By Brenda Groves
The Post Newspaper Contributing Writer
As the youngest of four sisters it was a constant struggle to keep up with them, especially in verbal conflicts.
For the most part, it was your usual sibling squabbles, but on occasion the battles became intense with name calling flung in rapid succession like machine guns.
I think the worst insult I ever came up with was calling one of my sisters “toilet paper head!” This clever barb sent her running away in tears. I recall being quite proud that at the age of five I had this effect on one seven years my senior! (Apparently, this was already a sensitive topic because she wrapped her head in toilet paper at night to keep her curlers in place.)
We can all laugh about it now, but as we get older most people realize how powerful our words really are. The old saying, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” is simply not true. You can recover from broken bones, but hurtful words can pierce our hearts like an arrow and leave us wounded for many years.
Why is that?
Because, the word of God spoken in faith is the most powerful force in the universe, and when God created mankind He gave us the ability to speak words, and the free will to choose how we will use them.
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” Hebrews 11:1,3. NKJV
“A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth; From the produce of his lips he shall be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat the fruit thereof.” Proverbs 18:20-21 NKJV
The Amplified version defines verse 21 this way, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it and indulge it will eat its fruit and bear the consequences of their words.”
You know, most of us speak the complete opposite of what we want to happen.
A while back our church held a ladies meeting where our Pastor’s wife taught on the power of our words that we speak, and she said something that I will never forget. When you are speaking, put this at the end of everything you say, “…. and I like it like that.”
For example, “that old car is always breaking down … and I like it like that.” Or, “my kids are driving me crazy … and I like it like that.” “I can never lose weight … and I like it like that.” “I never have any money … and I like it like that.”
Or, how about this one, “Every year I get the flu … and I like it like that.”
I truly believe that if most people understood how powerful our words are, we would start thinking more about our words before we speak.
For most of my life I just said whatever popped into my head with very little consideration of the importance of what I was saying. I am a kidder, and many of the negative words that I spoke in jest were directed toward myself. I never realized that what I was saying was having a direct impact on my life, even though I was really desiring the opposite of what I was speaking.
Someone once said that the definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over, but expecting different results.
Well, in 2007, I got sick and tired of being sick and tired and I decided to make my Savior, Lord over my life. I
became a disciple of the Lord Jesus, and I got plugged into the word of God. When I chose to believe His written word over my own beliefs and experiences, and deliberately lined up my thinking with what God says about things, I began to see a change.
My words began to reflect what God says about things. “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45
I realized that for so many years I had been speaking exactly the opposite of what I wanted to have in my life. And I was simply reaping the fruit of my words as a result.
I want to share our testimony here … back in 2004 my husband and both purchased new vehicles. Mine was a Jeep Liberty Sport, and his was a plain Chevy Silverado with a standard transmission. Now, as a former mechanic my hubby knew the basics of the upkeep, including the importance of routine oil changes so we were faithful to do this.
One day I was walking past our vehicles in the driveway and I felt inspired by the Holy Spirit to bless them with my words. I laid hands on them and walked around each vehicle declaring what I expected from them. For example, I said something like this to my husband’s vehicle.
“Truck, you are a good truck. We like you. Your engine lasts longer than any other truck your style, your parts stay together longer than expected. Your transmission goes farther than expected. You repel rust and corrosion. You always start and perform for us. You get better mileage than expected. I declare the blood of Jesus over you and in His name you have bumper to bumper warranty. We are protected from all evil when we ride in you and no calamity shall befall us. We are surrounded with favor on the roadways and you will serve us well as long as we have you.”
I also spoke over my Jeep in the same manner.
Now this may seem silly to many of you, to speak to a hunk of metal, but this is how I choose to believe. And all the parts of our vehicles were made from materials found on this earth and on this earth. And God created the earth by His spoken word, therefore, the things of the earth must respond to His word. And with the authority invested in me (Mark 11:22-23), as a blood bought child of God I used my authority to declare His blessings. (Besides, many of us today think nothing of asking questions or giving commands to a phone, or devices in our home etc.)
Although our vehicles did not run perfectly over the years, we experienced many supernatural occurrences that cannot be explained.
For example, one day as I attempted to go to work I discovered that the radiator in my Jeep sprang a leak while it was parked at our house in Angleton. Our mechanic suggested a tow to his shop in Alvin but I thought it would make it.
Well, at the time, I had no idea how bad the leak was so I said a prayer, hopped in and drove it to his shop. When I arrived, he took a look and said, “Come here, I want you to see this.” Apparently, the small leak had expanded as the engine heated up and the radiator was bone dry when I arrived. He said he had no idea how the motor did not burn up without a drop of water in it.
Another time, my husband was experiencing trouble with his clutch while at work in Houston, so he drove it to the shop after work. I met him there, and after a short while the mechanic walked up with the cracked clutch in his hand and wearing an incredulous look on his face.
Slowly he shook his head and stated, “Not only can I NOT understand how you drove that truck all the way from Houston with a broken clutch, but in my 25 years of automotive experience I have NEVER seen a clutch last 285,000 miles!!!” Lol!!
(We keep that broken clutch in a cardboard box in our garage as a reminder of the faithfulness of God who honors His word.)
You know, I could literally write an entire book, or rather books on all the times the word of God has delivered us, healed us, helped us, guided us, restored us, provided for us, encouraged us, warned us, protected us, instructed us and … proved His unconditional love for us … and I like it like that!
“And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak, knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.” 2 Cor. 4:13-15 NKJV
PS. We sold the Jeep in 2020 with over 250,000 miles on it, and still running good for the next owner who happily drove it out of our driveway. As for my husband’s truck, well, he has retired from his job in Houston, but the truck is still going strong, with over 341,000 miles and counting … Thank you Lord Jesus!
Contact Brenda Groves at: bkgroves1996@yahoo.com
