They only shared a few words, but the brief moment evangelist Rick Warren shared with her online already did a world of good to former "American Idol" winner and Christian singer Jordin Sparks.
It all started on Tuesday evening last week when Sparks shared a post on her Twitter account (@JordinSparks): "I'm having such bad anxiety. I can't sleep. If there's any prayer warriors out there, can you please send up a prayer for me?"
Luckily for her, Warren was among her four million followers, and he decided to help her out. @JordinSparks Praying for u Jordin! False Evidence Appearing Real (Fear) is worse than the reality Don't resist it REFOCUS elsewhere."
"Focus on how deeply God loves you: 'Perfect love casts out all fear.' Focus on God's loves and move against fear in faith," he added later.
Warren strongly believes in the power of uplifting words, and has often encouraged his congregation from Saddleback Church that their mouths are powerful tools, so they should use it wisely. "God wants us to use our words to build others up," he wrote on his website.
When people talk senselessly, they do more harm than good. Sometimes our words are like a sledgehammer. We swing away without thinking, and all of a sudden we look around, and all we've got is a pile of relational rubble. When you thoughtlessly sling your words around and tear people down, your relationships are going to suffer," he cautioned.
Warren said people always remember things that have been said to them, and that is why it's important to make those words count—be positive instead of negative. "So when it comes to your mouth, you've got to think of it as a power tool and be very careful with it," he said.