The Power of Words

I was on the stage of my very first concert in middle school wearing an oversized blue polo, slightly droopy pants hovering above scuffed formal black shoes, and a forced smile that came with a bundle of nerves. Yet when I looked in the crowd, I saw a face that eased my thoughts and allowed me to breathe a little lighter, it was the face of my O so dear mother. She knew I didn’t particularly like being in the spotlight and had been praying for me since she knew about the event. She would ask me how I felt, hug me the way only she could with slightly too much pressure and a smile that the whole world could see, and ending with the words, “I love you papa.” Although I didn’t appreciate this much throughout my adolescence, these were moments that I began to cherish the older I became. 

To come from a house where a mother and father speak life, wisdom, and grace is a blessing many don’t experience as the norm. Ironically enough, this is how I best give love to others and receive it from others in my life. While this may not be the primary way you enjoy being cared for, a timely word can make a world of difference in someone’s life. 

May the words you read ahead aid you in your venture towards caring for others around you with the words you choose, life you speak over them, and how God is interwoven within all of it. Blessings.

WISE TIMING

It was late at night after a long shift at work. I had one of the worst days due to a bit of… let’s say, “choice words” from a customer not satisfied with a certain smoothie I had made (I still claim it was perfect). Typically negative words don’t phase me much but for some reason the words on this particular day began to sink into my soul and give me an inexplicable amount of grief that sent me into a downward spiral of thoughts and emotions. 

When I walked through the doors of my home all I wanted to do was sit down on my favorite part of the couch, put on some relaxing music, and vent to my best friend. As I explained what happened, he listened intently and asked me if I was looking for him to just listen, have a dialogue about it, or come up with a solution to the problem. This put my soul at ease. I was heard and met with a response catered to my need rather than listened to merely to be given a response.

If a good friend was able to give some sense of reprieve after a long day, how much more will a perfect God hear and answer our prayers? The God who, by the power of His breath, created all that we can see and hear listens to our prayers like a mother harkens her ear to her newborn baby at all hours of the night. Not for mere observation, but from a heart enamored by the love of a child that only a parent could fathom. Press your prayers to the Father because He cares for you and withholds no good thing from you. 

When you encounter a friend who comes to you in a place where they’re distraught, confused, or desire to hear your counsel on something, begin to pray. Not aloud if that would be a little weird in the moment, but in your mind begin to pray for the Spirit of God to grant you the wisdom and the words to bless the person standing before you. You’ll begin to gather a sense of what they need, how to appropriately respond, and take the next faithful step of loving kindness towards your fellow image bearer. 

CASTING VISION

I remember my freshman year of high school and I had just finished a grading period that did not produce the grades I needed for what my parents expected of me. So they sat me down, looked me in the eyes, and said the following, “We believe in you. We know you’re smart and are able to do many things and know that you will, we just need you to start making efforts to reflect that in your grades at school.” I couldn’t put my finger on it then, but in the years ahead these words that had been spoken over me would resonate in times of great joy and deep sorrow.

The reality of what my parents saw before them was an image of their son who had no real reflections of great academic success. Despite that, they chose their words with conviction and purpose. Why? Because what you speak over someone can cast a net into the person they will eventually become. Not in some weird way where if you say something with just the right mindset and environment it’ll come true, but through the lens of what the Scriptures declare.

Names within the Bible are not merely names that sounded good to the parents, they were describing a characteristic or reality of their life with God. Eve’s name meant giver of life, Samuel’s name meant God has heard, Cain’s name meant Acquired; Spearer. The names depicted the trajectory of their life before they could even take their first step. Eve was the first woman who partook in the cultivation of the earth and the creation of all future descendants. Samuel was born from a woman who longed for nothing more than for God to give her a child she could call her own, and he became a man who sought God throughout his life as a consequence of this. Cain was a murderer whose bloodline would wreak havoc on everyone around them through toil and bloodshed. 

When you or I are with a friend who’s unsure of their future because of repeated mistakes, we pray and speak over them the good within, not in spite of the mistakes, but because we see them for who they can become rather than where they currently are. It allows the prophetic to interact with our speech towards others. It recognizes the upward call to holiness, deep self-reflection, and embodied theology that we, as image bearers of God, are invited to walk into, and what better awakening to this than to speak this over a brother or sister? 

May this serve as a call to action to speak life over others, be a voice of clarity, and allow the Spirit to move within it all.

PRAYER

Would you join in during this holy moment, God? I long to be one who blesses others through a well-timed word. Not through clever speech, but through the Spirit of God providing wisdom with every word that flows from my mouth. Through all of this God, may this be a moment where the loved ones in my life can walk into the good life You’ve prepared and thought of before creation of the world. It's to You that I pray, Father. Amen.