Ever wonder why some people are so tightly wound, is it just in their makeup or could there possibly be more to the picture than meets the eye? Were they born that way, is it Mom or Dads fault, possibly a generational curse? It's like all they can see is the negatives in life, you would think their walls are painted doom & gloom, oops I may be describing you! For sure you know I will have some fun explaining my take on this one.
The negative viewpoint on life & all that is in it comes from our lower carnal nature. Positivity does not come naturally, it must be continually worked at. Over the week I picked up a couple of quotes that are applicable "your gratitude determines your attitude" & "a grateful heart silences a complaining voice" great thoughts to ponder.
Each of us have much to be thankful for, an example is the fact we live in Canada (the greatest nation in the world.) There is an old hymn Count Your Blessings One by One. The first verse goes like this "When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed, when you are discouraged thinking all is lost. Count your many blessings, name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done." Besides you get your focus back on the Lord rather than the mole hills of life.
There is unmeasurable power in spoken words, negative or positive. Words can either put a person in bondage or set them free. For years now it has been recognized we should not call our kids dummy or stupid but those put downs are only the tip of a very large iceberg. You & I may have grown up with words like that but today it is referred to as verbal harassment. Ever heard this one or possibly even spoken it over someone else "you'll never amount to anything' or "you're just like you're old man, your mother, your brother, your sister. Lies, gossip, slander, false accusations, nitpicking all have a way of eating at you & make you feel like a piece of dirt.
The end result of these words is rejection, fear of man, unworthy, failure & lead you into a revengeful state. When you are unwilling to forgive you find yourself angry all the time & that anger leads into bitterness & that bitterness makes you a miserable as sin. The old adage is true misery loves company and the only people you find yourself hanging out with are other miserable souls who have nothing good to say about anybody or anything.
Why the attack? Words are a like a bullet & the target is a persons soul. The soul is made up of your mind, will, intellect, & the damaged goods are the memory & emotions. Within a persons soul is their character (who they are) & those negative words are to tear down or rip out any shreds of positive we may have had instilled within us.
In Ephesians 6:12 of the bible we learn people are not our problem, ok but who is? Our battle is against principalities, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. No I am not saying God is the problem but as Christians we have learned the enemy of our soul is Satan himself. And under him there is a demonic hierarchy of evil that creates havoc on this earth & has a hatred for Jews & Christians.
My personal belief is the spirit realm dictates to this earthly realm. For some of you, you will have now read enough, but for others you are saying, hey maybe this guy is onto something. Now here is the kicker the negative words of our born again spirit filled mouths, give him & his henchmen the right to create all the havoc he chooses, even within a Christians life. In other words we can be our own worst enemy.
Now the fun of trying to explain what I am driving at. As an example when our denominations & organizations starts quibbling over doctrine the devil has a good old fashioned belly laugh. Because he knows there is power in unity & one accord. If we cant even get along with each other (in a church) or within the body of Christ (believers) why would people want to join our cause?
Let us go to scripture to bring clarity & to learn how we combat the negative words & thoughts that pound away at us each & every day. Matt 16:19 "What is bound on earth is bound in heaven but what is loosed on earth is loosed in heaven." Our words can either bind someone in a negative state or loose them from one. John 20:23 tells us " If we forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." My take on this is that we forgive them they are released to change their ways but if we are unwilling to forgive, they remain stuck in the proverbial mud, or bound by our unforgiveness. Now take the time & check out some scriptures in Proverbs & see what it is you have been feeding on. Proverbs 16:27,28 Proverbs 17:14,15 Proverbs 18:18-21 Proverbs 21:23,24
I know I have had many negative words spoken over me & sad to say spoken many over others in my lifetime but some spoken in my childhood still try to rise up and harass me today. One powerful example is a recording that the demonic forces continually tries to play in my mind is "why do you not just quit trying to do anything for Jesus, you have never succeeded at anything in your life!" I have two standard answers for him #1 being I would rather do something for Christ today than do nothing at all. When you do nothing you have no possibility of accomplishing anything so that makes this a no brainer. Besides if you are doing it from a purer heart God most assuredly honor it. #2 the Lord does not measure success as man does, but by our FAITHFULNESS.
Here are a couple of scriptures for your arsenal Matthew 5:44 "But I say to you love your enemies (not the demons that are driving them)bless those who curse you (speak negative words about you) do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you & persecute you." In Romans 12:20 we learn how doing good to our enemies brings conviction on his soul that maybe, just maybe he is wrong, & could it be possible, we are right!
Load up your gospel guns & blast away in prayer but remember to couple that with action & when you put those two together you will see not only dramatic change in your enemies life but you will also find a new found freedom in serving Christ. He who the Lord sets free is free indeed. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty.
There are reams more I could write on this subject but maybe another day as I have been long winded enough. Think positively, speak positive words & do positive things & your life & those around you will get gooder & gooder! Food for Thought!
Ken Gorham a servant of the Lord
