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Since we are anointed to be the prophets of our own lives, then why are we lacking in so
many areas? The Bible says in Psalm 23:1 that "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want (lack)."
Be Single-Minded
The reason why many Christians don't receive from the Lord is that they are often double-minded.
Proverbs 6:2 tells us that these people are"snared with the words of their mouth,
and are taken with the words of their mouth."
James 1:8 says that: "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways."
and James 3:10 says that "Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing.
My brethren, these things ought not so to be."
"If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue,
but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain."
(James 1:26).
The Bible goes on to say say that we shouldn't let anyone who wavers in his faith (a double-minded
person) think that he will receive anything from the Lord (James 1:7).
A person might pray about his or her finances one day, get up from his or her place of
prayer and say, "Praise God!" I believe and receive all my financial needs met." But the
very next day, if a friend asks, "How are you doing?" that person might answer: "Oh, it
doesn't look as though we're going to make it." This person is double minded.
We
must hold fast to our original confession of faith right in the face of seeming defeat.
We must call those things which be not as though they are (Romans 4:17) and walk by
faith and not by sight (II Corinthians 5:7). After all, faith rests while unbelief
wallows in restlessness.
Live by Faith
The Bible tells us in Habakkuk 2:4 that "the just shall live by faith."
The Apostle Paul told Timothy in II Timothy 4:6-7 that "words of faith" nourish, but idle
words starve the spirit and make it weak.
Satan operates through fear while God works through faith. It is a constant power struggle
in our lives.
Fear (the opposite of faith) will prevent you from speaking the correct things. Fear means
flight, dread, terror. The Bible
says in Deuteronomy 28:13 that we are the "head and not the tail." It is interesting to note
that when someone tackles a project he or she is often referred to as approaching the task "head on."
It is
a principle of nature for animals when a possible confrontation arises to either fight or take flight. We
as Christians must fight our battles with the Word of God and not run away from our problems. We want to
see the tails of our enemies flee as we speak the Word of God in faith. We are the head and the enemy is the tail.
We are more than conquerors and God will never leave us or forsake us.
We cannot allow our minds to stay in fear, for if we do, we will not allow ourselves to pray the prayer of faith.
We cannot afford to give the accuser any words to use against us. We have to give our lawyer, Jesus, good
faith-filled words to use in our plea before the Father.
We're told in I John 4:18 that "perfect love casteth out fear." How can we get perfect
love? Well, I John 2:5 tells us that "Whoso keepeth (God's) word, in him verily is
the love of God perfected." In other words, the more we keep the Word, or act on it,
the more the love of God is perfected in us. Fear will then be
overtaken by faith. For Romans 10:17 says that "faith comes by hearing the word of God."
Avoid Jesting
Ephesians 5:4 prohibits jesting (joking) and foolish and silly talking. Jokes
are statements that can be easily turned to mean something else, to adapt to moods
and conditions of those it is dealing with at the time. Jesting is polished and
witty speech; an instrument of sin; refined versatility without Christian flavor or
grace, lodged in a sly question; a smart answer; a hint; an insinuation; sarcasm;
exaggeration; figurative expression; acute nonsense; unaccountable and inexplicable
but answerable in numberless rovings; fancy windings of language convenient at the
moment regardless of being exactly true.
Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:26 to "Let you yea be yea and your nay be nay, whatever
is more than this comes from evil."
Jesus said in Mark 4:24 to be careful of what we hear also, because, what you hear will
be multiplied unto you. Hear the words of life and receive life mulitiplied; hear the
world and you have zero. So as we consider words, they have power when you speak them and
they have power when you hear them.
Conclusion
Satan has instilled certain bad habits into this world many
of which have creeped into the church. As a result, our words have been
stout against God, keeping Him from doing all that He is anointed to do on our behalf.
In effect, our words have limited God's blessings. The challenge for us is to break
out of those old habits by changing from negative words of death to positive words of truth
and life. We accomplish this by keeping the Word of God going into our hearts and our
ears and flowing out of our mouths until the Word eventually begins overflowing in our lives.
If you are facing difficulties in your life, perhaps it might be a good time to take inventory
of what and how you are speaking. The way you talk to and about yourself can make
all the difference in your happiness. Today, make a deeper commitment to the Lord in
being responsible for your words. Ask for God's help daily by praying a prayer of David,
"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD" (Psalm 19:14).
If you would like to see positive changes in your life by mastering your mouth,
it's time to realize that the answer is right under your nose!
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This teaching was written by David Holt Boshart, Jr.
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