Our ability to make fearless, healthy choices is directly related to what we believe. Author Chris Thurman says, “Every lie that goes through your mind is slow, self-inflicted psychological and spiritual death.”
Isn’t it time to blow these lies out of the water?
But how do we know if something we believe is, in fact, a lie? How can we replace the lies in our life with scriptural truth? How do we change a faulty belief system? Remember, a belief is what we think is true about an aspect of our reality and is motivated by some evidence or reason. Therefore, we can’t simply choose to believe or not believe something. Successfully changing our beliefs involves a process of identifying lies, discovering trustworthy information that influences us to let go of the lies, and adopting new, accurate beliefs. Following is the three-step process of discovery I learned as God walked me through the Seven Steps to COURAGE.
The Truth Trifecta
Step 1: Identify worldly lies
Step 2: Challenge worldly lies with scriptural truth
Step 3: Replace false beliefs with new beliefs
Three simple steps. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? The truth is, any change can be hard. This particular change, however, can be especially problematic because it’s an area where Satan desperately wants to keep us in bondage. Yet with God’s help and the Holy Spirit’s guidance (and with the right tools and right attitude), making intentional choices to change is possible. Let’s look at how to implement the Truth Trifecta, beginning with the first step.
Step 1: Identify Worldly Lies
We believe countless lies; it’s impossible to list them all here. But there is a common denominator in identifying a worldly lie. Here it is: if we are walking in bondage to fear-based choices, if we feel hopeless and worthless, and if emotional pain is an almost constant companion, there’s a good chance our belief system is skewed.
Every lie we believe has a direct effect on our spiritual, emotional, relational, and physical health. Every lie we believe keeps fear, hurt, sin, and shame alive.
Perhaps worldly lies have been told to you (or modeled by influential people) at some point in your life, or maybe you simply adopted them along the way without even realizing it. Regardless of how they come to us, we must recognize faulty belief systems as lies that attack our identity, steal our joy, and keep us in fearful bondage. And we must replace them with scriptural truth from God’s Word.
Step 2: Challenge Worldly Lies with Scriptural Truth
Just because we have a Bible or two on our bookshelves doesn’t mean God’s Word is being transported by osmosis into our brain. Please forgive me if that sounds harsh, but we have to actually read, study, compare, and apply the wisdom and knowledge it contains. We have to discover for ourselves what is actually written in God’s Word and open our hearts and minds to the power of the Holy Spirit, which can convict us and challenge what we think is true.
I often say, “God’s Word is transformational but only at the pace and depth by which we expose ourselves to it.” Once we identify the lies we have adopted and discover scriptural truth through Bible study, we are then able to move on to the final step in the Truth Trifecta.
Step 3: Replace False Beliefs with New Beliefs.
The worldly lies we believe hinder our ability to change our negative behaviors, attack our self-worth, and often leave us feeling hopeless. They contribute to the fear-based choices we make. They keep us from saying “yes” to positive changes and “no” to negative influences. They keep us from being spiritually healthy. Worldly lies must be eliminated from our belief system.
I struggled with many of these worldly lies for decades—until God got my attention and sobered me up from the intoxication of so many lies. With the help of my counselor, I realized the distortion of my beliefs, and I discovered and accepted the scriptural truth that cancelled out the worldly lies. With the help of my heavenly Father, I have lived a far more courageous life, and I’ve discovered grace in a new and fresh way.
Every step to courage I’ve walked has been life changing. But the R step in COURAGE: Replace Worldly Lies with Scriptural Truth, set me on a course that entirely changed my perspective about God, as God’s Word changed me from within.
Want to learn more about the Seven Steps to COURAGE? Check out my book, Courage For Life here.
