God has laid this word heavy on my heart this past week. Going into 2026, I feel this is a very important word to learn and put into practice for every one of us.
So....what does it mean? In a nutshell, it means "a supreme ruler." More specifically, God is sovereign. He IS the supreme ruler, supreme in power & authority, controller of the universe, having the rightful authority & power to govern all things, people, and events. To act freely according to His perfect wisdom, love, and will. Absolute rule - He is the King of kings. Ultimate knowledge - He is omniscient. Infinite power - He is omnipotent. It is His right alone to decree & sustain all creation, from nations to individual sparrows. While being supreme, His sovereignty is exercised with perfect love, justice, and wisdom. His purposes cannot be thwarted.
Wow. That strikes humility and reverential fear in your heart.
Knowing that God is sovereign really helps you gain understanding of what's really important as a Christian. It helps to clear away the fluff that has crept in with new thought in the churches. Over the years, the sovereignty of God has been watered down. I wasn't even aware of it myself until Holy Spirit showed me! So, no shame or condemnation whatsoever. I am just sharing what I'm smack dab in the middle of learning myself.
One example is the declarations & affirmations. Yes, we declare scripture over our lives and circumstances. Yes, we speak life. But it has slowly morphed into a shift from God centered to self centered. It's now emphasizing your ability to manifest specific things through positive thinking & declaring. Christians can shift from seeking God's will to trying to control & dictate their own outcomes. Prayer turns to you & your will instead of His will & being rooted in a healthy dependence on God for provision. And that's dangerous territory. WE are not God.
This sets up unrealistic expectations that life should always turn out the way we affirm it. It can also cause disappointment and turning away from the faith. Shame & condemnation can seep in as we try and strive to do daily affirmations/declarations and yet things don't seem to be "working," then pastors/leaders tell us that it's because we don't have enough faith. Um, no. Absolutely not. What it IS doing, is keeping our minds focusing on what's desired instead of going to Jesus and praying what HE wants you to focus on.
Affirmations/declarations can blur the line between faith and positive thinking for good outcomes on their own ability. You are then putting your trust in your own words instead of God and then convincing yourself it is God's will to pray this way. This can distort what faith really is and we can no longer critical think anymore. If you do try to question things, you are called negative, religious, or you have no faith, no higher revelation. Oy. Not to mention the pride that comes in, thinking you are the one in control of your destiny. By YOUR words. YOUR works. It ruins God's sovereignty.
A lot of Christians have adopted these new thought affirmation/declaration techniques, thinking they are Christian because they sound biblical and positive. But it's deception.
Here are some common verses used to back up the affirmation/declaration deception:
Psalm 37:4 - "Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart."
This is a call to seek a deeper relationship with God, trusting that as you delight in Him, He will align your desires with His will - surrendering your own desires to Him and trusting Him to provide what's best and knowing He knows what truly satisfies the heart, NOT a spiritual law that promises manifestation of your personal desires & outcomes.
Proverbs 18:21 - “Death and life are in the power of the tongue."
This means that your words can deeply affect others in either direction, use your words to build up & encourage, not to complain/gossip/etc., NOT that you can create your own reality. That is what people do when they are in New Age, even witchcraft is about saying words (casting spells, aka spelling out words) to create/change reality.
Proverbs 23:7 - "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he."
This means that your inner thoughts influence your character & actions, be aware of what you let into your heart because it affects how you live & your relationship with God, NOT creating a reality with your thoughts.
Mark 11:24 - "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask for when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."
This is a call to have faith in God when you pray, trusting in His power, God can answer in different ways, NOT that if you declare with enough faith & confidence that you will get what you want.
Romans 4:17 - "God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did"
This is God's power to create & fulfill His promises even when things seem impossible, all about God's ability - He is in control, not us - NOT that like God, we can call things into existence through our own words/declarations/affirmations.
Matthew 7:7 - "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."
This is encouragement to trust God and keep bringing your needs to Him & recognize His sovereignty, His plans are bigger than ours, NOT that if you have enough faith & focus on it hard enough, God will give it to you; this verse is not a formula.
Matthew 6:7 actually says to NOT use vain repetitions like the heathens do. Hmm. Sounds like the repetitive affirmations/declarations used over and over like a formula. Just like the heathens aka the world does - manifest your reality, speak positive so karma is good, the universe is listening and will pay you back, and on and on. Jesus Himself said to not do it. This is just like the world and is not of God. It leads to a crisis of faith.
REAL Christian prayer acknowledges God's sovereignty. We don't control Him or the outcomes of our prayer. We stay humble, dependent on God. It's all about connecting and communicating with a personal God. To build a relationship with God, expressing faith, gratitude, asking for help & guidance. We can ask for specific things, of course, but we are to understand that God's will is ultimately what matters and God might have a different plan than what we have in mind. We put it at His feet and praise Him regardless of the outcome.
This year we need to clean things up! We need to unlearn some things. Real prayer is focusing on God and His sovereignty, letting go of all the formulas and striving, aim for spiritual growth, transformation, and trusting in God's wisdom.
Trust in GOD's wisdom and plan, even if it doesn't match what we hope for or want. We don't demand things from God!
