One word can change your entire outlook on life. Yes, you read that right. The right person with the wrong word can take you off the course of your faith. It’s like the mother who says to her son, “You are just like your father,” or the doctor who gives a terminal diagnosis. Words become like nails in a person’s coffin if their faith is not strong.
Job experienced this firsthand. He was already facing his battles; he was already in the midst of his turmoil, losses, and stress, but the final straw was when his friends approached him, crying. In that moment, he cursed the day of his birth. He had faced so much, and maybe as we speak, you are facing your own set of challenges. It has just been one hit after another, and everywhere you turn, there’s a new problem.
The problems aren’t the worst of it because they can be solved; it’s about keeping strong through it all. Be mindful of your ears most of all. Some will encourage you, motivate you, and lift you up, but there are also those whose words can be the end.
That is why you must fight to overcome the negative words, the complaining and complaining of others, and the word of death. There’s a promise for the Overcomers, so be strong. Do not fall victim to the word of defeat.
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” (Revelation 2:7)
May the God of the Bible bless you!
Bishop Bira Joshua
