a sinful,
immoral life and expect to speak miracles into existence.
If we want our prayers
to be answered and to have authority over spiritual wickedness,
our life and our words must agree. In essence, there can be
no variation in what we say and how we live--both must be
representative of Jesus Christ.
Life Principles:
- Words are the currency
of the Kingdom of God. Just as our salvation must be
confessed by our mouths. We must use our mouths to confess
the rest of God's promises. (Confess means to declare faith
in or adherence to; it also means to admit sin or guilt.)
- Spend words wisely. Don't buy a bunch of junk with your mouth by saying
negative things like, "I'm so afraid that this will
happen" or I just don't know how I'm going to make
it." Instead say, "God I'm thankful that you are
supplying all my needs according to your riches in glory"
or "God has not given me a spirit of fear and I can
do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Remember,
all words produce a result, whether good or evil. So, say
what you want and not what you don't want.
- Ask for forgiveness
and repent. We have all said foolish or wicked things.
However, we have an advocate with the Father through Jesus
Christ. If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we ask God to forgive us of every idle and contrary word
we have spoken, He will forgive us. He will prevent those
words from harming others and us any longer.
- Speak words of
life. Once we are forgiven we can use our words in exchange
for what we need in the natural. For example. If we're lacking
in health, lacking in finances, or lacking in relationships,
et cetera, we can find scriptures from the bible that tell
us God's promises for us in those areas. John 6:63 says,
"The Spirit can make life. Sheer muscle and willpower
don't make anything happen. Every word I've spoken to you
is a Spirit-word, and so it is life-making." (The Message)
- Act on the words
of life. Do everything in the natural that should be
done to bring about the results you want. For example, we
can't smoke two packs of cigarettes a day and then pray
for healing of lung cancer. Instead, pray for healing AND
stop smoking--even pray for the ability to stop smoking if
necessary.
Remember, "life
and death is in the power of the tongue." (Proverbs 18:21,
KJV) When we pray or speak, Heaven responds and an exchange
is made. Even though we can't always see what our words have
purchased immediately--our merchandise is on the way.
For more study on
the power of the tongue, read our Tame Your Tongue Bible study.
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