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Weekly Wisdom Winnows
by Lisa Mendenhall
What does it mean to face myself? Why do I want to face myself? What are the results if I do face myself? What are the consequences if I don't face myself? How do I face myself?
World English Dictionary's definition of the word face:
come up against somebody or something: to meet or confront somebody or something directly and bravely
So to face myself, I am confronting me directly and accepting the facts that God shows me about myself. It means I have to contend with what I am shown and deal with it no matter how unpleasant or difficult. The only way to do this successfully is in the prayer closet and being willing to stay there until....I will go into this more later.
Why do I want to face myself? There are things in each one of us that we skirt around on a daily basis. It may be something that stays right at the edge of our conscience. We can't say that we know it is not there, but we don't stop to ask what it is. It might come in the form of a sense of unrest or not having continual peace. Sometimes it is things we have no idea is in us and the only way we realize it, is when pressure is applied and we are surprised by our response. And at times when pressure is great enough we crash and burn. Some examples of this would be bitterness that surfaces out of nowhere, un-forgiveness, lusts of the flesh we didn't even know we had, deep hurts from our past that may manifest in other ways, anger and all the things like this. A lot of times they come to the surface in such disguises that we don't recognize what they are or we think that they are coming from something else. For instance we can get angry about a matter over and over again, get it handled and it pops back up again. It is possible that it is a symptom of something deeper that we don't even realize is there.
All of these things are BONDAGE. We may not realize it, but it keeps us from being all God created us to be and it stops us from growing in God. It also causes us to hurt other people unintentionally because wounded people wound people. It robs us of our joy and peace not to mention our finances, health and life. It can stop the plan of God for your life. We need freedom from these things, but for the freedom to come we have to face that those things are there and be willing to do what it takes to bring freedom. Freedom is an awesome thing, but it costs. It cost our pride, hurts, and shameful past. I am not saying that it will not be a painful process, but I can guarantee you that at the end, you will be on your knees thanking God for helping you to face yourself. The incredible joy, peace and victory that you will gain is literally indescribable. I cannot put into words how you will feel and the freedom, Oh My!, the freedom, there is nothing I can think of that can be compared to it.
The closest thing that I can think of would be like living in a home that is dilapidated. Rotten support beams, broken out windows, leaking roof, holes in the wall, leaking plumbing, etc...This house was built to be a secure, restful, safe, haven but what kind of habitation does it provide? So you tear it down, piece by piece, rip it apart and burn it up. Then you take what you can't burn and trash it. Then what? You start rebuilding from the ground up with all new materials so you can have a brand new solid home with no holes, leaks or broken pieces. This is what facing yourself in Christ does for you. In part 2 next week, we will go into the consequences of not facing your self and how to face yourself through Christ. I promise you, you cannot do this on your own. Only through Christ will you have the strength. Our pastor taught a couple of weeks ago on Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane and how he overcame His human side to make it to the cross victoriously. (Remember He laid aside His deity to come to earth as a man.) He compared Jesus' victory to Peter's failure under pressure and what caused them. I encourage you to read that passage of scripture in different translations and study on it some this week. This is the same way we will face our self and get our victory!
accept the facts: to accept the reality of a difficult or unpleasant situation
have to contend with something: to have to deal with or undergo something unpleasant or difficult
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'To separate the chaff from (grain) by means of a current of air. To rid of undesirable parts. To separate or get rid of (an undesirable part); eliminate: winnowing out the errors in logic. ...separate grain from chaff...separate the good from the bad...examine closely in order to separate the good from the bad; sift...' (www.dictionary.com) 'This study gave me direction and focus for my teaching. God had placed a longing in my heart to teach the body of Christ how to separate from carnal thinking and rid themselves of old ways that hinder their Spiritual growth. I desire to see them live victoriously, by the 'higher ways' of God's wisdom.'
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