The Power of Words and the Glory of God

This Soviet war poster conveys the message: “Don’t chatter! Gossiping borders on treason” (1941). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Are you amazed at the power of words?

The written word is simply a string of characters chained together. The spoken word is a combination of tones and inflections. Yet all are laced with meaning, emotion, and heart.

Your words can make or break who you are.

Do you want to glorify God, tough girl? Do you want to be His light shinning bright everywhere you go? Do you want to be a better disciple, a better witness, and a better follower of Christ?

Watch your words.

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue…” – Proverbs 18:21

“Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.” – Proverbs 16:24

“There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” – Proverbs 12:18

Let me ask you this, tough girl – are your words bringing life or death?

Are you bringing life or death to your parents? Do the words you speak display the respect and honor they deserve (not because they’ve earned it, but because the Bible says so)? Do you build them up, encourage them, and love them with the love of Christ? Or do you cut them down, disrespect them, talk back, and argue?

Are you bringing life or death to your friends? Do you encourage them with Scripture, encourage them when they are feeling down, and make them feel special and loved? Or are you sarcastic, cutting, mean-spirited (though you try and cover it by saying, “I’m just kidding!”), and rude?

Are you bringing life or death to your teachers? Do you respect them, honoring them with when you speak and don’t speak? Or do you whisper in class and complain about them behind their backs?

Do you gossip? FYI – that whole thing about, “It’s not gossip if it’s true” totally isn’t true. It’s gossip and slander if it’s negative and mean. How can you tell? Check your heart. If you get joy out of saying something negative about someone, it’s gossip.

And speaking of heart, you may say to me, “Crystal! This is all fine and dandy, but really – is it that big of deal? Doesn’t God care more about my heart than my words?”

I’m so glad you asked!

“But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person.” – Matthew 15:18

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.” – James 1:26

You can’t claim to have a Jesus-loving heart and not have Jesus-loving words come out of your mouth. Sure, we all slip. But with that slipping should come conviction, repentance, and an apology. And a conscious effort to try and not do it again.

Do you want to glorify God, tough girl? Watch your words. Think about what you say. Think about what you don’t say. Think about what you think about saying!

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” – Ephesians 4:29

Question: What kind of words come out of your mouth? Are you speaking life or death to your parents, teachers, and friends? Do you make a conscious effort to build others up? How could you do it even more?

How To Become The Best Version Of You

This past weekend, I got to go to the Do Hard Things conference in Portland, OR. (If you don’t know about Do Hard Things, click here to read the book review I posted a few weeks ago). It was an awesome day filled with tons of info and challenges.

One of the things that stood out the most was one of the brothers who said, “People think you’re a good kid if you do nothing. You don’t do drugs. You don’t sleep around. You don’t fail school. You don’t do anything…and that makes you a good kid.”

Is that you, tough girl? Are you coasting through life, considering yourself a “good” person because, in comparison to everyone else around you, you’re not doing the “bad” things they’re doing? Are you a good person because you’re known for doing nothing?

Let me challenge you, girl – DO SOMETHING! Don’t just get by with avoiding sin. Get up, move, and turn your “good” life into something amazing and extraordinary.

The verse of the conference was that typical youth verse:

“Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers and example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” – 1 Timothy 4:12

 

Did you hear that? You don’t set example by doing nothing and avoiding things. You set an example by doing something!
Setting an example in speech by doing nothing looks like not cursing, not gossiping, not talking back, and not complaining.

Setting an example in speech by doing something looks like encouraging people, giving people Bible verses, and standing up for truth.

Setting an example in conduct by doing nothing looks like not doing “bad” things like drinking, drugs, sex, skipping school…the list goes on and on.

Setting an example in conduct by doing something looks like being generous, doing things for other people, working as hard as you can and then some…the list goes on and on.

Setting an example in love by doing nothing looks like not being mean and not neglecting your responsibilities

Setting an example in love by doing something looks like going out of your way to be kind, demonstrating selflessness and sacrifice, serving others, being a good listener…and initiating those things, not waiting for people to ask you.

Setting an example in purity by doing nothing like like not dressing like a slut, not having sex, and not watching inappropriate things.

Setting an example in purity by doing something looks like encouraging your friends to dress more conservatively, promoting things that have a pure and positive message, working at having relationships that celebrate purity in every single area.

Question: What are you known for: doing nothing, or doing something? What can you do to do more?

For the next two weeks, I’ll share some of the practical ideas they had to make this kind of stuff not only happen but stick.

PS – Alex and Brett Harris have an awesome website called The Rebelution. Check it out for more great ways to do hard things.

Related articles

• Moody Publishers’ Blogger Review: “Uncompromising” by Hannah Farver (onedesertrose.wordpress.com)
• We have to embrace REBELUTION (reinehere.wordpress.com)
• 1st Timothy 4:12 (youthofeternity.wordpress.com)

Check Your Likeability Factor

Image by !borghetti via Flickr

Did you decide if you are likeable? Regardless of your answer, there are things which seem to characterize people that we enjoy being around. This is a list of four things that simply address words and attitudes. Why words? Because they’re loud. And, honestly, this is the area where I personally am trying to become a more likeable person.

 

Good Listener – This is more than simply being quiet, though of course that helps. When you’re talking with someone, do you ask them questions in order to give them a chance to talk about themselves? Or does every other sentence you say contain “I” or “me”? Do people feel like all you talk about is yourself?

 

Killer Kindness – Believe it or not, this actually helps with the first one. When you focus on being kind, you’re focusing on others more than yourself. When you focus on others more than yourself, you tend to listen more than you talk. See? You’re more likeable already!

 

Grossed out by Gossip – Admit it – you like listening to gossip. But what is your opinion of those people who do it? They aren’t people that you would confide in, are they? So I’m guessing you don’t want to be one of those people. If you are constantly dishing dirt or, worse yet, asking questions so you can get the low down, you aren’t exactly being likeable.

And, yes, there is a difference between asking people questions to be a good listener and asking people questions so you can satisfy your desire to be “in the know” about everything. How do you know the difference? Check your motives and your heart.

Curb Complaining – No one likes a whiner. NO ONE! Are you positive? Optimistic? Willing to do things when people ask? Or do you argue? Roll your eyes and sigh? Try to get other people to do the work?

FYI this includes when your parents and teachers ask you to do things.

 

Which of these do you think you can get better at?

 

 

The Not Bot (part 2)

Image by Dan Coulter via Flickr

(To read part one, click here)

 

So do you believe me yet? That doing something is much better than not doing something? Imagine this:

 

There’s a gal with a super cute apartment. The only problem is, there’s this ghost floating around, making her life miserable, turning her place upside down, drinking the last of the coffee, and leaving hair in the shower drain.

 

So the girl does what any girl would do: she shoos it out. She slips in the welcome mat, bolts the door, and pretends to not be at home whenever she hears a knock. Then, she gets to work.

 

She puts her bookshelf back together, alphabetizing her Jane Austen and Toni Morrison novels. She fluffs her pillows, sweeps her floor, and wipes the toothpaste off the sink. She gets her place back in order.

 

Then ghosty comes back and sees how nice and pretty and clean everything is. And what does the ghost do? Streams back out the door, grabs a whole bunch of other ghosts, and decides to really wreak havoc on the girl’s apartment and life.

 

Sound far fetch? Jesus told a story similar to this in Matthew 12:43-45 and Luke 11:24-26. The moral of the story? The answer to all of your issues isn’t simply to get rid of them. It’s to fill your life with something else. Something better.

 

The Not Bot says I’m not going to gossip anymore. I’m not going to hang around those people anymore. I’m not going to text, Facebook, or even participate in anything even remotely mean.

 

The Doer says I am going to be around people who have the same gossip standards as I do (which is zero tolerance ) I am going to defend others when people put them down and, if it comes down to it, I will simply walk away.

 

The Not Bot says I’m not going to crush on boys. I’m not going to like boys. I’m not going to even think about boys.

 

The Doer says I am going to focus on my friends. I am going to pour into them, love on them, and keep myself busy with being a good friend to them. I am going to pray for the guys I know and pray that I would be able to be a godly friend to them without expecting anything “more” to come of it.

 

The Not Bot says I’m not going to skip church again. I’m not going to miss a day reading my Bible.

 

The Doer says I will go to church. I will read my Bible.

 

Any other suggestions to break the Not Bot mechanics?

 

The Not Bot (part 1)

Image by Warm 'n Fuzzy via Flickr

Chatting with a teenage friend of mine, she shared some things she was struggling with. Being a typical kick butt girl, she said that a certain incident put her in a bad mood, which spiraled into falling back into old habits. Hanging out with a not so great crowd. Gossiping. Liking boys she shouldn’t like. All stuff she knew that she, as a kick butt girl, shouldn’t be doing.

 

Letting it all out, she suddenly yelled, “I know I should be drawing closer to God, but I just want to push Him away. I want attention! I want a boyfriend! I kind of hate myself right now.”

 

“So what are you going to do about it?” I asked her.

 

Shifting in her seat, she blew her bangs off her face. “I don’t know. I guess not do those things. Right?”

 

Wrong.

 

Too often we think the answer to our sin, our struggles, and our shortcomings is not do those things. To not gossip. To not be lazy. To not like boys.

 

Here’s the thing: When we focus so much on not doing things, we’re still focusing on those things we shouldn’t be doing. The more we think about them, the more insurmountable they seem. The more all consuming they seem, the easier they are to fall into.

 

Don’t be a Not Bot.

 

“Be doers of the Word…” – James 1:22

 

Instead of focusing on not doing those things you shouldn’t be doing, focus on what you should be doing!

 

“’Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in all the Law?’ And [Jesus] said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind…You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” – Matthew 22:36-39

 

What about the mind thing? The thoughts thing?

 

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” – Philippians 4:8

 

Instead of creating a list of things you shouldn’t be doing, create a list of things you should be doing! Read your Bible and commit yourself to church. Hang out with positive, encouraging friends. Pray for people instead of gossiping about them or crushing on them.

 

Spend all that bad mood energy on loving other people.

 

Love sin less.

 

Love Jesus more.

 

What about you? Any other verses that you cling to when you’re tempted to merely not do something?

 

Stay tuned for part 2 of Not Bot on Wednesday!

 

Speak

There’s nothing like being reminded of how powerful you are. I love writing this blog and reminding you of the power of your beauty, the power of your mind, the power of your actions.

But nothing matches the power of words.

Words create. They plant ideas that shape minds and people and the world. They paint pictures that last a life time. They dictate what we think and believe.

Words can also destroy. They hurt, tear down, and rip apart anything and everything. They scar and mar. If you’ve ever been in middle school, you know exactly what I’m talking about. The things people say stay with us and affect us forever.

So what kind of words are you using? Are you building up? Tearing down?

“Let no corrupting talk come our of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” – Ephesians 4:29

You are powerful beyond belief. Use it wisely.

Spew

Okay, I don’t care how tough you are, the idea of vomit is disgusting. I’m a contagious throw-upper, to the point that someone even faking the noises makes my stomach churn.

This last week I went on a mission trip to San Francisco with forty two high schoolers and seven other adults. And while I witnessed God doing amazing things, I also came across some disgusting spew.

Complaining.

Nothing can drain the energy of a group, bring people down, and dampen spirits more than someone whose negative attitude, pessimistic outlook, and whininess can’t be contained. It doesn’t matter how small or how big the thing is they complain about. It’s all annoying, frustrating, and downright nauseating.

Now don’t get me wrong. Girls should always be aware of our propensity toward gossip. And while complaining may not be as damaging as gossip, it both brings other people down and lowers their view of us. I mean, who in the world actually looks up to and wants to emulate a whiner?

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” – Ephesians 4:29

So, tough girl, watch your mouth. Let every word you say be a chance to build others and Jesus up. Memorize that verse up there. Tattoo it on your head. Sink it in your heart. Above all, live it.

And if you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.