You Need to Speak Truth, Life, and Victory
I’ve been down off the mountain literally and figuratively for a little over a week.
Last weekend, I flew to Denver to spend a few days with beautiful blogger friends that I affectionately call, “My People.” They are friends, encouragers, cheerleaders, and prayer warriors.
In a short 48 hours, we laughed until our abs hurt, cried big ol’ ugly cries together, shared a few blogging tips, talked until we lost our voices, talked about the many ways God is working in our lives, and covered each other in prayer.
Yes, it was a mountaintop experience in the mile high city.
These girls call me the “Sage,” which makes me giggle. Seriously, I start most days asking God to help me be less of a mess today than I was yesterday.
And the truth is that the collective wisdom of those beautiful women humbles me. I may be wearing a few more years but they are the ones teaching and inspiring me.
And something they taught me last weekend is HUGE!
I learned …
You Need to Speak Truth, Life, and Victory
I’m INFP on the Myers Briggs Personality Test or Phlegmatic/Sanguine based on the Four Temperaments Test.
I’m naturally an emotional people-pleaser who loves to keep everyone happy and if that includes lots of conversation and laughter … I’m thrilled. BUT, I’m also reflective and sensitive, which means I have trouble letting go of yesterday and find it hard to not worry about tomorrow.
Negative and anxious thoughts can too often be common companions. Oh, I fight it! I work hard to be bubbly and positive on the outside but on the inside, there’s a battle going on.
Now, back to my wise friends.
Last weekend as we prayed together, I noticed something important … they prayed big prayers of faith. They thanked God in advance for answers to prayers just being lifted and spoke each request boldly with confident faith in the One who is able.
Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:20
They spoke truth. God’s Truth!
And I wondered, how often I’ve prayed doubt-filled weak prayers. How often have I lifted petitions from a place of defeat and discouragement rather than faith and expectancy?
So, I grabbed my Bible when I got home to learn more about the truth behind the words I use and I found out that the words that come out of my mouth really do matter.
I’m making some intentional changes in the way I speak and pray because I want to:
♥ Speak Truth
Why is it that we so often allow the enemy to fill our thoughts with his lies when God gave us His truth? So often, I imagine myself in Eve’s place stopping to listen as he hisses the words, “Did God really say?”
Honestly, enough is enough!
You and I have God’s promises and He keeps His promises … ALWAYS!
Paul wrote:
Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise. Hebrews 10:23
When we know His promises. When we hold them close and allow them to fill us with faith and hope … we have the all we need to speak truth, life, and victory to ourselves and to each other.
When we speak truth everyone is strengthened.
We will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. Ephesians 4:15
♥ Speak Life
Last week, I wrote that I want to LIVE until I die!
When you and I think and speak from a place of doubt and fear, we deny ourselves the fullness of life Jesus came to give us.
“I [Jesus] came to give life—life in all its fullness.” John 10:10
I want to live with the freedom, courage, hope, peace, and joy found in Jesus.
Paul wrote:
We believe, and so we speak. 2 Corinthians 4:13 (NCV)
And just a few verses later, he wrote:
For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! v. 17
Whatever is going in your life or mine, the truth is it is temporary. We have been promised life … full, abundant, and satisfying. That’s reason enough to speak truth! God’s Truth!
Liz Giertz left a comment on last week’s post that said,
“Sometimes the thing that helps me overcome my fears is living as if my future is already here, understanding my eternity is already a reality!”
Amen, Liz!
♥ Speak Victory
I don’t know about you but I need to speak the following truth more often…
THE VICTORY HAS ALREADY BEEN WON!
But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57
We have victory in Jesus and I want to live every day like I really believe it!
You and I are:
More than conquerors. Romans 8:37
His workmanship. Ephesians 2:10
Free. John 8:36
Overcomers. 1 John 4:4
Chosen. 1 Peter 2:9
Beloved children. 1 John 3:2
John wrote:
Everyone who is a child of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world—our faith. So the one who conquers the world is the person who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:4–5
And now that I know God’s truth that gives life and victory, I can’t help but…
♥ Speak Jesus
We proclaim to you the One who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw Him with our own eyes and touched Him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 1 John 1:1
I’m compelled to proclaim the One who has not only given me eternal life but who has given me full, abundant, and satisfying life today. Victory for today and for eternity.
By His grace, He continues to forgive my failures. He heals my broken heart and gives me peace when the world overwhelms me. He gives me courage when I’m afraid and strengthens me when my battles are hard.
And when I forget whose I am … He gently reminds me.
So, you see, my sweet friends called me the “Sage” but they were the wise ones speaking truth, God’s truth. They were the ones praying big prayers, and loving like Jesus.
Last weekend felt like a tender taste of heaven and I’m so very thankful God gave me those moments and memories. And I’m especially thankful that He blessed me with these amazing women of faith!
Take a few minutes to stop by and visit their sites:
Lori Schumaker
Shannon Geurin
Marva Smith
(Who was unable to join us this year. Sad Face)
I promise, you will love them just as much as I do!
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“To God Be The Glory,” Amen. Hihi, Sis in Christ I hope and pray all is well. I really enjoyed your encouraging words. I too go through certain trains of thoughts that is non other than that if Satan. He is always on the prowl, and yes we should continue to “fight the good fight of faith.”
It is not easy, but “we can do all things through Christ Jesus, that strengthen us.” I am so grateful to know, without a shadow of doubt, that Jesus Christ is the reason, for all Seasons, whether we go through seasons of trials and tribulations, and joyful seasons.
It is all because of Him. I agree, let us try to live life with great expectancy, through our prayer, supplication, dedication, and faith in Christ Jesus.
I really enjoy your blog. Inspiring too.
Please continue to keep going on your way to what Christ Jesus has called you to be and do. I’m cheering for you.????
May God Bless you and family.
Kathleen
Thank you, Kathleen, for your kind words of encouragement. I need to rely on His strength every day. My word for this year is SEEK based on Matthew 6:33. I’ve decided that it needs to be my word for the rest of my life. When I seek the Lord first everything else falls into place. Many blessings to you as well. <3
What an amazing weekend you had, Deb! Yes, your words once again hit home for me, especially about praying big. Our God gives so much to us, and sometimes we give too little to Him. Let’s live with the expectation that He has already blessed us and will continue to do so!
Thank you, Martha! I’m still reliving the memories and the beautiful big faith those women share so freely. Praising God that He made us for community and for all we learn from each other. Now to stay focused on Him … His truth, life, and the victory that has already been won! Blessings and hugs, my friend!
This is definitely a growth point for me, and I’ve often thought that if I spoke to my friends and about my friends the way I talk to myself, I wouldn’t have very many friends. Thanks for taking this conversation directly into the truth of Scripture.
Oh, I know, Michele. I so want to faithfully fill my thoughts and my prayers with His truth and much more quickly reject the lies that love to take up residence in my head waaaay tooooo often! Blessings and hugs!
I’m always amazed when God uses my much younger friends to teach me things that I should have learned years ago, Deb. But for some reason it rises to the top in my current encounter with them–through their words of truth spoken in love. I’m so glad you had a great experience with your blogging buddies! It’s always such a joy to meet our friends we’ve come to know through the internet face-to-face. Thanks for sharing your heart so vulnerably!
Thanks, Beth! I absolutely love the way the Lord allows us to learn and grow closer to Him through our relationships. Hearing how He is working in the lives of my friends and family always fills me with hope and courage. Thanks for being one of the people who faithfully points me to the Lord and the important ways He wants to work in our closest relationships. Hugs!
Deb, you are such a great leader. You have pulled many of us together in community on this internet and how you are doing it in real life is so inspiring. It is encouraging me to do the same with friends in town who want to learn to write their own book.
Social media marketing is one thing, but real-life relationships is the best! I have to really learn that and not let those relationships slide. Thank you for this truthful post!
Oh, Ann, you made my day! I love being able to help bloggers connect! You are right though, real-life relationships are best. Which is one of the reasons I started the Blessing Bloggers group – I would love to help everyone find their “people” so they can gather in person and enjoy blessed friendships. You’re right about another thing, there are many opportunities for face to face friendships right in our own communities. It’s one of the things we prayed about last weekend! Blessings and hugs!
Wonderful post, Deb! I’ve been speaking life into many situations in my life and believe that God is going to see it through. Just like you said, the Victory has already been won! Thanks for sharing this.
LaDonna | Faith Family and Miracles
Thank you, LaDonna! I’m still learning to keep my focus on Jesus even when a problem looms large. So thankful for His patience with me and His gentle reminders that it is all under control … His control. God bless you!
Being an INFJ, I am similar in overthinking ???? Thank you for sharing this. There is beauty in speaking truth and claiming victory in Christ!
Amen, Rachel! To us overthinkers whose thoughts bounce around at super speed, I’m so thankful for God’s amazing patience with me and His willingness to teach me His truths. Life is so much better when I’m enjoying the peace I have in knowing He is in control and the victory is taken care of! Blessings and hugs!
Amen!
Sure am blessed by you!
I am so happy that I am one of “your people,” my sweet, wise and “sage” friend! You are a true treasure and I love you to pieces. Such beautiful words here! xoxo
Speaking truth sometimes land us in awkward situations. What are your views on that mam?
That’s true! I think you and I have to be careful … first of all to tell our story of faith with gentleness and respect. (1 Peter 3:15) Then I think it’s important not to preach AT people but to simply point them to what the Bible teaches. And finally, if what I believe to be truth is really just my opinion (something the Bible is not clear about) then I typically keep it to myself. So many people are shouting what they say or believe to be the truth but when we speak Truth, Life, and Victory … we are simply sharing what God has done for us through Jesus. Thanks for joining the conversation. God bless you!