This article is courtesy of HomeLife magazine.
Words matter. They can even have the power to change a life. Following are 26 words that, when implemented, can change your life.
Accept help. The world preaches a self-sufficient message, but Jesus is returning for a body of believers interdependent on one another. "You've got to develop a network of [people who] are rooting for your success, not your failure," says Kirbyjon Caldwell, pastor of Windsor Village United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas.
Bless others. "The word ‘bless' really means to add weight or value to someone," says John Trent, founder of StrongFamilies.com and author of HeartShift. "When you bless someone, you add to their life. And when you curse someone, you subtract from their life. In every dealing you have with someone, you're either subtracting or blessing. You can tip the scales one way or the other."
Call your spouse in the middle of the day and tell him you're still crazy about him — yes, after all these years.
Devote half a day each month to a time of prayer and worship. If you can't remember the last time you had 30 minutes without being interrupted by the kids or the phone, start with an hour and work your way up. Ask your spouse to help out one Saturday by taking care of the kids.
Endure. Hebrews 12:1 says to "run with endurance the race that lies before us." That race involves trials, big and small. "The way to enjoy something is to work on endurance," Trent says. "When you persevere through a problem or issue, you enjoy what you've come through. Part of why people don't get enjoyment out of things is because there's no effort attached."
Focus. Best-selling author and speaker Laurie Beth Jones says, "One of the most powerful questions for focusing is asking yourself: ‘What would I be doing with my time if I knew I had only six healthy months to live?' It can immediately cause you to reorganize your priorities."
Give. Do it outlandishly. Extravagantly. Ridiculously. It's how God likes it. "God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7). Then, watch His blessings roll in as He changes your heart.
Hope. Cultivate hope in your life. "There's clear hope in the world — big hope," says Jim Otremba, Christian counselor and life coach. "In the midst of our toxic world, the hope of resurrection is still a reality. Our identity is found in Christ's resurrection. That brings great hope ... because there's not a death we go through that doesn't lead to resurrection."
Identify issues. Whether it's in your family or at work, unresolved issues breed bitterness and discontentment. The key is to deal with them the right way. Trent offers three levels related to issues: "Level 1 is when you're dealing with just the issue. If you don't solve the issue, you move up to Level 2, where you resort to attacking the other person. Level 3 is where you begin to question the entire relationship. The challenge is to keep issues at Level 1."
Joy. Carry it with you wherever you go. Choose to become joyful. "We are invited to rejoice in every moment of life because every moment of life is a gift," says John Ortberg, author of The Life You've Always Wanted. "If we don't rejoice today, we will not rejoice at all. If we wait until conditions are perfect, we will still be waiting when we die."
Know your purpose. "You have to know what your ultimate life purpose is and what your driving force is in order to be completely fulfilled," Jones explains.
Learn. "Commit yourself to a life of continual learning," Trent says. "Keep reading. Keep attending classes or workshops regularly. Keep learning and being teachable."
Meditate on a short Bible passage. "Read it slowly," Ortberg encourages. "Read it the way you would read a love letter at the height of romance. Certain words may stand out to you; allow them to sink into your heart."
Notice the little things. Watch a storm cloud roll in. Feel the sense of being alive as you breathe in the crisp winter air. Take time to notice what makes your spouse laugh. After all, life is really made up of a series of little things more than big events.
Offer. Romans 12:1 urges us to "offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship" (NIV). Take care of the temple God has given you and worship Him by eating well, exercising, challenging your mind, and lowering your stress level.
Play. "Play is an expression of God's presence in the world," wrote Mike Yaconelli, author of Dangerous Wonder: The Adventure of a Childlike Faith. "[It's] not an escape; it is the way to release the life-smothering grip of busyness, stress, and anxiety."
Quit whining. God has things under control. He hasn't forgotten you.
Recognize your strengths. "No matter how positive or difficult a background you came from, start by focusing on your strengths and recounting times of success," Trent says. Once you've identified your strengths, you can more easily look at those times when you've exercised them. It's the exercising of your strengths that leads to your success."
Savor. To savor something is to immerse yourself in the enjoyment of it. Savor your time with your husband, your family, your friends. Most of all, savor your time with God.
Truth. It will transform your life. One of Otremba's primary messages to people he counsels is that "the truth transforms the tapes." "Tapes are negative messages we receive in our formative years," he says. "They're those messages we believe about ourselves — such as ‘I'm not good enough' or ‘I'll never amount to much.' But Jesus Christ is the truth — the transforming truth. He promises that transformation in John 10:10. Nobody is the exception to that promise."
Unplug your television. Try it for a week and see how much time you gain for God, others, and yourself. "The worst thing about TV is not what it puts into our minds so much as what it prevents us from doing," Ortberg says. "Watching television kills intimacy and conversation and disrupts sustained thought. Use the freed-up time to do things you've needed or have been planning to do."
Voice. God still speaks today, just as much as ever before. Sometimes it's a "soft whisper" (1 Kings 19:12); other times it's loud and booming (Deuteronomy 5:22). The key is to hone in and listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying specifically to you.
Worship. You were created to worship God. You can worship Him in wonder, over the mind-boggling intricacies of this earth. You can worship Him through service, by being the best parent you can be to your kids. You can worship Him through dancing or drawing or building or simply thinking.
eXpect the unexpected. It may sound like a cliché, but with God, it's the truth. Ask Him to do amazing things and watch Him do them.
Yesterday. Leave it — and all of its regrets — behind. Ask forgiveness from people you've hurt in the past and make efforts to amend fractured relationships, but once you've repented, the rest is out of your hands.
Zeal. Passion. Fervor. It's how life should be lived, mistakes and all. God will take a heart zealous for Him over a blasé one any day.