Words matter.

They are powerful.

They can bring about life and encourage people to reach new heights.

They can tear down and keep people stuck and missing out on all that could and should be.

Many times we wonder, what can one person do.

Think for a moment of a person who spoke life into you. It could be a mentor, teacher, coach, pastor or parent. They believed in you, saw something in you before you saw it. They encouraged you, gave you opportunities you didn’t deserve.

It breathed life into you. It made you think; someone thinks I can do this and it pushed you.

Now, think of the opposite.

A person who said, “you can’t, you won’t, it’s not possible.” A teacher, mentor, parent, pastor or coach who shatter your dreams and vision.

We underestimate the power of words.

But they matter.

Words have a way of speaking us into a future.

Recently, my wife Katie was at the dentist, and the dentist was talking about his kids. He has twins, a boy, and a girl. His daughter is great at school, but his son doesn’t want to study or read. So they were driving recently, and the dentist saw a homeless person and looked at his son and said, “That’s what happens if you don’t do well in school and love to read.”

No one is shamed into a greater future.

Shame is an enormous and influential factor in our lives and stories.

As you walk through life today, you can speak life or death into the lives of others.

You can also allow the words of others to spur you on or cut you down.