Psalm 54:2—“Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth.”
Since God hears our words, we should listen to our words too. We should pay attention to what we say. Let’s make sure we are speaking words the Lord can bless, use, prosper, maximize and fulfill.
Agree with God
A good place to start is by agreeing with God. Amos 3:3 says, “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” The answer is no, they can’t. It’s hard to walk together with someone when there is disagreement. We can’t walk with God in a close, fruitful way if we are not in agreement with Him and His Word. Our agreement is made known by our words; our words are indicative of whether or not we are in agreement with God. If we want to walk in agreement with God, we must line our words up with His.
Think of it this way. God’s Word is the plumb line—His Word is truth. His Word is settled. Our job is to listen to His Word and then speak the same thing knowing He hears us. When we’re in agreement with God, it’s a lot easier to walk together with Him.
Have you ever noticed how difficult it is to walk with someone when they are in constant disagreement with you? Perhaps, if you’re a parent, you know how difficult it is to walk together with your teenager when they challenge or contradict everything you say.
Sometimes, we act like teenagers toward God, and our disagreeable, contradictory words make it impossible to walk with the Lord in the way He desires.
Inconsistent Words: The problem for many of us isn’t necessarily 100 percent disagreement but rather inconsistent agreement. That is, our words bounce around all over the place. Some of our words agree with God and His Word, and some of our words contradict God and His Word. For example, one day we talk blessings, praise, faith, mercy, grace, love and positive agreement with the Lord; and the next day we talk curses, unbelief, criticism, bitterness, anger and negativity; yet we expect God’s blessing.
God hears our inconsistent words, but He cannot bless them. The Bible describes this type of inconsistency: “With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and blessings out of the same mouth! My friends, this can’t go on,” James 3:9-11, Message.
Harsh Words: In some cases, our words are full of harsh unbelief and doubt. Malachi 3:13-14 says: “Your words have been harsh against Me,” says the Lord, “Yet you say, ‘What have we spoken against You?’ You have said, ‘It is useless to serve God; what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance?’”
The Lord listened to the words that were spoken. The Lord hears our harsh, stout words of disagreement.
When we say things like, “It’s not worth it. God, what’s taking so long? Why didn’t You answer my prayer the way I wanted You to?” or “it’s been useless to serve You. I sacrifice and tithe, and yet I see others who don’t give a dime or lift a finger to help anyone but themselves, and their lives look so blessed; it’s not fair!”
The Lord says, “I’ve heard you, but your words have been harsh against me.”
When our words are harsh, we don’t give God anything to work with. We need to eliminate harsh words against the Lord from our vocabulary. Listen, the Lord is your best friend. If there’s anybody that’s ever been on your side, it’s God. He’s your best, and maybe you’re only, friend. The Bible says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Rom. 8:31. He has never had a day when He is not for you. So, while there may be some things you don’t understand, you can rest in the fact that God has always been on your side.
Memorable Words: Did you know God is listening for memorable words? He’s writing a book with some of our words:
"Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them; so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on His name.," Malachi 3:16.
Have you ever thought about this: God listens to our conversations about Him and records them. How would you like your words about the Lord to be recorded in the volumes of books in heaven’s library?
It’s true. God listens.
Words of Eternal Importance
Words are so important God has loaded them with the ability to impact eternity. The Lord is specifically tuning in to hear a few eternally important words from each and every one of us. The most important words we will ever utter have to do with our eternal salvation. Listen to what the Bible says, “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved,” Rom. 10:8,9.
So, here’s the million-dollar question. Are you saved? Do you know for sure when you die, you will spend eternity with God in heaven? Have you received the salvation Jesus has provided for you? It’s as simple as humbling your heart before God, believing in Jesus and saying so with your mouth.
The passage in Romans goes on to say:
"For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved,” Romans 10:10-13.
Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. God has given us the opportunity and free will to believe in Jesus from our hearts, and He’s given us the power to confess our faith in His Lordship in our lives with our mouths. This belief and confession of faith is the very thing that will secure our salvation.
If you’ve never believed in, received or confessed Jesus Christ as your Lord, I can think of no better way to conclude my first chapter than to encourage you to pray this prayer out loud from your heart—and remember, the Lord is listening.
Dear God,
I am so glad You are listening. I want You to know I believe in my heart Jesus is Your Son, and I believe You raised Him from the dead. Today, I confess and say with my mouth, “Jesus, be the Lord of my life.” I invite You to come into my heart, and I thank You for forgiving me of all my sins. I ask You to help me know You better and become the person You’ve called me to be. I believe it, and I declare it: from this day forward, Jesus Christ is my Lord.
In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Chapter 2: You’ve Got the Power
If you want power—real power—look no further than below your nose. Your words have power: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit,” Prov. 18:21. Have you ever considered this reality?
God speaks words. We speak words. No other species has this ability. According to God, our words are loaded. In His sovereignty, the Lord has given human beings the ability to speak words, and He has endowed those words with the power of life or death. When you think about it, establishing this law of words among humans was a risky thing to do, yet it is quite remarkable that the Lord would empower His people in such a way.
The Law of Words
Throughout Scripture, we can see the power of God’s words and the potential of our words. Let’s take a closer look at this principle of words—what I will refer to as the law of words.
In God’s kingdom, there are a variety of spiritual laws in operation. For example, the Bible describes the law of sowing and reaping. (Gal. 6:7-9.) This law works in a predictable fashion every time. In other words, this law of sowing and reaping, or seedtime and harvest, tells us we always reap what we sow after we sow; and we always reap more than we sow. If we plant good seeds into good ground, they will grow and produce fruit.