We are still working through Matthew - the baptism and temptation of Christ. One of the points raised was the implication in the first temptation that the relationship between Christ and the Father was fractured - that because He was there that the Father had somehow abandoned Him, was He not the Messiah? He defended the relationship as it wasn't fractured - nor are our relationships with the Father regardless of how it feels or appears, yet we buy the lie at the cost of our lives - our peace, our calling, our joy, our growth.
So the question in the prayer was Which lies have you bought?Claim them and reaffirm the relationship as best you can.
Which lies have I bought? I was thinking about it on the way home - there are more than the ones that came to the forefront of my brain at that moment - during prayer the ones were best lumped together as "the future."
I have bought the lies:
- That my life, my worth is determined by the next piece of paper I claim
- That my parents and family are right and I'm wrong about life being incomplete without a partner (they believe I must be married) and by inference that there is something wrong with me being one of the last to get married - that my brother 3 1/2 years younger will be married long before I will be (He's already engaged).
- That a job offers stability and purpose
- That my waist size and overall appearance impacts the world more than what I believe, do or say.
- That I can't write - that the pieces I am working on are not in me and I don't have the ability to write at the level I am required to do so.
- That I can't contribute to the mission field, to social justice, service - whatever general umbrella you want to use - without further training or talent...
- That medical school would complete me - that being a Doctor was the only valuable contribution I could offer
- That to be married requires giving up all of who I am to be what my husband wanted - and that was okay
- That to be outspoken, "fiery" is a bad thing
1 comment:
Lies I almost bought...
-That being a youth pastor is only a temporary position...a stepping stone to the pastorate.
-That being good at school can't be useful in the ministry...that not studying law or medicine or something else is a waste.
-That I need a secular business degree to "fall back on"...faith with a backup plan isn't really faith now is it?
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