Newsletter - Jan 22nd 2010 - Lies

Dear Friends,

A few years ago I took up scuba diving and became certified - and since then I've been trying to get my friends underwater too.  I hear many "reasons" why they don't want to go diving.  One friends is convinced that there are numerous large creatures waiting to eat him down there.  Another friend believes he will drown. 

The real situation here is that their frame of mind - that is, things they believe about themselves and diving - prevent them from being able to take up the sport.  They believe things which regardless of truth are self limiting.

Whilst scuba is meaningless in many ways - there are many other things we all believe about God, about ourselves and about people in our lives that severly limit who we are, and what we can do.  These lies that we believe are not meaningless, and the limits they put on us sometimes prevent us from ever achieving what we are meant to achieve.

A child who grows up feeling overlooked by her parents may form conclusions about this which could limit all the relationships in her life.  Or a person continually overlooked for jobs may form conclusions that actually prevent them from being picked for a job.  Someone who sees God in a certain light may never get to really know Him as He is.  We are all limited in many ways by the things we think and beleive. 

You and I believe things which are not true.  However to us they seem true - that is because we believe them.  Every now and then we catch a glimpse into something different.  It is these glimpses which tell us that perhaps things are not always the way we think. 

The Bible encourages us to be transformed by changing the way we think.  This is something we do by reading the scriptures and praying for God to give us understanding.  As we continue like this, we find that our faithful loving God answers our prayers - and we are changed more into someone like Him.  I think that's wonderful.

All the Best - Talk to You Soon
David Alley