The Bible tells us that our tongues are very powerful. Proverbs 12:18, for example, gives us an idea of what they can do:

"There is one who speaks like the piercings of a sword, but the tongue of the wise promotes health."

We need to know and understand that our tongue can be a tool that to good tidings or bad news. They can heal others or wound them. They do indeed affect others, but what we often forget is that they affect us even more:

"Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit." (Proverbs 18:21)

We are sure to reap of what we sow using our tongue. If we sow life with our words, we will receive encouraging and life-giving things as a fruit; if we sow death with our tongues, we should expect to see and receive nothing good also.

Knowing that the tongue brings death and life to those who receive its fruit, especially ourselves, we must be careful to use it for the right purposes only. In this article, we'll take a look at how we misuse the power of the tongue so that we know what to avoid.

1) Soulish decrees

Soulish decrees are wrong and should be avoided. To help us avoid these, let's look at the word "soulish."

According to the David Sielaff from the Associates for Scriptural Knowledge, the word "soulish" is an adjective of the word "soul." The Greek word for it is used to describe the natural man who cannot understand and receive the things of God in 1 Corinthians 2:14.

"But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."

The word soulish implies something as having roots in the soul, or in our mind and the emotions. The natural, unspiritual man cannot perceive the things of God.

When we are soulish, we rely on our emotions and thoughts. We don't recognize and acknowledge the things of God, even if they're written in the Word of God.

Soulish declarations, then, are ungodly, fleshly or worldly declarations that a Christian makes, totally ignorant of God's Word. Often, these declarations are made to sound like they're for God when in fact, they're not. They're very selfish.

2) Misuse of Scripture

Another thing we must avoid doing is to misuse God's Word. Some do this to promote their own selfish agenda.

The Word of God should never be used as some sort of excuse or means to receive personal gain. Some speak as if they're Godly, even quoting Scripture at times, but they only do that to get people to trust them and look up to them.

Some even take it further and twist God's Word to earn money and escape accountability. Cults do this all the time.

We must never speak God's Word for our own selfish agenda. It's His Word, sent to accomplish not our will but His.

"So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11)

3) Careless talk

We must also avoid talking carelessly, as if the words that come out of our mouths don't matter. Every word we say has weight and will be judged accordingly:

"A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12:35-37)

We must be very careful with our tongues.

"In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise." (Proverbs 10:19)