Your Words Guide Your Life
In Mark 11:14-24 we read about how Jesus’ words affected a fig tree. Just like Jesus’ words changed the fig tree, our words affect our lives.
Proverbs 18:21 (New Living Translation)
21 The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.
Consequences are neither good nor bad. They are neutral. You can do things right and get good consequences or you can do things wrong and get bad consequences. According to Proverbs 18:21 life and death are the consequences of what you say.
The words you say will directly affect your self-esteem. YOU BELIEVE YOURSELF MORE THAN YOU BELIEVE OTHERS!
Proverbs 15:4 (New Living Translation)
4 Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.
Your words will bring life if they are good, but destruction if they are not. Here are 6 words you should remove from your vocabulary right now.
1. Can’t – Phil 4:13 For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.
2. Never – Mark 9:23 …“Anything is possible if a person believes.”
3. Quit – Gal 6:9 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
4. Depressed – Phil 4:4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice!
5. Hate – Rom 5:5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
6. Broke – Phil 4:19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.
Your #1 Priority – Excerpt From Golf Balls
God is not the #1 priority in my life. God is the totality of my life.
Revelation 22:13 (NLT) I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
The danger with not realizing that God is the totality of our lives is that we will try to shove God down to what we can understand and slide him into “Priority Slot #1.”
If we reduce God down to priority #1, then after we go to church, read the bible, compliment someone, or do something nice, we then check it off and move on to the rest of life. You can fool yourself into thinking you met your spiritual quota for the day or for the week, and then when you go to other priorities… family, work, money…you don’t include God in them because priority #1 is already checked off and done.
God should not be the #1 priority in your life. God should be the totality of your life. Everything you do should honor Him.
You must make your relationship with Him the #1 priority in your life.
The closeness and intimacy of your relationship with Jesus is determined by you. Jesus desires a personal relationship with you. According to John 15:15 Jesus wants to call you His friend.
It isn’t the church’s responsibility to maintain or grow your relationship with God. That may shock you! Your closeness with God is determined by you NOT where you go to church. Nobody can do it for you. Students, your parents can’t do it. Husbands\wives, your spouse can’t do it.
James 4:8 (NLT) Come close to God, and God will come close to you.
When it comes to your relationship with God, it’s your move. The ball is in your court.
Yeah, just see it for yourself!
In January I did a series of talks at the church titled Church Matters. One of my statements was that often times the church or Christians do things that drive people away from God rather than draw people to God.
How about them apples?
Your Hidden Potential
I believe that inside each of us is potential that has not yet been discovered. Maybe it’s something that other people don’t see in you or it could be that you don’t even see it in yourself.
Some people spend most of their life being told or treated like they will never amount to anything. Even just one incident of a parent, teacher, or a “friend” telling you that you are a screw-up can distort your thinking the rest of your life.
Maybe if you examine your life right now you can’t find anything that you would consider yourself a pro at. That may be true. But God has put potential inside each one of us, and if you will submit your life to Him, you can be more than you even dream possible.
I love the story of David in the Bible. Before he defeated Goliath, we can read about people overlooking him and not seeing the potential inside of him. When the prophet Samuel came to David’s father and said to bring his sons to him because one of them would be chosen to be king, his dad brought out David’s seven older brothers but didn’t even bother getting David. Then when David stood before King Saul and offered to fight Goliath, Saul thought there was no way David could win.
And even though it wasn’t apparent on the outside, the potential to do something amazing for God was on the inside. Just like David, when other people don’t see it in us, we must trust that God has placed potential inside of us and begin to believe in ourselves. Not because we are so great, but because God is so great.
When we submit ourselves to God and are obedient to him, the hidden potential that is on the inside begins to show up on the outside.
Priorities – Excerpt from Golf Balls
If for whatever reason, you are unable or unwilling to set your priorities, I assure you, someone or something will set them for you. The strange thing about priorities is that they never stay put. They are constantly shifting and sliding, and it is our responsibility to keep our priorities in check.
You and I, each of us, have the unique responsibility of making the choice of how and on what we will spend our time, energy, and resources to accomplish.
The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook. – William James
You cannot overestimate the unimportance of practically everything. – John Maxwell
If we allow ourselves to be distracted by the demands pulling on us, we will begin to just hack at the leaves in front of us instead of dealing with the root issues.
Knowing the difference between the things that really should have our attention and the things that aren’t that important, is what PRIORITIES are. Without correct priorities you will be incapable of making correct decisions.