Praying alone

Sometimes in life you are in that zone,
Where you must be willing to pray alone.
These are times where your responsibility is personal,
When you focus on God for his grace inspirational.

Don’t be shy then at all when you pray alone,
For by prayers individuals have darkness overthrown.
What matters is your solemn faith,
Don’t let it dim on day eight.

Christ Jesus prayed in solitude,
Unto God who gave him fortitude.
The prophets of God prayed on their own,
And God’s wisdom to them was shown.

You might like times you pray together,
But be content if you get lonely weather.
O believer get not sad if you pray alone,
For Christ intercedes for you at God’s Throne.

 

Avoid speaking like a deceived person

One must value one’s salvation that comes from Christ. This should manifest in your thoughts, words and actions. So to this effect we must remember to avoid speaking like a deceived person.

A deceived person doesn’t have control over his tongue. It doesn’t mean that his tongue has gone numb or got some disease like it. What it means is that he is only speaking things that are not good. Now he speaks falsehood to get his work done for he has no bother about his punishment in hell. At parties and outings he cracks vulgar jokes for he doesn’t value decency. He speaks with much seductive speech with women though he is already married or in a committed relationship. Such a deceived person has zero regard for the mental state of others. So he yells and screams and is rude to whomever he can safely target, be it at office, home etc. He prides himself in being sarcastic as he sees it as a sign of ‘intellect’.

Men can live deceived lives such as this but so also can women. A deceived woman spreads lies about another woman’s married life and spoils her name. She doesn’t own up when cornered with the facts but invents tales that never happened. She in the name of being liberated tries to match men in their sins of speech though freedom was never meant for sinning but for being good. Such women say in their heart that their sinful words will be overlooked because they live in a free society which aims for welfare of women. They are dead wrong even though they may not live in places like Afghanistan or Sudan. For their hearts only look at the physical world and not the world after death. For hell takes prisoners of those who act like deceived individuals, both men and women.

No wonder then as people who love and believe in Jesus Christ, we are not to speak like those who are deceived. We are called to a life that is pure and pleasing to the Lord God. This is not that hard when you realize that God will give you the grace to continue in him. Have your faith in Jesus and you won’t find the need to speak what is unholy. Don’t be part of those who hate the Light because these are the ones who will be judged for not having faith in Jesus the Light of the World.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God. (John 3:16-21)

Here’s a list of scriptures that can help you speak without guile and without acting like a deceived person:

1. Exodus 20:16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
2. Proverbs 10:19 When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.
3. Proverbs 12:18-19 There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. false witness endure forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment.
4. Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.
5. Proverbs 29:20 Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
6. Matthew 12:36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak
7. Luke 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
8. Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
9. Colossians 3:8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.
10. James 1:26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.

I’ve also included things that you are encouraged to remember when speaking:

1. Psalm 118:17 I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the Lord.
2. Proverbs 16:23-24 The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious and adds persuasiveness to his lips. Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.
3. Proverbs 17:27-28 Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.
4. Proverbs 18:13 If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.
5. Proverbs 25:11 A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.
6. Proverbs 27:2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.
7. Isaiah 54:17 No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.
8. John 3:34 For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure.
9. Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
10. 2 Corinthians 2:17 For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.

 

Related articles

• Day #227: Prov 14-15 & 1 Cor 1:1-17
• What I Say Matters
• Lord, Keep your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth: A Reflection on Common Sins of Speech
• Prudent living can keep you from danger
• Think Before You Speak and Before You Act
• The Tongue That Defiles
• What does the Bible say about lying?
• The power of the tongue

Watch your words as they can shape your destiny

Watch your words for they become your destiny. Many people don’t realize how they shape their future by what they speak. For instance what you speak at an interview determines if you are selected for the job. By saying yes in your marriage service at church do you show your consent to marry and live with your beloved. People buy music not just for the sound of instruments but also for the words in the song lyrics.

Some people confess negative things for themselves and forget about it. Then after a few days tragedy strikes. I have dealt with such situations and found that there was a history of speaking in expectation of bad things to happen.

Remember that all the Israelites who murmured against God after he rescued them by taking them across the Red Sea. How they despised the goodness of the Lord though he provided for them in the wilderness. So as a result that generation of those who spoke against God’s plan of bringing them in the Promised Land never set foot into it. Their faithlessness and negativity led them into wandering for 40 years in the wilderness and living restless lives. It’s not days nor hours but forty long years. It was only the next generation of Israelites along with Joshua and Caleb who actually go to enter and inherit the Promised Land which is now called Israel.

While I also heard testimonies of those who were in grave danger but kept confessing that God will rescue them. As a result they survived when there was no chance to be saved.

The Holy Scripture mentions about a man who changed his life by his choice of words in prayer to God. He is called Jabez. Now, Jabez was named so because his mother gave birth to him in pain. By his confession of faith in God’s providence he obtained a wonderful heritage which was no longer marked with pain.

“Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, ‘Because I bore him in pain.’ And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, ‘Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain.’ So God granted him what he requested” (1 Chronicles 4:9-10).

So what you speak can affect your life for better or for worse. Its not just your prayer which must have faith in Christ’s goodness, it’s even your daily speaking too.

When you see and hear about terror say that the hand of God is able to save you. When people say why study the Bible when there’s so much sin around you say that you want to read it because you want to know more about the sinless Lamb of God. When others say that the jobs don’t come easily so why go to business school then say that God works out good things to those who trust him.

Just reflect on the following two verses:

1) There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health. (Proverbs 12:18)

2) Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. (Proverbs 18:21)

Some children act insecure because their parents keep calling them useless almost every day. As their hearts are very receptive the kids internalize such labels without discerning. By the time they are teenagers they develop low self esteem. Parents should avoid discouraging their kids with rash words.

There are kids who are great achievers only because their parents spoke good to them. It’s not necessary to flatter kids but speak kindly yet firmly to them.

Avoid bad language as it’s not fitting for prince of heaven nor a princess of heaven. God has given you enough salvation and intellect to make your point politely.

If a person speaks blasphemy against Jesus he is danger of hell fire. But if he asks mercy from God for insulting Jesus then he will be forgiven and he is back on the road to heaven.

If you have spoken with wrong confessions about your future and are facing the consequences would you be idle about it? I mean it’s idle to swallow the cow and choke at the tail. You may even say that you never spoke any harm to yourself but remember others who did speak unseemly things about your future but what can you do. You may wonder ‘can deadly words from anyone against me be reversed?’

My answer is that what is impossible to man is possible with God. Because with God all things are possible.

Maybe you said things such as ‘my race/ethnicity prevents me from getting promoted’. You have changed companies but you didn’t get a promotion. Finally you get into a company which has only people of your race or ethnicity. But still success evades you.

Here you need to take a stand. You can choose to keep saying what limited you or you can speak life into your situation. Say something like ‘I’m a capable child of God. Christ will make me the head and not the tail. I pray that every success that has been evading me come to me. I cancel the grip of every evil word spoken by me or someone else. In the name of Jesus. Amen’

Whatever you say let it be consistent with the goodness of the Lord Jesus. When speaking a positive word or just praying make sure it is consistent with the teaching of the Bible especially the Gospel. Because the word of God brings life for those who believe in it. Speak wisely therefore and enjoy the life and goodness which comes from Jesus Christ.