Long Life, Good Life

On June 25, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 34: 12 – 13             TPT

Do you want to live a long, good life, enjoying the beauty that fills each day? Then never speak a lie or allow wicked words to come from your mouth.

A friend of mine once remarked that we need to be reminded about the words of our mouth weekly if not daily. I so agree. We forget the power that is in our words and we forget the impact they have on our lives and the lives of those around us, like our families.

Don’t you like the idea of beauty filling every day? Of course, a long life and good life are attractive too. The psalmist here is David. He is teaching how to have a beautiful, long and good life. And, he ought to know. Never tell a lie, he tells us and don’t allow wicked words to come from your mouth. You have to decide for yourself what words are wicked and you may find that your definition changes over time but set a bar and make it your determined purpose to refrain from words you wouldn’t want to hear your mother saying. That is a decent test. I also think we can broaden our view by including vulgar words. There are terms we can use in place of words that may not be considered profanity but that are vulgar none the less. Civilization, in part, reveals itself in language. So I cast my vote for a more civilized lexicon, a vocabulary that gives honor to our Father instead of embarrassing Him.

What shall we say of lying? We all know, empirically, that it is wrong and yet do we refrain? Even from little white lies? I do not believe there is such a thing as a little lie. Either a statement is true or it is not. It may be phrased in such a way as to not be an outright lie but it isn’t the truth either. It is a deception and phrased in such a way as to be intentional misleading.

Here is the question I would like answered. Why do we lie? Is it that we are cowardly and cannot face up to the truth? Is it that we are embarrassed by our behaviors and thus attempt to paint a better picture of ourselves? Is it that we wish to avoid the natural consequences of our actions? I don’t know. Perhaps it is all of these and more but here is the bottom line, and I will not equivocate. Every lie is cooperation and companionship with Satan. Jesus is the truth. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth. There is a very clear line here. We either line up with Satan or we line up with Jesus. Which shall it be? If we want the good life, a long life filled with beauty, then we must make the difficult choice to live in truth. I know it’s hard but everything about following Jesus is a challenge when you live in the world. His way is not the world’s way.

David teaches how to live in God’s blessing. It means we must guard our mouths. This is likely one of the most difficult tasks many of us undertake, but life and blessing are in the words of our mouths. Like my friend, said, remind yourself today about your words. Clean up your language and have a good life.

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Speak Wisely

On April 24, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 13: 2 – 3               NIV

From the fruit of their lips people enjoy good things, but the unfaithful have an appetite for violence. Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin.

This is right in the middle of many of the things I am thinking about and meditating on right now. If you are a journaler, this verse might make for an interesting question to take to the Father and, I would love to hear what He says to you if you journal it.

As a whole, I think we have failed to grasp how powerful, significant and effective our words are. Preachers have been telling us for years that there is power in our words, for good or for ill. For that matter, I remember PMA speakers and authors telling us forty years ago that our mouths would direct our success.

Our health is in our words, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverb 18: 21). Our financial well-being is in our words, and lest I recite every area impacted by the words we speak, shall we just accept that every facet of life reflects the words we have spoken?

I have written on this topic many times and yet I have not fully grasped this principle myself. Upon the occasion of a previous Word of the Day on this subject, one of my friends commented that we need to hear this every week if not every day. It is that important and that easily lost.

It is our words which bind and loose the powers of heaven. Angels will either be loosed into your life or bound by what you say. In like manner, you can give Satan’s imps permission to tamper with your life by those words. The spirit realm responds to what you say. You have authority over your life but how are you using it? Adam and Eve had authority too.

Your body is listening to what you say too. So is your mind. If you say you are old, infirm, or that your body is going to fall apart at some specified age, then you are right. If, however, you say that you intend to be as strong as Moses, Joshua and Caleb until you move to heaven, then that is the truth you will live. If you are speaking nourishing words to your mind, your mind will respond. If you continually spew language of senior moments and confusion, then you are going to talk yourself right into senility.

Wherever you are right now is the result of the words you spoke, or even the good words you didn’t speak, in the past. The good news is that you can change course right now. You can reprogram your body and your mind in the next few moments. What would you like your body to believe? What do you say about your mind? It is your choice. Choose and speak wisely.

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Space of Grace

On February 23, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 4: 29

Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear.

If you do not stumble here, then you are a perfect person for this is where we usually trip up ourselves, with our mouths. That is the ultimate insight. We damage ourselves with our mouths.

At first reading, this passage is clear enough. However, as we continue to ponder this scripture, one begins to hear a lifestyle emerging through it. Paul was encouraging Christian unity in this chapter. Clearly, there will be no unity in any group if its members do not police their words. Paul leads us a step further though. His words direct us to edify one another with our words. In this he creates a distinction. He didn’t say, “Just keep your mouth shut,” which, by almost anyone’s standard, is good advice. Paul teaches us, instead, to speak words of grace. Our words can lift the hearer. They can build up the group.

Here is the hard part, Paul would have us avoid making statements that are even true if they are likely to disparage another. We are not talking here about lying, never let it be said, but some things just don’t need to be said. As a former lawyer, I can tell you that I struggle with this. Truth is truth and so often I think the scoundrel should be exposed. This is where the world’s way of thinking diverges from God’s way of doing. That is why we have to pay such close attention to the Word. The world’s teaching is engrained within us. Sometimes we have to root it out by really seeing what the Word teaches.

Everything God ever told us, or ever will tell us is for our own good. He didn’t give us a bunch of rules to steal the life from us. He gave us rules to give us life, and that more abundantly. When we let unwholesome speech out of our mouths, we damage ourselves, those who hear, and we do no great favor to the heart of God. However, since we are growing up in the things of God, let us not stop with bridling our tongues. Let’s learn to direct our language in a way which edifies others. Find the space of grace and share it with others. Words can hurt but they can also heal. Use yours to unite and console.

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Say It

On December 19, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Luke 4: 3

“If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”

The devil told Jesus to “tell” this stone to become bread. He didn’t say, “Wave your hands over it and make it bread.” He didn’t even say “turn this stone into bread.” He knew that the power to change the circumstances was in the words Jesus would speak. Satan was an angel of God before he committed treason. He knows how the power of God works. He knows well that God created everything through the spoken word. Therefore, when he tempted Jesus, he tried to get Jesus to “say” something.

The devil does the same thing to you today. He tries to get you upset so that you will “say” something that is out of line with the word of God. The devil knows that the whole battle is won or lost in what you say. You can say, “I am sick” or you can say “By His stripes I am healed.” You can complain about your economic condition or you can say, “He meets all of my needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” If the devil can get you into unforgiveness and speaking that language instead of love, he can bind you. What you say is what you get so what are you saying? Don’t let the devil trick you into saying all sorts of unbiblical things. Get your words in line with the Word of God and defeat that old boy every time.

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Lips of Abundance

On July 21, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 10: 21


The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of understanding.
In this proverb Solomon contrasts the righteous and the wicked. I am gratified to learn that the lips of the righteous feeds many. I imagine that the lips of the righteous is a blessing which flows out to the city and surrounding area. Words of righteousness create a wellspring of blessing. That is really good news. Now we just have to find a few righteous people. Righteousness is in Christ Jesus which I will explain in tomorrow’s Word of the Day.
Unfortunately, many of us are surrounded by the fools. What is the relationship between these two phrases? It must be that the lips of fools bring famine and lack. I completely believe that. So here is the problem. If you are working in an organization full of people who lack understanding then you are going to corporately experience famine. Even worse, this verse says that fools die because of this lack of understanding. What then do you think is the net effect on the organization of which they are a part? The worst part of this is that there are churches which operate under a complete lack of understanding. 
 
Why does Solomon use these words and why does he use them together? First, I think he is telling us that not submitting ourselves individually and corporately to teaching is foolishness and leads to malnutrition and ultimately to death. Fools are those who are unwilling to be educated. They know everything and no one can teach them anything. Wise leaders are constantly learning and the wisest of leaders provide learning opportunities for their people. 
 
How many people do you know who subject themselves to a program of learning? How many people defy the teachings of their bosses and even their pastors. Sure, no person knows everything but there are people with much wisdom and knowledge. No matter how much we think we know, we can still be instructed. There is always someone who can lead us into greater truth.

If you are the smartest and most knowledgeable person in your sphere then you need desperately to widen your sphere. Don’t be foolish. Don’t continue in a lack of understanding. Find teachers and voraciously consume all you can. The key question is not whether or not you agree. The key is always, “Father, what can you teach me from this?”  Be a student all the days of your life and add prosperity and abundance to your life and those around you.

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Deep Pit

On April 29, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 8: 8

All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing crooked or perverted in them.

King David wrote in Psalm 17: 3 that he purposed that his mouth would not transgress. That is a noble goal. Maybe setting that goal was enough for David to be able to accomplish it. For others of us, though, some tools may come in handy. Today’s verse is just such a tool and it might be a good one for one of those index cards.

The eighth proverb is a message from wisdom. She is crying out in the streets trying to get our attention, trying to help us. We are to seek wisdom, only a fool wouldn’t. Well, when we seek and find wisdom we get all that she is and she tells us that her mouth only utters righteousness. Surely that is wisdom, speaking nothing but righteousness. Now here is how you can use this verse as a tool for yourself even though it is wisdom speaking. Because you seek wisdom you can make this same declaration. If you have purposed in your heart that your mouth will not transgress then confess that all of the utterances of your mouth are righteous. After a while your brain will catch on. Then it will begin to regulate your mouth. 

Honestly, if you do not transgress with your mouth then you are a holy person indeed. Our mouths are deep pits into which we fall. Keep your mouth straight and you will find your paths straight too. Let God’s power help you to cover over that deep pit and make a straight way for you.

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Heart & Mouth

On March 15, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 19: 14                      Index Card 1

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

I am beginning a new series today. Many times I recommend that you take really meaningful verses and write them out on 3 X 5 index cards then put them in plain sight so that you can review them frequently. Well, it may please you to know that I take my own advice. Today’s verse is the first in a series of Ivey’s index cards. I hope you enjoy seeing which verses I have recorded in my scripture deck of cards.

This verse is first and foremost in my mind and, in my stack of cards, because my failures so often come out of my mouth. In truth, it is what is in our hearts which bubbles up and out of our mouths (Matthew 12: 34) and often in the most inconvenient of times. So, this verse reminds me to check the content of my heart and set a guard over my mouth (Psalm 141: 3).

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