Lies We Believe

Last week I got a call from a close friend of mine. She was talking about how a woman from her church was encouraging her to start a new ministry but she wasn't going to do it because in her words 'what do I know about running a ministry' and ' no one listens to me anyways'.

She regretted saying those words to me by the end of the conversation because that brought me to a sharp stop. See what had happened was that my friend went through some really rough times at different churches. She was hurt and because of it she was very afraid to put herself out there and try again.

Out of that conversation came a few key points that got me thinking about the lies we believe. See there's things we all believe about ourselves that just aren't true. Maybe it's something that someone told us as a kid. Maybe it's something that we've told ourselves. Maybe it's something we've come to believe because of our culture. Wherever the lie came from we've accepted it as truth instead of recognizing that this lie, like all lies come from the same place, the devil. This is not what we need to believe. Not even close

And yet we do.

Someone tells a fourteen year old who loves cooking that they're not any good at cooking and so they give up. Flash forward ten years and that person who said that doesn't remember the conversation but the now 24 year old still relies on microwave meals. They've come to believe something about themselves that isn't true because of words spoken years ago. They've let a lie define who they are and shape their decisions.

A teacher who's having a bad year at home speaks harshly to a student in junior high. Speed up until their senior year and that kid is afraid to apply for college because they don't believe their smart enough to go. That teacher probably doesn't remember that kid much less know the negative impact they had on them.

A church split happens and bitter words are spoken. For many years an adult will not darken the doors of a church again because all they hear are those words.

Words have power. Absolutely, but they have the power that we give them. Those people who spoke those words are likely not sitting around going 'well I always knew that Janie wouldn't be a good cook or Ronnie wouldn't make it to college or Brian and Alice weren't really Christians who would continue to be involved in a church'. No! They've moved on with their lives and it's time that we stopped giving them power and moved on with ours too. The only reason that we're still living by those words is because we've believed the lie.

So let's make a deal. This year as we go into the holidays let's identify the lies we've been telling ourselves and make the decision to stop believing them. Let's accept who we are, what we can do or more importantly who God created us to be and what He created us to do. It's not about what others say it's about what He says so let's stop believing the lies of others and accepting the truth of what He says.