Fighting off Lies

burning lies
There was a man that believed he was a failure at his job. He had spent the entire night working and at the end of his shift had to tell another that he had not experienced success. Later, when this man was confronted by a great gift, he exclaimed that he was not worthy of such generosity and love.

Have you ever felt that way? That you were not worthy of goodness, love, generosity, a good job, or happiness because of negative self-talk?

The kind of words such as:
*you are unworthy
*you are not good enough
*you are not pretty enough
*your past
*your failures
*your shame
*your anger
*your insecurity

The above are lies. These are the lies we tell ourselves and that others may tell us as well and they keep us from moving forward.

They keep us from loving ourselves and living our purpose. They keep us from being creative, looking for a better job, and living our dreams. It is so much easier to believe the negative crap at times but the fact is that they are still lies.

I encourage you to write down the lies you tell yourself; the things that keep you from moving forward. Then, write down on another bit of paper the truths (you are worthy, you are creative, you are smart, etc).

Tear that sheet of lies into small bits and destroy them. And let them go. Today.

And hold on to the sheet of truths.

In a class I taught this weekend, I burned the lies for the participants. Start up the barbeque pit and release the negativity while enjoying the day. As you enjoy the good food and the day you can ponder your blessings and the truths of your worth.

By the way, the man from above is Simon (Peter) and his event can be found in Luke 5:1-11.

I am linking up to Jenny Matlock for letter F.

19 comments:

Duni said...

I believe a lot of the lies that get stuck in one's head get put there by "those in charge" during formative years.
It took a while to erase them from my head.

Memories for Life said...

I love the physical act of burning the lies...makes it very real.

It seems I have always had people in my life that try to make me think that nothing I do is ever good enough and nothing is ever right no matter how hard I try. But I am strong and I know better! I know to burn these lies!

BeadedTail said...

I have some lies I need to burn. I wish I could take one of your classes!

Anonymous said...

It is such a shame that people tend to listen to those negatives rather than the positives. Great post!

Rocky Mountain Woman said...

Lovely lesson!

I've been trying to get rid of some of those since I was a young woman...


Maybe I need to do the same the next time I fire up my woodstove....

Esther Joy said...

Great way to address those lies! Very interesting post. I hadn't guessed that it was Simon Peter... but I imagine he told himself all those and more!

Kathleen said...

Ahhhh, my friend, Peter, whom I can soooo relate to so much of the time! I am grateful that God takes time to show me what is negative self talk and what are habits that I need to change. Romans 12:2

VBR said...

As I get older, I realize more and more, the things that others critisize in me are in fact the things that make me who I am.
I may not be everyone's 'cup of tea' but I will do just fine for me.
This was a wonderful F posting. Gives us all a chance to reflect on this idea of holding on to negative labels that get attached, by other and by ourselves. Thanks for sharing.

Lola said...

Hi again!

Many thanks for stopping by my Alphabe-Thursday post.

Such an interesting *F* post – so reflective.

Have a great weekend.

Unknown said...

This sound like a wonderful exercise! It is so sad that many of us are so hard on ourselves!

My name is Riet said...

what a wonderful post. I love it

storybeader said...

I think lying is one of the greatest sins of man. Lying about another person is horrible but lying about yourself, I don't understand. Hopefully people in your class learned a lesson, if it was needed. {:-D

Annesphamily said...

It is so truthful that we often overlooking the good qualities in ourselves.

I work for a specialist and altho I do work so very hard , yesterday we had a 2 hour hole in the schedule and another gal and I filled up that schedule with patients. It was our Thursday schedule and we see pts. from 9 to 5. When I told him he said "Oh I like a full schedule." He is like King Midas and loves his money. So for ten years I have patted myself on the back and when I receive a compliment from a patient I take it with a huge smile! It means a lot when someone appreciates you!
Thanks for this share. It is wonderful. I appreciate you for writing it! Hugs Anne

anitamombanita said...

works with anger, resentment and other negative energy in our lives too. Nice post!

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Wonderful, thought provoking "F" post, Erika! It is so true that we often have our head filled with lies because of the malicious things others say and do to us--that is what the sad empidemic of bullying is all about. It would be a better world if we could pratice positive reinforcement and award others who do also.

Judie said...

What a wonderful post!!! I used to feel that way, but over the years, I have gotten over it!!!

Splendid Little Stars said...

thoughtful post. Lies in our lives can be very destructive. Burning is great symbolism.

Judy Nolan said...

Negative self-talk leads to creativity blocks, among other things. I like the idea of "burning all the lies!"

Jenny said...

What a fantastically affirmative post.

This was really, really powerful writing.

Thank you for linking it.

A+