Positive Confessions

Thursday, September 4, 2008

There's well known verse in Proverbs 18:21 which says "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." (King James Version).

I love other translations of the same verse:

Words kill, words give life; they're either poison or fruit—you choose. (The Message)

We all have said words that give life and we all have said words that kill – someone's confidence, a friendship, our own self esteem. Words are powerful thing. Many times in my life I should have chosen life instead of saying words that do not uplift.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life]. (Amplified)

I like to eat good stuff. Did you know that through the power of your tongue you can eat good or bad fruit? Usually when I bite into a spoiled apple I immediately spit it out and throw it away. The Bible says that if I indulge in bad words (saying them, listening to them and therefore believing the bad words I say) I will eat the bad fruits that follow those words.

"The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences." (New Living Translation)

Before I started losing weight for good, I loved to talk about myself. I used to look in the mirror and I'd say, 'I'm fat.' Even when I wasn't looking in the mirror I'd say things of that nature.

Once I prayed and asked God for help to lose weight and be healthier, the first thing He told me was 'Stop calling yourself fat.' Why would God care if I called myself fat? Because I was confessing the power of death over my life and I was reaping the consequences. I saw myself as a fat woman, therefore, I had the worse attitude about myself which kept eating wrong foods, not exercising and therefore gaining weight.

I have a good friend who keeps saying that overeating is matter of the heart. I'm a witness.

Before successfully losing weight, God had to transform my mind. How do you know your mind is renewed? Watch your words.

Before a word is in your lips, God knows it completely (Psaml 139:4), therefore God is the one who can help you talk more positive things about yourself.

God led me to read "Me and My Big Mouth" a book by Joyce Meyer. I learned about positive confessions in the Bible and the concept was highly emphasized in that book.

What are positive confessions? Positive confessions is confessing (saying) the word of God out loud and making it personal.

Pray and choose some Bible verses that speak to your situation and make them personal. In my case, I wasn't exercising and I wanted to exercise because I know God wants me to enjoy a healthy life. This is an example of a positive confession I use concerning exercise:

"I exercise often and I enjoy it. I walk, I run 5Ks and I can do it through Christ who strengthens me."

I need to point out that I confessed this for 1 year and a half before I actually got anywhere and walk. It will probably be 2 years before I take part on my 5K. The thing is, positive confessions lead you to the blessings God has stored for you. No matter how long it takes, they are seeds and they will bring great fruits in your life.

I encourage you to be specific when confessing the word of God. If God led you to lose a certain amount of pounds, say I will lose X amount of pounds with God's help.

We are very specific when being negative about ourselves, so be sure to be specific when being positive and when confessing God's wonderful words over yourself.

Proverbs 31 talks about the virtuous woman. On verse 26 we know that she speaks wisdom and faithful instruction is on her tongue. Nowhere on that chapter we see that she's negative or lazy. She is always giving and working to please God, to care for her family and to help others around her.

When you are being negative, you are being selfish. You focus on yourself and you forget about a loving God who is crazy about you unconditionally. You forget about the needs of others out there in the world and you forget about how much you can contribute to the happiness of others.

The Bible also teaches us that we reap what we sow. Sow positive words over yourself and your situations. Confess positive words over yourself and your situations and see good fruit all over your life.

* I'm taking a break from the blog. I will be back with great news, you many not want to miss it! Thanks for reading Simply Cintia!
Unknown said...

Oh my goodness this post made me well up with tears and it made me want to do flips up and down the street!!!! You put in words what God and my husband have been pouring into me. I agree with you 100%

thank you for this post.