Until recently I had never given much thought to the word echo. I knew what it meant –basically an echo is a sound heard again (a repetition if you would) of an original sound. In a large room or a canyon, you can shout and hear the echo of your voice bounce back to you. This was always fun to do as kids, but as an adult I hadn’t given it much more thought.
However, a key word in its definition has grabbed my attention. An echo is a reflection (of sound). Isn’t that an interesting way of looking at it?
I’m convinced God desires us to see ourselves the way He already sees us in Christ. And we find in the scriptures that Jesus is the mirror image of who we are as children of God. A mirror reflects an image just as an echo reflects sound. And now I’m seeing the correlation more clearly of why our voice has to line up with God’s Word if we’re ever going to see the correct image of ourselves.
For example, when God had me stand in front of my mirror, He had me “say” (or echo) what He already said about me. “Tell her you love her and you forgive her.” These words are the heart of God. Yet the only way I was ever going to grasp these Truths was to say what God said. In other words, I had to echo God’s Word.
Romans 8:31 says, “What shall we SAY about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” Or what about the words of Jesus concerning how to operate in real faith: “For assuredly, I say to you, whoever SAYS to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that those things he SAYS will be done, he will have whatever he SAYS” (Mark 11:23).
Even when asked, “But who do you SAY that I [Jesus] am?” Peter answered, “You are the Christ.” In other words, Jesus asked Peter to echo back to Him what others were saying and what he himself believed.
In each of these examples, Truth was stated when it echoed what God has already said or declared. This is as important as what you see in your mirror (reflection). And it seems to me the two work together: What I see will be reflected in what I say.
So I want to encourage you again to carefully evaluate the things you say. Are you echoing God’s Truth or your feelings? Both have a voice but only one will ensure your victory. I heard a minister state one time: “God’s Word in your mouth has the same power as God’s Word in His mouth.”
So remember: an ECHO is a repetition of sound produced by a reflection. What are you reflecting today?
