By “If Jesus could speak and raise the dead, calm the storm, cast out demons and heal the incurable, then what effect might a word from Him have on your life.”
I read this quote again this week, I am struck by the simplicity that is seen here. How often have I said something similar for others but not believed this for myself. I don’t know about anyone else but for me I have a hard time sitting still and just listening to God. I want to be doing things, and sitting feels like a waste of time. In this reading this morning, I found myself sitting still. I made a commitment to be present in moments in which God is speaking and not think about the things that I need to get done.
I also think about the verse in the Bible that tells us “Death and life are in the power of
the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.” (Proverbs 18:21). If our words have the power to give life, how much more power come from the words that God speaks to us?
This past week has been incredibly busy, I have spent the last 3 days training teachers in identifying trauma, coping with trauma and learning self-care. The funny thing to me is that I actually hate speaking in public and in a perfect world I could just write blogs, books and articles to present the information that I have. However, God had some other plans as I have spent a large chunk of time here in Democratic Republic of Congo speaking in trainings or at other events. I know that I have another day of training and speaking briefly at a conference. However, I also know that since I am in Africa that things can change quickly and there could be even more opportunities to practice my opposite actions skill (see opposite action blog post).
One of the things we talked about today in our training was the power of positive affirmations and positive self-talk. While some of the of the teachers when we were practicing this were able to do this with ease, others had a difficult time thinking of one positive thing about themselves. After the exercise the teachers were able to voice how it made them more confident, more able to do things and like their self-esteem was a little higher. That was after saying 1 positive thing about themselves. This concept works because the power of life and death are in the tongue, and as they spoke life they felt it. What are the words that you are speaking and those that you need to hear?
In the meantime, what is the word I need to hear from God? Am I listening to His voice? What will I take away from my time here in Congo?
What about you? What is the word you need to hear from God? What area of your life needs a word from Him? Let’s chat!
