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CHAPTER 1

Day 1

W.O.R.D.S.

Weapons that
Open up new opportunities which
Release your
Destiny and desires
Suddenly

You must use W.O.R.D.S as a weapon to encourage yourself. W.O.R.D.S administered properly will provide the strength you need to make those dreams come true and they will catapult you into your destiny track.

Consistently throughout this devotional tool you will hear me say "Power of Words can never be underestimated". Each day I hear people complaining about their lives, with little to no effort to reverse their situations. At work the other day there was a group of men complaining about being broke and stating that they all were "poor and will always be that way". My spirit was grieved because I knew that change was possible for them. They held the power to reverse their financial situations starting by declaring God's best for their lives. Little did they know financial breakthrough was possible for them. I wanted to jump and tell them to stop wasting time talking negatively and to do something about their situation.

What those men failed to realize is their own words served as weapons of mass destruction. Wikipedia says weapons are "a tool or instrument used in order to inflict damage or harm to living beings — physical or mental." From that definition I gather my words can inflict damage on my situation or me personally. I choose to inflict damage to the things I am battling rather than on myself. Today as you continue your journey remember only to speak life into your situations and monitor the words you declare. As you continue to monitor your words a new destiny will be unveiled and released in your life. The power of words will carry you to new heights in your life. Do big things today and try something different and you will be amazed at how life turns in your favor.

Worksheet

Day 2

O.P.P.O.R.T.U.N.I.T.Y.

Obstacles you can conquer
Problems you can deal with
Potential failures you can overcome
Open doors if you're willing to walk through the unknown
Reach for the stars understanding you have nothing to lose
Train your mind to think possibilities rather than failures
Understand that nothing happens for a sleeper but dreams
Never take for granted the promises of today
Implement positive change
Travel down the road of the unknown
Yield only to the Spirit of God

Midsummer 2008 was a trying time for the world economy. The stock market crashed in the U.S. and it caused a tail spin in the world economic system. Most Americans did what appeared to be the logical thing, they pulled back spending and put their money in safe predictable vehicles for financial return. Warren Buffet did the exact opposite; he started investing and spending all kinds of money, because he understood what goes down, must eventually rebound.

Well, I stand to tell you the recession is nearly over and billions of dollars were made during the recession. Those that prospered were knowledgeable of economics and in a position to take advantage of the opportunities that presented themselves. Your life journey is full of opportunities, but you must be in position to receive all that God has in store for you. Do not live the life of regret, wondering if you should have made the move. Instead, stop talking about it, put a plan of action together and seize your opportunity.

Life is too short to discount today, hoping for a better tomorrow. God wants you to take advantage of what has been presented to you at this point in time. No matter what happens you must shake off the dust and be committed to moving forward in life. Success is never by chance; those that achieve greatness in life often times have fought through some kind of adversity. "The Power of Words" will cause you to travel down the road unknown, but you must always know that God will never leave nor forsake you.

As you start your day understand that each situation you face is an O.P.P.O.R.T.U.N.I.T.Y for you to improve your current situation. Speak into the atmosphere what you need and desire and watch your day begin to format what you have declared in the atmosphere. Train your mind to see and speak the possible and you will be amazed at what happens. As a top sales agent each morning I woke up with an expectation to sell at least one car a day. That mentality allowed me to remain a top salesman year after year and month after month. Opportunities are what we make them and how we perceive things. I choose to live life thinking positively and speaking positively about each situation no matter how difficult it may appear to be. Stop procrastinating and complaining and take advantage of the cards you have been dealt. This is your second day to take advantage of the momentum. Know there is power in your words and take advantage of every O.P.P.O.R.T.U.N.I.T.Y that comes your way.

Worksheet

Day 3

P.O.W.E.R.

Potential to cause pain or happiness harnessed
On the inside waiting to present itself positive or negative
When the proper season presents itself for release
Embracing the danger if not monitored
Real tragedy harm and danger can occur

I have discovered most people fail to realize their P.OW.E.R and true potential in life. Without understanding the P.OW.E.R you have over your situations, you cannot maximize life. Life has a way of delivering blows that you do not expect. If you are not careful, you will find yourself powerless and limited on what you can achieve in life. Living a life without P.OW.E.R can lead you down the path of hopelessness and depression.

I remember back several years ago, going through a period of feeling powerless and depressed. My mortgage brokerage firm closed, leaving me without income and no plan of attack to get that income back. Several months went by and I was forced to take any job that paid any kind of wage. My debts began to pile up and I had no answer of how to provide for my family. Life had flipped on me. I was in turmoil on the inside and I was asking God why he had done this to me. It seemed like months had gone by and I heard nothing from God. I thought he had abandoned me. Things had begun to change for the worst in my life and I felt powerless and worthless.

The turning point to getting P.OW.E.R back was discovering my potential again. I had to recommit to the things that brought the most success to me in life. I realized that God had bestowed the ability upon me to talk and speak kind words to people. I realized the power I had in getting people to trust me. I realized the power I had to help people solve problems. Once I put all those things together, I became successful again. I soon discovered success is not built on how much money we have but the ability to use what God has empowered us to do. Understanding how I was built was the key to getting my power back. Today will you take time out to understand what you are good at and be true to yourself and the power of God will soon show itself in your life again.

Worksheet

Day 4

D.R.E.A.M.S.

Deep
Rooted
Emotional
Anticipations
Manifested in the
Spirit of People

I have discovered that as people get older they stop dreaming and they become more silent about their life goals and personal ambitions. Disappointments and failures have a way of keeping people from stretching out and doing more. The greatest battle that you will face in your journey to improve over the next 31 days is the battle of the mind. Your mental state must remain positive and clutter free in order to keep dreaming and remaining relevant in your approach to life. Those that are not afraid to keep dreaming are the ones who excel in life.

Yes, D.R.E.A.M.S are deep-rooted emotional attachments in the spirit of a person and once they are realized, it gives fuel to the individual to push beyond levels of comfort in order to bring those things to life. We are all born to dream until some adult tells us what we cannot do. Advice must be measured by the content in which it has been given. Before I take advice from anyone, I look at what they have accomplished to make sure they are qualified to give me life changing information.

Several years ago, I started a small mortgage brokerage firm with little to no experience running my own company. It was always a dream of mine to run a business of my own and employ people. I took a chance and ignored all the critics. I discovered all the negative people who warned me of all the potential disadvantages of running a business had never run a business and had no credible reference points for their comments.

I kept true to my dream and believed God for insight on how to make this company work. ABC Mortgage Funding took off in a matter of months. The word spread throughout the community about what I was doing and my phone rang off the hook. My business grew to 13 employees and my income netted six-figure profits within two years of being in business. Dreams are possible when you follow a few simple procedures

• Gather Information on what you plan to do

• Get a model or mentor of what your venture should be

• Get the best educational material you can afford

• Goals must be written down both short and long term

• Get better each day and always look for ways to improve

There are only a few things that separate the contenders from the pretenders. Contenders are intentional in their approach to life. They do not wait for things to happen; they are committed to planning while holding their dreams in the backdrop of their imaginations. My friend, as you travel on your new 30-day journey keep dreaming and believing and remember there is power in words.

Worksheet

Day 5

P.O.T.E.N.T.I.A.L.

Possibility
Of greatness and
Talents that need to be
Elevated and increased into
Nothing less
Than God's
Initial plan for you
Allowing you exposure and
Limits removed in your life

P.O.T.E.N.T.I.A.L is so awesome. It gives you a glimpse into the future of what is possible, provided discipline and hard work becomes part of your life style. I have seen many people with all the P.O.T.E.N.T.I.A.L in the world and no gold at the end of the rainbow. When potential is realized, pain and disappointments are minimal. There are several roadblocks to P.O.T.E.N.T.I.A.L. The greatest is the inability to be consistent in core values. Core values are

• Honesty with yourself

• Honesty with others

• Humble spirit

• Heart to listen to criticism

• Helping hand to others without benefit to yourself

Sam Hurd was a promising football player who had awesome potential and promise. December 2011 he was arrested in Chicago and accused of being a drug king pin. Sam Hurd had enough money because he had just signed a multi-million dollar contract with the Chicago Bears. Sam is representative of many young people today; they refuse to work harder to develop the God-given talents they already have.

P.O.T.E.N.T.I.A.L must be coupled with discipline to go the distance in life and that distance often times requires the individual to exhaust all means at hand to bring that future reality to past. There is nothing wrong with wanting more from life as long as the approach attainment is with hard work and integrity. Be honest and do a self-assessment to make sure you are not wasting time, talent, or resources.

Worksheet

Day 6

N.O.W.

New creative and fresh
Opportunities
Working for you

N.O.W is the time to make changes. I have often discovered that procrastination is the key ingredient to failure. There are so many talented people in the world, yet there are so many people under achieving. If you are like most people, you often are looking for the perfect opportunity to move forward and start pursuing what you always dreamed about doing. My friend can I tell you something? There is never going to be the right time. You must move forward N.O.W. Yesterday is already here and tomorrow is just a few minutes away. I started writing this book three years ago but I just got the courage to finish it.

Something major happened in my life to wake me up. May 2012 my beautiful wife of almost 20 years was diagnosed with breast cancer. I have no worries that we will beat the disease but it woke me up and I made a decree that I would no longer waste time. I also vowed never to let people waste my time. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us and we must redeem the time now. My friend, you have the rest of your life to finish what you started. You have almost completed one week of learning the Power of Words, and please remember that you must move N.O.W. God bless and have a great day.

Worksheet

Day 7

E.N.R.I.C.H.

Educate yourself
Never give up on yourself
Remain True to Yourself
Invest in yourself
Capture every opportunity for yourself
Hunger to develop yourself

The greatest investment you will ever make in life is to yourself. We live in a very busy world with little time to relax and evaluate where we are personally. Growing up as a child my father taught me the tricks to growing a good garden year after year. The secret was making sure the soil had plenty of nutrients. Each crop has a way of absorbing the ground of the necessary strength it needs to produce good fruits and vegetables. Therefore, each year we would replenish the ground with fertilizer, manure, and other soil enriching material.

Life is the same way. You must be committed to enriching who you are and education is the primary way to remain relevant. Never stop learning; each day there is something we can learn in order to improve who we are. My pastor, Bishop Rosie O'neal, said to me several years ago, "the difference between me this year and next year are two things: the people I associate with and the books I read." This one piece of advice has made all the difference to me.

Secondly, once you start the education process it is very important that you be committed to not giving up. The scripture says the race is not given to the swift nor to the strong, but he that endureth to the end (Eccl. 9:11).

Finally remaining focused is the key to changing your life in the next 31 days. Focus is the commitment to moving forward while not yielding to distractions and temptations to quit. Take to time to capture every opportunity that presents itself to you. Remember the greatest asset you have is you, therefore commit to developing yourself and you will soon see the world as you know it change before your very eyes. Have a great day and remember you are worth the investment and never stop hungering to improve yourself.

Reflections from Day One to Seven

What word(s) meant the most to you?

___________________________________

___________________________________

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How can you apply those words to your life?

___________________________________

___________________________________

___________________________________

Do you have an unfinished product or idea that needs completing?

___________________________________

___________________________________

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Day 8

F.O.C.U.S.

Faith and follow through
Operating by principles and not emotions
Choices are solid when facing challenges
Using good judgment when tempted to do Otherwise
Separating yourself from anything that could potentially Cause you to alter your course

Yesterday I talked a little about F.O.C.U.S. In today's short lesson, I want you to understand what F.O.C.U.S. means. Five areas must be understood when trying to F.O.C.U.S. Area one is Faith and follows through. In order to curb distractions you must have the assurance that what you are doing is necessary and is what God called you to do. Faith is the personal assurance that you heard clearly from God and you can move forward with confidence.

Area two, you must learn to operate by principles and not emotions. Principles according to Miriam Webster, "is a fundamental truth, law, doctrine, or motivating force." Living a life of principle will lead to consistent living. Consistent living provides stability in life, which produces confidence needed to accomplish the difficult tasks in life. And with the love of God on my side, I am convinced that no matter what happens; I can stand on the assurance that the love of God supersedes any situation that could come my way.

Area three is making solid choices in life. When you understand how important being focused in life is you will begin to make solid choices. The time for apologies for errors and mistakes must be minimized in order to progress and move forward. The more a person matures in Christ the greater their ability to make solid life decisions. Every decision ever made in life has deeper meaning and consequences that affect you and so many other people. The greater the character the stronger the decision should be. We are a combination of the company we keep; in addition, our associations affect our thought process and what we value. If you fly with eagles, it becomes difficult to run with the chickens. Good judgment often times results from the proper associations. Iron does sharpen iron. One of the most famous sayings I heard was, "show me your friends, and I can paint a clear portrait of you." We are whom we associate with. Good judgment starts with walking closely with great people

Finally, good judgment causes me to separate myself from anyone or anything that can potentially cause me to alter my course or goals in life. This may be hard for you but I can promise failure to separate is guarantee for failure and the same results you have always received. Countless athletes year after year get in trouble because they fail to let go of what they have been delivered from. I have found that some successful people feel guilty for making it and want acceptance from those they left behind. This causes them to use bad judgment, which causes shame and disappointment to those whom they love the most. My friend, N.O.W is your time to be focused and move forward. Too many people are depending on you to reach your full potential. You have the P.O.W.E.R to make it.

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Excerpted from "The Power of Words"
by .
Copyright © 2014 Anthony M. VanDyke.
Excerpted by permission of Morgan James Publishing.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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