What are some important keys to seeingyour life prosper?

From the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things as surely as the work of

his hands rewards him.Prov. 12:14

Words have a tremendous impact on our lives – for good or bad

The Key to Success: Harness the Dragon

Harness the Dragon (James 3:2-12)We get it wrong nearly every time we open our mouths. If you could find someone whose speech was perfectly true, you'd have a perfect person,

in perfect control of life.

A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of

the strongest winds.

A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy it! It only takes a spark,

remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that.

Harness the Dragon (James 3:2-12)By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke

with it, smoke right from the pit of hell.

This is scary: You can tame a tiger, but you can't tame a tongue—it's never been done. The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer.

With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and

blessings out of the same mouth!

My friends, this can't go on. A spring doesn't gush fresh water one day and brackish the next, does it? Apple trees don't bear strawberries, do they? Raspberry bushes don't bear apples, do they? You're not going to dip into a polluted mud hole and get a cup of clear, cool water, are you?

The Power of Words1. Our Words Shape Our Future:

The tongue has the power of life and death,and those who love it will eat its fruit.

Prov. 18:21

The Power of Words1. Our Words Shape Our Future: They Bring Us…• Reward or PovertyFrom the fruit of his mouth a man’s stomach is filled;

with the harvest from his lips he is satisfied.Prov. 18:20

The Power of Words1. Our Words Shape Our Future: They Bring Us…• Reward or Poverty• Protection or TroubleProv. 13:3 He who guards his lips guards his life, but

he who speaks rashly will come to ruin.

Prov. 18:6 A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating.

The Power of Words1. Our Words Shape Our Future: They Bring Us…• Reward or Poverty• Protection or Trouble• Affection or RejectionProv. 16:13 Kings take pleasure in honest lips; they

value a man who speaks the truth.Prov. 22:11 He who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious will have the king for his friend.

The Power of Words1. Our Words Shape Our Future: They Bring Us…• Reward or Poverty• Protection or Trouble• Affection or RejectionProv. 27:14 If a man loudly blesses his neighbor early in

the morning, it will be taken as a curse.

Prov. 25:9-10 If you argue your case with a neighbor, do not betray another man’s confidence, or he who hears it may shame you and you will never lose your

bad reputation.

The Power of Words2. Our Words Impact Others: They Can…• Emotionally Refresh and Heal OR WoundProv. 16:24 Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet

to the soul and healing to the bones.Prov. 12:18 Reckless words pierce like a sword, but

the tongue of the wise brings healing.Prov. 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but

deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.

The Power of Words2. Our Words Impact Others: They Can…• Emotionally Refresh and Heal OR Wound• Help Them to Learn

Prov. 15:7 The lips of the wise spread knowledge; not so the hearts of fools.

Prov. 16:23 A wise man’s heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction.

The Power of Words2. Our Words Impact Others: They Can…• Emotionally Refresh and Heal OR Wound• Help Them to Learn• Damage People and Their Relationships

Prov. 11:9 With his mouth the godlessdestroys his neighbor…

Prov. 16:27,28 A scoundrel plots evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire. A perverse man stirs up

dissension, and a gossip separates close friends.

The Power of Words2. Our Words Impact Others: They Can…• Emotionally Refresh and Heal OR Wound• Help Them to Learn• Damage People and Their Relationships• Prod Others to React – Positively or NegativelyProv. 15:1 A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a

harsh word stirs up anger.Prov. 21:9 Better to live on a corner of the roof than

share a house with a quarrelsome wife.

The Power of Words3. Our Enemy (Satan) Gets Involved in Our Words:

Matt. 16:22-23 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and

suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be

killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he

said. “This shall never happen to you!” Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a

stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

The Power of Words3. Our Enemy (Satan) Gets Involved in Our Words:

Acts 5:3-4 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn’t it

belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What

made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God.”

The Nature of Words1. Words Transmit Ideas From One Head to Another2. They Can Have Widely Different Impacts on Others• Anger or Calm• Affection or Revulsion• Discouragement or Emboldening

The Nature of Words1. Words Transmit Ideas From One Head to Another2. They Can Have Widely Different Impacts on Others3. Words Impact God: Bring Judgment or Blessing

Matt. 12:36 But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless

word they have spoken.

The Nature of Words1. Words Transmit Ideas From One Head to Another2. They Can Have Widely Different Impacts on Others3. Words Impact God: Bring Judgment or Blessing

Ps. 64:3,7-8 They sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their words like deadly arrows…

But God will shoot them with arrows; suddenly they will be struck down. He will turn their own tongues

against them and bring them to ruin

The Nature of Words1. Words Transmit Ideas From One Head to Another2. They Can Have Widely Different Impacts on Others3. Words Impact God: Bring Judgment or Blessing4. Words Shape Our Relationships and Our Future5. Words Flow Out of Our Hearts (and Three

Problems in Our Hearts Impact Our Words)Matt. 12:34-35 …For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things

out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.

The Nature of Words1. Words Transmit Ideas From One Head to Another2. They Can Have Widely Different Impacts on Others3. Words Impact God: Bring Judgment or Blessing4. Words Shape Our Relationships and Our Future5. Words Flow Out of Our Hearts (and Three

Problems in Our Hearts Impact Our Words)6. To Harness Your Words, You Must Walk in the Spirit

Gal. 5:16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.