What do you do when the words “I’m not good enough” come into your thoughts? When negative thoughts like “I can’t do this” or “I’ll never change” create limitations in your daily life and keep you from even trying? Do you have lies that hang around in your head no matter how much you try to ignore them? Do you have regrets that nag at you because of something you didn’t complete or were too afraid to begin?
What if I told you that you can silence that inner critic that holds you hostage?
The battle to change the annoying, destructive recording in your mind begins with God’s Word. And it is a battle. You can read God’s Word and skim over the promises and truths He has for you, but do you BELIEVE them? In order to silence the lies and critical voice inside your head you must have a battle plan. A plan to overpower the lies of the enemy with the Truth of God.
Jesus called him the “father of lies.” (John 8:44).
John called him “the devil” (John 12:9) and “the accuser.” (John 12:10)
No matter what you call him, the enemy is the one who tells you that you’re not good enough and never will be.
BUT IT’S JUST NOT TRUE.
The truth is because of Jesus you are enough.
His tactics are pretty simple but very sneaky. He can’t change the truth of who you are in Christ, but he can cause you to question the promises of God. His scheme takes the promises of God such as ‘I am holy and dearly loved,’ and twists them around in your mind to become – Am I holy and dearly loved? Can I do all things through Christ? Am I chosen?
The Bible says we are not ignorant of the enemy’s schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11). They include a plan of lies that build one upon the next and snowball into destructive thought processes like:
“I’m so stupid… I can’t do anything right…I’m a failure.”
The only way to recognize a lie is to know the TRUTH. We must know the truth so that when a counterfeit comes along we recognize it’s lack of authenticity. A bank teller doesn’t study counterfeit bills in order to detect one, they study what genuine currency looks like. The markings, the color, the feel of real money.
Jesus said, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32) It is knowing God’s truth that will allow you to recognize the lies of the enemy and reject them.
Once you recognize those lies and questions of the promises of God arising, you must replace them with truth.
After Jesus was baptized the clouds parted, a dove descended, and God spoke: “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:22) Shortly after Jesus went into the desert and was tempted by the devil. In Matthew 4:2-4 it says:
After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “IF you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ “
Did you catch that? “IF you are the Son of God…” Didn’t God JUST say “YOU ARE MY SON whom I love???” Yes. HE did. And the same deceiver will do the same to you! He’ll whisper to you:
If you were a child of God… then He would answer your prayers.
If you were a child of God… then He would give you what you want.
If you were a child of God… then He would make you happy.
If you were a child of God… then He would heal your body.
If you were a child of God… then He would _______________ [fill in the blank].
The devil knows EXACTLY who you are and EXACTLY which lies to tell. But how did Jesus defeat the devil? He pulled out the sharpest most powerful double-edged sword – the Word of God – and plunged it into Satan’s lie. With each of the devil’s temptations, Jesus fought back with the truth.
The enemy will try to get you to focus on your flaws rather than your faith. And when you focus on your faults, you take your focus off of God. Giving in to the lie of “I’m not good enough” will paralyze you. The remedy, however, is replacing the lie with who God is. One of the holiest names for God is YHWH (Yahweh) or I AM. When we say “I’m not good enough,” God says I AM. When we say “I’m not strong enough,” God says I AM.
Once we let go of the lies that we are not enough and take hold of the truth that we are more than enough because of Jesus’s presence and power in us, then we will be set free from the ‘less than’ mentality and be on our way to experiencing the courageous confidence of an overcomer.
The truth is we all have defects and deficiencies. God knows every one of them; He even knows what caused them. And yet He chose you anyway. He chose you before you were born. “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations” (Jeremiah 1:5).
Long before God created the earth, He had you in mind. He decided to adopt you into His family through Jesus Christ and make you the focus of His love. Why? Because it gave Him pleasure to do so (Ephesians 1:5).
God also planned the specific time and place in history for you to be born. Paul wrote, “From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands” (Acts 17:26).
How in the world could you or I ever be worthless? It’s impossible.
Adapted from “Enough: Silencing the Lies That Steal Your Confidence” by Sharon Jaynes