Years ago, I received an odd prophetic word from one of the few full-blown prophets I have encountered in my walk with God.

It was strange because the word stated, “God says you have the ability to start a business, I am not saying that you should, only that God says you could do it.”

Why would God give me such a bizarre word?

About ten earlier, someone had told me to my face, that I could never run a business, and that I was incapable of doing it. Those words, which were admittedly uttered in moment of frustration, haunted me. I can still remember the room where he said them.

But in that prophetic word, God was not telling me to start a business, but rather the Lord was canceling out those words spoken over me.

Several verses in the book of Proverbs speak of the power of negative words which are compared to “the piercings of a sword” (Proverbs 12:18).

In Proverbs 15:4, a wholesome tongue is compared to the tree of Life, while a perverse tongue “crushes the spirit.”

Later, Solomon warns that “death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21).

In his commentary, William Barclay writes, “To the Jew a word was far more than a mere sound. It was something which had an independent existence, and which actually did things.”

The Jews believed that spoken words had a life of their own.

Throughout the Bible, we see God was constantly encouraging His people and often it was done to counter the negative words spoken by others.

After Jacob had stolen the first-born blessing and birth-rite intended for Esau, by deceiving their father, he fled Beersheba for Harran to escape the wrath of his brother.

We read how Esau actually said he wanted to kill Jacob and those threatening words were relayed to Jacob, and they undoubtedly struck fear in his heart (Genesis 27:41-42).

But on the first night of his journey, the Lord spoke Jacob via a dream, “I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you” (Genesis 28:15).

As Joshua took over the leadership of the Hebrews, God told him, “I will not fail thee or forsake thee” (Joshua 1:5).

Joshua saw first hand how Israel failed to enter the Promised Land under Moses because of the negative words spoken by the unbelieving spies (Numbers 13:31-34).

This would suggest that those fear-filled words spoken 40 years earlier were still hanging in the air over the Hebrews.

God knows the impact negative words can have on us and in both those instances countered it with powerful declarations of protection.

According to a study conducted by Dr. John Cacioppo of the University of Chicago, our brains have a natural bias to negative comments.

The study found that we are affected much more by negative statements that good ones. In fact, the research suggests it is a two to one ratio. In other words, it takes two positive comments to overcome one negative one.

In an article for Today’s Christian Woman analyzing Cacioppo’s study, author Peggy Bert writes “That’s why personal insults or criticism hit us harder and stay with us longer.”

She also adds, that is also “why negative ads are more effective than positive ones—political or otherwise.”

“Our brain needs a higher number of positive entries to counterbalance this built-in negativity bias,” Bert continued.” And several small, frequent, positive acts pack more punch than one giant-size positive. The size of the positive doesn’t count; quantity does. It’s strictly a numbers game.”

Other studies put the ratio even higher and suggest a 5 to 1 ratio is necessary when it involves closer relationships, like a family or work team. This is because the closeness of the relationship increases the potency of the negative words.

A study of work teams reported in Time found those groups which performed the best had a positive to negative comment ratio of 5.6 to one, while medium performing teams had 1.9 positive to negative. The study found that the worst performing teams had the opposite, three negative to every positive.

Certainly, there are times for admonishment and correction, but these must be heavily balance with words of encouragement.

As believers we are told to encourage and build one another up in the Lord (1 Thessalonians 5:11). This is what builds an effective spiritual community and marriage.