Words have the power to change lives. You can empower people through words you speak, or cut them down. You can cause them to live, or to wither and die. Don't let your mouth be full of negative talk, but rather practice and make it a habit, a lifestyle of speaking words that build.
Let's have a look in Ephesians 4, Verse 29. So things that I encourage you to just begin to fast off or to begin to confront; every one of us as got our own little giants. How many know they've got a giant, something that's pushing you down, holding you back? How many can recognise at least one that's doing that right now? Okay then, so for some of you it might be passivity. You just sort of shut down. That's a giant that holds you down so you're passive. You can't even begin to express or enjoy life. That's a spirit that gets around our life and we have to actually break out of the habit pattern of being passive sort of people, but there's other kinds of things. Some of us may be intimidated. We can have something that scares us and when you're intimidated your gifts won't flow, so you can't be all you're called to be if you live under the bondage of fear and are in agreement with the spirit of fear.
But I want to look at this area of negativity, where our mind, our thoughts, our heart and particularly our mouth talks negative stuff and let's just start off with this verse here in Ephesians 4:29, and it says let no corrupt word come out of your mouth. So how much room does it have for corrupt words or negative words? Let NONE, so why don't you circle 'none'. Don't let any. Zip your lip to negative talk. See, let no corrupt communication come out of your mouth. It doesn't mean stop talking. That would be just too much to ask, see [Laughter] . but rather speak words that will build up people. Speak words that are good to edify. Now words you speak are going to do something to you and the people around you. I'm going to talk a little bit about that further in a moment, but words have an ability to shape what's around us in the atmosphere and shape the relationships. In fact words have the power to shape the world we live in. Think about that.
So the Bible says put a stop to negative talk and rather practice and make it a habit to speak words that will actually edify and build up the world and the environment around you, see? Speak words - and then it goes onto an interesting thing. It says that it will minister grace or impart empowerment. You see you can empower people through words you speak, or you can cut them down. You can lift them up, or you can put them down. You can cause them to live, or you can cause them to wither and die. Words have the power to change lives and notice that straight after that it says, having exalted us, don't let your mouth be full of negative talk, but rather practice and make it a habit, a lifestyle of speaking words that build.
Then it goes on to begin to say, and don't grieve the Holy Ghost. So it tells us very clearly that negative words are associated with grieving the Holy Ghost, and if you grieve the Holy Ghost that means you make Him sad, you cause Him to withdraw, you cause Him to grieve and feel burdened about you. How can you be empowered to live a powerful, strong life if the one who's given to help you live that life, you're hurting Him and grieving Him and making Him sad all the time? I really encourage us to have a fast off negative words, because the very fact that you start fasting in that area - fast off food too, that'll get the negative words up to the surface much quicker [Laughter] . See, fast off food. You know when you fast off food, you can't believe how negative you get. You just have these feelings come over you, and they want to express.
We were sharing with the kids at camp how whatever's in you is going to find a way out of you, firstly on your face. See, secondly, through your words and finally, the things you do. So we were talking to the kids about getting filled with the Holy Ghost, so that certain things come out of our life. We talked about some things that'll come out of your life, so when you get in a fast, whatever's in there is going to come up, start to come out of your life and manifest, so don't worry if, when you fast, your problems appear to get really bad. It seems like they took on a life of their own, flared up and got out of control. That's perfectly normal. How many have found that, know what I'm talking about here?