“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27
There are thought patterns governing our lives on a continuous basis. Although some inner thoughts are placed there by society, friends, foes, and family; the majority of them are primarily governed and manufactured by us. These thoughts can be more powerful than our spoken words, and can cause more damage to us than our most lethal enemy. The kinds of thoughts we have can literally mean the difference between success and failure; happiness and depression; righteousness and wickedness; even life or death.
Working on a project in the psychiatric unit for an out of town hospital, I saw patients that routinely heard voices urging them to commit suicide. Voices that were so outspoken and unrelenting, some patients would routinely sit for hours at a time speaking out loud—responding to an unseen person. Most of us would consider them nuts. However, the thing to remember is, we all have those voices; those nagging little inner thoughts that can bombard our lives telling us how bad we are, or how incompetent we are at something. It is the classic image of the little angel and the devil’s imp sitting on your shoulder urging you to opt between good and evil. For some people, the imp has taken possession over their lives. They have allowed those negative thoughts to gain full access so often, there is no room for the thoughts of goodness released by God. Still, there are some people reading this today that somehow think they cannot relate to the people who hear voices urging them to harm themselves or others. Yet the truth is, we hear the same thoughts all the time:
“You are no good!” “You’re too fat” “You’re too skinny!” “You’re so unattractive no one will love you!” “Ugly!” “Stupid!” “You never get anything right!” “You can’t do that!” “You’re an idiot!” “Who told you—you could do that!” “You’ll never amount to anything!” “You are better off dead!” “No one loves you! —No one ever will!”
They are all lies, lies, and more lies. There are tons of these negative, self-deprecating, non-affirming mantras we say to ourselves every day --words that come directly from the pits of hell that should have no life in the mind of a Christian. Jesus gave us the WORD to live by when we find ourselves lost and struggling to maintain a positive attitude and outlook. These words have truth and power to enforce us with the knowledge that He alone speaks to us. He alone has conquered all other voices; and, if we allow His voice to take precedence in our lives, it will negate any negative power over us. He will never leave us or forsake us, and most of all, He loves us more than we could possibly ever imagine.
We are called by His name, and hear His voice. It is not that we cannot fall prey to the voice of the imps around us; it is that we should never allow any other voice to take precedence in our lives, even if that voice, with all its negative overtones, clearly sounds like our own. L.
Study Reference: John 10:11-14, 10:27
Excerpt from: "Thinking Out Loud." In The Master's Hands: 365 Daily Devotions For Everyday Living.
Copyright © 2014 by Lavona E. Campbell
photo: bigstock
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