Live Out Loud! by Michael Owens
What does it mean to “live out loud?” To live means “to continue to be alive.” The word out means to “surpass or exceed; to go beyond,” and the word loud means “marked by high volume or intensity of sound.” If we put all of this together, living out loud means “being alive and enjoying life to the fullest while making an impact on those around you.” God wants your life to be full of peace and prosperity. In other words, He wants you to live the abundant life that is described in John 10:10.
Unfortunately, during the holiday season some people forget that God wants them to “live out loud.” Too often, they allow situations in their lives to weigh them down because they are focusing on the wrong things. They’re too busy wondering how they’re going to pay their bills or buy Christmas gifts for family and friends. Sadly, some may not have any family and very few friends. By constantly focusing on the negative, a person can easily sink into depression, which if left unchecked, can cause him or her to contemplate suicide.
You must realize that God created you with a definite purpose in mind. He has a specific plan for your life, and the only way you can tap into that plan and purpose is to believe in yourself. Keep in mind that if God didn’t believe in you, He wouldn’t have designed a specific future for you (Jeremiah 29:11).
Dr. Creflo A. Dollar often says, “If you don’t know the purpose for something, you will abuse it.” When you don’t know the purpose for your life, many times you’ll abuse it or overlook its significance. Suicide is birthed out of thoughts of insignificance and unworthiness. It is a destructive weapon that the Devil will use against you if you have no confidence in what God says about you. Satan knows that if he can consume you with depression and get you to the point where you want to end your life, he can destroy God’s plan for you.
The Word of God says that you are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). That means that God took His time creating every intricate detail about you, from your personality to your appearance. He put things in you that aren’t in anyone else. That’s right! There are gifts and talents that you have to offer to the world, but it is up to you to tap into them. If you were to end your life today, the world would be robbed of the impact you could make.
Alarming Statistics
Take a moment and think about what you see in a graveyard. Yes, I know that there are tombstones, grass and fountains, but look at it from another angle. Lying in those graves are lawyers, doctors, poets, artists, engineers, pilots and a host of other people who never entirely fulfilled their purposes. And because they are gone, we cannot partake of their greatness. The world is waiting to be impacted by your unique gifts and callings. Don’t rob us of that opportunity!
Suicide ranks as the second leading cause of death for young people between the ages of 15 and 19. Every day, 11 people between the ages of 15 and 24 commit suicide. The fastest growing age group for suicide is between 10 and 14 years old. The majority of adolescents who die by suicide use a firearm. More young men take their lives than young women. The ratio is 4-1. However, for every male suicide, three females will attempt to take their lives. Despite these alarming statistics, God is more than capable of changing them.
Know Who You Are
Satan is out to destroy this generation. He is deceiving young people into thinking that suicide is the answer to their problems. It’s not the solution; it’s only a way to lure you to an early grave. The answer to any situation comes from the Word, and it’s up to you to arm yourself with the Scripture to beat the Devil at his game. It’s the only way that you can live your life to the fullest.
The Devil doesn’t want you to impact anyone’s life. He hates you because he hates Who you represent: Jesus. As a result, he will always try to trick you into doing something that will ultimately harm you. He clouds your thinking so that you end up making bad choices. That way, he can destroy your witness as well as your self-esteem.
Satan knows that you were created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27). He also knows that if you would stand in the authority that has been given to you in Christ, you can dominate your circumstances and rule and reign in every area of your life. Because of your godly identity and potential, He wants to stop you at all costs.
The word dominate means “to influence, control or rule by superior power or authority; to have dominion, supreme authority or control.” God gave you the ability to control your own destiny by giving you the power to choose. Life is choice-driven (Deuteronomy 30:19); you live and die by the choices that you make. That means you have the ability to succeed, “live out loud” and dominate Satan by taking full authority over all of his wicked works, including depression, suicide, loneliness, negative words and feelings of worthlessness.
Encourage Yourself
Proverbs 18:21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue and they that love it shall eat its fruit.” In other words, you will reap a harvest from the words that you speak.
You have the ability to speak life over yourself. There are times when you will have to counteract what the enemy is saying to or about you by speaking what God says in His Word about you. You will also have to remind yourself that you are beautiful, capable and able to do anything, because you have God’s ability within you. You will have to remind Satan that you are not a failure. It’s up to you to release life from your lips by declaring God’s Word in faith.
I remember a time when I thought I was dumb. I was having a hard time grasping my school lessons. However, after I began to read my Bible, I realized that I had the power to change what I believed about myself by speaking uplifting words. I then began to say that I had a keen, sharp mind. I later graduated from Bible College with a 3.85 grade point average. Death and life were in the power of my tongue, and I ate the fruit of my lips that day. Similarly, you are a dominator, not a victim. You must “live out loud” so that the world can see the outer manifestation of the fruit of God’s greatness inside of you.
This is the season that we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Jesus chose to “live out loud” and make an impact on all those who were around Him. As a result, there are millions of people around the world today “living out loud” because of the example He set.
Imagine where the world would be today if Jesus had given up after all of the things that He had faced. I don’t know about you, but I don’t even want to imagine it! Because of Christ, you have been redeemed from the curse of death—it has no power over you. Choose today to walk in your redemption and don’t allow the enemy to trick you any longer.
Happiness is not an accident; nor is it something you wish for. Happiness is something you design and create. So make a decision to live your life out loud!