“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines
the course of your life.” ~ Proverbs 4:23
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Matters of the Heart is a weekly blog that deals with the deepest issues of the human heart, the issues we all face but sometimes don’t want to talk about. The heart is the programming center of our lives. What is programmed into our heart will affect every area of our lives. Learn how to discover what is in your heart and how to program your heart for success.
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For years I struggled on the road to success, never seeming to get very far, despite my best efforts. In fact, it often seemed that–as the old saying goes–“the harder I worked, the behinder I got.” Perhaps you can relate.
One day, as I was studying the Bible, I came across these words in Proverbs 18: 21 that rocked my world: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” The verse gripped my spirit, turned my soul on its head, and put me on a course toward a life of continual blessings–a course from which I have never turned back.
Let me share with you what I learned so that you, too, can experience a life of continual blessings. As you apply these principles, you will stand amazed as you literally watch your life turn from failure to success.
Principle #1: God created the universe with His words. Throughout the first chapter of Genesis, we find this repeated pattern of words: “And God said . . . and there was . . . And God said . . . and there was . . . And God said . . . and there was.” Clearly, then, the Bible tells us that God created everything in the entire universe through His words. He literally spoke the universe into existence.
Principle #2: We are made in God’s image. Since we are made in God’s image, then we function or operate as God does. Since God created His world with His Words, so do we create our world with our words.
Let me give you an example–a true story. A woman went to her doctor complaining of a continual pain in her neck. The doctor ordered every possible test related to neck pain, but every test he ordered showed that nothing was physically wrong with the woman.
Perplexed, the doctor had a flash of insight. “Is there something going on in your life that is upsetting you emotionally?”
Immediately the woman responded. “Yes, my mother-in-law is a pain in the neck. She keeps trying to interfere in my marriage.”
The doctor smiled. “How often do you use the phrase ‘pain in the neck’?”
“Every chance I get,” the woman replied, half-smiling. “My husband is tired of hearing me call his mother a pain in the neck.”
The doctor looked his patient straight in the eye. “Well, there you have it.”
“Have what?” the woman asked, visibly irritated.
“The source of your problem.”
“My mother-in-law?”
“No, not your mother-in-law. The words you repeatedly say to yourself about your mother-in-law. You keep telling yourself she is a pain in the neck, and she has literally become a pain in your neck.”
The woman stared at her doctor in disbelief.
The doctor smiled. “I’m going to give you a prescription.” He took out his prescription pad and wrote these words on it: Speak positive words about your mother-in-law three times a day.
To her credit, the woman followed her doctor’s orders. Instead of calling her mother-in-law a pain in the neck, the woman started calling her mother-in-law a blessing and a friend. Within a short time, the pain in the woman’s neck was gone and never returned. And the bonus blessing was that her mother-in-law did, indeed, become a blessing and a friend.
Oh, the power of our words!
Principle #3: Your words create your future. The words you speak today are creating the life you will live tomorrow. Now, before you think I’ve gone off the deep end, let’s do a little analysis to see if there is a connection between your words and your life.
—Take a close look at your life. Do you like what you see? Is your life full of peace, joy, and love? Or is your life full of strife, dissatisfaction, and discord? Are you struggling financially? In your health? In your relationships? If so, keep reading.
—What have you been speaking about your life? Have you been saying that you are broke? That you will never get well? That your marriage is hopeless? What you see in your life got there through the words you’ve spoken about your life. If you have been speaking negatively about your life, then you have been speaking curses on yourself. On the other hand, if you have been speaking positively about your life, you have been speaking blessings on yourself.
Interesting, no? Through your own self-analysis, you’ve discovered that what you say directly affects how you live.
So, now that we’ve discovered the missing link to success–the words we speak–you may, if you’re like me, need to change the words you speak. Start paying close attention to your words. You may be surprised at what you are actually saying, Moreover, what you say comes directly out of your heart, and what is in your heart directly affects the course of your life.
As you may have noted, the foundational Scripture verse for this blog is Proverbs 4: 23: “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” We guard our words first and foremost by guarding our hearts, for what is in our hearts is what will come out of our mouths. And what comes out of our mouths sets the course of our lives toward failure or success.
The choice is yours.
As the new year begins, purpose in your heart to guard your heart. In so doing, you will be guarding your mouth and speaking only words that bring you a life of success. Then share with your family and friends this amazing missing link to a successful life so that they, too, can experience a life of blessing during the new year and always.
Now, it’s YOUR turn: Have you missed out on success because of the negative words you’ve spoken? How will you change your words so that you can change your life? Please leave a comment in the box below.
TWEETABLES:
“Are You Missing the Most Important Link to a Successful Life?” by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio (CLICK TO TWEET)
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” – Proverbs 18: 21 (CLICK TO TWEET)
If you found this post helpful, please forward it to a friend. Thank you! Check our archives in the right sidebar for older posts on a variety of topics. You may also search for a particular topic in the search box at the top right. Some of our most popular posts are:
—“How to Get Free of the Secret Sorrow of Loneliness”
—“How to Deal with Difficult People”
—”Don’t Let Satan Play Your Pipes!”
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—How to Recognize a Contolling Spirit
—Seven Keys to Successful Parenting
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