Hello Friends!
Today’s chapter was a reminder of how impactful words can be. Zick opened the chapter by stating “Without a doubt words are powerful “(46). They truly are and this chapter helped me to fully understand how much words can affect my life and the lives of others. Zick mentioned that “our words create worlds” (46) and it took me a while to fully grasp what she was trying to convey. She further elaborated that words become our truth, belief, and behavior (46) and it was at that point that her analogy clicked for me. We essentially let words construct our view on reality, so crazy to truly sit back and ponder the power of words. With this new outlook on words the rest of the chapter had much more weight when I read it.
Self-Talk:
Zick spent a good portion of the chapter discussing the impact of self-talk. She described how words that kill us inside stick easier then positive affirmations about you. She elaborated that it takes 5 positive words per one negative words spoken over us to wipe out the negative one. This was so interesting to learn. It is crazy how people can tell us compliments and we brush them off, yet when they criticize us we hold on to it as truth and have a hard time not letting it share our identity. Truth Bomb: “The TRUTH is so foreign because the lies are so familiar”(52).
New Perspective:
Often times I find that I have to intentionally focus on the good things people have told me so I do not get consumed with the lies. Zick described this so poetically by stating that we have to “Uproot the bad ones that don’t belong in our beautiful minds”(48). I completely agree with this, but it can be easier said than done. Zick emphasizes that we need to dig into the Bible to truly know how God views us. She quoted Ephesians 1:11 that states “it’s in Christ we find out who we are and what we are living for.” I really need to grow in reading and knowing who God says I am. Zick described that we should not seek the approval and affirmations from people because “We do not live for the approval of men, we belong to God” (49)….well aint that the truth! Zick stressed that people’s opinions of us are blaring, so we need to be rooted in the word to know who we really are (54). She described how her book is called “Look at You Girl” but the cover intentionally has eyes that are shut. She did this because she stresses that we need to look at ourselves from the inside out (49). I agree that we need to look internally first verses on our outward appearance. We are so much more than our physical appearance.
Words as Weapons:
Zick stresses that we not only need to watch what we tell ourselves but that we also need to watch what we say about others. She says that instead of gossiping we need to embrace each other as sisters (58). Our words are like weapons and they have the power of speaking life or death over someone. Zick emphasizes that “Our words are supposed to be gifts to one another” (58). I am going to be completely honest and tell you that I struggle with gossiping about others. If I really check myself, I gossip about people I have never even met before, like influencers and stars. I even find myself gossiping about loved ones. I need to grow in this area A LOT. Ephesians 4:29 states “Don’t be careless with your words.” I need to grow in caring more about what comes out of my mouth. Zick gave a little tool to help you “self-check” before you gossip; she said to ask yourself “Is it true, helpful, inspiring, necessary, and kind?”(59) If it doesn’t fall in all of those categorizes then don’t say it, it’s as easy as that. So, moving forward I am going to be asking myself that before I start running my mouth.
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