Do you know that your mouth is the most powerful weapon that you possess? Our words have power to create or destroy, they have power to lift up or bring down, they have power to bless or to curse. Our words are so meaningful that the Lord Jesus declares in Matthew 12:36-37 “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” Do you think about the power of your words? Do you speak absentmindedly or do you speak consciously knowing that you will give an account one day for the words you speak? We must be wise enough to know that this life is not the end of the story. Our bodies may have their end, but our soul and spirit, which is the real us, is eternal and we will give an account one day for the things we said and the things we did while we were on the Earth. That is why we must be wise in our dealings and invest in our heavenly account. (Proverbs 18:21) (James 3:2-6)

How do we invest in our heavenly account? We do so by doing good, by blessing others, by lifting up our fellow man, by encouraging another, by showing God's love to all those who cross our path without any motive behind our kindness. The Lord Jesus declares in Matthew 6:19-21 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” I encourage you to think about your impact. Are you encouraging another or are you destroying someone's confidence? Are you helping someone believe in themselves or are you belittling their dreams or aspirations? We must take inventory of our life to see if we are doing the right things because if we are not, it is not too late for us to change course and use our life in a positive and affirming way. (Romans 12:14-19) (Luke 6:31)

I want you to remember that you have been equipped to be a world changer. Don't allow your giftings to be used in the wrong way, but rather with prayerful consideration esteem others higher than yourself, help to bear another's burden and by the example that Christ has set forth for us, let us love all, forgave all, encourage all and show all the goodness of God that is available to everyone who calls upon His Holy Name. (Philippians 2:3) (Galatians 6:2)

I hope this message inspires and challenges your heart to see that you have the ability to make this world a better place one soul at a time.


GIVING VALIDATION

In a northwestern US city, a woman from out of town parked her car in an attended lot and walked across the street to shop. Hoping to get a discount on the cost of parking, and not familiar with local idioms, she asked, “Do you give validation?”

“Certainly,” replied the store's manager. “You are an excellent person and I love your hair.”

That might have been worth the cost of parking. I mean, who wouldn't pay a couple of dollars for the kind of validation that she got?

Mark Twain said, “I can live two months off of a good compliment.” But then he also said, “If you can't get a compliment any other way, pay yourself one.” I suppose sometimes that is the only way we can get one.

I'm a strong believer in the power of affirming other people. One time I facetiously told an audience that I have never in my life received a standing ovation. They gave me one -- and I'm here to tell you it isn't nearly so satisfying when you have to ask for it. Nevertheless, I never underestimate the importance of positive encouragement in a life.

Author Alan Loy McGinnis cites an interesting study about the power of positive encouragement. He tells of a second-grade teacher who complained that her children were spending too much time standing up and roaming around the room rather than working.

Two psychologists spent several days at the back of the room with stopwatches observing the behavior of the children and the teacher. Every ten seconds they noted how many children were out of their seats. They counted 360 unseated children throughout each 20-minute period. They also noted that the teacher said “Sit down!” seven times during the same period.

The psychologists tried an experiment. They asked the teacher to tell the children to sit down more often. Then they sat back to see what would happen. This time they noted that she commanded her students to sit down 27.5 times in an average 20-minute period, and now 540 were noted to be out of their seats during the same average period. Her increased scolding actually made the problem worse. (Interestingly, when she later backed off to her normal number of reprimands, the roaming also declined to the exact same number recorded previously in just two days.)

Then the experimenters tried a different tack. They asked the teacher to refrain from commanding the children to sit down altogether, and to instead quietly compliment those children who were seated and working. The result? Children's roaming decreased by 33%. They exhibited their best behavior when they were complimented more and reprimanded less.

There is immense power in affirming others. Leaders who get results know this. People who draw others to themselves and who motivate others to great action are almost always those who encourage more than criticize; who compliment more and reprimand less.

Perhaps the woman's question is the correct one after all. “Do you give validation?” I hope I can always answer YES.

By Steve Goodier


Read and meditate on these scriptures:

Proverbs 15:1-4 “A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness. The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.”

1 John 4:20-21 “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from Him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.”

Romans 13:10-14 “Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.”

Ephesians 4:29-32 “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.”

All of these scriptures can be found in the King James Version Bible. 


Today’s Selected Poem: MORE THAN ENOUGH
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/inpoem108.htm

Today’s Selected Testimony: HEATHER'S TESTIMONY
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/testimony124.htm


In Christ’s Service,

Dwayne Savaya
God’s Work Ministry