Curses that Block the Blessing

Monday, June 28th, 2010

Today's Passage: Matthew 9:27-29
Memory Verses: Prov. 18:21

For the next couple of months, the book club at Abundant Life Ministries is reading the book Ten Curses that Block the Blessing by Pastor Larry Huch.  We believe that nothing in the lives of believers is worth fighting for if we don't face the demons that threaten to stop us from being and doing what God wants us to be and do.  So the first two that we'll be exposing are the curse of spoken words, and the curse of evil speaking.

In today's passage, Jesus encounters two blind men who cry out for Him to heal them.  When Jesus asks if they believe He can do it, they reply that they do.  That's when He makes a statement that will revolutionize all of our lives if we'll only walk in it: "According to your faith, let it be unto you."  What Jesus wants us to know is that our faith affects the words we speak.  But faith can be negative as well as positive, so whatsoever we speak is what we shall have.  Proverbs says that the tongue has the power to create death or life for us.  We fall into the trap of speaking death into our lives by the idle words we speak, not realizing that heaven and earth are listening to and recording the words we confess over ourselves and our loved ones.

The second area in which we open ourselves up to curses is the casual way we use our words to speak evil of, or gossip about, others.  I didn't realize how much God hates this habit until I read scripture after scripture to back it.  Romans 1: 29-32; 2 Corinthians 12:20; Palm 15:1-3; Deuteronomy 27:24; and Proverbs 6:16-19 are just a few of the passages that let us know God's heart on the matter.  Remember that Galatians 6: 7 tells us we will reap whatever we sow.  God doesn't want us to sow evil speaking, because the enemy uses it as a door to bring curses such as sicknesses and unfulfilled dreams into our lives.

This week's devotionals are really meant to give you a hunger to do more studying on these curses.  We all need to search our hearts, asking for forgiveness in these two areas.  We're all guilty of using our mouths to undo the blessings that we are praying for.  It's time to begin closing the doors the enemy has been using to rob us of what God has for us.

Prayer: Father, I take time today to repent for every idle word I've spoken against myself and others.  Give me the grace to begin choosing my words carefully, remembering that I am created in Your image.  I realize that, in order to show that I am totally devoted to You, I need to be obedient in this area.  Thank You for another chance to bring You glory.  In Jesus' Name, Amen.