Please help...I need your input
Hello all!
I'm researching some things for a project I've been writing. I'd love it if I could get some outside input for my research. I'm studying and writing about the lies we believe about ourselves, our families, our relationships, God, our situations and circumstances, etc.
For instance, some of the lies I have believed in the past are:
"I am an unfinished mess."
"I am broken. I am not whole."
"I can't do something because I am afraid."
Please post your lies below. By posting comments directly on my blog at http://christysolly.blogspot.com, you may post annonymously. Feel free to post as many as you feel comfortable. These can be lies you've believed in the past or something you are believing now. Things that affect your view of yourself, of God, of others, etc.
Thanks so much everyone!
****Update July 20, 2010******
Hello everyone!
I'm doing my best to respond to each comment. I realize that some of you who are posting have already tackled your lie. But, as I'm talking to others about this post, I'm seeing more and more that many of us wrestle with the same lies. By posting the Truth here, I hope that someone will finally be able to uproot a lie that is poisoning their heart. Thank you so much for your honesty in posting here. It's helping more than just my writing!
Blessings!
I'm researching some things for a project I've been writing. I'd love it if I could get some outside input for my research. I'm studying and writing about the lies we believe about ourselves, our families, our relationships, God, our situations and circumstances, etc.
For instance, some of the lies I have believed in the past are:
"I am an unfinished mess."
"I am broken. I am not whole."
"I can't do something because I am afraid."
Please post your lies below. By posting comments directly on my blog at http://christysolly.blogspot.com, you may post annonymously. Feel free to post as many as you feel comfortable. These can be lies you've believed in the past or something you are believing now. Things that affect your view of yourself, of God, of others, etc.
Thanks so much everyone!
****Update July 20, 2010******
Hello everyone!
I'm doing my best to respond to each comment. I realize that some of you who are posting have already tackled your lie. But, as I'm talking to others about this post, I'm seeing more and more that many of us wrestle with the same lies. By posting the Truth here, I hope that someone will finally be able to uproot a lie that is poisoning their heart. Thank you so much for your honesty in posting here. It's helping more than just my writing!
Blessings!
Comments
women are stupid and subservient to men
I must condemn others to feel better about myself
unconditional love doesn't exist
expressing feelings is weakness
you must always look strong
god can't possibly love a sinner like me
god causes temptation in my life
the world isn't that bad, i can participate without getting burned
i have to be perfect to serve
i have to be perfect of lead
God needs my help
my imperfections disqualify me as a friend
i don't need anyone
i have to feel guilty and punish myself when i sin
I can keep the piece of myself hidden from god
Im sure there are many more, but thats an honest start anyway. Good luck with the writing.
People do not like me; I must give off some sort of impression that I don't need them to.
If I try hard enough to be perfect, I can keep bad things from happening to the ones I love
God is disappointed in me
Im so excited that I came across you today. I would like to invite you to follow my blog. I would love to get your comments on my posts!
http://alonganarrowway.blogspot.com
God bless!
-I cannot get too close to someone because they will always betray my trust.
-Vulnerability is weakness.
-If I serve God with reckless abandon, he will take away my family and friends, or call me to do something scary or dangerous.
-I cannot be a Christian and be taken seriously by intellectuals.
-If I open myself up to question my faith, I will end up faithless.
I wanted to give a little more insight into what I'm thinking. I've come to think of my heart as a garden that needs constant care and tending. Among the many tasks involved with caring for a garden, it is important to identify, uproot, and prevent weeds. I have found this to be absolutely true in my heart as well.
Sometimes the lies are easy to spot and I can uproot them quickly. Other times, it takes careful examination to find the root and untangle it from the good things in my heart. Sometimes the roots are so deep I wonder if I'll ever fully remove them. So, it's a process.
It's also important, once the lie has been identified and uprooted, to put something good in its place. That's when I cover it with the Truth and let that take hold in my heart.
It’s also important to note that here “The Truth” referred to is the Bible. I believe that “all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (II Timothy 3:16). I believe that God gave us His Word so that we would know the “Truth and the Truth [would] make [us] free” (John 8:32).
Thanks again for participating in my little study. I appreciate your honesty more than I can say. I’ll be responding with more soon.
Your lie is:
"People wouldn't really love me if they really knew me. I have to hide who I really am or how I really feel to be accepted."
The Truth is:
The Lord knows you. "O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thoughts from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it." Psalm 139:1-6
And, knowing you intimately, He still calls you son/daughter
"For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out: "Abba! Father!" The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with HIm so that we may also be glorified with Him." Romans 8:15-17
Lie #1 is:
"To be loved and accepted, I must be perfect"
The Truth is:
No one is perfect
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God". Romans 3:23
Knowing how unworthy we are, Christ died for us to show His love
"For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us". Romans 5:6-8
Lie #2 is:
"Women are stupid and subservient to men"
The Truth is:
We were all made in God's image
"Then God said, "Let Us make them in Our image, according to OUr likeness; and let them rule over the fish of teh sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping things that creeps on the earth." God created man in His image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." Genesis 1:26-27
Wisdom is portrayed as a woman in Proverbs
"The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; and with all your acquiring, get understanding. Prize her, and she will exalt you' She will honor you if you embrace her. She will place on your head a garland of grace; She will present you with a crown of beauty". - Proverbs 4:7-9
And the much abused passage in Ephesians does talk about wives being submissive, but in balance with the husband loving her as Christ loved the church (and remember, He came as a servant who gave up His life for the Church).
"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her,..." Ephesians 5:25-33
Lie #3 is:
"I must condemn others to feel better about myself"
The Truth is:
You are complete in Christ
"and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;" Colossians 2:10
To be lifted up, you must lift others up and humble yourself
"Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interest, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in apperance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name". Philippians 2:5-9
Your lie is:
"I am unloved and unlovable"
The Truth is:
You are deeply loved by your Creator
"The Lord appeared...saying "I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness" Jeremiah 31:3
The Lord, Your God, rejoices over you
"The Lord Your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy." Zephaniah 3:17
Lie #1 is:
“Unconditional love doesn’t exist”
The Truth is:
We, as humans, are imperfect, but the love of God is perfect
“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us.” I John 4:18-19
He loved us while we were still sinners, before we were covered in grace
“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:6-8
Lie #2 is:
“Expressing feelings is weakness”
The Truth is:
Jesus expressed His feelings
“When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled, and said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to Him, ‘Lord come and see.’ Jesus wept. So the Jews were saying, ‘See how He loved him!’” John 11:33-36
If the world sees the expression of feelings as weakness, God uses it for His glory
“Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God.” I Corinthians 1:25-29
Lie #3 is
“You must always look strong”
Pretending to always be strong is a result of pride
“Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling. It is better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud.” Proverbs 16:18-19
God’s power is perfected in our weakness
“And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” II Corinthians 12:9-10
Lie #4 is:
“God can’t possibly love a sinner like me”
The Truth is:
We are all sinners (Romans 3:23). Heroes of the faith, writers of the Bible, were sinners like us. King David was an adulterous murderer, yet called a friend of God. Paul was a killer of Christians, but was entrusted with carrying the Gospel and building up the church.
“I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” I Timothy 1:12-16
Lie #5 is:
“God causes temptation in my life”
The Truth is:
“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.” James 1:13-15
He provides a way out (if we look for and take it)
“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” I Corinthians 10:13
Lie #6 is:
“The world isn’t that bad; I can participate without getting burned”
The Truth is:
We are called to be set apart, transformed
“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” Romans 12:1-2
We are not to participate with the world, but are to be imitators of Christ
“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma…Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light.” Ephesians 5:1,2; 11-13
Lie #7 is:
“I have to be perfect to serve or lead”
The Truth is:
Moses was a murderer and he had a stutter, but the Lord chose him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt
“Now it came about in those days, when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his brethren and looked on their hard labors; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren. So he looked this way and that, and when he saw there was no one around, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand” Exodus 2:11-12
“Then Moses said to the Lord, ‘Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.’” Exodus 4:10
David was an adulterer and a murderer, but he was called a man after God’s own heart and chosen to continue the line of the Savior
“Now when the wife of Uriah heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. When the time of mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house and she became his wife; then she bore him a son. But the thing that David had done was evil in the sight of the Lord” II Samuel 11:25-26
“The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham…Jesse was the father of David the king. David was the father of Solomon by Bathsheba who had been the wife of Uriah” Matthew 1:1, 6
The Bible is full of stories of sinful and imperfect people called to carry the Gospel, to serve, to lead. We are all sinners, saved by grace and called to glorify God.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them”. Ephesians 2:8-10
Lie #8 is:
“God needs my help”
The Truth is:
God has everything under control and we are not to worry but rest in His provision
“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor do they reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own”. Matthew 6:25-30
Lie #9 is:
“My imperfections disqualify me as a friend”
The Truth is:
None of us is perfect (Romans 3:23). Abraham, Father of the faith, failed to trust God to protect him and he lied (twice he said Sarah was his sister so men would not kill him because of her (Genesis 12 and 20)). Still, God called him His friend
“and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God.” James 2:23
Lie #10 is:
“I don’t need anyone”
The Truth is:
The only thing God said was “not good” about creation was that man was alone
“Then the Lord God said it is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him”. Genesis 2:18
We were made to connect with one another and encourage one another; one body in the Spirit
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:23-25
“For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit” I Corinthians 12:12-13
Lie #11 is:
“I have to feel guilty and punish myself when I sin”
The Truth is:
There is no condemnation for those in Christ
“Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death” Romans 8:1-2
The Son of God has set you free from sin
“Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.” John 8:34-36
Lie #12 is:
“I can keep a piece of myself hidden from God”
The Truth is:
“But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart”. I Samuel 16:7
“And He said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God”. Luke 16:15
“O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, O Lord, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot attain to it. Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night,” Even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You”. Psalm 139:1-12
Lie #1 is:
“I can never be as free or outgoing as I want to be”
The Truth is:
“It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1
“You were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” Galatians 5:13
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…If we live by the Spirit let us also walk by the Spirit” Galatians 5:22-23, 25
“For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline”. II Timothy 1:7
Lie #2 is:
“People do not like me; I must give off some sort of impression that I don’t need them to”
The Truth is:
You are deeply loved by the Father (Zephaniah 3:17). Look only to Him for acceptance (Colossians 2:10). People are imperfect. We all fail. We all hurt each other. It’s a product of a fallen world (Romans 3:23). But, the Lord’s love is perfect. Find your identity and acceptance in Him. Love others anyway…because He loved you first.
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.” I John 4:7-12
“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven”. Matthew 5:16
Lie #1 is:
“I have messed up so badly that God no longer wants to use me”
The Truth is:
We have all fallen short and messed up (Romans 3:23). See the example of the Apostle Paul. He persecuted and killed Christians, yet the Lord redeemed him and used him.
“I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” I Timothy 1:12-16
Lie #2 is:
“If I try hard enough to be perfect, I can keep bad things from happening to the ones I love”
The Truth is:
None of us is perfect (Romans 3:23) and the Lord doesn’t promise us that bad things won’t happen. But, He promises us His peace. He listens to our requests. He doesn’t want us to worry.
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things and the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:4-9
Lie #3 is:
“God is disappointed in me”
The Truth is:
You are complete in Christ
“For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;” Colossians 2:9-10
Your transgressions are nailed to the cross
“When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross” Colossians 2:13-14
You are not forsaken. You are beautiful. God delights in you.
“You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; but you will be called, “My delight is in her,” and your land “Married”; for the Lord delights in you, and to Him your land will be married…And they will call them, “the holy people, The redeemed of the Lord”; And you will be called “Sought out, a city not forsaken”.” Isaiah 62:3-4, 12
Lie #1 is:
“I will never be good enough or worth loving”
The Truth is:
We all fall short (Romans 3:23)
It is the prayer of the Apostle Paul (and my prayer as well) that you be able to comprehend just how deeply you are loved.
“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen”. Ephesians 3:14-21
Lie #2 is:
"I cannot get too close to someone because they will always betray my trust"
The Truth is:
First, put your trust in the Lord
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6
Don't forget that we all fall short and fail (Romans 3:23), But, two is still better than one, and we are called to love one another
"Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart." Ephesians 4:9-12
"Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;... Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far s it depends on you, be at peace with all men." Romans 12:9-10, 16-18
Lie #3 is:
"Vulnerability is weakness"
Jesus expressed His feelings and was vulnerable before men
“When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled, and said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to Him, ‘Lord come and see.’ Jesus wept. So the Jews were saying, ‘See how He loved him!’” John 11:33-36
If the world sees the vulnerability as weakness, God uses it for His glory
“Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God.” I Corinthians 1:25-29
Lie #4 is:
"If I serve God with reckless abandon, He will take away my family and friends, or call me to do something scary or dangerous."
The Truth is:
The Lord doesn't promise life here will be easy, but He promises He is with us
"These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." John 16:33
"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;...Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing or us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not see; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." II Corinthians 4:7-9, 16-18
"But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, Descendant of Abraham My friend, You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its remotest parts and said to you, 'You are My servant, I have chosen you and not rejected you. Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand'." Isaiah 41:8-10
Lie #5 is:
"I cannot be a Christian and be taken seriously by intellectuals"
The Truth is:
The wisdom s to men
"Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one." I Corinthians 2:12-14
"For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." I Corinthians 1:18
"For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ." Galatians 1:10
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "But the Righteous man shall live by faith"." Romans 1:16-17
"For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle and a teacher. For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day". I Timothy 1:7-12
Lie #6 is:
"If I open myself up to question my faith, I will end up faithless"
The Truth is:
The Lord expects us to be wise and also to test to see if what we believe is from Him
"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." I John 4:1
"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves." Matthew 10:16