We live in a world that has developed into a lovers of themselves, over lovers of God. We began by evaluating how we are to review the accuracy of our perceptions, and to build a view of ourselves based on the clear teaching of the Word of God. We must then change our perception of ourselves in light of that revelation. We continue by exploring second category of inferiority judgments which has to do with a conscience or value system that has not bee biblically programmed. Sometimes people judge themselves to be inadequate in a particular area in which the Bible does not require them to be superior. As a young boy entering my junior year of high school, I was a 4’8″ student who wanted to be the star center of our high school basketball team. Unfortunately, my desire and the coaches assessment did not match. It was not a sin for me to be “short, and unathletic, yet I judged myself to be deficient. My judgment of my person value was based upon a “flaw” that was not my fault, nor was it a true definition of who I was. My problem was that I was overvaluing size … READ MORE

One of the hardest things we do is change our perspective about ourselves. We looked at 4 things we can do to assist in that process yesterday, and I would like to conclude with three more today: 1. Avoid making unbiblical prophecies about our future (Phil. 4:6). Inaccurate perceptions are often made worse by the sin of worry. Worry is fear in the absence of actual danger. he tend to overestimate the possibility of danger and magnify the degree of potential adversity. This is often accompanied by imaginary pessimistic and foreboding outcomes that have been distorted beyond all likelihood in our minds. Don’t allow your mind to minimize the available power of God, to see us through the circumstances of our lives. We want to be in control, but we must allow God to shepherd us through the dark valleys (Ps. 23:4) 2. Practice bringing every thought into captivity by writing out accurate perceptions based on Scriptural evidences (2 Cor. 10:3-5). In other words, take the inaccurate perception(s) and to the Word of God and see what God says about those perceptions, and then meditation on those verses to help reinforce your new understanding. 3. Learn to speak the truth … READ MORE

When I was in High School, I had a classmate tell me one day, “If you were to die, no one around here would ever miss you” – my assessment was that people would be better off without me around! That was an inaccurate perception of my worth. Proverbs 28:26 says “he who trusts in his own heart is a fool, but whoever walks wisely will be delivered.” my classmate’s statement was not a true statement because if I would have died, there were many around who would have missed me (I would venture to guess that classmate would have, also!). Let me suggest to you, a few things you can do to overcome inaccurate perceptions you may make like mine in this case. 1. Evaluate the available data on which you have based your erroneous perceptions (Pr. 28:26) – Asking yourself the right kind of self-examination questions can help you deliver yourself from much misery by getting you right to the heart of the issue. 2. Invalidate erroneous perceptions on the basis of two or three witnesses (2 Cor. 13:1) Call together 2-3 of the wisest, most mature people you know. Explain your perceptions, and ask them if it … READ MORE