Whether I want to really admit it or even think about it, what I truly believe drives my actions. And to take it a step further, a lot of times my actions don’t line up with what I say I believe. My beliefs drive my thoughts, how I view myself, how I view others and how I view God. I can try to fake it until I make it all day long but what I truly believe is what still drives me. It will come out!
Take a moment to think about your thoughts. Is there a banner inside your mind with a theme written on it? This banner probably rules your thoughts. What color would you use to describe your thoughts? Is it dark? Or maybe bright? These are some not so easy questions we can ask ourselves to get a better picture of what we truly believe. It is also a great starting place to see if what we are believing is really true or based on lies. I would bet that a lot is based on the latter.
We need to give ourselves some grace. God is gracious with me. I don’t embrace His graciousness most of the time. He is patient with me and reminds me over and over again of His goodness and truth even when I continue to ignore Him. I struggle with making this black or white. It’s either fully live from truth or from lies. My thoughts start sounding like this: “Why can’t you get it together, Melissa? Why are you so dumb? You are worthless.” Worthlessness becomes the theme of my thoughts and therefore drives my actions.
Taking a look at our actions will help determine the theme of your thoughts. Sometimes I have a hard time knowing what I’m really thinking. I have to work backwards and start with what I am doing. Am I complaining about everything that I encounter? Am I not sleeping because I have so much to do? Am I avoiding a certain person or conversation? Sometimes I have to look at my actions and let them lead me to what I’m believing.
Asking why helps us see what is driving our actions. Why am I doing all of the things on this never-ending to-do list? Why can’t I say no? Asking why makes us pause. If we take a moment to ask these “why” questions and if we are truly honest with ourselves then usually, we can decide what thoughts are driving our actions. We may see that we are people pleasing. We may see that our worth is completely tied into our performance or in keeping others happy. We can then decide if these thoughts are based on truth or lies.
This is something I work through frequently. I catch myself “being in a mood” quite often and if I take some time to self-reflect and talk it through with a trusted person then usually I can get to the real heart issue. It’s not easy. It’s not always pleasant. However, through it I am able to see glimpses of how God sees me and what His true thoughts are toward me. Although the process is difficult, the reward for engaging it is priceless.
-Melissa
****Over the summer months we will continue blogging but we will also slow down a little along the way so we may not post every Tuesday. We hope you enjoy your summer!
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