Where do you need to draw back and be silent?  Are you accusing others?  Are you accusing yourself?  Are you accusing God? Do you know how to stop yourself and turn to Jesus for help?

Let's reflect... How loud is your voice of accusation to yourself?  

Here's a practical example from my life:

On the day of writing this exercise, I spilled my Starbucks coffee on my cream colored living room rug. In addition to the coffee, it also contained cream, chocolate syrup and black strap molasses. Quite the stain cocktail. When this happened I was not silent. I started admonishing myself out loud pretty quickly and pretty sternly. “What is wrong with you? Pay attention! What in the world are you doing?! Why aren’t you more careful? Look what you’ve done! What in the world? How can you be so careless?” And so on, and so forth for about a good five minutes as I rushed to get the steam cleaner set up.

Question #1 for you.
Do you talk to yourself or others this way? Has or does anyone talk to you this way?

I stopped myself in my tirade when I remembered that a couple of weeks ago God helped me get through a similar situation where I self-condemned. I remembered His sweetness and gentle way with me. He helped me see how my negative self-talk was destructive and based upon lies. Jesus helped me reframe my thoughts to realize I merely made a simple mistake. This is an example of the Holy Spirit of Jesus interrupting my thoughts and casting down my arguments.

Did you know that Jesus will do that for you?  This is one of the roles of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus will show you that your thoughts are nothing like His thoughts.  He will show you that your ways are nothing like His ways.

Isaiah 55:8“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.

When I was suddenly stopped myself from berating myself, it was because a sudden thought came that God had recently been showing me how quickly and easily I self-condemn.  He was giving another example.  When I realized it, it short circuited my tirade against myself.  

I have gotten to this point with recognizing Jesus interrupting me.  It's because I continually open up to Jesus and share my upset.  It has been a habit I have developed.  I invite Him to talk to me and counsel me and show me what is true and what is false.  I listen and take His counsel.  His word is often what counsels me.  And He is often giving me counsel THAT IS OPPOSITE OF MY OWN THOUGHTS.  That's because I've take Isaiah 55:8-9 above literally.  His thoughts are not my natural thoughts.  His ways are not my natural ways.  His thoughts are so MUCH HIGHER than my negative, berating, lifeless thoughts!

I can recognize much more quickly now.  And now, I much more quickly turn from my flesh based reactions and am redirected to the thoughts of God.

Jesus has shown me how big of a deal I can make of simple mistakes!  Mistakes of myself and how hard I can be on others!  Has He shown you this about yourself? 

He has shown me that a big reason I do this with myself is because I've been talked to in very harsh ways in my past.  And I internalized that voice and have learned to talk to myself in that same harsh way. 

Are in the habit of talking to yourself or others this way over little things?  What does your self-talk sound like?  Consider how self-defeating this language is for bigger things.

🙏. Pray- "Jesus, I want to become more self-aware of how I talk to myself.  I want to be open to you showing me how I accuse myself or others.  If I need to ask for forgiveness from you, please show me.  If I need love, please help me be open to your love.  I want you to heal my negative attitudes and self-talk.  Show me where I am to take responsibility, and also where I am being overly critical of myself or others.  Heal me in the face of false accusation.  Thank you Jesus.  Amen."

Reflection #2 for you:  Mimic the character of Jesus' silence in the face of accusations.
Jesus has a character that was often silent in the face of his accusers. Often Jesus held his tongue. When people hurled insults at him, He did not retaliate. When he suffered unjustly, he made no threats. Spit in his face? Silent. Mock him and beat the crown of thorns into his head? Silent.

1 Peter 2:23- When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.

Jesus modeled that turnabout is NOT fair play. He could have defended himself, easily broken free, and turned the tables, publicly exposing and humiliating his accusers and his followers who abandoned him. Instead, he was silent as he suffered. He trusted in the love of the Father who He knew would raise Him from the dead. 

Jesus knew resurrection life from God was His victory!  So He was silent, and waited on God to defend and save Him.

Where do you need to hold your tongue?  Where do you need to release a situation for God to handle and then wait for Him to defend and deliver you?  By His Spirit, He can breathe new life into your circumstances!

Romans 8:11- And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.

"Jesus I want to experience resurrection life.  I don't want to live in my own power.  I wait in silence right now, and call upon your Name.  Help me hold my tongue where silence is the best response.  Raise me up in life.  Help me speak life affirming words that reflect my trust in you."  (take a minute or so and invite Jesus to come.)

Do you see we are talking to Jesus the way we would talk to a trusted mentor and supernatural Helper?

Only Jesus offers supernatural relief .  It comes when you stop being silent with Him.  You are to open up and unburden.

Psalm 62:8- Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.

Do you regularly pour out your heart to God?  We easily vent to others, but do we naturally and easily unburden our souls to God?  That is where the healing is.  

He calls us to pour out our hearts to Him.  

🙏 Exercise 3- Pouring out your hurt
What do you need to pour out to Jesus from deep within?  For this next exercise, focus on hurt.  Who or what has recently hurt you?  Example- "Lord, today my best friend completely ignored me.  Instead she hung around with the popular crowd and looked down at me with disgust as they walked by...  That hurt my feelings.  Please comfort me."

As you would tell a doctor what hurts, tell Jesus what hurts.  Jesus understands.  He endured an untold level of mental, emotional, and physical abuse in order to identify with your pain, to take your pain. 

Count how many things Jesus did for you in Isaiah 53:4-11.

Isaiah 53:4-11- Surely he took up our pain
    and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
    stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
    and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
    yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
    and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
    so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
    Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
    for the transgression of my people he was punished.
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
    and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
    nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
    and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
    and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,
    he will see the light of life and be satisfied;
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
    and he will bear their iniquities.
​
❓ 🤔 How many abuses did you count that Jesus suffered for you from those scriptures?  

Which ones really touch you deeply?  "I can't believe He was without sin, yet was literally crushed to death and suffered for me!"

Based upon those abuses (that go far beyond any pain you have ever endured), don't you think He understands your sorrow, loneliness, anger, confusion, etc?

This is why He invites burdened hearts to come to him. He has endured and won!  He wants you to talk to Him sharing both good and bad.  He can give you victory over sin, negative self-talk, guilt and shame!  He promises to renew your soul!

Matthew 11:28-30- 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Instead of harsh rebuke, as you open up and talk to Jesus, you will discover that your confession will be met with tender mercy, undeserved kindness, and supernatural cleansing!  You will find rest for your soul!

If you want to practice more, try these simple steps:
1- PRAY- “Jesus I need your help. I want need your good news to flood my heart in exchange for the bad news I rehearse. Please reveal to me how I get caught up mercilessly berating myself or others.”
2- Meditate- Think about some negative language/beliefs you are speaking/rehearsing to yourself or others. Write a few of those phrases down on a piece of paper. Notice how self-defeating and destructive they are.
3- PRAY- “Jesus you do not condemn. Renew my mind and heart. I want to experience the healing of your holy presence, love and mercy. I invite you right now. Please come.”
4- Now wait quietly. Still yourself as you wait, by inhaling and exhaling deeply. On the inhale say to yourself, “Jesus.” On the exhale say to yourself, “heal me.” Just wait there expecting the healing silence of His presence.
5- End by thanking Him and inviting Him to keep guiding you. “Thank you God. Be with me, create in me a new heart Jesus.   Lead and guide me in the path of your life and truth.  Amen.”

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