Words are powerful:

Like a rudder to a ship—James 3:4-5 NLT: "4 And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong. 5 In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire."

Affects judgment—Matthew 12:36-37 NLT: "36 And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. 37 The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you."

**The power to create and destroy life—Proverbs 18:20-21 NASB: **"20 With the fruit of a man's mouth his stomach will be satisfied; he will be satisfied with the product of his lips. 21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit."

Three steps to pull out the poison of destructive words:

1. Take out the trash and receive the truth.

• Hurtful words lead to DISTRACTION, DRAMA, DESPAIR, DEPRESSION. Receive healing by filling your heart with true words.
  • If you feel ashamed, repeat 2 Corinthians 5:21 and say, "I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus."
  • If you feel insecure about who you are, speak Psalm 139:14 and say, "I am fearfully and wonderfully made."
  • If you feel you'll always be unsuccessful, remind yourself of Deuteronomy 28:13 and say, "I am the head and not the tail; I will be above and not beneath."
  • If you feel like you will never do anything great, lay hold of John 14:12 and say, "I will do greater works than Christ because He went to the heavenly Father."
  • If you feel insignificant, remember Luke 12:7 and say, "The hairs on my head are numbered by God."
• Learn to filter future words by using the Word of God.

2. Reverse the negative self-talk.

• Align your declaration about yourself with God's declaration.
• Look at David's declaration about himself—1 Samuel 17:45-46 NLT: "45 David replied to the Philistine, ‘You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of Heaven's Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 Today the LORD will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel!'"
• Stop speaking ABOUT your mountain and speak TO it!

3. Become a life-giving fountain.

• Proverbs 10:11 NLT: "The words of the godly are a life-giving fountain; the words of the wicked conceal violent intentions."
• Proverbs 12:18 NLT: "Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring healing."
• Proverbs 16:27 NLT: "Scoundrels create trouble; their words are a destructive blaze."
• A critical spirit spews destructive words.
• An angry spirit sets the arrow on fire.
• Allow yourself to be healed so you can become a healer.
• Never rob someone of an encouraging thought. If you think something good about them, let them know.