But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Romans 8:11 (NKJV)   When we focus on the negative, we might think we’re just being realistic, but there are consequences. Instead, we need to let our words be filled with hope, and then we will bring about the change we want. I often compare our words to a thermostat. Many of us use words like they are a thermometer, just stating the temperature of the room. But our words were designed to influence the future, not just report on the present. Just as we set a thermostat …

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18:21 (NKJV)   There is great power in what we say. Today’s verse goes so far as to say that death and life are in the power of the tongue. We’ve been given the power to speak our futures into existence. But if we continually speak only worst-case scenarios, instead of speaking life into existence, we create more of what we don’t want. I’m not saying that you should ignore your concerns. Acknowledge them and go easy on yourself, realizing that we all have fears and doubts. It’s okay to feel uncertain; just keep bringing your attention back to what you’ve been promised, and choose …

My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the King; my tongue is the pen of a ready writer. Psalm 45:1 (NKJV)   Over the past few days, we’ve been discussing the power of the tongue. What we say is key because it helps to form the dreams and visions we hold in our hearts, which shape our future. Today’s verse compares our tongues to the pen of a writer, writing out our dreams on our hearts just as a writer chooses how the story goes. If all we talk about are problems—what’s wrong with us and the world, and why it’s never going to change—we form a very negative vision for the future. And the trouble is, we tend …