The Influence Inside

The other day I was reading a story my friend wrote for her column. She is very susceptible to the affects of the toxins in hazardous plants. Their yard, however, has poison oak, poison ivy, and poison sumac mixed in the landscape. She knows she cannot do any yard work to avoid endangering her health (I wish I could use that excuse). There was so much work to do in the yard, though, and it coaxed her and pressured her and she began to tackle the landscaping instead of leaving it to her husband. Another voice spoke too, and it told her to "stop … now," and it gave her pause. She decided she would be very careful. She thought she could control the situation. But, somewhere along the way, she got attacked on her right arm, causing it to swell abnormally and painfully. This meant at the very least a trip to the doctor, medicine, possible steroids, etc…

This story immediately reminded me of the message I heard a month ago by CJ Mahaney on "The Troubled Heart" from Psalm 42. The psalmist demonstrates the inner turmoil each of us experiences. You know what I am talking about; that still small voice in your head that can encourage or depress you. Paul Tripp said it best: "You are the most influential person in your own life." CJ asked us to think about the truth of Tripp's statement. We all are in a never-ending conversation with ourselves. From the moment we open our eyes in the morning, until the time late at night when we drift out of consciousness, we are telling ourselves what to do, how to feel, and how to act. I would dare say those "quiet people" we know may actually talk to themselves even more.

What we communicate to ourselves influences us in both our attitudes and our actions. We tell ourselves we don't deserve what we are going through, we deserve to be treated better than we are, etc …, and wallow in self pity. We coax ourselves into sin by tricking ourselves into believing how great it will be, or how we deserve it after what we've been through. The truth is, because of our sin nature, we are constantly giving ourselves bad advice. So, even though we want what's best for "me", most of us, left to ourselves, are our own worst influences. What we desperately need is an intervention.

Enter the influence of God Almighty. I know it will seem like I am contradicting myself, but for those that have been called by God, the Lord is the most influential person in our lives. Let me explain. We were dead in our sin until He made us alive (Ephesians 2:4-6; Colossians 2:12-13). God took our hearts of stone, and gave us hearts of flesh to cause obedience (Ezekiel 36:26-27). This great God, by the purpose of His will, chose us before He created the world, and predestined our adoption as His very own children (Ephesians 1:4-5; 6-10; 11-14). This Divine intervention is what I would call an irresistible influence. God, in love, stepped in and gave us what we were incapable of because of sin. He now gave us the voice we needed all along to be the right influence on ourselves. He did this when He gave us the Holy Spirit to dwell in us (I Corinthians 2:12-13).

We still influence ourselves all the time, but now God has changed us so we can listen to His instruction in the Bible. Instead of listening to that old influence, we need to talk to ourselves with the truth and understanding we now have in Christ. We need to tell ourselves the truth that comes from God's word. This can only happen if we are continually going to it for understanding, knowledge, and wisdom. We need to have the attitude for the knowledge of God that the psalmist has in Psalm 119. He cannot get enough of it and neither should we.

This change from listening to our sinful selves and speaking God's truth to our hearts does not just happen. Each day you need to make a concerted effort to stop listening to the wrong voice and spend the day talking to yourself. Speak to yourself the wisdom that comes from God's word. Sow the seeds of truth into your soul. Water them with the promises God has for us and let the Holy Spirit grow the fruit of faith and trust in our inner being. The skill to be totally dependent on the grace of God is one that needs to be learned. This is a lifestyle change that needs to be addressed on a daily basis and every time we find our troubled soul leading us the wrong direction. This struggle will continue your whole life.

It is time we became a positive influence on ourselves instead of the negative one we have been. We need to change our troubled souls into hopeful ones. We need to ask ourselves why we are down and admonish ourselves to hope in God (Psalm 42:5, 11). We need to listen to the Voice of Truth.