Remember

Pastor Alex Hall | December 7, 2025

The Power of Your Words: Breaking Free from Darkness

There's a profound truth woven throughout Scripture that many of us overlook in our daily lives: the power of life and death is in the tongue. It's not just a poetic phrase or a catchy saying—it's a spiritual reality that shapes our existence, our families, and our futures.

When Darkness Feels Overwhelming

The psalmist captured a feeling many of us know too well: "The enemy has persecuted my soul. He has crushed my life to the ground. He has made me dwell in darkness like those who have long been dead. Therefore, my spirit is overwhelmed within me. My heart within me is distressed" (Psalm 143:3-4).

Perhaps you're in that place right now. The weight of circumstances has pressed down on you until you feel trapped in darkness. Everything seems overwhelming, and you can't see a way out. But here's the remarkable truth: God is waiting for you to say yes to Him. He wants to lead you out of that darkness and into His marvelous light.

The Word That Goes First

When we look at creation, we see an incredible pattern. Before anything existed, God spoke. "Let there be light," He declared, and light appeared. The Word went first. Everything in existence began with God speaking it into being.

This same principle applies to your life. What you speak, you sow. And what you sow, you will eventually reap. It's the law of seed time and harvest.

Think about the people in your life who constantly speak negativity. "Nothing ever goes right." "Everything's falling apart." "Nobody likes me." Their words become self-fulfilling prophecies. They have what they say.

Consider the story of Ezekiel in the valley of dry bones. God asked him, "Can these bones live again?" Then He commanded Ezekiel to prophesy—to speak life to dead bones. As Ezekiel obeyed and spoke God's word, something miraculous happened. The bones began to rattle, flesh appeared, and a great army rose up.

The word goes first. Life follows.

Breaking Generational Curses Through Your Speech

Many people carry words spoken over them in childhood—negative declarations from parents, teachers, or peers that became embedded like seeds in their hearts. "You'll never amount to anything." "You're just like your father." "You'll always be this way."

These words take root and shape identity. But here's the liberating truth: in the name of Jesus, every weed from the enemy can be uprooted from your mind and heart. God wants to give you a fresh garden where you can sow seeds of faith, hope, and life.

The transformation begins when you start speaking life, even when you don't see it yet. It will feel unnatural at first. It's work—six days of work, just like creation. But on the seventh day, you rest in the promise that God brings the growth.

One father shared his experience of speaking life over his rebellious son. Day after day, week after week, he declared God's promises over his child, even when all he could see was rebellion and disobedience. He didn't see immediate results. But he kept sowing seeds of life through his words. Looking back years later, he could testify to the remarkable transformation. His son was different—not because of lectures or punishment, but because of the power of life spoken in faith.

The Importance of Remembering

Throughout Deuteronomy, God repeatedly commands His people to remember. "Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm" (Deuteronomy 5:15).

Why is remembering so important? Because when we're in the wilderness—in the difficult seasons—we're tempted to romanticize our bondage. The Israelites actually began to miss Egypt! They forgot the chains and remembered only the food and comfort.

When you're going through a hard season, the enemy whispers, "Wasn't it better before? Don't you miss how things used to be?" But you have to remember: you were a slave. Those "good old days" were actually days of bondage.

God instructed the Israelites to build memorials—stacks of stones from the Jordan River—so their children would ask, "What do these stones mean?" The answer: "Never forget the day God brought us from death to life, from slavery to freedom."

What memorials have you built? Consider starting a journal. Write down the moments when God meets you. Record the verses that speak to your heart. Document the prayers He answers. These become memorials you can return to when darkness threatens to overwhelm you again.

The Blessing of Obedience

Some people hear about God's commandments and think of burden and restriction. But Scripture reveals something different: "For this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes and say, 'Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people'" (Deuteronomy 4:6).

God's Word isn't a burden—it's a boundary that protects blessing. Inside His boundaries, life flourishes. Outside them, we're handed over to the consequences of our choices.

When you walk in obedience to God's Word, people notice. There's something different about your life, your speech, your interactions. It becomes a testimony that draws others to ask, "What makes you different?"

A Prophecy Over Your Life

Here's a word that stands as a prophecy over everyone who says yes to Jesus: "The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree. He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age. They shall be fresh and flourishing" (Psalm 92:12-14).

This is God's promise. Not that you'll never face difficulties, but that you'll flourish through them. Not that darkness won't come, but that His light will overcome it.

The word has gone before you. It existed before you were born. Now the question is: will you receive it? Will you align your words with His Word? Will you begin to speak life over your circumstances, your family, your future?

Your Response Matters

The kingdom of darkness cannot hear your thoughts, but it trembles when you speak God's Word aloud. There's power in confession. "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).

Say it out loud: "Yes, Jesus."

Those two words can change everything. They align you with heaven. They position you for breakthrough. They plant you in the house of the Lord where you will flourish.

The word goes first. Will you speak it today?