OCTOBER 1st
BLIND SPOTS
New drivers are taught to check their blind spots because they can’t see everything around them in their mirrors. Not only do we often misjudge how others see us, but it’s also all too easy to have misperceptions when it comes to how we see ourselves. How do we start to recognize the blind spots in our lives and move closer to how God views us?
Work through the following questions and Scriptures on your own, and get together with your running partner, life group, or friends and family to talk through what you are learning.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Is there any particular behavior you criticize in others that you’re willing to excuse in yourself?
2. Some of us see ourselves as far better than we really are (pride), while others of us see ourselves as far worse than we really are (insecurity). Do you struggle with one or the other? How do you deal with these struggles?
3. Read Matthew 6:22-23. What are the consequences of seeing ourselves through distorted filters that prevent the Light of God’s Truth from permeating our entire being?
4. God knows us much better than we will ever know ourselves. How has God opened your eyes and exposed blind spots in your life?
5. Read Hebrews 4:12. Pride and insecurity are two sides of the same coin, both revealing deep-seeded fears about our self-image. How easy it is to forget that God loves us for who we are, not who we think we are? What are some ways you can begin to trust in God’s vision of you as an adopted son or daughter?
6. God uses both His Word and godly people in our lives to expose us to Truth. What are some specific steps you can take over the next couple of weeks to start to humble yourself before God and allow Him to flood your life with the Light of His Truth?
KEY SCRIPTURES
Matthew 6:22-23 – The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light; but if your eye is unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
Hebrews 4:12 – The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
As you’re reflecting on this week’s message, a great way to dig deeper is to find reminders of how God sees us. A useful resource for this is “Seeing Ourselves Through God’s Eyes: 50 Daily Devotionals” by Crystal Storms.
Here’s an excerpt from a post in which Storms writes about why she created the devotional: When confronted with a lie from the enemy, we should…Immediately go to our Heavenly Father and look to His Word to see what He says about us.
But the tricky part is that sometimes the lies from the enemy are based on truth…Maybe you did make a mistake, lose your temper, or fail … again.
But our mistakes don’t define us. The mirror doesn’t define us. Our poor choices don’t define us.
Well, they can, but we have a choice. We can choose to define ourselves with the truth of God’s Word. We can take those thoughts captive and remind ourselves His Word says we are fearfully and wonderfully made. He sees us as precious and beautiful. Through Him we are competent, strong, and filled with peace.
So the next time you are confronted with a lie from the enemy, see how it stacks up to God’s Word. Then replace the lie from the world with the truth of God’s Word.
To read this post in its entirety or to read others like it, go to crystalstorms.me/2015/01/seeing-eyes-godconclusion/
DIGGING DEEPER
gatewaychurch.com/spiritual_outcomes/new-creation