Finding the Light in Self-HarmSample

DAY 5

REALITY

Welcome to day five of our week's study on self-harm. After trying to understand why we participate in self-harming behaviors and what temporary relief we feel from it, we have started to study Scripture, understanding that God has created us perfect.

If you haven’t started to believe that yet this week, please pause this study and spend some time listening to God’s whisper in your life. The manipulation, lies, and pain are loud in your life, but God still whispers how valuable you are. He created you perfectly, making no mistakes. If you haven’t been able to hear that and believe that yet, please pause until you are ready for today’s reality check.

As we have studied Apostle Paul’s letter to the Church of Corinth, we are learning that although we were created perfect, we are weak. However, it is in our weakness that God’s glory and strength can triumph so that we are not destroyed.

If we look back to the Old Testament in Psalm 116:3-6, King David sang:

3 The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me; I was overcome by distress and sorrow. 4 Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Lord, save me!” 5 The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. 6 The Lord protects the unwary; when I was brought low, He saved me.

Here is the reality. Thousands of years ago, King David expressed the same strength and saving God provided during times of his distress and sorrow. This is just as the Apostle Paul describes too in 2 Corinthians. The reality is the nature of God has never changed. From the very beginning, He created humans and saw that creation was VERY good. Although we are weak in our perfection, God has always been the strength for His children.

It is easy to assume since the Bible was written thousands of years ago, our story is different, so God is different. The reality, though, is God is NOT different; He has proven throughout His creation that He is the strength. Our human weakness is not destroyed when we seek Him.

This may seem a bit repetitive, but it needs to be. You may have had years of trauma or been told negative things about yourself for so long that you have begun to believe these lies. Having a negative self-image doesn’t just come one day; it comes through a repetitive nature. Therefore, we must be repetitive in fighting back and exercise a daily reminder of being created perfectly.

Look back and see who you really are: Beautiful (Ecclesiastes 3:11), Victorious (Romans 8:37), Enough (2 Corinthians 12:9), Created (Genesis 1:31), Strong (Philippians 4:13), Amazing (Psalm 139:14), Capable (Mark 10:27), Chosen (1 Thessalonians 1:4), Never Alone (Matthew 28:20), and Always Loved (Romans 8:39).

Here’s the wonderful thing about our reality today—God hasn’t changed. He is still our strength in our weakness. We can’t fix this ourselves. We need Him, and He will rescue us.

I’ll see you tomorrow as we learn about replacement.

SUICIDE & CRISIS LIFELINE: CALL OR TEXT 9-8-8