Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Overcome the Lie: I am not God.

I am not God. 

Take a minute. Let that sink in. 

Ok, ok....I kid. I know I'm not blowing your mind with that little revelation. But what if I told you, "You are not God."?

Does that resonate a little deeper? 

Maybe. And if not...maybe it should. 

Because it's true. We are not gods, and we're certainly not capital letter God; All knowing, all powerful, everlasting and perfect GOD. But oh do I tend to think so sometimes! Not in my logical brain space. No no....I'm perfectly aware that I'm a simple human, with finite knowledge, limited abilities, and a whole bunch of terrible traits. But in my "I can do anything, I'm a strong, smart woman, watch me kick butt and take names" space? Oh yeah. I pretty much think I'm God there. Because I may know I'm not God, but somehow I've taken to living a big chunk of my life as if I were. 

There seems to be a movement in Christian circles these days...ok, at least (or especially) the Christian Mommy Blogger circle (of which I am a de facto member)...preaching grace. Grace upon grace upon grace. It speaks to the delicate hearts of moms telling them we know how hard it is. Give yourself more grace. Christ is bigger than any of your weaknesses. You are wonderful and perfect, and deserving of so much grace.

And all of that is great. So, so great. And true even.

But sometimes- I need someone to look at me and give me the opposite message. I need a tough-love sit-down, where the Truth looks at me in the face and says: 
Hey Lady- You know you sweet you think you are? With your cool job and skinny jeans, toting a Converse clad toddler in your instagram pictures? Yeah...well...you're not all that. I mean, I love you and all...but all that stuff that you've acquired, all those things you've done....they're made possible through Me. Not you. You're a smart girl, because I made you that way. And you're a successful girl, because I've blessed you that way. But you're also a stubborn girl. And a selfish girl. And a girl prone to making the same mistakes over, and over, and over again. Let me repeat- I love you (infinitely!), in spite of all that. But don't get it twisted. You are not Me. You don't know what I know, and you can't do what I do. So: stop. trying. Stop trying so hard to be good at all the things, and while you're at it, stop being so dang proud of yourself when you are good at the things. Ask Me for guidance. Let Me help you. And thank Me for what you've been given. Basically- give it, I got it.
(For the record: no, I don't think God is a celestial version of Ellen Degeneres, but I do think He has enough of a sense of humor to appreciate a good stand-up reference now and again.)

So I'm working on listening. I'm attempting to shove aside the lie that the world tells us- "we can do it!" Because we can't. A least not on our own. And if I think that I ever have been able to, I am just wrong, wrong, wrong. I need to loosen my grip on the reins of my life, and allow God to be God. Or more accurately- acknowledge that God is God. He always has been, and always will be, and no amount of effort on my part will ever measure up to the plan that He already has prepared for me.

And that's the truth.

Full disclosure, I can't take full credit for any wisdom that is shared above. I fully believe it is truth from God, but specifically a big chunk of it came through this week's teaching at our church. You can read the outline from the current "Note to Self" series, or even watch the sermon online.


-------------------

I'm delighted to be writing as a part of Overcome the Lie, a movement dedicated to promoting the truth of Christ. Their mission is to create a community of women committed to asking Jesus to slay the lies in their lives, and come alongside each other to encourage one another on the path of Truth! 

"We exist to empower a generation of women to overcome the lie because Jesus overcame the grave. Our desire is to promote a culture of encouragement and victory by providing resources and opportunity for women to rise above the lie. Our hope is to raise up a company of women who will walk in wholeness and identity, declare the truth boldly and advance the Kingdom with passion and power."

Check out the awesome, encouraging, REAL things that are happening over at Overcome the Lie, and stop by their  Facebook and Twitter pages to stay up to date with the latest happenings (twitter parties, blog tours, and all kinds of social-media-related goodness that I'm only barely cool enough to understand!)

1 comment :

  1. Oh my goodness. I have "played God" so often, its totally shameful. It is a defense mechanism for me, or maybe a coping mechanism. When I'm worried about something, instead of praying and knowing God has it under HIS control, I take over and actively do things to control the situation until I feel better. It is my biggest hurdle as a Christian. To let go and let God. To stop trying to play God and just let the real God do His thing. His totally, better for me than I could ever come up with, thing.

    Great post, Courtney.

    ReplyDelete