I was tackling the mountain of dishes today and was struck by the thoughts flowing through my mind.
“Its about time you did something about this.”
“Yeah.. you got a whole sinkful done. Good job, Shirley!”
“Idiot. If you’d done this yesterday you would have that much less to do today.”
“You’ve tackled one domino and they rest will go easier now.”
“Any normal woman would have their house spotless and not a disaster like this.”
“This isn’t so overwhelming. A few minutes working, a few minutes break… and on through the day. You can get the whole house done!”
“Duh… if you weren’t so lazy you wouldn’t have the whole house to clean.”
Hmmm… wonder which thoughts were from God and which were from the enemy. It’s so easy to tell when I write it here. But when the thoughts are flitting through my mind as I stand in the midst of a disastrous mess… its easier to hear and accept the darts from the enemy.
My kids would never talk to each other in such mean words. If they said “duh”, or called each other idiots… they would get a mouthful of soap so fast! And they would get a good talking to if not a sound spanking if they treated each other so disrespectfully and cruelly.
Yet, how often do I allow myself to be spoken to like this. And even embrace it over the sweet, kind, and encouraging words of my Daddy.
In society today, we are so quick to demand out rights. To require that others speak respectfully to us and give us our due esteem. If some stranger spoke that way to me, I would be shocked and appalled. I would consider them rude and obnoxious and let it roll off my back as foolishness… it’s their problem not mine! They just have a rotten attitude or a really horrible day.
And if a loved one spoke that way to me… boy, wouldn’t I get really ticked? If my husband called me an idiot I would be furious.
Yet I let myself be treated this way in my mind. What a shame. This is what I should be angry about. How dare the vanquished ones… the enemy who seeks to steal, kill, and destroy… the ones whose power Jesus stripped away… the ones who have no right to even speak to me unless I allow them… that they should whisper such evil lies and that I would allow myself to embrace and live according to them instead of the Words of my God and Father…
Utter foolishness.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
It is utter foolishness so why do we continue to listen and beat ourselves up?
WHOA!!! Have you been reading my mind???? I love this post. I have those same types of conversations in my mind all the time and have to remind myself where they come from. I do admit that sometimes, I linger in them. Think too long on the condemnations of the enmy. I’m thankful that I’m not the only one having these thoughts. Thank you for sharing!
Val
Shirley…really enjoyed this post! So very, very true! What a great idea to write your thoughts down…sure gives you a clearer picture of where they are coming from.
Amen sista! Wow! You are so right on and this is so full of truth. Thank you very much!
I really enjoyed reading that and soooo true!
Thanks for the good reminder Shirley!!
Oh, Shirley. YES – I can SO relate. This is a super reminder.