Sermon Central
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Express Positive Thoughts Series
Contributed by David Beirne on May 1, 2004 (message contributor)
Summary: The way we communicate communicates a lot. Strong families look for the good in each other without ignoring the bad, but they emphasize the good.
Family Security:
Expressing Positive Thoughts
We are basing this series on an acrostic I came across in an article by John Maxwell, citing a study that discovered six keys to strong families.
Six Keys To A Strong Family
S = Spiritual Bonding
E= Express Positive Thoughts
C= Consistently Discipline
U= Unite During A Crisis
R= Recognize Each Member’s Value
E= Encourage Each Member
Today we discuss the second characteristic.
Let’s first think about the Power Of Words
Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones. Proverbs 16:24
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18:21
Let’s note some things about the power of words:
* The tongue has the power to build or destroy.
* You reap what your tongue sows.
*With this kind of power, home can be a dangerous place.
* Words spoken in anger can have long-lasting effects.
Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. Colossians 3:21
Three primary sources of anger:
threats to my personal worth
threats to my personal needs
threats to my personal convictions
If these threats prevail, I become discouraged. I no longer fight back against these threats and accept that I have no worth, needs are not important, and I have no convictions about anything. My spirit is broken.
The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, But who can bear a broken spirit? Proverbs 18:14
Three Scriptures Expressing How To Express
Whether parent to child, husband to wife, or sibling to sibling, let these be your communication rules in your home.
Ephesians 6:4-And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.
“Bring them up” =mature them--not everyone grows at the same pace. Consider what there age/emotional levels allow them to handle.
“Training” = what to do
“Admonition” = what not to do
Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
Prohibition = No corrupt words
Purpose = Impart grace
And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32
*Never crude
*Never compare
*Never condemn
*Never disrespect
*Never holding grudges