Today is day 21. For three straight weeks I have stuck to my journey. I am on path to reach my 100 Strong goal. I am 20% complete. Where will I find myself in 79 days? I can’t wait to find out.

Two lessons I have learned thus far:

1. Discipline is far greater than motivation. Choosing what you want to do beforehand makes things so much easier. I know what my daily goals are. I set out to achieve them early. So far, so good.

2. I have wasted a lot of years that could have been spent benefiting from my first observation. However, the past is gone and can not come back. I have to do my best with the present. So, I march on toward my goal.

On to week 4. This is getting exciting.

Dry. Barren. That is what the desert is. It is full of everything, but life. There is death. There is decay. There are bones. Bones of those who didn’t survive. Bones of those who wanted a better day and didn’t find one. Bones.

What if the bones could live again? What if the bones could once again be covered with muscle and flesh? What if the bones were filled with breathing lungs and a beating heart? What if?

I was reading my morning devotional today. In Ezekiel 37, the Lord gave the prophet a vision. He swept Ezekiel away and showed him a valley that was full of bones. The bones were scattered. They were dried out. Life was nowhere to be found. The Lord then asked a question, “Son of man, can these bones become living people again?”

I believe what the prophet saw was a metaphor for what God wanted to do with the nation of Israel. They were dead in their sins. Spiritually they were nothing, but bones. A dead and dry wasteland that God wanted to revive and make whole.

In this vision Ezekiel watched as the bones were scattered, became reattached to form skeletons, were covered with muscle and flesh, and finally had breath breathed back into their lungs. The valley that was once only dead bones was alive and now a vast army of the miraculous.

There has been more than one season in my life where I felt completely dry. It seemed it had been ages since I had felt the cool wind on my face. I was frustrated. I was hurt. I needed God and had to admit it. And then…

God showed up. He healed. He restored. What was once a dry waste land was now my life that was vibrant and alive. I know that God was watching over me. He was waiting patiently for me. He wanted to restore me. I just needed to do what Israel needed to do…I needed to draw close. I needed God. I found Him. I found Him in my health. I found Him in my career. I found Him in my relationships.

I believe that God is a healer. He is the restorer. There is a reason the Bible says if you draw close to Him, He will draw close to you. If you are far away from Him today, please don’t wait any longer. He is only as far as a breath. He wants you to talk to Him. Tell Him your struggle and frustration. Admit your failures. Accept the plan He has for your life. You may be dry bones now, but wait until God shows up. Show up He will.

I remember the first time she held my hand. We were riding on a church van on the way back from Colorado. We had been inseparable for that trip. We talked. We laughed. We enjoyed each other’s company. Then it happened. The van hit a bump and her hand has in mine.

It has been more than 24 years since that happened. A lot of life has happened between them and now. And yet, I am still amazed at the way her hand fits in mine. The softness of her skin. It is…so wonderful. I love having her hand in mine.

I never want to lose this perspective.

The title of today’s post is true. Words matter very much. With the right words, we can lift people up. With the wrong words, we can tear people down. Words matter.

I gave a presentation today. I was speaking about how to give effective presentations. One of my key points revolved around the word rhetoric. I tried to give an adequate explanation of why it matters and the best way to use it.

What is rhetoric? I’m so glad you asked.

Rhetoric is the art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing, especially the use of figures of speech and other compositional techniques. (many thanks to Siri for providing that definition.)

In short, rhetoric is the ability to use words to persuade the people you are addressing, whether through speech, or written word. Many people use it for good to persuade others to believe in themselves, or to achieve great things. Others have used it for very nefarious ends… Think Adolf Hitler.

Whether for good or bad, the people I described above realized the words matter. By constructing sentences, and delivering them in the right ways, the speaker could achieve the end goal they had set out to achieve.

There is also another definition for rhetoric that we must be mindful of:

Rhetoric is also language designed to have a persuasive or impressive effect on its audience, but often regarded as lacking in sincerity or meaningful content. (Thank you again Siri.)

How many times have you listened to someone speak and your first thought is, “Wow, that person’s full of it”? You know, instinctively I by the way they are talking and the words that use, they are up to no good. Their words fall flat, because their intentions and words are empty.

There’s a verse in the Bible that talks about this that I love:

In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. James 3:5 NLT

The words that we speak matter very much. We can make grand speeches with ill intent, and cause a great fire of turmoil and distrust. Or, our words can create hope and cause a spark that will help others burn with excellence.

I hope that my rhetoric has helped you see you have a great responsibility with the words that you use. You can do so much good. I encourage you to do it.

I have a speaking engagement tomorrow. I will be teaching a room full of my peers how to speak better. It’s something I am excited about, and I am approaching it with a fair amount of respect. I want to do a good job. I want them to hear the core of my message. Words have power. Don’t believe me? Keep reading.

It was January 12, 2018, I was lying on my office floor in the most pain I’ve ever been. I didn’t know what to do. I got up from the floor with one thought in mind, make it home. I made it out to my car and out onto the highway. Home wasn’t an option. Thank God for Siri and directions to the emergency room.

I had no idea what was wrong. I just knew I was hurting in my lower left back. They took me back for a CT scan. I can still remember clearly the doctor walking in to give me the news… There was a 13 cm tumor in between my kidney and my bladder.

Fast forward a month, I was in the oncologist office. He was examining the test results from my latest blood test. My tumor marker which normally was under six, was at 11,500. He told me I had to begin treatment immediately. I would be staying in the hospital for one week stints several times over the next few months

In retrospect, it all happened so fast I almost didn’t know what to do. I prayed. I asked God to heal me. He answered my prayer through the dedicated care of my doctor and other doctors and nurses. For that I am eternally grateful. After four weeklong chemo therapy sessions , and several radiation sessions, I was cancer free.

It’s by the grace of God I’m here. It is also because of the dedication of a few highly trained and very specialized doctors. They used their vast knowledge and treated me with cutting edge treatments. They looked after me at my lowest points and took care of me. I am so thankful for the doctors and nurses that helped me survive 2018.

I can almost guarantee you there is a situation in your life where you were the doctor that I just described. Your excellence and your commitment to what you do ensures the health of those around you and to the endeavors you undertake. You are needed. You are valuable. If you are reading this, please know that God has a divine purpose for your life. He wants to use you to do good for His sake and for others.

Words have power. If you’ve read these words, I hope you understand that you have power too. You have power to do good, and be the influence for good, and for God in this world. Just like my doctors helped me, you have people you can help today to make a better future.