Truth Be Told: A Six-Day Devotional by Matthew Westनमुना

Day 6

Lie #6: You are what they say you are. 

Truth be told: You are who God says you are.

If our hearts were gardens, I think we'd remember the first time that certain seeds were planted there, especially seeds of insecurity. I know mine remembers. I remember the moment the first seeds of insecurity were planted on impressionable soil. I remember the day that I learned my first name rhymed with another word that wasn't quite the flattering description a fourth-grade kid would want to be associated with… I heard a few of the kids at school intentionally putting my name into that playground song: “Matt Matt bo-bat, banana fanna fo-fat…” and they knew what they were doing too, those punks… (just kidding!) They did it over and over again. I don't think I ever looked in the mirror the same way after that day. My struggle with self-image continued and only increased as I made my way through junior high, high school, college and really even to this day. Truth be told, I've felt this deep need for approval and affirmation for as long as I can remember. I wonder if that started back on the playground when my eyes were open to see that from someone else's opinion, I was, in some way, less than. From my childhood to this very day, moments of insecurity have, at times, absolutely paralyzed me. Just being honest. James 2:1 says, “My dear friends, don't let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith.” 

I love the children's story, The Velveteen Rabbit. There's a conversation between the horse and the rabbit, two stuffed animals, about what it's like to be real. The horse says to the rabbit, “Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in your joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real, you can't be ugly except to people who don't understand.” Oh, to be that kind of real - secure enough to ignore what others say about you, especially the ones who don't understand, right?

So, how do we fight insecurity? Well, knowledge is a weapon but not just any knowledge.  It's our knowledge of God that gives us the power to turn the tables and take captive every lie and every thought that tries to keep us feeling less than. There's power in knowing who God is and who God says we are and looking at scripture, I bet He knew we would need more than just one reminder. 

Here's what God says about you: 

Genesis 1:27 - You were created in His image.

1 John 4:4 - You belong to God.

1 Peter 2:9 - You are chosen. God's special possession.

Ephesians 2:10 - You're a masterpiece. 

Galatians 3:26 - You're his child. 

I think it's safe to say that you're kind of a big deal to God. He never looks at you with regret or thoughts of what He would do differently if He could start you over again. You are who God says you are. It's not just about letting the truth be told with your life, you first have to let the truth be told in your life. Fill your soul with God's word and let one reminder after another of how much He loves you and values you be the new seeds that get planted and take root in the garden of your heart and watch and see how that garden grows.

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I want to thank you for joining me in this “Truth Be Told” reading plan. I hope it's challenged you, encouraged you, inspired you, and, hopefully, brought you closer in your relationship with the Lord. 

You may be reading this and you don't yet have that personal friendship. You can't remember a moment in your life where you simply just decided to say, “God, I believe, once and for all, what you say about me is true. I believe in your love and I believe that the truth can be told because you know everything about me and yet, you forgive me and love me anyway.” If that's you if I’m talking to you and you'd like that moment to happen, that’s the most defining moment in your life - when you decide to place the story of your life in God's hands. He's the author of all stories and He has the best plan for your life. If I'm talking to you and you'd like to pray with me right now, I'm going to invite you to do just that. 

Dear God, 

I love you, I need you, and I can't make it through this life without you. I've had a hard time letting the truth be told but, at this moment, I acknowledge that I'm far from perfect. I'm broken, I'm a sinner, and just like the Bible talks about, I fall short of perfection all the time but you're a perfect God with a perfect love and I want that perfect love to change my life from the inside, out. So, my answer is ‘yes.’ I ask you to come into my heart to forgive me and make me a new creation. From this moment on, I want to live the most authentic version of my life possible and I want to do that by stepping into your plan for my life and finding my mission in your love. I know that you have a plan for me, plans to prosper and not to harm me, plans to give me a hope and a future and I choose, from this day forward, to let the truth be told in my life so that other people who are hurting, other people who are hopeless, and others who are struggling may look at my life and see what you've done and be reminded that you can change their life too. I love you. Thank you for loving me. 

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

If you prayed that prayer, first of all, I want to say that I am so proud of you and I’m so excited for this new chapter of your story to begin. Also, I want to encourage you to visit our non-profit ministry’s website, popwe.org. You can sign up to receive more devotions just like this and you can submit a prayer request. We'd love to be praying for you and staying in touch with you.

There are lots of great tools there to help you grow in your spiritual journey.

God bless you. Let the truth be told. God has huge plans for your life.

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I don't know why it's so hard to admit it 

When being honest is

The only way to fix it 

There's no failure, no-fault,

There's no sin you don't already know

So, let the truth be told