Lies lead my heart in the wrong direction and keep me from the good God has planned. The lies I tell myself are leftovers from long ago; my sisters call them tapes and tell me to stop replaying them. I did stop playing them a few years ago, but I still hold on to them. As I prayed last night, God bid me to give them to Him. I asked Him to help me hear them as the lies they are and give me truth to replace them.
God reminded me of Jeremiah 29:11 “I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.” (NLT)
The first lie God showed me is also the biggest one. It is the mother of all the lies in my life. I tell myself I am not worthy of love and believe the lie. Jeremiah speaks the truth about God and His love for me. He knows my heart better than anyone, and He knows His hope for my future is hidden beneath my leftover lies. Like my furniture, I can move those lies without help. I need God, and He is ready and waiting to take those lies off my heart.
Giving Him those lies sounds simply enough, but it’s like cutting out a part of my soul. My identity has rested upon those lies, and I’m afraid I won’t know who I am without them. Lent is about change and growth; it is a time for new beginnings. Lent leads my heart toward the greatest change the earth has ever known. The power that raised Christ from the grave is beneath the pile of lies that began forming in my heart the moment I was born. I’m not sure how many lies God will show me, but my sincere prayer is that I will hear each of them as I heard this one, in His loving voice instead of the voices from my past.
God put my leftover lie in the form of a question. “Do you truly believe you are not worthy of My love?”
Coming from Him in that form, I knew the answer immediately. “Of course not!”
“Then get that lie out of your heart and put My truth in its place.”
I felt a deep sense of relief without feeling the need to rehash the past. It wasn’t true. Like the clothes that do not suit or fit me anymore, it went in the stack of things I’m not taking with me to my new home. I am worthy of God’s love, and I am worthy of the love He wants for me. His plans are filled with hope, but He can’t carry them out until I let Him take the trash out of my heart. I’m a believer in recycling and reusing, but when it comes to these hateful leftover lies, I want them gone for good!
journeywithgigi 
I love you for putting this out for yourself and others. I know those tapes and I too have worked through some. They still swim around as thoughts , while I can’t control the first one. I’m practicing identifying the thought as a non truth, and say or write down a truth. Like I know I’m lovable and I add positive affirmations. This praying and practicing is becoming a tad bit easier every day. If I lapse, my thoughts, if not addressed will continue until I’m edging God Out. He’s always there and it is me that has to praise and love myself with staying in the present . Leaving the past as history, tomorrow as a mystery, today is our gift and that’s why we call it the present. Sending you love. You’re an amazing writer gigi.
Thank you so much Annie. Your comment means a lot to me. I know God has great plans for all of us. Love you!!