Finding the Light in Self-HarmSample

DAY 3

WEAK BUT STRONG

Welcome back! I am so glad you have made it this far. The first two days were the hardest part of our study on self-harm. We must understand where we are before we can understand where we are going.

So far, I have had you find answers as to why you engage in self-harming behaviors and what you temporarily feel relieved from as a result of the behaviors. Yesterday, I also explained who you really are through God’s eyes. You are so much more than what this world tells you! God did not make a mistake creating you. You are one of His masterpieces!

Sometimes it is hard to hear positive feedback about yourself, especially if you have been told negative feedback for a long time. The enemy can manipulate our minds, and we start to believe the lies. Hearing positive feedback is one thing, but now you MUST believe it!

Today, we will start looking at our Scripture for the week. Let us read together 2 Corinthians 4:6-7:

6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

When the Apostle Paul wrote this to the Church of Corinth, he was articulating the triumphs and trials that result as a believer. He first mentions a treasure here, which is God’s glory. Yet, he notes this glory is stored in jars of clay.

In ancient times, a jar was useful in daily life as it was needed to hold various things. However, they could break easily. Therefore, mentioning jars of clay here was a common metaphor during the times of human weakness.

Paul is really describing here that God is triumphant in our human weakness.

God knows the trials and pain we face. As we try to fix them ourselves through behaviors such as self-harm, He is there by our side, giving us the strength to overcome. We just need to reach out and see who we really are in God’s eyes.

Tomorrow we will look at not being destroyed, but for now, I leave you with this: by seeking God for His strength, we also must admit our weakness. Self-harm is how our human minds are manipulated into believing we can fix things in our life alone. But God is in you, giving you strength. You just need to let go of trying to fix things and let God overcome the lies.

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