"WHO told you that you were....?"

Sisters, we've got to wake up and rise up to the truth of Scripture: "The devil is a liar and the father of lies. Lying is his native language!" (John 8:44). We need to encourage each other to stop listening to his voice and stop believing the negative, tormenting thoughts he puts in our minds! 

This trouble started in the Garden of Eden when the serpent (the deceiving devil) told Eve if she would eat the forbidden fruit she could become "like God knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:5).

She believed him. Yep.  Adam and Eve ate the fruit and sin was born. 

And it's just like it is for us today: the devil didn't twist her arm, yell at her, force her to eat it, or even shove it in her face. Nope. All he had to do was suggest something, she listened to his voice, believed him, and fell from the perfect life into a sin-sick world. He has already been defeated by the Cross of Christ; through Christ's Life of Perfection on earth, His excruciating death on the Cross, and His glorious Resurrection from the Dead!  Glory to God, the devil has been defeated, but he still has a voice.

Scripture tells the story:
"Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. But the LORD God called to the man, 'Where are you?'
He answered, 'I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.'
And He said, 'Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" (Genesis 3:9-11).

And we can fill in the blank with lots of negative choices that we hear in our mind: "Who told you that you were __________?"  Right? Yep. Lies. 

God has an overcoming cure for this spiritual warfare!   "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves to God, resist the devil and he will flee." (James 4:6-7).  

When we humble ourselves and run to God in prayer and begin to live a life of worshiping Him, He'll show us how to resist by changing the way we think! We won't be enslaved by the lies because God teaches us how to fight His way.

I've seen this in my own life and I know I am not alone. There was a sweet sister who attended the Bible studies I was hosting and she shared that she struggled with tremendous insecurities of fear, anxiety, and depressive thinking. We talked for a long time. She told me, "I kept seeking God in prayer and then one day I heard Him say to my heart, 'Who told you that you were like that?' And immediately I broke down crying! I realized God was telling me that i was believing lies about myself for years! None of it was true but since I believed the lies I became a prisoner of them!" She was crying in front of me and she was delivered, praise God.

It's time for all of us to get up and take the trash out, Baby! Yep. We've been called to be salt and light in this beautiful, but dark world for the glory of God and we can't be that if our minds are full of trash talk. Time to take out the trash. 

 "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is TRUE (my emphasis), whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think on these things...put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." 

(Philippians 4:8) 

Here is an awesome way to start each day with this song:
tell the devil NOT TODAY (Hillsong United) 

for the glory of GOD,

Polly

"Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt HIS name together!"

Psalm 34:3