Nothing steals our peace more quickly than our inability to separate a lie from the truth. The difficulty is not in discerning the truth but letting go of the lie.
Lies are living and active in several dimensions of our human existence - the young girl I left behind believed several of them not because she didn't wonder otherwise but because her societal configuration often confirmed belief in those lies as well. A lot of the lies we believe are integrated into the fine print of our society, our immediate environment, they form our associations and create a dependency network a lot stronger than we realize. If we are not careful these lies form strongholds in our minds that inevitably grow us up - predetermined thinking patterns form in our relationship with our friends, in our families and even with our co-workers, affecting the work we do and limiting us.
These patterns which may not be so apparent often result in creating a stronghold over a group of people then spreads over a region and quite naturally cascades down generations. Consequently, an individual who may question some of these "patterns" which are lies is not up against just one person or a group of friends, they question a culture, a generation of people. That, in itself could be quite daunting.
Courage is required to make a separation between the truth and a lie because many a time people have become comfortable with the pattern, that particular fine print that has become an unspoken language, a subconscious understanding, a tapestry that has been passed down from generation to generation. It has become a culture which they do not want to change or question or break away from even though it corrupts the truth.
Like a hint of an awakening we become aware of a lie because we all have truth living inside of us and there comes a point in our life where we come back to an aching question, an aching desire that we cannot ignore and we yearn for something more out of life. We may not completely own the truth yet but a subtle discomfort begins to set in and we know something isn't quite as it should be. For a while we might actually carry on living a lie while associating with the truth. It took me years to admit this to myself following which the truth of who i really was began to unravel itself until the image became so strong it could no longer be ignored and I could no longer go back to a life that was not mine to live anymore - I would have been going back to live a lie if I did, like going back to muddy waters when my subconscious had been awakened to swimming in clear blue waters.
All those years ago, a strange scaly thick skin had formed over the young girl swimming in the muddy waters and it is a painful process to shed it no doubt but it is well worth it. When we seek the truth diligently we will always be rewarded. Have the courage to explore that discomfort instead of shutting off because you would rather settle with normalcy or what appears safe. There is nothing "cosy" about that thick outer lining, there is an interior surface that absolutely needs to be exposed so that God's light can shine on it and reflect beauty and splendour. It is only then you "shine like a diamond" - permit me to sound cliché but that is what you were created to do. You were created to reveal your shine and ultimately God's glory so please do not do Him a disservice in the process. Cleaning out a wound can be uncomfortable and sometimes even painful. But we must find the courage to go through the process.
Pulling down a stronghold is about stripping out a thought deeply rooted in a mind-set, it's like leaving a plant without water or sunlight. It begins to withers and if it is deprived long enough it dies. The stripping of lies must be quickly followed by a continual dose of the truth so that a new tapestry is created in your mind. That new tapestry becoming more deeply ingrained leads to the discovery of who you really are. That dose of truth is the Word of God - are your soaking your thoughts in it each day, do you set time out to churned on it? Renew the tapestry of your mind let it become living and breathing, pulsating with the truth of God's word.
The foundation of this kind of transforming journey is based on truth. How honest and courageous we are will determine the strength of our beginning and I believe this has a correlative relationship with the stability we experience on the journey. Certainly, if we do not know the truth about ourselves there is no place for grace or acceptance and none for real transformation - TEOS
Be blessed!
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