Someone asked me, “Bo, I want to change my life. I pray. I read the Bible. I attend a prayer meeting. What else can I do?”
I told that person, “If you want to change your life, change your words.” I believe that if you change your vocabulary, you change your life story.
Here’s something very few people understand: Your words have physical power. They impact your life. They impact your body. They impact the people around you. They impact your world.
How To Raise A Genius Child
A few days ago, a friend came up to me and asked, “Bo, how did you raise up your son Bene to become a genius? Your next book should be, How To Raise A Genius Child.”
I believe my son is really a genius.
He wrote a blog when he was 9, wrote a magazine column at 8, became a TV host at 7, and started a business at 5 years old. Today, he can read a thick, fat book in one day.
Let me tell you how to raise a genius.
First, the father has to be a genius. (Warning: Sometimes, he becomes insane too.)
Just kidding.
One reason why my son is a genius? Because I told him so. Because of the power of words.
Since he was a baby, I told him, “You’re a genius.”
When he was a tiny cute thing, and his mother held his little hand and sang, “Close, open, close, open,” and he actually followed her… I’d shouted to him, “You’re a genius!”
Now, I knew that 99.99% of all babies can do that, but I didn’t care. To me, my baby was a genius.
When Bene was a toddler, and he’d pick up a book and open a page, I’d shout to him, “You’re a genius!” Even if the book was upside down and all he did was drool on the pages. That didn’t matter. To me, he was still my genius boy.
That’s the power of our words…
Command The World
Let me read to you one of my most favorite stories in the Bible.
On the evening of that same day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake…” (Mark 4:35)
Going to the other side of the lake wasn’t the idea of the disciples.
It was Jesus’ idea.
The disciples didn’t say, “Jesus, let’s go to the other side of the lake!” Jesus was the one who told them to do that.
I find this remarkable. You see, a lot of people think that because God is guiding them, He will make us avoid all storms.
That’s not true.
Here’s the truth: Sometimes, God will lead you into a storm.
Because storms are good.
Storms shake you. And shaking is good.
Shaking takes away your pride. (These were seasoned fishermen. They’ve been through rough weather. But on this day, these fishermen shouted, “Help! We’re about to die!”)
Shaking takes away your complacency.
Shaking forces you to grow.
So they left the crowd; the disciples got into the boat in which Jesus was already sitting, and they took him with them. Other boats were there too.
Suddenly a strong wind blew up, and the waves began to spill over into the boat, so that it was about to fill with water.
Jesus was in the back of the boat, sleeping with his head on a pillow. (Mark 4:36-37)
The inner world will always control the outer world. In the inner world of Jesus, there was no storm. There was quiet.
Don’t be afraid of storms around you. Be afraid of the storms inside you. The stress. The tension. The worry. I urge you to surrender all that to the Lord.
The disciples woke him up and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we are about to die?” Jesus stood up and commanded the wind, “Be quiet!” and he said to the waves, “Be still!” The wind died down, and there was a great calm. (Mark 4:38-39)
I like to focus on the word, “commanded.”
Words have power. Words created this universe.
In Psalms 33:6, it says, The Lord created the heavens by his command, the sun, moon, and stars by his spoken word.
Everything started with the Word. The Bible says, “In the beginning was the word.” In the same way, your words have creative power.
“Smelly Spaghetti And Muddy Water, Please!”
Imagine a man going to a restaurant.
He finds a table and sits down.
When the waiter asks what he wants, he says, “I want you to give me a plate of rotten, smelly, stinky spaghetti, with worms crawling on it; a bowl of rancid soup with a huge number of flies swimming in it, doing the backstroke (Note: Not freestyle, not breaststroke. Backstroke only!); And a glass of water from the toilet bowl, with UFO’s–unidentified floating objects–in it.”
The waiter is shocked. He asks, “Sir, are you sure?”
“That’s what I want!” the man shouts.
The waiter shakes his head and walks back to the kitchen.
After some time (it took a long time to gather what he requested), he brings to the man the food he ordered.
The man grimaces as he looks at the disgusting food on the table and says, “Yuuuuuk!”
The waiter scratches his head, and says, “But sir, that’s what you ordered.”
The Meaning Of This Crazy Story
Here’s the truth: Life is a giant restaurant.
And you’re the customer.
And the universe is the waiter.
All of God’s creation is waiting for your order.
What do you want?
Most of what you’re experiencing in your life is a result of what you have ordered.
And hear me out: You order through your words. (You also order through your thoughts and actions, but that’s another article!)
What do you say regularly?
· About your finances?
· About your health?
· About your family?
· About your relationships?
Exactly like this man, a lot of people say terrible things about themselves, about their future, about their lives, they order these terrible things!
The Curse Of Negative Talk
I know a lot of people who say again and again…
· “I’ll never be successful.”
· “I’ll always be poor.”
· “My Grandma died of cancer. My Mom died of cancer. I’ll probably die of cancer too.”
· “My kids are no good. They’ll never amount to anything.”
· “Oh woe is me. My life is a telenovela. My life is one series of never-ending trials.”
When people say these things, they’re actually ordering from the universe more of these terrible things.
Haven’t you noticed?
Complainers get more of what they complain about.
When you complain about your problems, you’re asking for “larger servings” of your problems.
Because that’s the power of your words.
When I Met A Skeptic
One day, I gave this exact talk and one man came up to me and said, “Bo, with all due respect, I disagree with you. I don’t buy this voodoo stuff about words. Words are cheap. Words are nothing. My words don’t affect me at all!”
So I told him, “Then you’re a perfect volunteer for a big experiment I’m making.”
“What experiment?” he asked.
“I’ll pay you P10,000, if for the next 10 days, you’ll say 10 times a day, with emotion and conviction, ‘I have terminal cancer! I have terminal cancer!”
Suddenly, his face turned very pale and said, “Uh, I’m busy.”
Believe me, no one will take my offer.
Because deep within, we know that our words are powerful.
You Can Direct Your Sails
Your words have two kinds of power.
First, your words have power over you.
Second, your words have power over your world.
The first power is easy to understand.
Jim Rohn said, “You cannot change the direction of the wind, but you can change the direction of your sails.”
I learned something shocking about sailboats.
Do you know that sailboats can sail against the wind?
If the wind is pushing the sailboat towards where it wants to go, that’s great. But what if the wind is going the opposite direction?
I learned that sailboats, by a maneuver called “tacking”, can adjust its sails and move in zigzag fashion, moving towards the wind.
You’re the sailboat. The circumstances happening around you are the wind. And your words are your sails.
You can’t control the wind.
In the same way, you also can’t control your circumstances. You can’t control the economy. You can’t control your boss. You can’t control your husband. You can’t control President Noynoy’s lovelife. You can’t control what Kris Aquino is thinking. And you can’t control your mother-in-law.
But this is what you can control: You can control your words.
And just like adjusting the sails of a sailboat, by the power of your words, you can still move against the wind.
Problems Are Presents
Last week, I felt a heaviness in my heart because of some problems at work. They were the usual problems I have. Nothing extra big. But though small, they came one after another, like recurring waves hitting me.
Whenever I get discouraged, I’ve learned a very simple technique which I’d like to teach to you today. Everytime I face a problem, instead of calling them problems, I call them presents.
I don’t call them trials, I call them treasures.
I don’t call them burdens, I call them blessings.
So I said out loud, “Lord, thank you that my problems are growth opportunities. I believe that all things will work for good to those who love You. I believe that what was intended for my harm, you will transform and turn it into my good.”
Immediately, I felt the heaviness lift from my soul.
Let The Weak Say I Am Strong
The Bible says, “Let the weak say I am strong.” (Joel 3:10)
The Bible doesn’t say “Let the weak say why he’s weak, and how he’s weak, and where he’s weak, and talk about his weaknesses everyday…” The Bible says, “Let the weak say ‘I am strong’”!
I had a whole-day entrepreneurship workshop yesterday. It was fantastic. But I felt exhausted. When I picked up my wife last night, she said, “Bo, you look so tired.” I really was.
When I woke up this morning at 4am, I still felt the exhaustion in my body. I could hardly wake up.
But I’ve learned this a long time ago: Unsuccessful people use their words to describe their situation; Successful people use your words to direct their situation.
I could have said, “I’m tired; I’m drained; I’m exhausted…”
Instead, I said, “I’m strong. I’m healthy. I’m equipped. I’m anointed. I’m blessed beyond measure. The strength of the Lord is flowing into my body.”
In a few minutes, I felt so good!
Don’t talk about how you are; Talk about how you want to be. Don’t talk about where you are; talk about where you want to go!
Don’t just talk about your problems; Talk about your purpose. Because problems weigh you down. But purpose lifts you up. And I’ve learned that if you pursue your purpose, many of your problems get solved along the way.
So don’t dwell on your difficulties. Dwell on your dreams!
If you don’t have money, don’t confess, “I’m poor. I have no money. Oh woe is me…” If you don’t have money, say “I’m temporarily broke; If you’re poor, don’t say, “I’m poor”. If you’re poor, say, “I’m getting ready to be rich!”
Don’t Be Realistic
Some people will tell me, “But Bo, if I say that, it’s not realistic…”
Let me shock you. Sometimes, the worst advice you can give to someone is “be realistic”.
If someone advised the Wright brothers, “Be realistic!” and they followed that advice, we wouldn’t be able to fly in planes today (and go to Beijing for P1,999!)
If someone advised Thomas Alba Edison, “Be realistic” and he followed that advice, we won’t be able to enter a room, flick a switch, and turn night into day.
If someone advised to Larry Page and Sergey Brin, “Be realistic”, and they followed that advice, we won’t be able to google a word and get 437 million results in 0.29 seconds!
Listen carefully: Being realistic is the roadway to mediocrity.
If I became realistic, we wouldn’t be holding the Feast (our weekly prayer gathering) at the Philippine International Convention Center–one of the most beautiful conference venues in all of Asia.
If I became realistic, we wouldn’t aim to have 1000 Feasts all over the world. (Speaking about that goal, something great happened last Friday. My friend Obet Cabrillas launched a second session in SM Manila where 400 people attended. On that same day, Alvin Barcelona launched a new weekly Feast in his school, Barcelona Academy, in Marilao Bulacan. And 500 people came.)
Don’t be realistic.
Because words have a second power…
Words Have Power Over Your World
Aside from having power over you, in some mysterious way, it also has power over your world.
What am I saying? In the long run, the direction of our sails will change the direction of the wind.
I don’t know how it happens, but it happens.
Here’s my only explanation: God does it.
Last year, I was on vacation, spending time with my family on the beach. It was early in the morning when my staff called up. When she described the problem to me, she sounded like it was the end of the world. The problem was so big, it was going to literally wipe out my entire business.
I remember being so overwhelmed. I couldn’t do anything else but pray. Discouragement and fear gripped my heart. For a few minutes, I had all these depressing thoughts in my mind. “Oh woe is me, my customers will be angry with me, I’ll lose this business, I’ll have to start all over again…”
But then I remembered the power of my words.
I was alone that morning, facing the beach. I stood up and shouted, “God is my victory. This business is blessed. What was intended for my harm, God will turn it into my blessing. My business is so blessed, I don’t chase after customers, customers chase after me…”
I didn’t feel like saying those words. All I wanted to do was groan and moan! But I said them anyway.
When I came back from the vacation, I attacked the problem with hope and faith in my heart.
Today, that business is going strong. In fact, one year after that problem, my business is now double in size!
Here are powerful proclamations I want you to say everyday…
Speak The Blessings
1. Bless Your Entire Life:
I’m God’s beloved and it is His great happiness to bless me. I’m anointed by God to serve and bless the world. God’s river of blessings is flowing to me at every moment of my life. Everything I need comes to me. I’m a blessing magnet. I’m guided by God at every moment.
2. Bless Your Body:
I’m getting better and stronger everyday. God’s power of health and healing are flowing through my body, my mind, and my spirit. With long life, I will serve the Lord, in Jesus name.
3. Bless Your Loved Ones:
My loved one is growing closer to God. Deep inside, the Holy Spirit is busy working, changing, and transforming this person. This child of God is set free from all addictions. God’s purpose will be fulfilled in this person’s life. I declare that as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord, in Jesus name.
4. Bless Your Relationships:
God is blessing my relationships. Love is increasing. Service for one another is growing. Forgiveness, humility, and understanding flow like a river in my relationships. Old wounds are being healed. Bonds between us are getting stronger and deeper, in Jesus name.
5. Bless Your Decisions:
The steps of the good person are ordered by the Lord. God directs my steps. God helps me to distinguish what is right from wrong. God shows me the paths to abundance, in Jesus name.
6. Bless Your Problems:
All things will work for good to those who love God. This difficulty that I face now shall bless me in a very big way. What was intended for my harm, God will transform and turn into my benefit, in Jesus name.
7. Bless Your Finances:
I’m rich and getting richer. I’m generous and getting more generous. God’s abundance is supplying my every need. Everything I touch prospers and succeeds. New doors will open before me. The right people will walk into my life. God will prosper the work of my hands. As I use my core gifts to serve others, I will be richly rewarded. Money is flowing to me in great abundance. I can earn any amount of money I choose, in Jesus name.
Go ahead.
Create your miracles by your words.
May your dreams come true,
Bo Sanchez
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