Category: Everyday Battles

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Controlling Your Thoughts Everyday Battles Truth

Replacing the Lies with the truth

The devil wants nothing more than to feel your head with lies. After all if he gets you to believe them once what makes you think he would stop there? If you continue to believe the lies they will continue to overflow in your head and take your thoughts captive. That’s the point, the devil wants you to be his prisoner. He wants you to get caught up in your own head. Get your popcorn because this is going to be a good one!

He could tell you one thing and the minute you choose to believe it, your thoughts go off the rails and you immediately go into overthinking mode. Its crazy how one little word or phrase sends us on a crazy thinking train, oh but wait that’s his mind game. My favorite saying “Not today satan”, yeah you’re going to need to use that ALOT! When those thoughts hit, your mind starts to look like the episode of SpongeBob where the inside of his mind is on fire in complete chaos. You’re running around in your head trying to figure out where this came from, who said that, what just happened and where this is being held.

Welcome to the mind game the enemy loves to play. The only thing is we didn’t sign up to play. Think about this, if you chose not to believe the thoughts as soon as they pop up in your head, and take a minute to compare what the enemy is trying to get you to believe to what God actually says what would happen? You would soon come to realize its all lies that you’ve fallen for and led yourself to believe. Your thought process is “if it keeps coming up in my head then it must be true” or “if I continue to think this it must mean something”. They actually don’t mean anything except for you’re being held captive in a prison cell that you didn’t realize existed.

Getting pretty deep right? Its okay we all struggle with the enemies lies the key is to replace them with Gods truth. I’m not saying its a cake walk by any means so please don’t leave this post today thinking oh okay if I just replace this lie with Gods truth one time it won’t happen again.. WRONG. The enemy will continue to attack you no matter how many times you replace a lie with a truth he will come back with another one. That’s why it is so important to continue to fight back with Gods truth, this is not just a one and done deal its a continuous thing that you have to keep choosing to do in order to fully defeat it. Its a spiritual battle that we all face but we serve a God who fights these battles with us.

I’ve seen so many people in these situations say they are waiting on God to get them out or they are waiting on God to fight for them. The truth is we have a responsibility in it all as well we can’t just expect God to do it all for us while we sit here not doing our part. We have to fight to, we have to put on the armor of God and stand up to the enemy. “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness in this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” -Ephesians 6:11-13

Let me ask you this, when you say “I can’t” did you really try, did you pray about it, did you give it to God, did you ask Him for his help? Or did you just let the thought of “I can’t” take control and you just decided you weren’t going to really try? You see when I was little my grandma would always tell me, “Well can’t never could because he never tried” and dang if she wasn’t right every time. Grandma was a very Godly woman so she knew exactly what was happening in my mind when I would say “I can’t” and she knew just the right thing to fight it back with and that’s because she spent time with God everyday, she was in the word everyday, she was praying everyday.

You see in order to accomplish something you have to keep continuously trying, you can’t give up the minute the enemy puts “I can’t” in your head. Replace that “I can’t” with Gods truth of “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” -Philippians 4:13 or “Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” -Matthew 19:26. When you start to replace the lies the enemy throws at you with Gods truth you are standing up against him, you are letting him know you aren’t going to play his game anymore. That doesn’t mean he is going to back down just yet but when you do this continuously God will help you win the battle!

The next time the enemy fills your head with a lie, dig into Gods word to see what truth you can replace that lie with. But beware the minute you let your guard down the enemy will come ten times stronger. We have to stay on guard. We have to work at it daily. Its just like building your relationship with Christ, it doesn’t happen in a day it happens over time. If you stick to replacing the lies with the truth daily over time you will see the change, you will feel more at peace instead of stressed and overthinking. It will happen in time but you have to play your part to.

Recommended Books to read to help with this:

-Winning The War In your Mind By: Craig Groeschel

Sermons to help with this:

-Tuning your heart to the Truth By: Steven Furtick

Tune Your Heart To Truth | Pastor Steven Furtick | Elevation Church
Categories
Everyday Battles Insecurity Patience Praying Shyness

Life As A Shy Kid

Hey, Allison here and I want to share a little bit about my life growing up. We’re going to focus on how I was a shy kid and got out of it. Trust me even now as a twenty one year old I still have my moments, but its much better than before.

Most of us know shyness is usually a person that doesn’t speak up in class because of nerves or uncomfortableness. People who are shy can be insecure and have anxiety. They also tend to blush, feel shaky, sweaty, or even speechless when the spotlight hits them. Hi, that was me and still is sometimes. I was always the quiet kid in school never raising my hand to answer a question and hating when I got called on. Most of the time I felt like the outcast and that everyone else knew the answers to the problem but me. When I did get called on it seemed like everyone looked at me and my face heated up. It turned bright tomato red and I knew everyone could see it. It was embarrassing. I also hated reading out loud because what if I misread a word? If I knew I was next to read I was always reading the next part that would be mine to see if there were any words I did not know and try to pronounce in my head. Being shy also meant I struggle to ask for help. I did not like math at all! It didn’t come to me easily as it did for others so I made do without asking for help.

Shy kids don’t always have lots of friends at least in my experience that is true. I did make friends along the way but if there wasn’t anyone I knew in my classes the struggle for me was harder. Presentations were the worst! Public speaking is something I never liked doing hence why I never wanted to raise my hand in class. It meant everyone would hear my answer and if I was wrong then what? Then I would be embarrassed and feel stupid.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.

God does not want us to lack courage or confidence. He wants us to be proud to be who we are. If we say something incorrect then oh well we can study so we are better for next time. God never said you weren’t allowed to make mistakes. I know it will take some time if you are shy. It can not be fixed in one day. It took me years to make lots of progress. Pray about it and ask God to put you in situations that are out of your comfort zone. That is how I became more independent and extroverted.

Okay, now here is where I get into the part about becoming less shy and let me warn you it involves the sport ice hockey. Hanna knows I talk about this constantly and it is because God put it in my path to get me out of my comfort zone. I am passionate about hockey just like I am about God. God comes first as he always should!

Back in March 2019 I attended my first Federal Prospects Hockey League game or for short you can call it the FPHL. Some might call it the beer league and I will get to why later. In Winston Salem we have a team called the Carolina Thunderbirds. The name has been changed over the years but for the last six that name has stuck. It was cancer night and I had never watched a hockey game before at least not that I had recalled. It wasn’t much of an action kind of game like I had heard. The score was 1-1 and the third period was almost over. Well believe it or not right before my very eyes the puck went into the back of the net with one second left. Yes, ONE SECOND. Can you imagine the feeling in that arena? The cheers, the celebrating on the ice, and me jumping up and down? Yeah, well that happened and after it all I met four great players! Three who are still around the league today.

The hockey games did not stop there and my shyness didn’t either. I still struggled with it at school but hockey was making it better because I cheered for my team not caring what people thought around me. I even met a lot of new people. Before hockey, my weekends consisted of staying in, A LOT, and playing on my phone or watching movies/TV. Now that I have this great sport in my life I am at the arena almost every weekend and occasionally on a week night. I cheer for my team win or lose and I get the chance to talk to these hockey players. You can’t talk to an NHL player like Sebastian Aho from the Carolina Hurricanes after the game and have a beer with him aka why it’s called beer league hockey. You can drink with the players after almost any game, get pictures, autographs, and have meaningful conversations. They’re basically local celebrities to our city, but it’s more than that for me.

In 2022 my family and I joined the Thunderbirds booster club and it also helped with my shyness. We got the privilege to adopt a hockey player, get to know him, take him out to eat, etc. He gave me my first hockey stick and I cherish that thing! We even had a super bowl party with the guys and do all sorts of things for them. Not only did hockey bring out my extroverted side it helps me help others. If you don’t know hockey then you don’t know that these players in the FPHL hardly make any money. Some work jobs outside of hockey and it’s not easy when the medical bills pile up from getting a tooth knocked out or breaking a bone. There is lots of fighting in the FPHL which leads to injuries. As a booster club member we help where we can. This year is my families second year with the booster club. Before the 2023-2024 season even started we donated a queen sized mattress to one of the houses the guys live in and a full size futon for the coach. We didn’t buy it brand new it was used and they didn’t care. They appreciated what they could get and didn’t want brand new. (Literally the Captain of the team said don’t buy anything brand new.) My family and I also host a concert with our friends from Nashville. This time right before the season started after training camp we prepped food for the entire team! Now that is a lot of grown men to cook for! There were around perhaps twenty hockey players at my house in October 2023 and it was wild. It made me feel great though to know I was helping.

I never thought a sport would flip my life upside down but here I am with so many new people in my life I never would have met if it weren’t for hockey. These people not only share the love of hockey but also the love of Jesus. I’ve traveled away from my family to see this team play with people I barely knew. (Talk about getting out of your comfort zone!) It’s amazing how our God works each and every day. He puts you in places you’d never expect. I know we all have ups and downs but I am so thankful to have the life I have today even with the struggles. One of my favorite sayings is: Blessed and hockey obsessed.

I’m glad I started off shy in life so I could bloom later on. I’m not perfect (we all knows Jesus is the only perfect one.) I will probably never be 100% comfortable in some situations. What I do know is that Jesus is there for us during the struggles whether we see it or not. Jesus is proud of you and loves you even when you fail or think you have failed. Wherever you are on your journey right now know that God has got you. He has always been there and will never leave.

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Everyday Battles Insecurity

Dealing with Insecurities and Body Image

Yep there it is, the word we all know to well, Insecurities. The struggle can be real when facing these. For women I feel like it has to do more with body image but for men maybe more of am I good enough but both can happen to all of us. Regardless of what insecurities you face lets talk about how God can get us through them!

I struggle with body image on a daily basis, its not always the prettiest battle and its not always the easiest. Insecurities can make you feel like complete crap and facing them can be rather difficult. The good news is God left us a whole book (The Bible) with so many helpful words and advice on how to deal with these stubborn thoughts from the enemy!

Let’s start with Genesis, Genesis 1:27 states “So God created human beings* in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” We are created in Gods image, he made us exactly how he wanted us. He picked our body, our hair, our eyes every single detail! But yet we can struggle so much with the enemy getting into our head telling us “you’re ugly” “you’re to fat” “you’re to skinny” “you’re not enough” etc…

Now fast forward to Psalm 139:14 which states “You are beautiful, for you are fearfully and wonderfully made.” and Song of Solomon 4:7 “You are altogether beautiful my darling there is no flaw in you.” You see God knew the enemy would fill our heads with these thoughts and insecurities but he prepared Bible verses for that. He tells us we are beautiful and without flaw because he made us in his image. Just knowing that you are beautiful to God is enough, knowing he looks at you and automatically thinks that.

The problem is in todays culture if you aren’t up to date with the latest trends, fashion, or even up to someone’s standards they will let you know which is not okay. “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” (1 Peter 3:3-4) We should not live our lives based on what the world thinks or says about us, we should live our lives off of what God said about us and what God thinks about us.

After reading 1 Peter 3:3-4 we learn that our beauty doesn’t come from the outward appearance, our beauty lies within our spirit! You can quickly conclude that insecurities come from the world because the world only wants to look at what’s on the outside, they don’t want to take the time to see what’s on the inside. Someone could have the sweetest and purest spirit but they would still get labeled ugly by the world because of their outward appearance. We can’t allow the world to get in our heads and change the way we see ourselves, our self image needs to be in Christ!

Insecurities are an issue within the flesh. Here’s what God says about flesh related problems: “Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it.  For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.” -Romans 8:12-14. You see if we continue to allow insecurities in, we are slowly killing our spirit. We are supposed to die to self everyday, “Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3), “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

In order to face the insecurities we have to go to God, we have to leave them all at his feet trusting he is going to help us get through them. We have to die to ourselves and pick up the new creation that we are in Christ! Get in his word, he left us a whole book that is filled with so much advice regarding any insecurity you may face. “I’m not good enough” -Jeremiah 1:5, “I’m ugly” -Isaiah 64:8 and so much more. I’m telling you the Bible is filled with so many kind words our heart and head need to hear and know when facing insecurities so that with the help of God we can defeat that enemy!

Key Bible Verses:

–“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” -Romans 12:1-2

–“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” -Galatians 2:20

–“Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?” -1 Corinthians 3:16

Songs to help:

-You say By: Lauren Daigle

-God only knows By: For King & Country

Categories
Controlling Your Thoughts Everyday Battles

Everyday Battles Part 2- The Struggle Is Real

Proverbs 10:31 — The New King James Version (NKJV) The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, But the perverse tongue will be cut out.

Hey, it’s Allison here to talk about another everyday battle Christians deal with. The thing about us Christians is that we are warriors. We go through a lot of the same battles each day. We get better and worse and proceed to go back and forth with the devil. We are strong because we have Jesus on our side and that is how we keep fighting the same battles.

How many of you have used a curse word? I’m sure a lot of us have. Growing up I heard my parents curse out of frustration and once I hit middle school everyone was using foul language. I began cursing in middle school because other people were doing it. I thought it was cool because everything other people are participating in is cool, right? No, absolutely not.

Cursing does not honor God, not even a little bit. We curse when we are angry, frustrated, sad, confused, and during so many other emotions. Sometimes we let a word slip out and apologize to God immediately after, I know I have done that. We are not perfect Christians and as I have said before we all make mistakes. Cursing happens to be one of those mistakes. Even inside our minds we curse or under our breath so no one will hear. Guess what? The Lord can read our minds, he sees everything, and hears everything. God knew you were going to say that word that starts with an F. He knew it when you were an infant before your innocent self got exposed to the evilness of this world. The things you see and hear that don’t seem like they honor the Lord are from the devil. It is to distract you and turn you down a different path.

Prayer is a powerful action. Pray to make the temptations of cursing go away, to make the thoughts go away. If you have to distance yourself around those you care about to do better then do so. Maybe tell them you don’t like to here them talk that way. I’ve been told before that is not lady like to curse and it is not. It is not Christian like to curse so by all means if you can refrain from it. Our journey with Christ will always have obstacles, but when we pray, read the Bible, listen to worship music, and attend church we have a better chance at overcoming those obstacles then on our own. The struggle is indeed real, the question is are you going to let that struggle take over?