Stop Thinking POORLY About You
Feb 23, 2021
How you think about you makes a difference.
This has been one of the biggest learning curves. I grew up in a dysfunctional household with alcoholics, so stability and safety felt like a luxury. It was more of a special occasion rather than a normality. I know I’m not alone in this department but learning that didn’t make the changes any easier.
The way I thought about myself- who I was and what I was capable of doing was very limiting. These beliefs felt true and didn't seem optional. It was more comfortable to feel chaotic then to experience peace.
Some of the thoughts I had about myself included, “I’m broken beyond repair”, “I’ll never reach a safe place,” and “I’m unworthy of that type of love.”
These thoughts created behaviors that made quitting easy when things got tough. I'd quickly leave relationships when I felt threatened. I would settle for almost anything if I got it easily. My actions made getting what I really wanted seem impossible.
It wasn’t until I had my first life coach that I learned this way of seeing myself wasn’t only harmful but it made life harder than it needed to be. This blew my mind. How could she not see my brokenness? I felt like it had been written on my forehead since I was a little girl. Like a big red stamp that literally read “Broken”. Plus, I had a lot of evidence to prove this belief was true.
I came from a broken home. It was obviously my fault that my parents drank too much. The cards I was dealt in life were unfair- which led me to being a victim to circumstances, that apparently stemmed from my defects. I struggled with grades. Life, in general, felt like a giant exam I kept getting a big fat "F" in. This was my story. Sound awful? I totally agree!
This wasn’t a story I chose on purpose. It was a story that accumulated, on default, over the years that proved my self-defeating beliefs to be true, over and over.
Thankfully, I was introduced to someone who showed me a different way of seeing myself and the world.
Fast forward five years, I continued to study and research the power of the mind- the thoughts you repeat and how they create actual nuero pathways. At first, those facts even felt discouraging.
“So not only have I been telling myself a powerless story about myself and life but I’ve been practicing them over decades that are now literal pathways in my brain?” Talk about total defeat and hopelessness.
The good news is that building NEW nuero pathways, ways of thinking about yourself, doesn't have to take years or even months. It can happen quickly, when you're willing to change your focus.
Romans 12:2 "Don't be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what Gods will is --His good, pleasing and perfect will."
Daily Application: Take 15 minutes a day to write down 3 lies you've believed. They can be lies in one specific area of life or in general about yourself. Then ask the Lord to what truth can you replace this lie with. Who does God say you are? Who do you want to say about you?
When we practice believing it FIRST, then our actions will follow. Try this exercise for 30 days and see how you stop thinking poorly about you and start seeing yourself with the beauty God sees you with.
Steadfast Life's mission is to empower people to build a life that lasts on a solid foundation of faith, purpose, and adventure, so you can thrive, not just survive, through life's challenges.
Are you ready to learn more about our coaching programs and adventure retreats?
