Do you trust God’s love for you? I mean, with every part of your day and life. Picture this. You’re on your way to work, you select the song “Reckless Love” on your iPod and hit play. With the windows rolled down, you sing along with at the top of your lungs totally lost in the moment. You remember details of God’s overwhelming love in your own life—how he loves you just because, with no strings attached. When you arrive at work, you wipe your brow from the sing along, and sincerely thank God for his unfailing love. A little later that day, it comes to your attention that you’ve been overlooked by your boss at work. It’s not really a big deal except that you were also overlooked by a friend recently and another acquaintance stood you up for lunch last week. And now that you’re thinking about it, you feel unseen, unknown at church, and you can’t get any of your big-dream ideas to gain any traction—they barely get likes on facebook. All of sudden, the overwhelming known feeling of love you experienced on the car ride to work is being drowned out by a pesky little lie hot in your ear saying, “You’re forgettable!”
If you trace the lie back to its origin, it’s fear. It’s fear that you are not loved. It’s the enemy trying to rob you of your trust in God and his love for you. Don’t let him to do that! Make a choice to silence his voice and his lies. Fear speaks in different ways. In the picture above I used being forgotten as an example, but fear also voices itself by saying things like, you’re alone; you can’t do it, you’re not good enough; you’ll never change; you’re stupid, and so on. Recognize any of those? I’m learning from life that fear will make a play ground out of any place we don’t claim as occupied with trust in God. Wouldn’t it be great if we had tangible banners that we could stake in the territories of our hearts, soul, and minds? They could wave and snap in the face of fear, “I trust God’s love for me!”
Actual trust banners to stake in our hearts don’t exist, but there are ways to really practice trusting God’s love for us. Here are three ways to choose trust over fear’s lies throughout our day.
First, Recognize the deceptive voice and counter it with God’s voice—
I recognize your accusing voice, fear. But I choose God’s voice over yours. You have no place here.
God is Judge and wisdom, not accuser. God’s voice is always love and always for us. Even when he convicts us of sin, it is done in mercy and with the intent of being known. Even when he says “no,” it is done in wisdom, not condemnation. The accuser’s voice steals, kills, and destroys every time.
Second, Recognize the lie and counter it with God’s truth—
I recognize your lies, fear. But I am not forgotten! I choose God’s words over yours. He said he knows my every detail and he is always with me. He also says that he would leave the ninety-nine just for me—translation—he notices when I’m not around!
God is truth, he can’t lie. There is always truth to counter Satan’s lies. If there is a lie, there is a truth that trumps it. Don’t settle for the lie. Choose God’s word, it does not wither or fade!
Third, Recognize the liar’s perspective and counter it with God’s perspective—
I recognize your perspective, fear. But I choose to see how God see it. I was made in his image, not yours! He ordains my steps. If I got “overlooked” by man, then I got preserved for something else by God; I’ve got a protected future by God; I’ve got placement by God.
We are seated with Christ in heavenly places, we have daily opportunities to see things from a different perspective. And, to change the atmosphere around us when we do. Ezekiel was shown a valley of dry bones (you’re forgettable, you’re stupid, you’re alone). When he prophesied to them in the vision to breath and live (you are not forgotten, nothing is too difficult, you are completely surrounded by God!) the bones reconnected, grew tendons and lived!
God’s love for us has been consistent in our lives from our creation to our big moments to the smallest concerns. Trusting God’s love for us enables us to live victoriously, from a different perspective. It enables us to recognize Satan’s plots to derail, steal (even the smallest joys), kill, and destroy. Stake an ‘I trust God’s love for me’ banner in your hearts today—shift the atmosphere!
God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7
Brave Sparrow 