Our bodies hear our words

December 10, 2025

Maria 2 Timothy 2, God's Word, Mark 11, Spiritual Warfare, Worry , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.”
—Mark 11:22–23 NLT

After watching an episode in one of my YouTube video subscriptions, the top sidebar video that appeared next seemed random and not at all connected with the content I had just finished. Out of curiosity, I allowed this ‘random’ content to follow.  A pastor whom I had never listened to before was making the case for announcing God’s Word out loud. His point was that our body hears what we say, impacting not only our physical body but also our emotions—for good or for ill.

Citing Jesus’ teaching to SPEAK to the mountains in faith, the pastor counseled against talking ABOUT them. That’s when his message hit home.

I’ve described my issues, worries, and obstacles to others (and to myself) for years! Why? Probably out of a desire for some pity or empathy. At this point you should respond, “Maria, so, how has THAT worked for you?”

Rarely has bemoaning circumstances solved anything. Talking about issues often serves to keep us focused on them.

Thanks be to God, I recently put in place a way to change my meditating (or muttering as the Hebrews calls it). These days my daily verse to recite and ponder comes from 2 Timothy 1:7: For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. NKJV

I’ve reworded and personalized this declaration this way: Maria, God has not given you a spirit of fear and anxiety, but HIS Spirit of strength and energy, of love and assurance, and of clear, Bible-based thinking.

This verse supports Jesus’ exhortation in Mark to TALK to mountains—those we ourselves face and those in the lives of others.

So, today, instead of lamenting my mountains, I’m choosing to address them directly. I’m declaring out loud: “Be gone, mountain of sleeplessness. Be gone, stress and anxiety. You can count on God.”

I’m applying this principle to friends, family, and the world as well. “Be gone, cancer! Be gone, fear of children going off the rails! Be gone, evil traffickers of women and children! Be gone, corrupt and destructive leadership that holds their people captive! Be gone, Satan, and you foul fellow spirits!”

When my words emerge from Bible-based sound thinking, they hold power. After all, God SPOKE the world into creation, and we have been made in His image. Our words matter. And our bodies are listening.

Those big mountains!

January 6, 2019

Maria Faith, Job, Mark 11, Trusting God , , , 3 Comments

He moves mountains without their knowing it.  Job 9:5

 

mountain for faith blog - 6 jan 2019

Reading through the book of Job, I stopped on Job’s assertion about God and lingered.  But of course, our God moves mountains!  He created them, in the first place.  Out of nothing.  What’s the big deal about moving mountains?

Well, having a few figurative mountains in our own lives, my mind instantly recalled some of Jesus’ teachings about mountains.  I googled ‘Jesus and mountains’.

Mark 11:22-24 topped the entries. I reread the verses about Jesus and his guys walking back into Jerusalem for the Passover, having spent the night outside of the city in Bethany. That morning making his way toward the temple courts, Jesus had been hungry. En route he spotted a fig tree but upon finding no hint of emerging figs, he cursed it.

Now at the end of a long day, on the way back out of the city, the disciples noticed this very same fig tree. Totally withered, due to Jesus’ words 12 or so hours earlier. In response to their surprise, he announced:

“Have faith in God…..I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”  Mark 11: 22-24

Reading Job’s reminder to his three friends that God moves mountains, then juxtaposing these words of Jesus that tie prayerful faith and trust in God to moving mountains, I saw something NEW and empowering.

Mike and I are working and praying about some challenges that LOOM gigantic.  You know those kinds.  They look, feel, and frankly seem….. IMPOSSIBLE! To us.

The only reason I can come up with for why these obstacles appear immovable is that I don’t SEE mountain-moving bulldozers on the scene. All I see are the problems.

But if God is in the business of creating and moving mountains, then I should be able to trust him to move MY mountains.

Jesus says it is SOLELY a matter of asking God and then trusting that he can and will move the mountain.

Can it be that simple?  That straightforward?

You might as well ask me, “Maria, do you believe what the Bible teaches about God is true?”

That’s a yes/no question. I either do believe God’s truthfulness or I don’t.  If I don’t, then I need to repent. And ask for Holy Spirit help to believe, trust and rely on Jesus and his promises.

After all, if I trust God for the safe-keeping of my eternal soul, what’s a mere earthly mountain?