So … it feels like it has been an eternity since I have
written. But, I am huge proponent of meaningful communication. I have never
enjoyed talking simply for the pleasure of hearing myself speak. Life has been
busy and there are times when you just have to ‘be still … and be quiet … and
know that He is God’.
The book of Ecclesiastes tells us:
To everything there is
a season, a time for every purpose under heaven …
A time to keep
silence, and a time to speak …
Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 7
Now is not the time
to be silent! There are a great many injustices taking place in our nation
and throughout the world. However, those are not the issues I am addressing
today. Today, my focus is not at global or local level. Today, the focus is at
an individual and personal level. Sadly, there are too many believers trapped
in an existence of mediocrity – silenced and suffocated by the cares of this
world.
Why is this so when Scripture tells us not to be anxious for
anything (Phil 4:6-7) and reminds us that the power of life and death is in the
tongue? (Prov. 18:21)
Could it be that we have forgotten to use our words?
I recall when my children were little – particularly my
youngest son – and he would sometimes get cranky and want to whine or point at
things rather than speak. Despite him being all of two years old, I would
firmly remind him: ‘Use your words …’
At times it would frustrate him – especially a couple of years later when he
struggled with stuttering for a while. Yet, I knew that it would never be
sufficient for him to settle for anything less than what God had created him to
be. He is a world changer, full of purpose and powerful in prayer. Each of my
sons has such a significant call of God on their life. They give me great joy
– most days. Yet, if I am honest, there have been times when I have regretted ever
telling them to use their words … because sometimes the words are either not as
nice as they could be or they challenge me. However, many times, especially in the
past several years, it is not their voice that has been the cause of struggle –
it has been my own. The realization became strikingly tangible with a dream I
had about a week ago.
In this dream, a tremendous ‘force of darkness’ – for
lack of a better word – pounced on me and began to wrestle me
to the ground. In the dream, as I felt darkness surround me, I immediately
began to call out for my sons. I called out for my oldest and then shouted out to
the others … I cried and cried. Yet with each shout for help, that dark force dragged
me closer to the ground and squeezed tighter … zeroing in on my throat and
choking the air right out of me. I began to call out ‘Jesus!’ ‘Jesus!’ ‘Jesus …’
With each outcry, the grip became tighter, the voice became
weaker until it was a strained whisper … ‘Jesus, Jesus, Jesus’. As the darkness
suffocated me, I continued to strain to call for Jesus … until my voice was
gone. Yet, still determined to resist the stronghold around me and to break
free, I continued to call out to Jesus, mouthing the words, without sound …
shouting on the inside. Then I woke up …
My heart was racing … my chest still pounding.
I was quickly aware that this was no ordinary dream. The
struggle was and is real. And, like I used to tell my son when he was just a small little guy, the LORD was reminding me: ‘USE YOUR WORDS!’
He firmly reminded me that salvation does not come to those
who place their trust in man. Yet, this is what I was doing … in the dream …
when I called out for my sons. And isn’t that what we do sometimes? We’ll run
to friends and family, pastors and psychotherapists, looking for assistance. Yet
all we need to do is cry out to Jesus … to keep proclaiming the truth of His
Word … to our circumstances and over our lives. [See Psalm 20]
Further, if it was not enough for Him to remind me in the
dream, He sent two sisters in the LORD to pray with me at church this past
Sunday. I truly do not know either of them well. We have had casual conversation
in between services at church. Yet their prayers were so specific, it was as if
we were the best of friends. Perhaps because my best companion, the Holy Spirit
of God, lives in them too. Then one of these spiritual sisters, Maria, proclaimed,
‘Something
is trying to silence your voice. You cannot let that happen … worship the LORD
… in your home, in your car and on the job. Your victory is in your worship of
the LORD’. It was powerful because she knew neither of the dream or the
tremendous circumstances I have been enduring.
In my book, When Storms Rage, I explore Twenty-one Principles to Keep you Anchored Through
Life’s Toughest Moments. One of those principles reminds us to ‘Speak
to Your Storm’. In discussing
the importance of remaining vocal, I note:
‘It is often in the midst of the storm where we have a tendency to lose our voice. Our once bold declarations quiet to a whisper in response to all that is screaming around us. It is during the battles of life that we tend to become muted by fear and confusion … in the moments when it is essential for you to have clarity of mind – it often happens that the noise and distractions of the storm rage fiercest. There are those times when an unrelenting surge of activity abounds in your direction, to instill fear, to detract and deter, to distract and destroy.’
Yet this does not have to be our reality…
My friend, I implore you, just as God did me … Use
your words!!!
It is not what we know that changes our lives, it is what we put into
practice. And the LORD God Almighty has commanded us to speak to one
another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs (Eph. 5:19) … and to our
storms with authority (Mark 11:23).
I like the Message version of Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 7:
‘There’s an opportune
time to do things,
A right time for
everything on the earth …
A right time to shut
up and another to speak up.
Now is the time to
speak up.
Boldly declare God’s truth over your life and to anything
that would seek to choke the life out of you, to anything that would strive to
silence you.
Afraid?
Speak the Word of God, focusing on Scriptures which command
you to be courageous (Deut. 31:6, Joshua 1:9) and which remind you that He will
never leave you nor forsake you. (Is. 41:10)
Discouraged?
Sing His praises – breaking out your favorite song or
creating a new one of your own. (Ps. 96:1)
Weary?
Cry out to Jesus, inviting His overwhelming presence and
awe-inspiring power into every circumstance that troubles you. Surrender to His
authority and watch Him silence your enemies (Psalm 143).
Victory is closer
than you think … right at the tip of your
tongue!
Be Blessed!
