Jesusluvsall's Blog

The past several days had been really hot in my home city. We had temperatures close to 100 degrees Fahrenheit/38 Celsius several times and the evenings did not cool down much. So yesterday when I went for a walk, it felt cool outside to point it seemed like an early fall day. The temperature was 84 F/28C, but it felt cooler than that. I had gotten used to the hot weather. A day of 84F/28C in October would feel hot to me, but yesterday it felt cool and refreshing.

Perception changes depending on our situation.

The question is whose perception do we go by?

Those voices that tell us we aren’t good enough are always there trying to pull us down. They might come from others but many times they come from within ourselves. It can be from beating ourselves up mentally/emotionally. Memories of past mistakes seem to haunt us at times telling us we aren’t good enough. Messages stored in our minds from being mentally/emotionally abused taunt us.

As if that isn’t enough, there are spiritual forces that try to weaken us and enjoy piling on. Whispers into our minds from the dark forces telling us we aren’t good enough, we aren’t worthy, and there is no hope. They are reminiscent of C. S. Lewis’s book The Screwtape Letters.

So whose perception are we going to listen to?

Along comes Jesus and he says:

You are my beloved.

You are a child of God.

You are my friend.

You are heirs of all of God’s promises.

It can be a struggle to embrace Jesus’s perception of us. It takes some work to change our perception to match his. We renew our minds by reading his word-the bible. We renew our spirits by spending time in prayer. We are safeguarded by the friendships of others who follow Jesus.

For those who grew up in abusive homes or neglectful homes the struggle can be life long. I know because I grew up in such a home. But the truth of God’s word can never change because God never changes. Whatever he says is eternal truth that we can count on.

So whose perception do we want to listen to? Voices from the past, voices of spiritual darkness, or the Voice of Jesus The Good Shepherd who said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Friends let’s try to practice listening to the voice of Jesus, the voice of God, so we are not deceived and so we are not torn down.

Whose voice do you want to listen to today?