A prayer is a powerful tool that allows us to develop a closer relationship with our Creator. However, we sometimes erroneously think that the prayer moment is the only time that our words matter. What we say to ourselves and others is of paramount importance. We must be careful not to reverse our well-intended prayer petitions by speaking negatively about situations we’ve taken before the Lord.

Proverbs 18:21 says ^“Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” We must speak life over ourselves, people, and situations. It is ineffective to pour our hearts out before God, declare our trust, need, and dependence on God to resolve the situation, then get up from our prayer stance and continue as if we’d never reached out to God.

No matter what circumstance we face, we must relinquish our limited understanding, perceived sense of power and control, and any related unforgiveness in order to give our omnipotent Creator, Deliverer, Provider, Healer, Comforter, and every other “er” that you need, room to work on the situation. Think of your circumstance as a ball. When we pray, we are releasing the ball – that ball of worry, frustration, fear, resentment, etc. to the Lord. Speaking ill of the ball we release in prayer is to snatch the ball back from God. For whatever reason, we decide that we want to hold on to it and examine it for a while longer. Then we wonder why our circumstance seems to continue and in some cases get worse.

As tempting as it may be to take back that ball of confusion, fatigue, distress, discomfort, and all the other “dis”es, we must resist the urge! Remind yourself of who you are and whose you are. Focus on the promises of God and speak LIFE – victory, joy, faith, peace, restoration, and success over yourself and every situation that troubles your heart. Follow Paul’s advice in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 which says:

The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

Speak victoriously and live victoriously!