In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

• John 1:1 (RSV)

What happened when God created the universe?

We don’t know. How could we? We see the universe from inside it. Creation was an ancient and mysterious event.

Our spiritual knowledge on even simple things is limited.

But we have some clues.

We know, for example, that when God created the universe, He didn’t use His hands. He didn’t create a tool or a factory. He didn’t fashion an army of workers and outsource the job to them.

Instead, He did this:

And God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

• Genesis 1:3 (RSV)

There’s a clue in that.

I’m a bit obsessed with clues like this. If God hints at something without outright saying it, it must mean something. Uncovering that meaning will let us do more, be more and honour God more.

And there’s also a clue in that God chose to reveal this to us. He could have spoken Creation into existence and not told us. Instead, it’s right there in Genesis, right near the start where it’s hard to miss.

The Psalms emphasise that the Word of God creates reality:

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all their host by the breath of his mouth.

• Psalm 33:6 (RSV)

Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress; he sent forth his word, and healed them, and delivered them from destruction.

• Psalm 107:19-20 (RSV)

He sends forth his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.

• Psalm 147:15 (RSV)

Then there’s Isaiah, which mentions the Word of God directly and indirectly.

Consider how God compares His Word to the water cycle – moving into Creation before returning to Him, having served some purpose.

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and return not thither but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,

“so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”

• Isaiah 55:10-11 (RSV)

So apparently the Word of God is more than some spell He utters. It’s a thing with agency and power, capable of creating ongoing changes in the world.

Not only is it a thing, it’s terrifying.

He is clad in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.

And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, followed him on white horses.

From his mouth issues a sharp sword with which to smite the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.

• Revelation 19:13-16

The Word of God is a blood-soaked general who’ll lead the armies of Heaven.

And the Word of God can draw a sword from his own mouth. That means the word of the Word of God can destroy all the world’s militaries.

Again, this is all in the Bible. God tells us little of what He does and how He works, but He tells us this.

There’s a lesson here.

Words are powerful. The Word of God is enough to create the universe. The word of the Word of God is enough to overpower every soldier and weapon we have.

You are not God.

Your words can’t dismantle a tank or create a galaxy.

But your words are still powerful – and meaningful.

You might think that here I’m about to say something about the power of positive thinking. “Don’t say bad things! Only say good things!”

And there’s a lot I could say on that.

Instead, let’s change direction a little bit.

I’m a Dungeon Master for a few Dungeons & Dragons campaigns, most of which I’m paid for. I’ve been playing D&D for over a decade now, and running games for most of that time. Tabletop roleplaying games like D&D are unique – one description is it’s like writing a spontaneous novel where the author doesn’t control the protagonists.

Anyone who dismisses gaming as simple escapism misses the point. Even if that applied to video games – which it doesn’t – it doesn’t apply to the tabletop. Games like D&D are social and engage the imagination. I could, and will, spend hours exploring the implications of that.

I said earlier that when humans use words, we can’t use them to destroy tanks or create galaxies. But that’s not true, because we can. Every storyteller can. In the worlds we create, a word can raise an empire, restore a planet or raise the dead.

This is a taste of the power of God, safely contained outside of reality where we can’t break anything.

But it’s not as if these fictional realities have no power over the real world. Stories educate and inspire. When Jesus wants to impart grand, timeless wisdom, He often choses a parable.

Fiction is fake, stories aren’t real, and yet they’re a powerful tool for shaping people – and, through them, the cosmos.

Some cultures have banned dancing. No culture has ever banned stories.

So a novelist can create something out of nothing, using only words. So can a Dungeon Master. Many D&D games use props, figurines or digital tokens, battlemaps and music to set the mood. None of it is necessary. Even the dice are optional – you can replace them by writing the numbers on pieces of paper and drawing them randomly.

All the Dungeon Master needs are words.

And it’s the same with video games. Even games with photorealistic graphics, great physics and entire simulated societies are all computer programs. Those programs are sequences of words – bizarre, mechanical words spoken in the language of computers, perhaps, but words.

This only works because words have meaning.

If you use the wrong “word” in a computer program, that’s a bug. It might stop the compiler from being able to make sense of it.

Bad translations in the Bible have caused all sorts of issues. Saying “the meek shall inherit the earth” suggests it’s about the weak and feeble. The word in Greek is praeis, which better translates as “gentle” and even better as “showing restraint”. Calling the thing that swallowed Jonah a whale as led sceptics to (incorrectly) claim the Bible calls whales fish. It doesn’t. The Bible calls a big fish a fish.

These translations are reasonable, yet they change the intended meaning.

And the words people use carry meaning to them.

I couldn’t tell you how many times an expert in communications – through a book, a video or a course – has recommended paraphrasing what the subject says. What they suggest you do is:

Colleague: “I’m buzzing with excitement for my upcoming trip!”

You: “So you’re tingling with anticipation for your time away from work?”

Don’t do this.

This is catastrophic advice. This is the sort of thing someone thinks when they’re so far up the ivory tower that they forget what humans are like.

They say that paraphrasing shows you’re listening. They’re wrong. If you were listening, you’d say what they said, how they said it.

It’s so easy to prove that paraphrasing is a bad idea. I can do that now with a simple experiment:

Do your best to clear your mind here.

Now, notice what happens when you experience the following words:

Wild Horses.

Now clear your mind.

Wriggle your body a bit.

Take a breath and settle.

Now, notice your experience with the following words:

Feral Equines.

Got it? Now, let’s unpack what just happened. Those phrases mean the name thing. They’re synonyms. They both mean brumbies. Big undomesticated ponies. Free-roaming stallions.

But your experience of those two phrases was probably different.

When you experienced the first phrase, any number of things could have happened. You might have simply head the phrase “wild horses” spoken in your own voice. Or it might have tugged you into a vivid memory for a moment.

You might have felt joy, fear, indifference or anything else.

Whatever you experienced, it was different from the second phrase.

“Primal” is generally a positive word, where “feral” is generally negative. Folks who talk about the primal wisdom of nature rarely talk about the feral wisdom of it. “Wild” is somewhere in the middle – positive or negative depending on other factors. Either way, “wild” and “feral” have different vibes.

“Equine” means “horse”. Except it doesn’t. Equine sounds more clinical, academic and abstract, while a horse is something tangible – something you can touch.

The point is, different words have different effects. Even when the dictionary says they’re the same, how they feel is different.

And how things feel is vital in conversational hypnosis. An idea that feels familiar, safe and logical – because, yes, “logical” is a feeling – will land better than one that doesn’t.

If the subject says they’re buzzing with excitement and you tell them they’re tingling with anticipation, then you’re not listening to them. If they meant “tingling”, they would have said “tingling”.

They chose the word they did for a reason. That’s why you want to parrotphrase, where you repeat back what they said – not paraphrase, where you mangle their meaning for no reason.

“Buzzing” might be the warmth they feel while sitting by a fireplace, while “tingling” might be the feeling they get right before a migraine. You don’t know what “tingling” means to them. You can’t know. But you do know about “buzzing” because they just showed you what it means to them.

Pay attention! People are showing you how their brains work in hundreds of different ways. See! The map of their mind right there in front of you!

The easiest thing in the world is to use the words meaningful to them, right after they tell you.

Applying the Power of the Word

Give most men a few hours, he’ll play some games. Give him a few months, he’ll improve himself. Give him a lifetime, he’ll seek closeness with God.

With that framework, here’s how you can develop the Power of the Word in you.

A quick, simple, fun game is to practice your parrotphrasing. If you can find someone to play with, have them tell you about some upcoming thing they’re looking forward to. If a word or phrase sounds meaningful to them, parrot back exactly what they said:

Partner: “I’m buzzing with excitement for my upcoming trip!”

You: “So you’re buzzing with excitement for your upcoming trip?”

To increase the challenge, parrot back not just the exact words but how they said them. People speak with ever-changing melodies and rhythms.

Note that you don’t have to parrot everything they say back to them. Just what seems most meaningful.

If you don’t have a practicing partner, find an interview online. Avoid anything that sounds scripted, like celebrities on promotional tours. Find folks talking about something real to them.

Then practice parroting what they say, how they say it.

For a longer term project, study how words shape how people think. Consider learning a foreign language – thinking in this language will change the structure of your thoughts.

Another approach, closer to my heart, is to study how hypnotists use language to create incredible changes inside our clients. There are a few hypnotic language models out there, the most famous being the Milton Model. Explore how the use of a specific word in a specific way can create profound and outsized changes.

For the work of your lifetime:

The Bible is the Word of God.

And as the Gospel of John opens with, Jesus is the Word of God.

That means the Bible in your home is Jesus. So talk with Him daily. Study His wisdom and apply it. Read through the entire Bible, then find a part of the Bible to explore deeply – until you’re an expert in it.

Then explore another part as deeply.

Stack these three things and you’ll become someone who listens with your heart, then responds with wise, powerful words from a place of Biblical love.

Book in a consultation call with me:

Coaching for Christian Strength & Discipline