Hard-wired for each other

-


It happened again. I learned some stuff.


It was during book club (Get Out of Your Head by Jennie Allen). While we were talking, I realized there is still an issue I struggle with. I continue to tell you all not to believe the lies the evil one is feeding you, but it has become a problem for me. My friend Beth explained it so well when she compared it to a person with anorexia. No matter what they are told, they continue to see something other than the truth when they look in the mirror. They have a dysmorphic view of their bodies. It takes ongoing therapy to change their distorted beliefs and thoughts about themselves. 


The same is true concerning the lies I believe about myself. Lately, it doesn’t matter what positive words I am given, I struggle to believe them. 


“They are just saying that because they love me.” 

“They don’t want to hurt my feelings.”

“They are just a really encouraging and positive person.”

“They probably need something from me.”


Here’s what I realized about this faulty thinking. It really had not been such a problem for me until living in “isolation” for the last two months. Isolation is a violation of our nature. We were each created for community… hard-wired for relationships. I knew I needed people, but I didn’t realize this isolation was leaving me alone with spiraling thoughts that were never an issue before. 


The most powerful weapon to combat this problem is relationships. Face to face, time spent, real, honest friendship. I believe I am struggling because I haven’t been face to face with friends who speak truth into my life. Maybe that’s an issue you are having too. Maybe it’s not something that sprung up in the last couple of months. Maybe that has always been an issue for you.


Because our physical proximity has changed, we are going to have to make adjustments. We must be more intentional about our friendships. Pick up the phone or type a message, and share those spiraling, negative thoughts you are having with a friend. Once you speak them out loud or type them out, it will either reduce or remove the power they have over you. Allow your friend (or someone you want to build a friendship with) to speak truth into your life as God intended. Then do the same for them.


If you don’t feel you have someone you can do that with, please know, I would love to be that person for you. Know that I sit here without judgment, and full of love for you.



“Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.” -‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2:1-2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Complexity of Prayer

-
Image
Have you ever considered the complexity of prayer? Have you ever had something you needed to pray about, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to talk to God about whatever the issue was? I have experienced that many times. I will call it “Prayer paralysis.” Prayer paralysis happens when you are afraid of any answer God might give you. If He says no, then you might feel bad, or sad, or even angry. If He says yes, then your fear factor increases because you just don’t think you can handle what a “Yes” entails (which essentially means that you don’t trust Him). So instead of revealing your lack of trust (Like seriously, you don’t think He knows? ), you just don’t pray. It’s kind of like when you were a little kid, and you would sit still and close your eyes, thinking that it would make you invisible. God already knows our fears of failure, self-pride, and even our trust issues, so we might as well just go ahead and lay it all at His feet. There’s another kind of prayer paralysis that I ha
Read more

Should Someone Call an Exorcist?

-
Image
Last Friday I went bowling with some of my family. I am aware of my low skill level, so I remained humble throughout the first game, and surprisingly finished in 1st place!  The second game began and I just knew I would dominate even more. I may not have been quite as humble. I was last on the list to go. I stood up and approached my ball with confidence. I picked it up, set my eye on the center arrow painted on the lane, then took a few quick steps forward just as I had before.  As I took my last step, I swung my arm backward, then forward, and fell flat on my face. Actually, flat is not entirely accurate. I’m pretty sure every one of my limbs flew in a different direction, and the position of my head may have had folks wondering if they should call an exorcist. I also seemed to be temporarily blinded from the fall but could hear my ball bouncing its way down the lane. Let’s pause for a moment of prayer. The problem was that I had stepped over the foul line into the lane— 1. Not reali
Read more

Go Deeper

-
Image
  Anyone struggling with anxiety? I have struggled with it quite a bit. Then, I realize that forgetting to bring all of my anxiety-inducing problems to God, is a big part of the problem. Yesterday I talked about living in endurance mode. Part of that is taking all of the difficult things, and trying to wait them out.  If I really think about it, I may have subconsciously believed that struggling is just part of the journey and that I need to suck it up, because Jesus went through way more than I ever will.    But, “ Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)  He never intended for us to hold onto them. Sometimes we don’t bother saying anything to God because, well, He knows what’s happening. He can change it if He wants to. So we sit paralyzed—enduring! Is that familiar to anyone? Though He could whisk our struggles away at any time, part of the journey, part of our relationship with the Creator is rooted in commu
Read more