Core Scripture: “There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification.” (1 Corinthians 14:10)
Message: I fight voices every day. Not literal voices. Maybe I should call them thoughts. These thoughts play in my head, and recently I have begun to reflect on them. Some thoughts are good. Others are not so good. Others yet are downright nasty.
I wonder about you guys … Does anyone else experience this? Are the thoughts you tinker with positive or negative? Do they come from the world or from the Holy Spirit? What do you do with the negative thoughts that invade your mind? Do you believe them or do you shoot them down?
Let’s get real. Last Friday morning I was at my F3 workout, running back and forth in the elementary school parking lot. I already know I am out of shape. Much of this is because I struggle in completely giving my diet to the Lord. I rationalize that my physical exhaustion from working at Amazon excuses me from working out when I get off work. At these workouts, I modify the exercises.
My buddy called me out.
“Hey, Hooked on Phonics,” he greeted me. “I noticed you are modifying. Are you injured?”
I continued my jumping jacks as the rest of the guys were doing some heavy lifting with cinder blocks. F3 calls them “coupons.” Immediately the voice in my head shook me to my core.
How pathetic are you! You can’t keep up with your friends, you out of shape scumbag! Everyone around your group heard you, too. Are you going to take that?
The voice pissed me off. And I believed that voice.
“Nope, not injured. I don’t have a coupon,” I retorted back with just the right note of irritation.
Puffs of smoke evaporated from my mouth into the chill of the morning air.
“I have another coupon in my car that you can borrow,” my friend replied. “I swear, I am not judging you.”
The voice inside my head didn’t like his response.
Are you kidding me? He is TOTALLY judging you! Tell this guy off! Your anger is like a tenacious, caged pit bull. Release it!
“It feels like you are judging me, man,” I said, trying to hold back my frustration.
The rest of the workout we never spoke. My anger began to seethe as I drove over to Hy Vee for our fellowship afterwards. The voice in my head actually led me to try to articulate my thoughts out loud in the car.
“He just doesn’t understand me. I need to remind him that he doesn’t work a physically demanding job like the one I do at Amazon. I modify because my body can’t take it. And my schedule only allows me to come once a week, so of course I am out of shape!”
At that point, a new voice was heard. This one was much more loving. Gentle. Empathetic. And downright convicting. The voice won me over.
Clint, it is okay to be upset, but be careful. James 1:19 reminds us to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. This guy is only trying to make you better. Is there anything wrong with someone holding you accountable? Hold your tongue for now.
I took a deep breath and submitted to the likes of this new voice. Do you recognize it? It is the Holy Spirit, and I tell you what—it felt right! It felt like the mature thought, and it won me over. I even got a fist bump from my friend at the end.
“Good job today, Hooked on Phonics!” he said, pounding my knuckles.
“Thanks, man,” I said. “See you guys next week.”
Later that morning, I prayed. The Lord revealed to me that I needed to thank my friend for his encouragement at the end, not to mention his accountability. But He also told me it was okay to say that I was hurt that I was called out in front of the entire group. I sent him an honest message via Slack, our social media platform, and he replied back favorably.
This morning, I was back at F3. Same time. Sam place. Same crazy group of guys. I mean, how else can you describe a bunch of men that workout in an elementary school parking lot at 5:30 am? It was only fitting that the guy leading it was the same guy I had a run in with last week.
I shed my North Face jacket ten minutes into the workout. The temperature, a balmy 45 degrees, was a welcome change from the below zero weather we had been experiencing in the weeks prior.
Did I modify again? Yep, I did. Needed to. And I was okay with it. So was my friend who was leading the charge. While he did 15 burpees, I cranked out five. When he called for us to do a “World War 3” by laying on our backs and bench pressing cinder blocks, I lay down and did some ab work instead, rotating side to side.
Those voices tried to haunt me again, but I didn’t like them. I told them to shut up. And I listened to the one voice that matters most. This voice reminded me that I was a masterpiece of God’s creation (Ephesians 2:10) and that we all have different gifts from God (1 Peter 4:10). The voice likewise empowered me to lead the discussion at Hy Vee following.
This was just one in depth look at the voices that dance in my head. I have noticed the other voice—which I now fully understand is the voice of Satan—tries to attack my marriage, my work, my duty as a father, my friendships … pretty much all areas of my life. This leads me to my question of the day …
What will I do with those voices? Whose voice will I listen to? I am learning the lies of the evil one are worthless, and the truth of the Holy Spirit is fulfilling. I am also devising a gameplan, both offensive AND defensive, to fight back.
- Recognize whose voice you are listening to. Is it Satan’s or the Holy Spirit’s? We can only know God’s voice by immersing ourselves in God’s Word on a regular basis, putting His truth in our hearts.
- Filter the negative thoughts. You have the power to diffuse Satan’s lies! If you have recognized the voice is a lie, you can choose to filter it out and focus on the truth.
- Focus your heart on the truth. Think about those thoughts often. Count your blessings. If you focus on the negative, you will only bring yourself down. The choice is yours.
I just experienced a midday conversation that can only be described as frustrating. Those negative voices came back, and I knew I needed to go to the Lord in prayer. Out of my prayer cup, I selected three topics to pray about. The Lord’s response to my prayer was crystal clear, and He spoke through those strips of paper.
The first strip was to pray for my boys’ spiritual growth. I confessed to God that I feel inadequate as a spiritual leader and asked for his wisdom in leading my boys. He reassured me that I am doing better than I thought and that I need to wait for the Lord’s timing. My timeline is always different from His.
The second strip had the name of my F3 friend, Morgan Freeman. Almost the same time, I got a message from him asking me to help him lead the beatdown at Pretty Bird next Friday. Game on! I gladly accepted his invitation and told him I would call him later this coming week.
The last strip had a single scripture. It was Philippians 4:8. I pulled that verse up on my phone and reflected on it: “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
I thanked God for my blessings. I praised him for the lessons learned, and I opened a new blog up, anxious to share my thoughts.
Challenge: What voices are you hearing in your head? How do you deal with them? Journal about these voices and seek scripture that will encourage you through your struggles.
Bible study: Read Matthew 4:1-11 and journal or discuss the following questions …
- How long was Jesus tempted?
- Considering the length of time that He was tempted, what was Jesus feeling physically and emotionally?
- Where did Satan tempt Jesus first? Why do you think Satan attacked there?
- How did Jesus respond to all three of Satan’s temptations?
- Where does Satan attack you?
- What scripture do you need to memorize to fight off these voices?
I found the following video helpful in picturing the scripture above. Check it out below.
Song application: “The Truth” by Megan Woods
How many times can you hear the same lie
Before you start to believe it?
The enemy keeps whisperin’ to me
I swear these days, it’s all that I’m hearin’
I used to know who I was
Now I look in the mirror and I’m not so sure
Lord, I don’t wanna listen to the lies anymore
The truth is I am my Father’s child
I make Him proud and I make Him smile
I was made in the image of a perfect King
He looks at me and wouldn’t change a thing
The truth is I am truly loved
By a God who’s good when I’m not good enough
I don’t belong to the lies, I belong to You
And that’s the truth
“You Say” by Lauren Daigle
I keep fighting voices in my mind that say I’m not enough
Every single lie that tells me I will never measure up
Am I more than just the sum of every high and every low
Remind me once again just who I am because I need to know
Ooh-oh
You say I am loved when I can’t feel a thing
You say I am strong when I think I am weak
And you say I am held when I am falling short
And when I don’t belong, oh You say I am Yours
And I believe (I)
Oh, I believe (I)
What You say of me (I)
I believe
Just for fun: At our F3 workouts, we always begin with someone reciting the F3 Mission Statement and remind everyone what the three F’s are. They are indeed Fitness, Fellowship, and Faith; however, my good buddy Meatball proudly shouted out, “Flatulence!” Grown men acting like kids. You gotta love it!
Prayer: Lord, I have the choice on whose voice to listen to. Filter out the lies and replace them with Your perfect TRUTH! Amen.
The Teacher's Devotional 
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