4 THINGS THAT CREATE A CLOUDED VISION OF HOW WE SEE OURSELVES
Dale Carnegie once said: “To think right, is to create”. The way we view life has it’s origin in our believes. Every emotion stems from a believe. In this teaching Leslie uncovers the veils that often blur our vision and create faulty believes. Applying these keys will bring radical breakthrough in your everyday life.
Credits: Teaching by Leslie Crandall, BSSM First Year 2015/2016
‘LENSES THAT WILL SHAPE YOUR LIFE’: BSSM LECTURE NOTES
The way God thinks about who He is (beyond understanding) and how God thinks about us is described by the same word, which only occurs twice in the Bible. God things He (and we) are awesome and beyond understanding!
How we see God is how we will live life. Do we really see God for who He is and how passionately He loves us? If you think God is mad and mean, you will find yourself being mad and mean. Our perception of God is often totally incorrect. We need to view Him as a loving Father. We need to make the shift from ‘orphan’ living to ‘sonship’ living.
The Lord is full of gracious and compassionate, and Jesus took our punishment on our behalf. God proves and shows Himself strong. You can’t describe His love. That’s why you need to actually experience it.
Judges 13:17-23
“Then Manoah inquired of the angel of the Lord, “What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?” He replied, “Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding. ” Then Manoah took a young goat, together with the grain offering, and sacrificed it on a rock to the Lord. And the Lord did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched: As the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground. When the angel of the Lord did not show himself again to Manoah and his wife, Manoah realized that it was the angel of the Lord. “We are doomed to die!” he said to his wife. “We have seen God!” But his wife answered, “If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and grain offering from our hands, nor shown us all these things or now told us this.”
Psalm 139:1-14
“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
4 THINGS THAT CREATE A CLOUDED VISION OF GOD AND HOW WE SEE OURSELVES
1. Comparison
Comparison is stupid. The minute we start comparing ourselves (even if we compare ourselves with ourself), we take our gaze off from God and we stop seeing how God sees us. God is rediculously in love with each of us in our own unique way. If you compare yourself with someone, you are attaching too much value to what that person thinks about you. Don’t compare your journeys and manifestations with those of other people. Respond to God in your own unique way.
2. Fear
Fear is poison and grips people. Fear of man is one of the biggest ones: if I show myself, will they still love / like me? You should only be concerned about what the Father thinks about you. The Lord is the most faithful and loyal Person. You don’t need to prove anything to God, so why do you need to prove anything to God.
3. Isolation
Don’t hide things. Be vulnerable and let people in to get to know you. Intimacy is vital. People are afraid to be known. Sometimes we share our secrets with men, but not with God. Yet God knows us inside out and still loves Him, so be vulnerable towards God.
You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. (Psalm 139:1-4 NIV)
4. Accusation
The accuser stands before the Lord day and night accusing the brethren. If you are being accused, it is not from God.
You will never be accused of something that is not linked to your call. If God calls you to be a father (literally or figuratively), the devil will accuse you of not being a good father. The devil will accuse you of things that hold the key to your call. Accusation feels to real, it feels like it is truth. Sometimes it even feels like it is the Lord that is trying to discipline you. Accusation brings shame. A word from God brings life and freedom.
If we see how beautiful God is, we will see ourselves as beautiful as God’s kind eyes speak into our hearts. His kindness and His love and faithfulness are so welcoming. God is perfect and has the most awesome personality.
