Breaking the Power of Negative Words: How Positive Words Can Heal

by Mary C. Busha

The spoken word has immense potential for either building up or tearing down. Too often, it's the latter. Many of us are daily carrying around hurtful words, sometimes without even knowing it. These negative words have great influence over our lives and the lives of those around us. But thankfully, they are not the last word.

Mary Busha speaks to the hurting and guides them toward victory over the harmful, demeaning, or insulting words of their past. She shows readers how to

- understand the emotions and circumstances behind the words
- choose to want to forgive their offenders
- embrace the truth about who they are created to be
- recognize the effect of both negative and positive self-talk
- pray effectively to break the power of negative words
- and walk in the freedom God provides in his Word

She also encourages readers to find ways to use their own words to lift up the people God places in their paths.

224 pages, Paperback

Published February 19, 2019

Reviews

[Kyrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mary C. Busha does an admirable job at both challenging and encouraging her readers in this quick-moving, easy-to-read, helpful book. I began it a little skeptically, not wanting to wade through the false flattery of another ‘you are so wonderful’, ‘you deserve better’, ‘you can just surround yourself with positive thoughts and things will all be turned into sunshine and roses’, ‘you are a fabulous human being and are in control of your own sparkling destiny’ ego-fluffer of a self-help manual. Though Ms. Busha does weave in the message that all human beings are wonderful creatures, she does it from a carefully Biblical standpoint, noting that humans are wonderful because of the skill and love of their wonderful Creator, not because of some natural goodness’ of their own. I appreciated how Ms. Busha continuously pointed her readers back to God, using teaching from the Bible as foundation stones and reasons for every message she sought to convey. The words we speak to others, the words we speak to ourselves, the words others speak to us, the mindset we have towards those who have hurt us with their words, forgiveness, wisdom, choices – all these issues she presents and discusses from both a practical standpoint and a spiritual one.

There were a few negatives that I found with this book. First, in spite of her seemingly extensive experience with scripture, Ms. Busha mis-applies several verses. In one example, she cites Proverbs 3:15 as if it speaks of a beautiful woman, when by reading a few verses before, we can see it is metaphorically describing the attribute wisdom. The beautiful description in this verse can most certainly be obtained by a Godly woman, but I feel that Ms. Busha is hasty/careless, or even intentional in her misuse of several verses, perhaps being more concerned with finding scriptures that seem to support her points, than with finding verses that actually support her points.

Second, I also was alarmed and saddened to come to the last few pages of the book, and find that Ms. Busha used a story involving a woman ‘pastor’, with no hesitation or acknowledgement of the fact that the practice of women pastoring goes directly against Biblical teaching.

Third, Ms. Busha uses a story to portray ‘sympathetic words’ (versus ‘faith-building’ words) as negative words. In this particular story, perhaps sympathetic words were not the best choice, but in general, words of sympathy certainly have an appropriate place in efforts to lift others up! Perhaps it appears I’m splitting hairs, and that readers should be able to make the connection automatically, but I feel that she should have been more careful of her presentation if she was trying to make the point ‘be discerning about what kind of encouraging words to use for individual situations’. The point came across more as, ‘speak words of strength, don’t speak words of sympathy, to those who are suffering’.

Lastly, and least important (but still necessary to mention to complete my honest review), there were a small handful of grammatical and punctuation errors, as well as instances of incorrect term usage.

Overall, I would recommend this book – I just would recommend it be taken together with a Bible and a dictionary as helpful references.

I received this book from Revell Reads free of charge, in exchange for my honest review.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breaking the Power of Negative Words was an okay read. I didn't find it very impactful, but I liked it overall. The writing style was easy enough to read, but nothing was memorable and I've pretty much forgotten everything. I feel like I need to reread this in the future and see if I enjoy it more the second time through.

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention/review it on my blog. I was not required to give a positive review, only my honest opinion - which I've done. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.*

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Words can hurt, regardless of that childhood saying. And the hurt can last a life time. This is a good book for anyone who has been hurt by words or has hurt others by words.

Busha has included a great deal of good teaching. She addresses words said to us, words we say to others, and words we say to ourselves. She illustrates her teaching with many stories as examples.

There are many aspects of this book I like. I like her epiphany, realizing that hurtful words said to her revealed much more about what was going on in the heart of the speaker than herself. I like how Busha helps us understand what God says about us, that He loves us. She also reveals how we must battle to be in the Word and replace negative words with God's truth. She writes about being offended and that it is up to us how we respond.

This is a good book about the power of words, both for hurt and for blessing. Readers who want help in forgiving and moving on will find good teaching. Readers who need to be reminded how important our words are to others will find that here too. Readers who are looking for general knowledge about words and communication will gain insights as well. Busha's writing style is pleasant and this would make a good book to be studied in a group of trusted friends.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

[Chattynatty Van Waning · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was sent to me by Revell a division of Baker Publishing Group to review. #RevellReads

I started it and the first three chapters were just fine. The premise is negative words that have been said to us, or that we have said can greatly impact our present/future. For example, let's say you were told "you are homely" by someone you know (or even don't know) as a child. That comment can if internalized and believed leads to some not great self esteem. The first few chapters the author shares different stories she gleamed by interviewing different people who were affected by parent's comments in childhood and then leading into their young adult life. Many of these people persevered despite the negative comments and bad environments they were raised in. They persevered by forgiving the person who did them harm. She introduces the way in which we can forgive our verbal offenders.

Then chapter four came about and I just couldn't "drink the Koolaid". I struggled to follow along with her weaving of biblical scripture and stating many times the importance of reading the Bible. She talked about how we need to "know our true selves" and hence move forward with forgiveness of past painful comments by others- just by knowing that God loves us. Maybe it is the stage in my life I'm in, but I felt this book quickly turned into an advertisement for daily Bible reading and Christianity/knowing God and praying to God being the answer to dealing with the "negative words" in our lives. She emphasized the importance of scripture in our lives and I felt like that was her sole answer to the problems these negative words created. She laid on heavily that if you weren't reading scripture you were, in my words, failing.

I read the Bible and I do believe it's words and most of the message, but I also am not a literal Bible reader so I have always avoided those who push Biblical Scripture as the end all be all to world's problems. I figured Chapter 4- The Truth About You- just wasn't for me so then I moved onto Chapter 5- Breaking Free Through the Power of Prayer. I was hoping for some redemption here as I like reading about different forms of prayer. However, I just was more lost and disappointed in the reading experience.

I think this book just didn't speak to me. I felt the writing was geared to an older demographic- I can't exactly state why I feel this way, but I felt like it was a grandma telling her child- "just go pray about forgiving that person who said that hurtful thing" and " read your Bible and you will find the answer".

So Chapter 5 was where I stopped. Interestingly enough this book on Amazon has almost 5 stars and Good Reads it clocks in at 4 stars. So I think this book just isn't a "me" book. I think I was hoping for applicable/every day ways, that weren't related to reading Biblical scripture, to handle when people say not nice things. I was hoping for reminders on how to watch what I say to my own children, patients, friends, family, and strangers. We all need to work on communicating better and I recognize that I have let hard comments sit in my gut/heart too long. I've also said hurtful things I wish I could take back. Those type of topics were what I was hoping to get covered/answered in this reading experience. Didn't happen so I'm DNF this one.

Hope Revell doesn't fire me from reviewing books for them.

[Doug · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book on healing biblically from damaging words

Proverbs 12:18 declares, “There is one who speaks like the piercings of a sword,
But the tongue of the wise promotes health.” – New King James Version

God’s Word Translation of Proverbs 12:18 reads, “Careless words stab like a sword, but the words of wise people bring healing.”

Whether hurtful (and oftentimes, hateful) words come from parents, friends or complete strangers, they can cause irreparable damage, having lifelong consequences as a result, if we don’t allow the Lord to heal our broken hearts with His Word and by His Spirit.

In her new book, “Breaking the Power of Negative Words: How Positive Words Can Heal,” Mary C. Busha takes readers on a journey of healing and restoration by applying the Word of God to the broken places in our hearts and souls caused by destructive words.

Published by Revell Reads, her 201-page book is broken down into three parts: (1) Word spoken to us; (2) Words we speak to ourselves; and (3) Words we speak to others.

One of my favorite chapters is Chapter 8 (Fearfully and Wonderfully Made), where she writes, “As in our personality styles, what’s important to remember about gifts is that it’s not a matter of who is right and who is wrong. If there’s anything right or wrong, it’s in knowing someone’s unique traits and not allowing them to be who they are and/or not accommodating their styles for better communication.”

In fact, this will help separate genuine friends from fake ones, who usually are the very ones (besides verbally-abusive parents and siblings) who cause the most damage with their selfish, hateful words.

While Busha does tend to veer off into what most would call “hyper-faith” (i.e., in introducing Part 2, she quotes Charles Capps, who was considered a modern-day heretic, claiming we can create our own world by speaking things in existence).

Moreover, although Busha’s book may read like a self-help manual to some, overall, she does a great job of researching, and chronicling real-life stories and examples of the impact words can have on our lives, either good or bad.

She also does a great job of getting to the underlying causes of why people hurt us with their damaging words, why we speak poorly of ourselves through our own words, and why we may sometimes be hurtful towards others with our careless words.

I gave it a 4 out of 5 stars.

Full disclosure: In accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, I received this book free through the Bloggers Program of Revell Reads, a division of Baker Books. My opinions are my own and I wasn’t required to write a positive review.

© 2019 by Doug S., M.A.

[Aurelia Mast-glick · Rating 4 out of 5]

How many of you can remember words that were spoken to you as a child, but made a lasting impression on your life? Maybe they were spoken out of anger, frustration, or maybe out of kindness and love, both can be very long-lasting.

Mary explores the power that negative words can have on a person. She gives examples of words spoken on a playground that had the power to linger and be on the tip of the person's tongue 70 or so years later. She also brings out the fact that hurting people hurt people and if we can look behind the words that were spoken to the why of why they were spoken it can help us as we process their effect on our lives. But as children, we are incapable of doing that and those words can do damage. There is the flip side though as well, words that were spoken to a child to lift them up and support them and encourage them can also stick in their minds and inspire them to greatness.

It is very sobering and has really made me stop and think as I speak words to my children. What am I really saying to them? What am I showing them? Am I building them up or tearing them down? Yes, words of correction need to be spoken, sometimes many times a day, but is it said in a mean-spirited way, is it said only about the behavior or am I including aspects of their personality as well? Am I also seeking out the positive things they do and speaking words to them in the affirmative as well?

And then, moving on, what do I say to myself? Am I constantly filling my mind with negative things about myself or am I resting in who I am in Christ and remembering that I am His creation and that I am worth something? Am I also processing what other people say to me through the lens of perspective and seeking to understand why they said what they said?

One thing Mary did talk about was how personality differences can cause an unintentional offense, simply because we view life differently based on our personality. Grace, we need so much grace, both for the words we hear spoken and the words we say to ourselves and then we need to extend grace to others as well.

One question she asked that I really liked was: "Will I wallow or walk?" Meaning will I wallow in the words that were spoken to me or will I move beyond and claim God's promises and walk forward in newness? That's putting it into my own words. She also used the walking literally and I think that can be very helpful, instead of sitting around and letting the words burn and poison, get up and go do something else.

I enjoyed this book, it was full of so many practical things on such a necessary topic. It was easy to read and filled with enough anecdotes to keep it interesting.

I received this book from Revell and was not required to write a positive review.

[Benjamin Liles · Rating 5 out of 5]

No matter how we all cut it our words have impact on others ad their lives. Some words wound. Other words heal. Some words give life, while other words bring nothing but death. Mary C. Busha, author of Breaking the Power of Negative Words puts it best in this phrase (although I'm rephrasing it): People who are hurt themselves more than likely will hurt other people with their words. Do they mean to do it? Maybe and maybe not. It's not up to us to offer our own justice, however.

But Mary Busha does point out and it is said also within the pages of Biblical scripture, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks" (Luke 6:45, New King James). It comes across to me that even though the disciples dispersed themselves among the people of various nations, Luke talked with Levi - one of Christ's disciples, penning the book - The Gospel according to Matthew. I say this because it seems the concept of the mouth speaking of the abundance of the heart rolls up not just Matthew 12:34, but also Proverbs 4:23, Proverbs 10:11, Psalm 14:1, Proverbs 21:2, Proverbs 24:12, Ezekiel 11:21, and Ezekiel 16:30.

I find that the way she has written this book is to illuminate for the Christ-follower, intent on becoming more like Jesus the Messiah, we ought to watch the words we say to each other. In fact, Paul is quoted as saying, "Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ" (Ephesians 4:15). It comes across that to be beneficial to the community of Christ-followers as well as to those in this world we need to speak the never-ending truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ but in a way that it honors both God as well as others who witness it.

Overall, I love and enjoy Busha's take on scripture, how she delivers it all within the confines of 222 pages. She gives a ray of hope and encouragement that "we can do all things through Christ who strengthens" us (Philippians 4:13). I truly enjoyed this book and would read it again in a heartbeat. I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell to give a fair and objective review.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Words have power. Just this week, I spent a few extra minutes one morning styling my hair, and I  thought about a comment my elementary school classmates made about my dark locks over 35 years ago. That particular day, I had taken extra time to curl my thick, straight hair, and I thought the curly style looked beautiful. Instead of praising my new do, though, several kids criticized it and called my hair a "mop." Ever since that day, I've hated my hair. It never occurred to me to be grateful for my thick hair until I met Joyce a few years ago. She repeatedly told me how much she loved the way my hair curled and its thickness. I chose to believe her and now love my hair. See? Negative words can deflate and discourage us while positive words can inspire and encourage us.

Mary Busha understands the power of words. She uses this book to help readers recognize the power of both positive and negative words. The book outlines the practical steps we can take to form healthier habits with the words we speak. It also discusses ways we can learn to forgive others for saying negative words and change our negative word habits into positive habits.

On almost every page, I was encouraged and motivated to make changes. I appreciated Mrs. Busha's conversational yet educational writing style that shares deep concepts without being dry or boring. Also, in addition to scripture, she includes examples from her life and the lives of others in each chapter. These examples helped me connect emotionally to the concepts. The thoughtful discussion questions at the end of each chapter prompted me to go deeper and reinforced my understanding of the chapter's concepts

After I finished reading this book, I thought of all the people I know who would benefit from it, including people who invest in me with positive words, people I know who have been wounded from negative words, and people who wound others. Basically, it's a book that's ideal for anyone and everyone. I highly recommend it. 5 Stars!

[Narita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Words seem like such small things in passing. They can be quickly spoken, thought or read, but they hold a great deal of power in many areas. Influence to hurt, damage, encourage, or heal sometimes for a lifetime.
We all remember words that have wounded us in the past. I know I do. Cruel thoughtless ones, sometimes spoken on purpose that 60 years later still sting at their remembrance. Just as bad if not worse are those I have thought toward myself, oftentimes on a regular basis. I believe such have had even a greater impact on shaping my view of me as a person. I cringe to think the effect my unkind words may have had on others.
With negativity being such a scourge in today’s society I found this book to be a fantastic study! Through personal illustrations and lots of scripture (a big plus to me!) the author helps the reader take an in-depth, even microscopic look at many aspects of negative words. She doesn’t just leave us hanging there, but in great detail gives us the knowledge and tools to change not only ourselves but overcoming that which is spoken by others. Ms. Busha points out that negative communication in any form is not what God intends. Scripture has a lot to say about the power of the tongue. At the end of each chapter there are study questions for deeper self-examination. These are great! This is a book you will want to read more than once to study. It is a wealth of wisdom and knowledge. I believe everyone can benefit from it and make lasting changes.
I received this book from Revell Publishers in exchange for an honest review. The opinions I have stated are my own.

[Jill Rey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Organized into three parts, Breaking the Power of Negative Words read like a religious education book on messages from God and quotes of the scripture.
I started this year with the goal of reading, at least quarterly, a book that could be applied to the workplace. Given the number of hours we spend within the concrete walls of office buildings, often forced to share space with those we wouldn’t otherwise seek out, can bring out negativity in everyone, so I was hoping a book on breaking negativity would help give me strategies in avoiding and overcoming the negative people in my own workplace.

While many of the book’s concepts were drowned in religious scripture there were still several passages I wholly related to and learned from. For instance, on page 116, Busha discusses the different types of complainers as defined by Dr. Robin Kowalski. These complainers are the venters, the sympathy seekers and the chronic complainers. All of these I have experienced at some point or another, I may have even contributed to them at one point, but the important lesson was that when you get sucked into this complaint spiral it can rewire your brain to only focus on the problem and never the solution, a trait many workplaces don’t seek in their ideal employee.

So, while there were certainly lessons to be taken from this read I had to wade through a lot of religious antidotes and the message of God to get to the meat of what I was hoping to achieve by picking up this book.

*Disclaimer: A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

[Julie D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book explores why it's so important to choose our words wisely.

Many of us have had harsh words spoken to us as children. Words that we internalized and believed. The author helps us to understand why that person may have spoken these words by understanding their background and then giving us the tools to forgive them She shares Scriptures that speak truth into our hearts about who we really are.

I enjoyed the personal stories she shares as I could relate to so many of them and I'm sure other's will, too. We have all had hurtful things said to us and I liked that she made her reader not feel so alone in this. I also like how she has the questions at the end of the chapters for us to look inwardly and figure things out through her questions.

There are so many practical concepts through this book of breaking free from the negative words spoken about us and also breaking free from speaking the negative things to ourselves and others. She gives us the tools to begin new habits for speaking in positive ways and in ways that honor God.

I really enjoyed this book because it gave me a greater understanding of the power of the negative things we or others say. I also love that she encourages us to see ourselves through God's eyes. It's a very practical and encouraging book and I really gained a lot from it. I give it 5 stars.

*This book was provided to me by Revell. I received a copy of this book to review but I was not financially compensated in any way. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my observations while reading this book.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mary C. Busha, in her book Breaking the Power of Negative Words, gives much insight on the subject. From finding the perspective that helps us understand to getting to a place of freedom through forgiveness, her powerful writing gives us a more complete understanding of why negative words are spoken and how to overcome the results.People say negative things.  We say negative things to ourselves. Those are facts but there are ways to overcome the impact and effects.  Busha suggests the following steps to freeing ourselves from the influence these comments have on our lives: Expect to be offended. Stand your ground. Have realistic expectations. Set healthy boundaries. Seek accountability. Forgive daily. (pp. 95-101)One of the many things I like about Breaking the Power of Negative Words was each chapter ended with personal, probing questions. I was able to reach back into a lifetime of personal issues and reach some understanding of the situations.I highly recommend this book and want to close with this quote:I want to remind you that just as God in Christ has forgiven you, once forgiven, you are forgiven. He does not dredge up your past and hold it against you. He does not remind you of the sins you've committed. Therefore, do not allow yourself to dredge up the sins of others. (pp. 82)

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book talked about the impact of using positive and negative words. The author used a lot of stories about individuals who struggled with the things she was talking about in that section. She started by talking about negative words we've heard, especially as a child. She talked about understanding the background of a person who said hurtful words to us and forgiving them for what they said. She talked about believing what Scripture says about us and using prayer to help break free of hurtful words.

She talked about not complaining or blaming others for your own words and actions. There was a chapter on finding out what your unique gifts and such are. Another chapter was about committing to using positive self talk. She then moved on to the words we say to others, especially children. She urged us to be aware of the words we're saying and to speak positive words into people's lives. She repeatedly talked about basing our view of ourselves on Scripture (so go search the Bible!), to have an attitude of gratitude rather than focusing on what's wrong, and forgiveness as a way to freedom from past hurt. It's a decent book, but I have previously read a lot of what she said, so I didn't get many new insights from it.

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher.

[Kate Ashton · Rating 1 out of 5]

The premise for this book was that words spoken to us become internalised and contribute to our self-image and ultimately our behaviour. I have no problem with this at all and it is a well understood concept, and the author's aim is to help us to understand when and how negative words spoken to us, both in our past - particularly whilst growing up - and in the present can have a profound influence. Her second aim is to counteract and challenge our wrong assumptions and feelings by using positive words instead.

While I am fully behind this concept and have no doubt of the good intentions of the author, I'm afraid I didn't find the style helpful. I found much of what was said somewhat trite/twee and simplistic, and I'm guessing this is probably just a stylistic preference and may even be the UK/American style divide so may contain some bias on my part. I am also theologically trained and could not help noticing that some of the biblical references were inaccurate and/or taken out of context and therefore misinterpreted or misapplied, which is a shame because it detracts rather from the author's authenticity.

In summary then, whilst I am sure that some people will find this book helpful and Ms Busha's aims are good, for me it jarred.

[Beverly Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too many times, we allow ourselves to be affected by negative talk. Whether the negativity is coming from others or even our own self, the results are detrimental to our well-being. In this inspirational book, Mary C. Busha teachers her readers how to use positive words to heal and how to get rid of the negative thoughts that can easily take over our lives. This book is separated into three different parts: words spoken to us, words we speak to ourselves, and words we speak to others. Each one of these categories is essential to living our best life. Mary C. Busha uses scripture passages and her real life experiences to encourage and inspire positivity.

This book was so helpful and encouraging to me. I especially loved the section that focused on words we speak to ourselves. It is so easy to let our insecurities take control, but God doesn't want that for us. I also really liked the section on forgiveness, which is often difficult but necessary. This book was just a great overall read that everybody can gain insight from. Thank you so much to Revell for the chance to read and review this book!

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are people and churches who take the power of your words too far. That isn't to say the idea is completely wrong. Hurtful things people say can stick with you a long time, and can affect your whole life if you let it. The author did a great job of showing how those kind of words can affect a person, and as the title suggests, she also shows how positive words can do good and heal.



The book is split into three sections:
Words others speak to us

Words we speak to ourselves

Words we speak to others



I am sure I won't be the only person to find the second section most helpful. I tend to speak pretty harshly to myself and put myself down with a lot of negative thoughts and words. It is easy to realize how we can be affected by others' words to us, and even our words to others.....but we don't often consider how our words to ourselves can affect us.



I found the book well written, helpful, and interesting. It isn't a bunch of mumbo jumbo, but has a lot of good information and advice in it.

[Nancy Larimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Breaking the Power of Negative Words" by Mary Busha is a nonfiction Christian living book. Often we are hurt by the negative words people use. Mary teaches the reader to look at the person who said the negative words and realize they come from their own hurt. She gives some wonderful examples of people who have suffered from the hurtful words of others. She asks the reader to think about who they were created to be . She tells the negative effects of negative self talk and how damaging it can be on a person. She teaches the importance of forgiveness step by step. She teaches the reader to move forward in a positive way. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book. I am not obligated to give a positive review. It is so very practical to the Christian life.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mary Bushna's Breaking the Power of Negative Words is a powerful reminder to the readers that the words they say can have lasting impacts on the people around them. She uses real-life scenarios and memories along with passages from the Bible to help convey her message. At the end of each chapter, there are questions for the readers to use in self-reflection or could even be used in small group classes. Themes such as forgiveness and the power to break free are focused on in this book. This is a well-written, thought provoking book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Publishing through NetGalley and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

[Tom Burkholder · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the book Breaking the Power of Negative Words, author Mary C. Busha writes how words have a power potential to build up or tear down people. She writes “…it is inevitable that hurt people, those with broken hearts, will hurt other people. Recall that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Luke 6:45). So if a heart is broken, and many of our hearts are at various degrees of brokenness, how can we not issue cruel and spiteful words? Our level of brokenness will determine just how hurtful our words will be.” Busha also deals with our self-talk and how prayer and the Bible help us break the cycle of negative words.
This is a great book that I highly recommend it. I received a copy of this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is SUCH an important topic that simply is not addressed these days, and Mary does a great job of covering it. Her writing is very accessible and easy to read, with lots of great stories that really illustrate her points. The book is also fairly actionable as well. It's definitely not a "workbook," by any means, but it does provide great questions for discussion as well as specific, detailed steps readers can take to identify the words that have hurt them, find forgiveness, and receive healing. This book addresses BOTH words others have spoken to us, as well as the words we speak to ourselves, which can be just as damaging! I will definitely be passing on to a few friends, who I know will enjoy and benefit from this book as well!

[Judy Hardwick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how Mary C. Busha gives us practical advice on ways we can stop the negative words from flowing into our heads - the words spoken to us, those we speak to ourselves and those we speak to others. But, even better, is that along with the practical advice, she gives us spiritual guidance to forgive - those who have spoken negatively to us... to forgive ourselves... And she encourages us to let go of the [many, many] things we have no control over and to practice gratitude for the many, many good things in our lives.

[Susan Clement · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful and insightful

I loved the practical suggestions she gave in each chapter and also the examples she gave in each chapter. I recommend this book to anyone who has been hurt by words and wants to break free from those hurtful words to live a life of true freedom and be happy and prosperous.

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gives you an insight on always speaking positive thoughts and leave the negativity far behind. It is amazing how one negative word can bring someone to a low point in there life.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Words have power. Positive and encourage words and bring life while negative words can bring death. Life and death are in the power of the tongue. In Breaking the Power of Negative Words, Mary Busha understands the influence that positive and negative words have on our life. This book gives the reader practical steps in creating new habits to speak words of life. She also outlines how to forgive others with scripture and examples from her own life. This book can be deeply convicting and thought provoking. I know that I benefited from this book and thought of several people who are very careful about the words they speak who would enjoy this book. It is a great tool for anyone who is intentional about the words they speak or someone who is trying to get a handle on practical tools to reframe their thinking.