Kintu Francis

8/11/2019 Kintu Francis

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Preface

The following are just about 30 sheets of paper that make up this book. Theycan, however, transform your life for good, making you an entirely new andgreat person you have never dreamt of becoming.

They are about an equally small member of the body temple system thetongue which, however, can raise a person to the greatest of heights orconfine him to the lowest of pits depending on how one uses it. The tongueis the only part of the human body spoken of in the entire Bible as having thedouble power of life and death (Proverbs 18:21).

People have been justified or condemned by their word (Matt. 12:37).People have risen or fallen because of the way the use their tongue.People have won or lost because of the tongue.People have conquered or been defeated in life because of the tongue.People have prospered or stagnated because of the way they use the tongue.People have achieved great things or nothing in life because of the way theyuse their tongues.

Yet, as the Bible says, the tongue has the potential to fill a person with goodthings in much the same way the work of his hands can reward him(Proverbs 12:14)! If it werent true God would not have said it.

Find out the secret behind this small but very powerful member of our bodytemple system. If you want to change your world, you will have to start bychanging your word! Find out the mighty power behind the tongue and howyou can use it to maximum effect, to create your small world.


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Table of Contents

1. The Story of Tim 4

2. The Language of the Devil .. 6

3. Criticism, Grumbling, Complaining . 11

4. Talking Negatively ...22

5. Expressions of bitterness and anger . 30

6. The Consequences 36

7. The vital Medicine for an Out-of-control Tongue .. 45

8. Using the Tongue to Create Your Little World .. 48

9. Carrying the Power of the Creator ... 53


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Chapter 1

The Story of Tim

There is this story I came to learn about sometime ago. Tim was a thirty-fouryear-old man with a hot-tempered personality. His temper could explode atthe slightest sign of facing disagreement, criticism or rejection. Later, on theadvice of his close friends, Tim visited a counselor. The counselor found out

that Tim was a victim of unkind and cruel words spoken to him as a child.

Any experienced counselor will tell you how unkind or cruel words spoken toa child in its early years have shaped and molded the childs life for good orfor bad. As it was later found in the case of Tim, during his childhood thismans father repeatedly told him: You are not going to amount to anythingin life.Every time his Father lost his temper, he would repeat this statementto the boy. Thirty years later, Tim, even as an adult, still bore the pain andconsequences of his fathers verbal abuse, and was driven to prove his fatherwrong.

This man is a case of many people driven by the lash of cruel words directedto them years earlier. Names do hurt and produce emotional scars that staywithin the soul for life. Another woman could not escape the bondage of aname her father had given her when she was a child: The devils daughter.She was freed from it eventually, but not without days of counseling andstruggle. Someone once described unkind words as deadly missiles thatpenetrate all the souls defenses and blast a hole in the personality, which holemat take years to repair. Tim was carrying an emotional baggage from hischild hood past. On the other hand, words that are kind or encouraging can

lift and cheer the soul in a way that is wonderful.

Potentially deadly missile

It is considered in the Bible (James 3:1-12)to be the ultimate test of spiritualmaturity. If a person can control it, he can exercise full control over his entirebody or self. It is the tongue. So powerful is this otherwise small part of thebody that the Bible says, it "defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course oflife." Yet the Word of God also warns that: If a man desires life, many days, andto see good things in this life, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from

sinning (Psalms 34: 12-13).

Put the other way round, if a man desires death, fewer days in this life, and to seebad things on his short journey in this life, let him fail to exercise control over histongue. Yet, unfortunately, we often use our tongue in the latter sense and,unknowingly, get all the negative results that go with it.


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Chapter 2

The Traditional Language of the Devil

Telling lies

We often make light of this practice, but to understand the gravity orseriousness of this very common practice, you need to go to the Book of Life,

the Bible. It clearly portrays lying as one of the defining characteristics of thedevil and his followers: "You are of (your) father the devil, and you want to do thedesires of your father He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand inthe truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks fromhis own (nature), for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).

Yet too often many of us habitually lie to one another and still think that wehave not committed any serious offence. When Ananias and his wifeSapphiraboth lied to the Apostles that they had submitted in all the moneythey had obtained from the sale of their land, yet they had kept a portion of it

for themselves, Peter passed the verdict on to them: You have not lied to us butto the Holy Spirit. In just a few minutes, Ananias and Sapphira were bothstruck dead by the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:1-10)!These things, the Bible says, weredone and written for our example!

A modern day Christian who claims not to be legalistic, but only to besaved by grace, might wonder why God really killed Ananias and Sapphiraon what appears to be a small offence. After all the land which Ananias andSapphira had sold was theirs; moreover, Ananias and Sapphira had at least given part

of the money to the Church; they had done better than others in the Fellowship who

didnt sell anything and who, as a result, gave nothing to the Fellowship, someonemight reason. It might sound logical and reasonable, but these are yourstandards. To God, lying is no small matter. It is grave!

Come to think of it. If God could switch off Ananias and Sapphira for onlylying that the money they had donated to the Fellowship was the total amount that

they had obtained from the sale of their property, how much would He punish you and

me, if we falsify documents, speak untruths about people, distort facts to suit our

selfish goals, and so forth? We need to take a lesson from Ananias and Sapphira-- some of the crimes of the tongue which we call small are the very things

that kill us spiritually and physically!

You might think that such common things like lying are minor offences. Butwhen you read the Scriptures and see that Jesus describes lying as one of the


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distinguishing signs of the sons of the devil (Jn. 8:44), then you begin to

understand how serious it is.

These days the Lord, in His mercy, may no longer be striking us dead insimilar fashion when we tell lies; but make no mistake about it; there isnothing that is sown that is or will not be reaped one way or the other. Lyinghas serious consequences on your life. One of these is that it deprives us ofmany of the good things we would otherwise have got from God. Scripturescannot be broken: If a man desires life, many days, and to see good things in thislife, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from sinning (Psalms 34: 12-13).If it were not so God would not say it. Whenever you tell a lie, you are cursing

yourself and your blessings!

Lying is a common practice, unfortunately even among us Christians, but aserious Christian must avoid this practice. The word of God states that, Donot lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have

put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the imageof the One who created him"(Col. 3:9-10).

Do you speak untruths or decorate facts? Do you exaggerate events, polishstories or inflate events and numbers in your favour? Do you allow incorrect

facts to stand, when they are in your favour? If so, then you a committing aterrible crime, which might be depriving you of many blessings. Repentimmediately and resolve, with the help of the Holy Spirit, not to do it again.

Speak the truth openly and plainly at all times. One cannot be a true Christianor disciple of Christ and lie about anything. While the Devil is the father of alllying, Jesus is the Father of truth (Jn. 14:6). Hate lying and any of its indirectforms. Love honesty and truth. As David prayed, pray for deliverance fromthis curse of the devil (Ps. 119:29).

Gossiping

This is another common habit many of us Christians practice, but which weshould not, for God despises people who gossip or monger rumours. A

gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret (Proverbs 11:13);A wicked man stirs up disagreement, and a gossip separates close friends(Proverbs16:28).

Gossiping is an act of people stepping into other peoples lives where theydon't belong. It is a sign of idleness and a lack of Christian maturity. And how

so many we are! Gossiping is sinful, because our gossiping or rumours ofteninjure others, if they were to learn of them. Yet too often we gossip and utterunkind remarks behind the backs of other people.

Whenever we use our tongues to gossip, bad-mouth or speak uncharitableremarks about someone, we are only causing our own destruction. We are


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behaving no different from the most cursed creature the snake! Lets put

ourselves in other peoples shoes: would we like others to gossip or spreadrumours about us? Gossiping, rumour-mongering and back-biting areharmful because they do not build up others or help them. If we dont knowthe facts about something, we do better to keep quiet. Simple minds, as thesaying goes, discuss people. But Gods cream of Christians should insteaddiscuss ideas. Gossip is idle talk, and whether it is truth or falsehood, it is stillgossip.

We should be careful with the words we speak to or about others. They cantake so much longer to heal than a physical wound. That is what we do when

we speak mean and nasty things to or about another person. Not only are wedoing harm to the one we are talking about, we are also harming the one weare telling. This is because that will stay in their mind and the next time theysee this person they heard about, that would be the first thought that comes totheir mind about such a person.

Committed Christians should strive to avoid spreading gossip or evenlistening to it, because it only causes trouble and hurts people's feelings. Ifyou like to gossip STOP it in the name of Jesus Christ! Talk about good things,instead of things that could hurt someone else or cause trouble. Make it a

point never to discuss a person, back-bite, spread a gossip or listen to it! If aperson starts gossiping, discourage him immediately, or move away lest youcatch it.

Avoid wasting time in useless conversations that lead to gossiping. LocateGods purpose for your life and build your daily agenda around it. A personwho has located Gods plan for his life has no time to waste. He has a missionto accomplish. Take the example of our Lord Jesus. He had no time to gossip.He was always on a tight timeline. He used to say, I must be about my Fathersbusiness (Lk. 2:49). Every hour of His day was ear marked for the Fathers

business. Long before dawn, He would wake up and go to pray. The richbecome richer because they invest their time in doing something productive,while some of the poor remain so because they spend a lot of their timegossiping, doing nothing profitable. Life is a game that has no return match.Any time lost is never recovered, but it will surely be counted on you - youwill have to account for it as a gift of God abused or wasted!

If we would, like Jesus, be committed to a divine purpose or task in life, wewould have little time for unproductive and sometimes even destructivegossiping. Avoid gossiping and its agents. If someone has nothing to do with

his or her time, dont allow him or her to do it on you! As a friend remarked,if someone visits your office and is due to leave but doesnt leave, you standup from your chair.


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If he still doesnt read the signal, ask him to stand up and start praying: Lord

Jesus, I thank you for bringing this brother here; and as he leaves this placenow, be with him. At this point he will have got the message!

If you want the blessings of the Lord to follow you in whatever you do, havea clean tongue and have nothing to do with gossiping, rumour mongering orbackbiting. Repent of this evil habit today, with the help of the Holy Spirit,and unlock the many good things you have deprived yourself of, throughcontinued misuse of the tongue in this way, through listening to andencouraging gossip.

Slandering

This is smearing another person or saying uncharitable words about them.Slandering is a form of lying, which may be done to defame someone. It canbe aimed to injure, by maliciously uttering a false report. Never talk ill ofsomebody. Ill-will, hatred, malice and jealousy are often the cause ofslandering. It is highly uncharitable to mudsling or smear somebody. TheWord of God says, "Lying lips conceal hatred, and whoever utters slander is a fool (Proverbs 10:18). It also says that,Whoever secretly slanders his neighbour, him Iwill destroy(Psalms 101:5).

The giving out of these false reports about one's conduct or personality, inorder to defame or strip him of his prestige with the people with whom he isacquainted, is one of the most uncharitable things. Anything to defame aperson is generally employed by those whose hearts are filled with hatred, or

jealousy and this is terrible for a Christian. Never travel the road of hatred orjealousy. Use your tongue to sow seeds of love and goodwill, and God willpour his love on you in turn. The Bible says that "Rejoice with those who rejoice;mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not repayanyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody"(Romans

12:15-17).

If you have no complementary word to say about somebody, you do better tokeep quiet. Our destructive and careless words can diminish someone in theeyes of others, destroy their influence and have a lasting impact on the wayothers look at or respond to them. We have to be careful with what we sayabout other people.

Lets speak life to (and about) those who cross our path. The Bible says, Donot let any harmful talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for

building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Anddo not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed from the day ofredemption(Eph. 4:29-30).


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Flattering

Another common disease of the tongue is flattering. It may look an ordinarything, and indeed many of Christians do not consider it a sin at all. Butflattering is really a serious crime because it is a form of deception. The wordof God states that, A lying tongue hates those it hurts; and a flattering mouthworks ruin (Prov. 26:28).

Precisely, by flattering we ruin or spoil people, rather than help them. This isbecause it is false praise which deprives the person who is flattered the truthof what he or she really is or has done, so that they might change, if required.

For example, men may easily tell a woman that she is cool or smartlydressed, when actually the truth they mean, deep inside their hearts, is thatshe is dressed in an inappropriate, revealing outfit.

People can easily tell you or make you think that you have performedwonderfully, but then make fun of or mock you as soon as you turn yourback, or when they make mention of your efforts to others. This is a form oflying. People who sin by flattering others with a lying tongue are actuallyconsidered by the Lord to be very wicked! Not a word from their mouth can betrusted; their heart is filled with destruction. Their throat is an open grave; with

their tongue they speak deceit(Psalm 5:9).

We have to watch what we say when we compliment others for their work orperformance, such as singing, testifying, giving, preaching, musicalperformance, or their appearance and manner of dress, lest we will lie. Wemust tell them exactly what we think and feel about them from our hearts, ifwe say anything, and tell the truth. The word of God has described, in theabove scriptures, a flattering or deceitful mouth as an open grave! Howserious this is! We need to watch out. God has a low opinion of people whotell others things they know are untrue, or who deceive others in any way. He

advises us not to even associate with people who flatter others (Prov. 20:19).

It is good to commend or encourage people on their strong points orperformance, but to deceive them that they are doing fine, when we knowdeep in our heart that they are actually doing bad or wrong, is un-Christian.Tell people the truth in love, whenever you are called upon to, regardless ofwhether it is flattering or it is unflattering. Ask the Lord to wash away yoursin of flattering and to give you a tongue which speaks only that which is inyour heart and glorifies God or builds up others.


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Who is not guilty?

Is any one of us innocent of belittling the Presidents efforts as Head of State,or pointing up our boss' inadequacies; or knocking our spiritual and otherleaders for their way of getting things done? Often our basic problem is pride.Criticism of others is often a result of unchecked and uncontrolled pride. Wethink that if we had been in the same position, we would have performedbetter. When a leaf of personal criticism is in our mouths, it is certain that theroot of pride is in our hearts. The Lord not only hears our daily criticism ofother people, He punishes us for it!

When the Lord heard the criticism of Miriam and Aaron, He disciplined themfor their sin, for "The anger of the Lord burned against them" (Numbers 12:9).Miriam who probably initiated and led in the criticism became a leper, whichfurther emphasizes the seriousness of this kind of sin. God often uses thistype of discipline to cut through to the root of the pride that makes usconstantly pick out the faults, weaknesses and failings of other people,instead of helping them to build or improve themselves or things.

Eating humble pie

As you know, it is pretty difficult to be proud as a leper. Someone once said,we can be sure that we will eat "humble pie" in some way if we "mouth off" incriticism. Is it possible that some recent humbling experiences in somebodyslife were allowed by God in order to stem the tide of personal criticismflowing out of that persons mouth? Is it possible that we are not experiencingmuch personal growth and development because of too much criticism ofother people our spouses, our family members, and our neighbours, ourleaders? Is it possible that we are not enjoying the living presence of the HolySpirit within our lives, families or within our Christian fellowships orchurches because of our self-righteous, judgemental or critical attitude

towards people of other faiths, fellowships, churches or denominations?

Some people may not be prospering much in what they are doing, becausethey have made themselves referees over the affairs of others, instead ofdoing their own work. Their work is to point out what everybody else isdoing wrong, but without the aim of helping or building others up. Becareful. You were called to perform your assignment and not to act as areferee! God is the only Referee. The rest of us are all players.

We need to watch out, for as the word of God states, If a man desires life, many

days, and to see good things in this life, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lipsfrom sinning (Ps. 34: 12-13). Besides, we should always recognize that weourselves are not perfect in our lives and in what we are doing. If weourselves still have areas in which we need to improve, we ought to allowothers the same benefit.


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Legitimate criticism

It should, however, be mentioned that there is a place for legitimate, helpfuland constructive criticism in our relationships with other people. However, tobe sure that our comments are constructive criticism, we should followScriptural principles. One of these is that we should, as far as possible, makeour constructive comments directly to the person - not behind his or her back.And let us do it in private -- not in front of others (Matt. 18:15).

Another principle is, we should make sure that the "piece of wood" is out ofour own eye, before we try to remove "specks of sawdust" from the eyes of

others (Matt. 7:3-5). Most importantly, criticize if, by so doing, you will helpto correct things, to guide those who are erring, or to build up people, for thisis legitimate, helpful and constructive criticism.

But do not criticize out of pride, or as a means of belittling or tearing downsomebody or his works; or as a means of venting your anger or frustration. Ifour criticism will not help improve the situation, we do better to leave it. If itwill help to improve things, we can do it, but again in humility, in love and inconsideration of other persons feelings and circumstances. Our encouragingwords can lift someone up and help them make it through the day, month or

year. Our destructive criticism, on the other hand, can cause deep wounds;they may be the weapons that destroy someone's desire to continue trying oreven living. If you have words of kindness, praise or encouragement, speakthem to and about others, but not destructive words.

God hates a judgmental attitude in a Christian, a tongue which dwells on, oris often too eager to point to other peoples mistakes, weaknesses orshortcomings but without the aim of building them up or improving things. Ifthings are not going well, as they often do in our homes, our neighbourhoods,our places of work, our organizations, our communities, our Churches, our

countries, the best way is to counsel those involved or to pray for them.

Steadfastly, therefore, decline to dwell on other peoples weaknesses, even ifsuch people in your opinion are annoying and wrong. Dont shrink into abitter, impatient, critical, or judgmental Christian. Criticize, rebuke or talkonly when it will help build up the person you are addressing, or if it willlead to a positive change. Dwelling on judging or criticizing people or thingswhen we are not building them up, or when such criticisms will not changeanything, is unproductive and sinful.

Instead of pouring scorn on those who are doing it wrong or poor, we shouldhelp them through prayer or brotherly advice and counsel. Many of usChristians are guilty of this practice, but we must take care not to allow ourtongues to be an expression of pride.


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Once we recognize a tendency to judge, criticize or pour scorn on others, we

should confess this sin and give up the habit. The Holy Spirit is the mastercontroller of our pride, so lets surrender to and ask Him to help us changeour hearts and our tongues.

Grumbling, Murmuring, Complaining

The word "murmur" is defined as "low, muttered complaints; grumbling"(Webster). This is the practice of complaining and expressing dissatisfactionby the word of the mouth. Grumbling and murmuring often progress togossip, slander, or some other sin of the tongue. It is a common thing,

including in our churches, where we also are exposed to murmuring,grumbling, and complaining quite a bit. It is, nevertheless, a destructive vicewhich deprives many of Gods blessings.

A murmurer or grumbler can do great harm and irreparable damage in afamily, congregation, or workplace organization by creating discontent,discouragement and apathy among members; or by sowing disagreementamong the team (which God hates Prov. 6:19); or by undermining the workof the leaders. This many times may create a general attitude of dissatisfactionand loss of interest, enthusiasm and zeal, resulting in decreased attendance,

contribution, morale and harm productivity in general.

We are commended to "do all things without murmuring and arguing" (Phil.2:14). The apostle Paul warned Christians against this sin in his letter to theCorinthians: "Neither murmur you, as some of them also murmured and weredestroyed of the destroyer"(1 Cor. 10:10). The children of Israel who grumbledin the desert, instead of talking or praying to their God about their concernsand needs, were punished with death! "Why didn't you let us die in Egypt? Wehad it so much better there."they complained to God in Exodus16:2-8. Now the

people became like those who complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord; and

when the Lord heard {it,} His anger was kindled, and the fire of the Lord burnedamong them and consumed {some} of the outskirts of the camp (Num. 11:1!

Korah, Dathan, Ahiram, fifty princes of the congregation and others rebelledand murmured against God's servants Moses and Aaron (Num. 16:1-11).TheBible says that, "The earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up they, and allthat appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed uponthem, and they perished from among the congregation" (Num. 16: 32-33).

When the Jews murmured that Moses and Aaron were responsible for the

deaths, God killed fourteen thousand, seven hundred of them by a plague(Num. 16: 41-49). The Bible says that this is written for our advice and shouldcause all murmurers to repent and reform, lest they suffer a "sorer punishment"(Heb. 10:28-29).


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We grumble not against people, but against God!

The book of Philippians warns and urges us: Do all things without grumblingor arguments; that you may prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, childrenof God... (Phil. 2:14-15). Yes, thats it. Blameless and innocent children of Goddont grumble or argue unnecessarily. If we are murmuring, grumbling, andcomplaining, we are in sin. And no matter whom we are complaining about,we are complaining about God who put him there. Look at what Moses toldthe grumbling Jews: "And Moses said "the Lord hears your grumbling which you

grumble against Him. And what are we? Your grumbling is not against us butagainst the Lord (Exodus 16:7-8).

God hates murmuring, grumbling, and complaining. If He punished the Jewswho grumbled in the desert, what does He do to those of us who are clearlyremoved from many of the desert conditions the Jews were grumbling about?Quit complaining about what is not going right around you, in your family,workplace, city, church, country, and start rejoicing about what is going well.Stop emphasizing what is wrong and start thanking God for what is right. Ifyou go through life with a negative frame of mind, always complaining,grumbling, murmuring, nagging, stressed out, worried and full of fear, yourimmune system will weaken, making you more susceptible to sickness and

disease.

God gives more to those who have something to rejoice or be thankful about;but those who see nothing good or positive around them, even the good thereis will be taken away from them (Matt. 25:29)! Stop complaining, murmuring,grumbling, nagging about or criticizing your spouse, your bosses, yourchurch leaders, your government, if by so doing you will not change things.Focus on the things you can change; you can change your attitude. God is notgoing to change your circumstances until you change your attitude! Bloomwhere you are and enjoy every single day of your life.

Legitimate complaints

There might be some legitimacy in complaining about a genuine problem inour environment so that it can be solved. Some people complain with nointention of doing anything about the problem, but others may complain withthe intent of getting the problem solved. For example, in Acts 6:1 we readabout one group of Christians grumbling about another group: The Grecian

Jews were grumbling because their widows were being neglected, whereasthe Hebraic widows were having their needs provided for by the church.

They were complaining against a genuine situation of unfairness.

But one must deal with the problem appropriately, without ongoingcomplaining, murmuring or grumbling behind the scenes.


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We must avoid the habit of murmuring, grumbling, whining and

complaining about the way things are done or about the flaws in peoplearound us, if we can discuss the problem with them honestly and frankly; orif, by grumbling, we will not cause improvement in the situation.

We should to try as much as possible to honestly talk to those concerned, or, ifwe cannot, lets use the time to pray to God to change the situation. If youhave a problem, deal with it biblically. If you really want a godly outcome forwhatever situation you're dealing with, don't you dare grumble, murmur, orcomplain. God loves to bless a mature Christian who, instead of expressingdisagreement or dissatisfaction by whispering behind the scenes, speaks the

truth in love to those concerned, or brings the problem before God, the onewith total control over everything.

We must not allow ourselves to shrink into bitter, grumbling, complaining,murmuring Christians. The Lord telling us: My son, my daughter - why areyou always grumbling, murmuring and complaining about this or that thing,this or that person, system or regime when you can talk to me directly, mewho have all power and authority over everything in heaven and on earth(Matt. 28:18)? "Cast all your burdens (cares and concerns) on me, for I care for you"(1 Peter 5:7). Thank you Lord for offering to take our burdens, our cares and

concerns about things and people we live and interact with in this world!

An ordinary person in any community has so many things to complain about.But a Christian must not have a grumbling, complaining attitude towardpeople or circumstances that are going wrong in life, if by so doing he will notchange things for the better. If you have a root of complaining, grumbling andbitterness in your heart, confess it to the Lord and ask the Holy Spirit to helpyou overcome it today.

The right targets

The principle you and I should cultivate is never to harbour anger orcomplain, murmur or grumble against people or systems, if by so doing wewill not change things for the better. The children of Israel were constantlycomplaining, murmuring and grumbling. They had seen the great works ofGod. They had seen God doing mighty miracles in their presence. They hadseen Him opening the Red Sea and turning it into a red carpet for them tocross over. They had seen Him giving manna in the wilderness and fromnowhere they knew. They had seen Him providing water in a hostile desert,out of a rock.

You'd think, with all these miracles being performed before their very owneyes, they would have had a heart full of rest, but alas! When God openedthat forty-eight-lane superhighway through the Red Sea, the Israelites wentthrough with towering walls of water on either side. They got to the otherside, and all that water tumbled in on the Egyptians.


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Three days later - just three days later - they got out there in the wilderness

and were murmuring. They were complaining. They wanted to go back toEgypt! This prompted God to say in Hebrews 3:10: Therefore I was displeasedwith that generation, and said, They always err in their heart, but they didn't knowmy ways; Have an intimate knowledge of God and stop complaining,murmuring, grumbling, if by so doing, you wont change anything; and if by,instead, talking or taking it up with God you will achieve more.

Recognize that people, certainly no person can change the world or people orthings around us for the better, other or better than God who createdeverything. No person, government or institution can really change the lives,

welfare or well-being of people, except as Christ works through them. Alwayslook beyond people, institutions, governments in your immediateenvironment and direct your concerns, your frustrations, yourdisappointments to God who has control over every person, every institution,everything.

Jesus said to His disciples, The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers arefew;therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into hisharvest (Matthew 9:37-38). We can draw a spiritual parallel here. Therealways plenty of things that need to be done in our communities, our

organizations, in our cities, in our countries, even in our homes; there areplenty of things that need to be done in a better way and by better people.

We need better spouses who are truly devoted to Christ, who responsible,caring and loving; we need better Christian teachers, instructors andcaretakers to mould our children into the image of Christ; we need betterChristian managers to run departments, organizations, governments, publicaffairs in much the same way as Christ Himself would! But such people areoften in scarcity.

What we most often see around are perhaps the casual, secular people, manyof whom are not interested in mirroring the image of Christ or seeing Godspurposes and will fulfilled on earth, but are instead only interested inthemselves. If the harvest is thus big, but there are few good labourersaround, instead of grumbling, murmuring, or complaining about it, Jesusadvises us to pray to the Lord to supply more or better labourers into Hisharvest. He has more than enough of them in stock, if only we could pray!

Mere agents, instruments

What we also often fail to realize is that people who often frustrate us, peoplewho frustrate good, and the people whom we therefore often criticize orgrumble, murmur and complain about are often actually not acting out bythemselves; rather, they are influenced by evil forces.


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The Bible says: We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities,

against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritualwickedness in high places (Eph. 6:12).

Put it another way, we are not fighting against human beings, but againstwicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, andcosmic powers of this Dark Age, who take control of people and use them fortheir evil purposes.

The devil or his "Dark Kingdom" does its most effective work through people,governments, institutions, companies, and even churches around us, who

yield to his will. This evil hand that lies behind people and institutions shouldalways be the focus of our energies, and not the instruments or agent (thepeople and institutions) he uses.

Rather than complaining, murmuring and grumbling against His tormentors,Jesus knew better the source of the evil He was facing the devil. Thats whyHe left the agents or instruments, saying: "Father, forgive them, for they do notknow what they are doing"(Luke 23:34). And that is it. Often people who areused by the devil to mistreat us do not even know that they are being used.Thats why more often they need our forgiveness than our condemnation.

"Forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing"

Although we are always frustrated by people and institutions in our midst,the fact is that often we are up against unseen evil powers that control peopleand use them for their evil purposes. Instead of focusing on the agent, it isalways better and far more effective to deal with his source, his headquarters,the devil. Every one in the world can complain, murmur, grumble and pourout his venom or wrath. But as the Bible says, we Christians are supposed todiffer, if we are to be more effective than the world in dealing with deep-seated problems of humanity. The Bible says, For though we live in the world,

we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weaponsof the world (2 Cor. 10:3-4).

The right and effective weapons

What then are those right weapons that should replace useless or ineffectivecomplaining, murmuring, and grumbling? The Bible advises in Ephesians6:10:Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.In other words, havefaith; first and foremost, that God is able to change every negative force orsituation in your life, in your environment, however big it might look. Thereis no person or group of them; there is no system or worldly regime orinstitution that is so strong, so obstinate or so stubborn that God cant changeor remove in a matter of seconds, if need be!

Have, therefore, faith and trust in God to be able to change anything. God hasabsolute control over every person, over everything in this world.


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The Bible says:"He moves mountains without their knowing it and overturns them

in his anger. He shakes the earth from its place and makes its pillars tremble. Hespeaks to the sun and it does not shine; He seals off the light of the stars(Job 9:5-7).

The Bibles compares faith to a shield with which you can extinguish all theflaming arrows of the evil one(Eph. 6:16).Look up for what the word of God issaying about that particular situation that is troubling your life, that iscausing you to complain, grumble and murmur and stand on the truth whichword is saying; believing that what the word of God says will come to prevailin your life.

The Bible refers to the word of God as the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:17).Theword of God is a sword. Instead of unnecessarily and ineffectivecomplaining, murmuring, grumbling and criticizing this and that, be armedwith the word. It is deadly! Finally, as the Bible advises, pray in the Spirit onall occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert andalways keep on praying for all the saints (Eph. 6:18).

The power of prayer

Prayer is actually one of the best ways to change wrong people and things

around us. The word of God inJames 5:16says, "The effective prayer of righteousman (or woman)can accomplish much." As you can see from this Scripture evenone person -- one single person in a world of billions -- can release thesupernatural power of God to change any situation or any person or group ofthem. How comforting to know this truth!

Always take heart in knowing that God hears prayer and changes people orsituations as a result of peoples prayers. It might take a while before yourprayers are answered, but be patient. There is a due time in Gods agenda forevery believers deliverance or reward. Of course Satan will tell you that your

prayer will change nothing, but you must choose whose word to trust Godsor Satans. Remember the word of God in James 5:16: The effective prayer ofrighteous man (or woman)can accomplish much." The righteous man or womanreferred to here is that person who has surrendered and exchanged his lifewith that of Christ Jesus. If you are such a person, pray unceasingly for thechanges you would like to see taking place in loved ones, neighbours,workmates, other people, or even in governments, organisations and systems,and it will be done for you.

A dictatorial, corrupt and inefficient regime or government or party in power

might look entrenched or unshakeable, but soon or later, the effective prayers ofthe righteous will soon or later bring it down! Your neighbour, colleague orworkmate might be stubborn, uncharitable and selfish, but the effective prayerof the righteouswill soon or later deal with him or her.


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Your spouse might be hard, insensitive and inconsiderate, but the effective

prayer of the righteous will soon or later change him or her! Your boss,supervisor or employer might be difficult, insensitive, unreasonable, or evenexploitative, but the effective prayer of the righteouswill soon or later deal withhim or her!

Pray and pray for negative situations and people to change; and throughprayer, organize as the Spirit leads. God is a covenant keeping God, who cantfail to answer the prayers of the righteous or to honour His word. It might beweeks, months, years or even decades before your prayer, your faith, yourdedication, your sacrifice, your cry is answered or rewarded. But rest assured

that God is ever-faithful, ever-watching, ever listening to the faithfuls. He willreward or answer your prayers at the right time. His timing is never too lateor too early. It happens just at the right time. Dont complain, grumble ormurmur. Use the same time to pray. You will have the last laugh, if you are aman or woman of prayer. The effective prayer of righteous man (or woman)canaccomplish much"!

Those are some of the most effective weapons against wrong people andinstitutions we otherwise often fruitlessly spend a lot of our time and energycriticizing, complaining, grumbling and murmuring about. Instead spending

a lot of your time every day criticizing, complaining, grumbling ormurmuring about your spouse, your neighbour, your employer, the cityauthorities, the regime in power, when such criticism, complaining,grumbling and murmuring wont really change them or things; instead, youdo better appealing to the God who has control over them; pray with faith.

Always look beyond the surface, beyond people

The Bible says, You are looking only on the surface of things (2Cor. 10:7). AndGod also plainly says: They have not known my ways (Heb. 3:10). Be wise!

Always look beyond the surface of evil or negative people and institutions,and know Gods ways of dealing better with negative forces in our lives. Theyare merely agents. Besides, they are too small; they are so temporary; they areso weak. Appeal or speak to the Master, rather than complaining, murmuringor grumbling against small things. They dont deserve that recognition oracknowledgement! Pray and have faith in God. If He leads you to organizeagainst negative people and institutions in your environment and changethem, so much the better, but focus on Him, and not on the agents of evil.

Harbour no bitterness or anger against any person or group of people;

harbour no bitterness or anger against any institution, regime, worldly systemor government, however evil or bad it might be. Never allow yourself todegenerate into bitter, angry, grumbling, complaining, murmuring Christian.


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Always appeal to and communicate with Christ Jesus, the King of kings, the

Lord of lords, the only One who was given and now has all power and authorityover every person, every system, every institution, every organisation, everyforce that lives under the sky(Matt. 28:18)!

Cast all your burdens, all your cares, all your concerns, all your frustrations,all your hurts and aches on Him, for He care for you (1 Pt. 5:7).


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Chapter 4

Talking Negatively

Many of us often see nothing good coming or happening to us or our countrybut disaster. You always hear word such as This country is headed fortrouble, This continent is dead, I dont think it will work out, etc. But the

Bible says that, Death and life are in the power of the tongue; those who love it willeat its fruit (Proverbs 18:21). Thats it. Death and life are brought upon menand women by the good or bad use of their tongues, by the positive ornegative words they speak. The mouth is a trigger of either the good or thebad things we pronounce.

If your mouth pronounces calamities, negative or bad things, the same thingsyou are likely to get. If you are always talking or predicting poverty, chancesare that this is what you will see. This is because what you say is what youbelieve, and we rarely go beyond our faith. You cannot be continually talking

or predicting bad or negative things, e.g. poverty, for instance, and hope tostumble into riches. You cannot be continually talking failure and you hope tostumble into success. You cannot be predicting defeat and you hope tostumble into victory. The Israelites travelled through the wilderness, headingfor the Promised Land. But just as they were about to enter into Canaan, theysaid with their own mouths:

"We can't attack those people; they are stronger than we are" (Num. 13:31).Wouldthat we had died in the land of Egypt. Or would that we had died in this wilderness."Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our

little ones will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return toEgypt?"(Num. 14:2-3).

God's response to the Jews is recorded in Num. 14: 28: Say to them, As truly asI live, says the Lord, as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do to you . By theirwords, they committed God to acting against them, and their entry into thePromised Land was delayed for forty years. Words, even if they are idle, haveconsequences, and the Lord Himself warns us about it: "But I say to you, thatevery idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of

judgment. For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be

condemned"(Mt.12: 36-37).

What we say counts for or against us. Often our negative words justify usnegatively and our positive words justify us positively.


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Have no room for negative talk

Highflying Christians have no room for negative talk, because they know thatdeath and life are in power of their tongue. Stop misusing your tongue toinvite calamities and a desert of blessings. Stop moving around enumeratingyour afflictions, telling all and sundry how your marriage is on fire, how yourspouse is hell, how your business is collapsing, how your work or job is onthe line.

Always use your tongue to proclaim the hope of Christ Jesus in you, in everysituation -- the hope to make you more righteous, victorious, and healthy; the

hope to make you more prosperous; the hope to grow and live a fruitful lifeJesus died for you and me to have. Declare that your job, marriage, business,family, finances, health, etc., will not fail, regardless of the present challenges,and you would have closed out the devil from your affairs. Always proclaimthe hope of God in you.

Our words are so powerful that they can bless or curse, encourage ordiscourage, hurt or heal, tear down or build up, not only other people but alsous. Our words can even influence the way we act and feel, as well asdetermine our outlook and success in life. Like God, our words carry power.

What comes out of our mouth will determine our future, our success.

As a rudder controls the direction of a ship, our tongues control the directionof our lives. Speak them carefully. We cannot enter, except with the greatmercy of God, into the land flowing with milk and honey by talking poverty.We cannot be constantly predicting bad news and calamity in both privacyand in public and hope to get the opposite of these.

Why should we contradict God?

Itis our privilege and responsibility as Christians to speak forth positive life-giving words in a world absorbed in negativity. The Bible encourages us inHebrews 10:23: "Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith withoutwavering; for He is faithful that promised."

We Christians should strive to be professing(positively confessing) believers.A Christian's faith in the Word of God should be his very livelihood, not thiscommon negative talking. Negative talking is lack of faith in the Word ofGod. If God says He has the best plans for you, why should you say there islittle or no hope for me? Speak of good reports even when situations look

bleak or contrary.

The weather, or the situation or circumstances might indeed look bleak orbad from a natural or human angle; but children of the kingdom are notordinary or natural men and women of the world.


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They are supernatural, they are anointed, they are special, they are called, and

as such, everything works for their good (Rom. 8:28)!

Even if you are spiritually weak and falling into sin now and again, dontwrite yourself off. The Bible says, ... let the weak say, I am strong (Joel 3:10).This is not mere positive thinking or confessionism, make believe or claimit-and have-it kind of gimmick. It is the truth, for, spiritually, you arealready empowered, even if your body or flesh has not yet come into line.

Just insist that you must have the righteousness of Christ Jesus in you,because you have the strength and backing of the blood of Christ Jesus: He(Jesus) Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sins

and live for righteousness; by whose stripes ye were healed (1 Peter 2:24).

Even if you dont have money, dont label yourself a poor person, becausein reality, you are not poor, for Christ has already taken away from you thecurse of poverty. God is rich, and naturally He Fathers rich sons anddaughters, even when the world and the great deceiver the devil tries toconvince or make them otherwise. Insist that that,Christ redeemed (me) fromthe curse of the law by becoming a curse for (me), for it is written: Cursed iseveryone who is hung on a tree (Gal. 3:13). the grace of our Lord JesusChrist, that though He was rich, yet for (my) sake He became poor, so that (I)

through His poverty might become rich (2 Cor. 8:9). I must be very rich in Hisname, and it is a matter of time before things begin to change.

Even if you feel sick or ill, dont buy it. Rather simply insist that you mustbe okay in Christs name for, Surely He (Jesus) took up our infirmities(sicknesses and diseases) and carried our sorrows, by His wounds we are healed(Isaiah 53:4-5).

It is very important for our words to rhyme or match with the truth of Godsword, even when we have not yet practically experienced or seen the results

in our life. The same way you trust that Christ has redeemed or saved you (byvirtue of the integrity of His word), even when you dont see it practically, isthe just the same way you should believe everything God says about you -your health, your finances, your relationships, your future, past and present;and go ahead to speak reaffirming words or in agreement with it; even whenpractically you dont see the results yet.

This is living faith, without which no person can see great things in life. TheBible defines faith as: the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things notseen (Heb. 11:1).Simply believe His words and affirm them in your speech.

When we choose to believe the truth about us in any area of life, as revealedin the word of God, and proceed to walk on the basis of what we believe,including speaking or confessing it with our word of mouth, it works out inour experience.


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But as long as we put our experience before our belief, as long as we

contradict what God says about us by our negative, differing talk, we cannever fully experience the promises of God in different areas of our lives,because they are actualized by loud-mouth faith!

Speak positive words, positive confessions of victory, success and break-throughs, even in the apparently negative or hopeless situations. The Biblesays that "Abraham believed God, (even when there was no hope or reason forbelieving) and it was accounted to him for righteousness" (Gen 15:6). God musthave had a very good reason to say:Let the weak say, I am strong (Joel 3:10).If doesnt help or work He wouldnt say it.

When you say something positive in the midst of a negative situation, beforelong the Spirit of God in you begins to act on your faith in God, doingwhatever is necessary to bring your thoughts, your words of faith to pass.Whether the situation is good or bad, it doesnt matter; the fact remains thatall things work together for good to those who love God (Rom. 8:28).

Never ever accept, let alone confess defeat, because the word (truth) of God isthat, No, in all these things (weakness and sin, sicknesses and diseases,poverty and lack, stagnation and failure, divorce and loss, troubles, failure,

challenges, suffering and persecutions of all kinds), we are more than conquerorsthrough Him who loved us(Romans 8: 37)! We need to understand and confessat all times that in Christ Jesus who lives in us, there is nothing that the worldor the devil, living or life presents which we are not able to outmatch!

For every one negative report somebody or the devil brings to you or to yourmind, supply him with ten better and good reports of God, to counter the evilor negative one. If troubles, problems, poverty, sicknesses or diseases knockon your door, dont panic or say, I am finished. Rather, settle down andorganize scriptural truths (words of God, such as those above) and launch a

counter-attack on that enemy, and he will for sure flee from you (James 4:7). Ifsomething negative or bad happens to you or your loves ones, dont say,Iam in trouble; rather say, with total trust and confidence in Christ Jesus thatmy trouble-maker is in trouble!

That's how victorious, winning Christians walk out on and over the devil inall areas of their lives through unwavering positive confession andconfirmation of the truth of Gods word, even in the midst of a crisis ornaturally hopeless situation.

God has in store the very best for you and me

God has made the plans for you and me to become the very best that we canbe. He seeks to prosper us and not to harm us.


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He makes this very clear when He says, For I know the plans I have for you,"

declares the Lord, "plans toprosper youand not to harm you, plans to give youhopeand a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I willlisten to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart(Jer. 29:11-13). God has planned for you and me to have the best possiblefuture. He appointed, annointed, and sent our Lord Jesus to be the HighPriest over our faith. He is responsible for bringing our words to pass.

However, it is our responsibility to speak forth the Word of God and claimthe promises that God has spoken to us in His Word. All things are ours, butwe must bring them into manifestation by professing and confessing them in

faith, in our hearts and in the physical world. Once we speak forth faith-filledwords, the Bible tells us in I Cor. 1:4-5that Jesus will then enrich them withHis annointing.

But unfortunately, our negative talk and hope often makes it hard for us toalways attain Gods promises. Jesus clearly says, "For verily I say unto you, Thatwhosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into thesea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which hesaysshall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever hesays(Mk. 11:23-24).

Such is the power of any word you and I speak in faith.Whatever you and Ireceive from God, we receive it by confessing the word of faith. Ourconfessions (words we speak every day) determine all that we will everreceive from God, whether it's salvation, healing, peace, or prosperity. Watchyour words, Christian. You cannot rise about what you confess or say,because what you say is what you think, and as a man thinks in his heart so ishe (Prov. 23:7).

To a positive talker, God turns bad and evil into good

By desisting from negative confession or talk does not mean that Christiansshould think or pretend that negative or bad things cant happen in theirlives. No, in a fallen world, both good and bad things happen to bothChristians and non-Christians alike. However, believers are called upon topositively proclaim the hope that is in them; the hope that even if bad ornegative things should happen to them, God will at the end of the day bringgood out of it.

Thus, when problems or apparently negative things happen in or to their lives, they are seen merely as a catalyst for or a means of God doing some great

things in their lives. Dont entertain negative thoughts or words. Even whennegative or bad things happen in your life, stay calm. Understand thatsometimes God decides to accomplish His purposes in unusual ways. Godoften sets up scenes that appear to be negative on the front end, but God hasarranged these events for His glory. Without Pharaoh's pursuit of Israel at theRed Sea, there is no miraculous deliverance.


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Without Lazarus's death, there is no rising to life. Without Goliath, there is no

underdog story. Without Peter stepping out of the boat, there is no miracle onthe water. Without Judas' betrayal, there is no resurrection.

All these were apparently bad or negative occurrences in the lives of thoseconcerned. But see how God used the same apparently bad things totransform the lives of those concerned, and to achieve great things for us all!

Understand that God can often show Himself in unusual ways and these canat times be in form of problems or even suffering happening to us. Thisshould not prevent you from always positively confessing or proclaiming

only good and great things happening in your life. It is often through theadversity of failed finances, failed marriages, failed relationships, failed jobsand broken dreams that God ultimately accomplishes great things in the livesof people. These challenges might be very trying, but they are just a means toa great end.

Always look beyond occasional or present troubles, problems, challenges,suffering, setbacks, mood, and positively proclaim or profess great things anda future for you and your family, your country, your generation a futurefilled with health, wealth, righteousness, happiness, joy, all-round prosperity.

This positive thinking and speaking is not just wishful thinking or speaking.No, it is firmly rooted in our trust in the truthfulness and integrity of Godsword and promises. It is based on our firm trust that In all things (good orbad, positive or negative)God works for the good of those who love him, whohavebeen called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). Always speak of good andgreat things happening in your life, because God has an eternal filter in whichnothing can touch us unless He permits it; and rest assured He wont permitit unless it is for your good.

Sometimes bad or negative things may happen to us or our loved ones, which

things we cant see any good in them; for example, the loss of a child. But wemust always understand that God has infinite wisdom and sometimes Hiswisdom cannot be fully explained by we mortal beings. What we dont fullyunderstand, we must never conclude that it is bad, for the simple reason thatwe dont fully understand. If we believe that God is good and that He is incontrol over everything, then we must be prepared to accept that even whenwe cant explain certain negative things happening to us or our loved ones;even when we cant see any good or positive element in them, they arenevertheless working for our good, for we trust God.

There is no product on the market shelf that could ever possibly understandthe person who has manufactured it and how. Why? Because He is itsmanufacturer and it is a product of His wisdom! If it knew as much as Hedoes, then He would never have been able to manufacture it in the first place.


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It would simply co-exist with Him as a co-equal being. So are we. We will

never in our mortal state be able to grasp the full meaning or understandingof everything that God does in our lives, when and how He does them. Butwhat we do grasp gives us a clue to what lies in the heart of the Infinite .Therefore, take heart.There will be many times when God will work thingsout in our lives, in a manner exactly opposite to the way we think He should.

We see but a poor reflection as in a mirror. God says, For My thoughts arenot your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For theheavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways,and my thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9). His ways cannot always

be understood and reconciled in our finite, or limited minds.

We will never in our mortal state be able to understand everything God does,but what we do understand gives us a clue to what lies in the heart of theInfinite. God is good. We must never question His love for us based oncircumstances that come our way. Simply understand that In all things(good or bad, positive or negative) God works for the good of those who love him, who

have been called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28).

Permission required!

Even Satan must have permission to touch us. And God may even use Satanfor His own ends, as in the following cases: David faced a challenge offighting Goliath; it became the opportunity for him to achieve victory andlater become one of the greatest kings of all time. When a great persecutionarose against the early Church in Jerusalem, all, except the Apostles, werescattered throughout Judea and Samaria. But God turned their trials intoopportunities, as the more they were scattered, the more they scattered theirpreaching; spreading the word wherever they went, and Christianity spreadand triumphed.

Paul suffered what many might have seen as a setback, when he was sent toprison in Rome. These events although they looked like roadblocks to hismission, they however became opportunities for Paul to advance the cause ofChrist. He used them as a spring-board to preach to prisoners and the highestin the Roman Empire. He won many of them over to Christ.

Joseph, who had a dream of becoming a great leader, however hit whatappeared like a stumbling block, when his brothers sold him as a slave toEgypt. But it turned out to be a stepping-stone that made him to become

Prime Minister of Egypt, and to help his people in their greatest hour of need.

St. John ran into problems when he was exiled to an island; but, instead theisland turned into a place of revelation, enabling him to write one of thegreatest books of the Bible, the Revelations.


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Jesus our Lord Himself suffered what many, who had expected Him to be

crowned King of Israel, thought was failure, when he was, instead crucifiedon the cross like a common criminal. But He used the Cross as an instrumentfor the salvation of the entire human race, and to attain the highest place inheaven and on earth. At the mention of His Name, all creatures in Heaven, onearth and underneath bow!

In all things (good or bad, positive or negative) God works for the good of thosewho love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). Trialsbecome opportunities for triumphs; setbacks become stepping-stones to ahigher level; an apparent failure turns into a disguised set-up for a stronger

come-back; challenges turn into opportunities; problems into solutions, andfailures into success. As many people have realized, in this life, tests are oftendisguised testimonies.

Always speak, confess and profess only positive, good, great thingshappening in your life, well knowing that for those who are in Christ, Godturns every problem into a possibility, every challenge into an opportunity,every stumbling block into a stepping-stone, every setback into aspringboard, and every test into a testimony.

God told us to speak constantly of His goodness, to speak of His promises inthe morning at breakfast table, in the evenings around dinner table, at nightbefore bedtime, continually dwelling on the good things of God. If you wantto change your world, you will have to start by changing your words in thesame direction you desire your world to go. Ask the Holy Spirit to help youreplace negative thoughts and words with positive ones. Ask God to help youkeep other peoples negative, critical spirits from influencing you. Quicklyreplace negative attitudes with Scripture verses or positive thoughts.Whenever a negative or worrisome thought enters your mind, take it captiveand turn it into a prayer.


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Chapter 5

Expressions of Bitterness and Anger

Bitterness and anger are characteristics which even many of us Christiansoften display. One of the things that used to arouse the strongest emotions inme was when a rude motorist or taxi driver cut me off in traffic. Often Iwould tell him off what a fool he was! This was until the Spirit of God ledme to these words of Jesus:

You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, Do not murder, and anyonewho murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you that anyone who is angrywith his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brotherYou good-for-nothing will be brought before the Council, and whoever calls hisbrother a worthless fool will be in danger of going to the fire of hell (Matt. 5:21-22)!

Such is the seriousness of an abusive tongue; yet how many of us daily usethe tongue in a similar fashion?How many of us often want to give someonewho has annoyed or insulted us a piece of our mind? But the Bible says that

When somebody wrongs you, it is a great virtue to ignore it (Prov. 19:11). Howmany of us can say we are not guilty of hurling the insulting word fool tosomeone who disappointed us?

It is a great virtue to restrain our tongues from insulting others, or even torespond to their insults in the same language and tone, as they use. Besides,when negative things happen to us, no matter how much we angrily talkback, it is not going to make anything better. The Bible says: If you stay calm,you are wise, but if you have a hot temper, you only show how stupid you are (Prov.14:29); Kind words bring life but cruel words crush your spirit (Prov. 15:4). It

also advises that we be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to getangry(James 1:19). The word of God inCol. 3:13 tells us to bear with eachother and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive asthe Lord forgave you.

We need to surrender our heart, tongue and emotions to Christ if He is to fillus with His precious Spirit. We need to walk in love. It is normal to get angry,but as the Bible says: In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down whileyou are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold Do not let anyunwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for buildingothers up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not

grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every formof malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as inChrist God forgave you(Eph. 4:26-32).


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Dealing with those who hurt you

We often utter words of bitterness or anger towards other people, becausesomebody has hurt us. On the human level, it looks the logical and a normalthing to do. We are the offended party and so are merely expressing ourdispleasure or disapproval to that person. But Christ has equipped us andexpects us to act differently. Be kind to people even when they dont deserveit. We need to walk in love and be courteous even when somebody is unkindto us. When that co-worker or neighbour of yours walks by you with a cold orarrogant face; cant even say hullo to or even look at you may be because ofhis ignorance, insecurity or internal problems, God expects you a Christian to

go the extra mile and say a friendly word to him or her any way!

If you are on phone and somebody is rude, discourteous or speaks harshly toyou, dont just tell her off and then hung up! God expects you to be biggerand better. Telling that person and off before quickly hanging up is the easyway; anybody can do that. But God wants us believers to live by higherstandards. He says: Love your enemiesand pray for those who persecute you Ifyou love those who love you, what reward will you get? And if you greet only yourbrothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be

perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matt. 5:44-48). Any one can

pay back insult per insult, but a person who differs is truly great!

If someone has wronged you, acknowledge the hurt and the hate, but forgivethem in the name of Christ Jesus. Since God has forgiven them by His grace,you can forgive them too. Don't try to rationalize or explain the offender'sbehaviour. Ask the Spirit of God to help you forgive those who have hurt orbeen unfair to you in any way.

The measure to which God is willing to forgive us our failures and pour Hisloving blessings on us depends on the measure to which we are willing to

forgive those who trespass against us (Luke 11:1-5). That's how Jesus forgaveus -- He took the consequences of our sins upon Himself. We should forgivebecause Christ forgave us. God the Father "made Him who knew no sin to be sinon our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21).You dont have to pay back word per word, insult per insult, to someonewho insults you.

The true love that God greatly rewards is when we love the unlovable; whenwe love or do good to those who dont otherwise deserve it. God loves us notbecause we are lovable or deserve it, but because He is Himself love. Gods

love for us is not based on our performance or what we are, but on Hischaracter. We too must love and forgive because of who we are in Him. If wesay we do not love or like somebody, we are actually saying that we have notyet attained the maturity in Christ to love that person unconditionally.


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One of the most obvious signs that a believer is still at the lower levels of the

journey to spiritual immaturity (and many of us are!) is that he loves onlythose who love him. He likes only those who like him; and he associates onlywith those who agree with him. Christ loved and saved us unconditionally.

We are called upon to love other people the same way God loved us, and thisis unconditionallove: "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remainin my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I haveobeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my

joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love eachother as I have loved you (John 15:9-12). We must pray for the grace to love

unconditionally.

What you must know about people who hurt others!

The more we know what goes on inside people, the more we will take asecond look at them. And this is it: people who hurt others at will, or whotend to treat others badly often are themselves going through something.Keep in mind, hurting people often hurt other people as a result of their ownpain. If someone is rude and inconsiderate, you can almost be certain thatthey have some unresolved issues inside. They have some major problems,

bitterness, anger, resentment, heartache or broken dreams they are trying toresolve, overcome or cope with. If you return their venom with more vitriol,you can be sure you could only make things worse.

When somebody is bad-tempered and rude, recognise that they are justhaving a bad day, a bad time or a bad patch; most likely something isbothering them that has nothing to do with you, or with what you have done.So many people today have hurt and pain bottled up inside them; it can findexpression through a bad-temper, rudeness or abusive words. Any deliberateuncharitable, inconsiderate or rude action tells more about the person who is

doing it, than one to whom he is doing it. A Christian must not react to suchpeoples behaviour in the same way, otherwise he will have lost his saltiness!

Such negative persons are begging for mercy, understanding, forgiveness,encouragement or recognition in their prideful way. Use their insultinglanguage or inconsiderateness as an opportunity to share with them Godslove, kindness, mercy. Such people do not need somebody to judge andcriticize them, or to tell them what they are doing wrong. They are muchaware, in most cases. Instead, they need somebody to bring hope, somebodyto bring healing, somebody to show Gods understanding and mercy. Be part

of the solution to their problem, rather than part of the problem.

Beyond the inconvenience or hurt they might bring us, bad-tempered, rude,selfish and inconsiderate people thus present us with great opportunities forus to share the love of God, Gods word of kindness and mercy with a peoplewho are hurting inside of their lives.


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Be empathetic; feel what such people are feeling. Besides, everybody deserves

to have a bad day once in while, somebody said! Weve got to give peopleroom to have a bad day, week, month or season.

Keep taking the high road!

Evil is never overcome with evil. Evil word for evil words only perpetuatesevil. If someone hurts you, the best way to overcome it is by showing themmercy, forgiving them, and taking the high road. Anybody can return evil forevil, but God wants His people to help heal wounded hearts. Love overlooksoffences (1 Peter 4:8). Respond to peoples negative or insulting words with

your positive, kind words. When someone insults or verbally abuses you,instead of paying him or her back in the same currency, simply say, Godloves you and so do I. He or she will surely not only burn with shame, butalso learn from it.

When somebody insults you, dont pay him back with a similar insult.Simply say, I forgive you in the name of Jesus. In other words, you are reallysaying, I am bigger than that The bible says it is a great virtue to ignorean insult. Indeed one of the greatest virtues is to remain calm and peaceableamidst provocation, when those around you are not. Love doesnt hold a

grudge; love doesnt harbour unforgiveness (1 Cor. 13).

If your spouse, your neighbour, your co-worker, if anybody is not treatingyou right today, go out of your way to be kinder than usual to that person. Ifa rude motorist or car driver cuts you off in traffic, dont abuse him or givehim a piece of your mind, telling him off what a big nut or fool he is (as I usedto do!). We need to speak positively, even by our silent acts! If a fellowmotorist puts full head nightlights of his car, show him that you are different,that you are bigger than that by keeping yours low.

It is a great virtue to ignore an insult (Prov. 12:16). The Bible says, Let us notbecome weary (tired) in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if wedo not give up (Gal. 6:9).Keep taking the high road, because when you blessyour enemy, instead of cursing him, God will always make it up to you. Hewill pour out His favour in your life in a fresh way. Love never fails (1 Cor.13:8).Keep taking the high road. Nothing that you do goes unnoticed by God(1 Cor. 2:10)!

Tap into Gods supernatural peace

We most often lose control of our tongues in the pressure points of life. Insuch moments, learn how to tap into Gods supernatural Spirit of peace.When negative things happen to us, no matter how much we become angry,or negatively talk back or murmur and complain, it is not going to makeanything better.


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No matter how depressed you get about it, or how much you fly off the

handle at the people responsible, it isnt going to undo or take away what hasbeen done. Decide that you will keep your tongue and your peace; that youwont allow it to stir up the stimuli in you to answer back in the same fashion.The Bible asks: For what is your life? For it is a vapour that is appearing for alittle, and then is vanishing; we are here on earth for a moment, then we aregone (James 4:14). Dont waste another moment of your precious time beingangry, unhappy, or worried. Things/life will often not turn out exactly as youhad hoped, but you must make a decision that you are going to make themost of any situation.

Stop angering and bittering. Stop emphasizing what is wrong in yourhome, your community, organization, your society and start thanking God forwhat is right. If you go through life with a bitter and negative frame of mind,always complaining, grumbling, murmuring and nagging, you will bestressed out; and your immune system will weaken, making you moresusceptible to sickness and disease. Scientists have discovered that everyperson develops cancerous cells in his or her body every week. But in theimmune system God has given us, we have cells called the natural killercells. These are designed specifically to attack and destroy abnormal cells.

Studies have shown that stress and other negative emotions actually weakenthose natural killer cells. If you go through life complaining, angry, bitter andstressed out, you weaken your immune system, making your self-susceptibleto sickness and disease. On the other hand, people who are happy and have apositive outlook, people who ignore insults and laugh on a regular basisdevelop more of these natural killer cells than the average person. When youstay full of joy, your immune system functions at its peak performance level,

just as God intended. Thats why the Bible says, A cheerful heart is goodmedicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones (Prov. 17:22).

One of the healthiest things you and I ought to do is to learn to smile moreoften, even in the midst of insult or provocation! When you smile, scientificstudies have revealed, certain chemicals are released that travel throughoutour system, relaxing us and helping us to stay healthy. Quit complainingabout what is not going right around you, in your family, workplace, city,church, country, and start rejoicing about what is going well. God gives moreto those who have something to rejoice or be thankful about; but those whosee nothing good or positive around them, those who always look at the glassas being half empty, rather than as being half-full, even the good there ismight be taken away from them (Matt. 25:29)!

Stop that anger and bitterness. Stop complaining, murmuring, grumbling, orcriticizing your spouse, your bosses, your church leaders, your government, ifby so doing you will not change things. Focus on the things you can change;and the easier of these often is our attitude.


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Often God will not change our circumstances, until we change our attitude.

Bloom where you are and enjoy every single day of your life. Forgive thosewho have hurt you. Forgiving those who have wronged us can be a verydifficult thing. For me, it took me, for example, over four years to forgive aboy who had uncharitably teased me so much when I had just joinedsecondary school! This was before I came to Christ. But forgiving is one of theultimate tests of love, without which we are judged to be immatureChristians.

God says that, Forgive your brother from your heart (Matthew 18:35).Forgiveness can mean agreeing to live with the consequences of another

person's sin or wrong. It can, therefore, be very costly. But the alternative iseven worse bondage of bitterness. Instead of living in the bondage ofbitterness, decide to live in the freedom of forgiveness.

That's how Jesus forgave us -- He took the consequences of our sins uponHimself. We should forgive because Christ forgave us. God the Father "madeHim who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousnessof God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21). If someone has wronged you, acknowledge thehurt and the hate, but forgive them in the name of Christ Jesus. Ask for thespirit of forgiveness, love and self-control.


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Chapter 6

The Consequences of anUncircumcised Tongue

As earlier said, there is nothing that we do in life that is without consequences positive or negative. And so are the words we speak. It may appear likethey have evaporated in thin air, totally gone, after we have uttered them. Butthey are not. They are seeds, and as such, they sprout somewhere. If thewords uttered are negative, they give birth to negative fruits; but if they arepositive, good words sown in good soil, they give birth to a good harvest.

Let us first look at the negative fruits, because these are the ones that are mostcommon, and the ones we need to avoid. The tongue can affect the wholebody, nature, future, and life if used in any of the above ways. Every one ofGods provisions for man has as its foundation: depart from evil, depart frominiquity. And the tongue is one of the principal agents of this vice. The Biblesays, When good people pray, the Lord listens but He ignores those who are evil (Prov. 15:29). Try with the help of the Holy Spirit to keep yourself pure byguarding your tongue from speaking evil as in the above areas; so that youmay also enjoy the blessings of Gods plan to prosper you and bless your life.

Loss of the Holy Spirit

Perhaps the worst consequence a Christian whose tongue is out of controlsuffers is the loss of the Holy Spirit. There is nothing that grieves the HolySpirit more than when we continually tell lies, murmur, complain, gossip,criticize or bad-mouth people, instead of talking to them, instead of buildingthem up with our speech, or praying to God to change things. You cannothave the presence and power of God in your life when your tongue iscontinually out of control in this or similar way! Many of us Christians haveperhaps not realized the promises of God because we have an untamedtongue.

The Word of God says, an untamed tongue is a hindrance to prayer: - Butyour iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sinshave hidden (His) face from you so that He does not hear. For your hands are defiledwith blood and your fingers with iniquity; Your lips have spoken falsehood, Yourtonguemurmurs wickedness (Is. 59:23). The Word of God further says that,A good man obtains favour of the Lord, but a man of wicked devices will Hecondemn (Prov. 12:2); and that, "Truthful lips will be established forever, but alying tongue is only for a moment" (Prov. 12:19).


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If our tongue is out of control, we are fooling ourselves to believe that we

have our spiritual life together; for the Bible says that we reap exactly whatwe sow (Gal. 6:7). We will have to live with the results and consequences ofour thoughts, words and actions whether good or bad. "A false witness will not

go unpunished, and he who tells lies will not escape" (Prov. 19:5). " and all liars,their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the seconddeath"(Rev. 21:8).

If you want to obtain the promises of God, if you want God to listen to youwhen you pray, if you want to see the kind face of God, circumcise yourtongue. Develop a relationship with and a trust in God that overlooks all

things. Surrender your tongue today to Christ Jesus, for Him to circumcise itwith His Spirit.

Only new bottles are filled!

The Lord says, No man sows a piece of new cloth on an old garment: else the newpiece that filled it up takes away from the old, and the rent is made worse. And noman puts new wine into old bottle: else the new wine doth burst the bottle, and thewine is spilled, and the bottles will be marred: but new wine must be put into newbottles (Mark 2:21-22).No matter how much you desire something, as long

you havent met the conditions that are necessary for receiving it, you wontget it.

One of the requirements for being filled with the Holy Spirit is that aChristian should clean out the impurities from his life. Says the Word: Takethe impurities out of silver and (God) the artist can produce a thing of beauty (Prov.25:4).This is the Holy Spirit. God the Master Artist desires to produce a thingof beauty out of each and every one of us, but we must clean our house. TheHoly Spirit is holy. Like the new wine, He will not fill dirty (old) bottles, for todo so would be to contradict His very nature.

If we keep your tongue impure, we can be sure that the Holy Spirit wont useus much. Many of us Christians might be lacking the power of the Holy Spiritin our lives because we have neglected to keep clean one of the most criticalparts of our body temple system the heart and the words that spring therefrom. Our hearts and the words coming there from are defiled and the HolySpirit cannot fill them. Jesus made this very clear: For out of the heart comesevil thoughts, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person (Matt.15:18-20).

You might not have murdered any person or engaged in any act of adultery,fornication or theft. But the resentment or hatred we harbour or hold in ourhearts; the negative words we speak behind or about other people, the scornor unconstructive criticisms we pour or make on people (our neighbours,work-mates, bosses, employers, Gods ministers, political leaders), might be


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the ones defilingus and keeping us from being filled with the Spirit.If you are

not yet filled with the Holy Spirit, start by cleaning up your heart and thewords that come from it. Surrender your heart to Jesus for cleansing and dailylet every thought and word that originates there-from, or passes through it, bescreened by the Holy Spirit.

I feel led to say that many of us Christians remain empty of the Holy Spiritbecause we have an unclean heart and tongue or speech. We have a tonguethat engages at will in telling lies or engages in gossip, slander or speakingscornfully of other people; a tongue that flatters, complains, criticizes orcondemns people. God hates a Christian with a loose, untamed tongue,

uncontrolled mouth, which it refers to as uncircumcised lips. The Bible says:Be careful with what you say and protect your life. A careless talker destroyshimself(Prov. 13:3).

There is nothing that grieves the Holy Spirit more than when we tell lies ormurmur or complain, gossip, criticize or bad-mouth people, instead ofbuilding them up with our speech; instead praying to and working with Godto change things. The word of God says that a tamed tongue is a requirementfor Gods presence: If you love purity of heart and graciousness of speech, theking will be your friend(Prov. 22:11). You cant have the presence and power

of God in your life when your tongue is often out of control. Tame it with thehelp of the same Spirit. He loves to do it for and with you, if you are willing!

Test of Christian maturity

In the book of James (James 3: 1-12), the tongue is considered to be theultimate test of spiritual maturity. A Christian who tells lies, gossips, slanders,back-bites, is always critical of others, or murmurs, grumbles, whines andcomplains in a way that does not build - is considered immature. If theability to control the tongue is thus the ultimate test of Christian maturity,

how then can God ever pour His Holy Spirit upon an immature person?

This is because a person who has not yet learned to take control his tongue(with the help of the Holy Spirit) has not yet developed to a level of faith

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Kintu Francis