One of the things emphasized at training camp was learning to speak truth over yourself and in other people's lives. It's been said that if someone is told something enough times they start to believe it. Well, it works the same way when speaking truth. Proverbs 18:21 – "the tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." It is up to us, however, to make that choice to speak truth into our lives and into others.
2 Corinthians 10:4&5 says. "the weapons [God's word/truth] we fight with are not the
weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge
of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."
I internalized many lies from my childhood which carried on into my adulthood. Lies the devil knew about and used against me to control me, to hinder my prayer life, destroy the purposes God had for me, you name it. At times the lies in my head got so bad I would bawl my eyes out night after night begging God to just take my life – because I couldn't stand listening to it anymore. Though now I look back at all those nights of dark depression and I'm glad for it. Call me weird, but if God had not allowed me to go through that, I don't think I would be able to pray and worship Him with such conviction as I do now. He graciously allowed me to endure it, I believe, to bring me to the end of myself…to get me to a place where I was so fed up I’d finally understand the authority I had in Jesus to say “ENOUGH!” (Luke 10:19)
One particular night at training camp, during a time of worship I finally told the devil, "you no longer have any right to be in my mind, you no longer have any control over me. Go now in the name of Jesus. I am DONE listening to your lies." Instantly I began to feel lighter, like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I was free. Also during this time, a lady from AIM staff came up to me and had a word from God for me. She said, “I feel like God wanted me to tell you that ‘you are beautiful, that He’s proud of you and that you are exactly where you’re supposed to be.”
Of course, because I was finally exercising the authority I have in Christ, and choosing not to listen to the lies anymore, this obviously pissed the devil off. I found out the following day from my roommate that our house had been broken into. Coincidence? I really think not… I was in the middle of training camp so there really wasn’t anything I could do until I got back. I only had an idea of what things of mine were stolen. The devil was clearly trying to use this to attack me, to distract me from what God was doing in my life. Yet ironically I had peace about it. I even kind of laughed about it, at the timing of it all. I suddenly felt like God was saying to me “now here’s a test to put what you’ve been learning into practice…” So I did.
The devil might be able to steal my things, but he cannot steal my joy or the inheritance God has for me.
One night my squad and I were sitting around a campfire eating dinner and sharing testimonies when we were later lead to shout declarations of truth over ourselves. So imagine roughly 40 people screaming at the top of their lungs into the darkness, over the hillside. Below are just a few of the many declarations I declared over my own self. Try it sometime, it's liberating.
"I am beautiful"
I am not ugly
I am beautiful
I am not abandoned
I am not unwanted
I am wanted
I am pursued
I am FUNNY!
I am victorious
I am a prayer warrior
I am not destroyed
I am made whole
I am perfect in Your eyes
I am Yours
I am not forgotten
I am not invisible
I am noticed by God
I am always on Your mind
I am worthy
I am worth the wait
You are worth the wait
I am not alone
I am surrounded by angels
I am not destroyed
I am delivered, set free
I am important
I am not a failure
I am bold
I am strong
I am desirable
I am loved
I AM BEAUTIFUL
What lies have you been told, and are believing about yourself? I encourage you…go somewhere where you can shout at the top of your lungs, or if you can't shout then just speak it out loud…but speak truth over yourself. Say ENOUGH to the lies and the control that you've allowed other people to have in your life because of the wrong things they've said or believed about you. To hell with the devil and his lies! Start believing what our Father in heaven says about you, not what you or anyone else thinks about you. Shout it from the rooftops.
you
are
beautiful.
