Thread by @stevecusswords

The Inner Critic.

Ugh.

Its hard to dislodge the power and influence the IC has over us. Here is a helpful tool:

1. Find at least one other who cares about you and get together.

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2. Have your friend write down the messages your IC tells you as you share it.

3. Then ask her/him to write the adjectives of these messages, ex: 'harsh,' 'unrelenting,' 'condemning.' etc.

So now you have the actual messages on one line and descriptors on the other.

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4. Now write the descriptors of God's character and God's posture toward you. Patient, loving, kind etc.

5. What if I were at least as ________ to myself as God is.

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We tend to get wigged out by talk of Satan and Spiritual Warfare, but the more I work with people on chronic anxiety, the more convinced I am that our self talk, our IC, the story we tell ourselves about how we MUST be and how the world MUST be is keeping us trapped.

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Paul says, 'it is for freedom that Christ has set us free' yet so many are bound by our IC and .the story we tell ourselves.

We give it WAY too much authority, too much real estate in our soul. It has a 'gospel' which is always some form of legalism and condemnation

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'You MUST do more' 'you SHOULD know better by now' 'you'll NEVER _______'

In radical contrast to this false 'gospel' is the gospel of Jesus, where we are rooted and established in the Sovereignty and Love of God.

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The challenge is we either know this, but can't break out of the bondage or worse yet, our inner critic is such a harsh task master that we project it out onto God and other people to try to get relief from within.

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Have you ever been confused when someone thinks you are more harsh and condemning than you are? It might be their IC projecting condemnation onto you and then having projected it, seeing it from you.

The story we tell ourselves is insidious like that.

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One thing I learned early about anxiety when I was a chaplain - it blocks our capacity to see reality. We pollute reality with our anxiety. 'This situation requires me to speak' when it actually doesn't, for example.

This person is condemning of me when they're not.

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If your view of God sounds a lot like your IC, you have projected your inside pain onto God and are now seeing God through your own self made view.

You are not following the One True God, you're following Zeus or some variation of Zeus.

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Relentless, demanding, impossible to appease. All the work and effort is on you.

But the One True God did all the work. Nothing to appease. No earning required.

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"Its your kindness which leads us to repentance, Lord."

"This is how we set our hearts at rest in God's presence, for even when our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts and God knows everything."

God trumps your heart. God knows more than you on this matter.

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"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear,a because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."

That last one, some of you read it and say, 'great, I must not be made perfect in love.'

And then, 'I must be deficient.'

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That's the inner critic. That is modern day legalism. Doing the work inside our soul that only God can do.

The invitation is to relax into the Sovereignty and love of God. Easier tweeted than done.

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It took me many years to reduce the voice of the IC and rejoice in the voice of God. My beginning step was the early exercise of writing the steps. Then when that inner voice would speak, I would choose to believe what God says over what I say.

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An intentional submission to God's authority over my authority.

Many don't experience grace because we are still in charge. That voice of condemnation is you still in charge. The voice that is condemning you now because you're in charge - that voice.

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But trusting what God says over what you think IS what walking by faith is. And it is hard. Especially when God's voice is often still and small etc and your IC is relentless and clear and pointed.

But the battle for freedom is worth it.

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My prayer is that you would be kind to yourself, at least as kind as God is. Be patient with yourself etc.

And lower your threshold to worship. Worshipping the King is a wonderful displacer of the IC.

Peace of Christ to you today.

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