NRT (2) decision-making
.
the NEXT RIGHT THING:
Emily P. Freeman
3. Name the Narrative
In her book Walking on Water, Madeleine L'Engle says, "our names are part of our wholeness." ...
If naming can do all that - christen us into life & release new growth - is the opposite also true? Can allowing things to remain unnamed and unacknowledged hold the life back? Naming is powerful when it comes to people. But it's powerful for other things too.
Maybe the reason why a particular decision you are carrying.. feels difficult is because there are things beneath the surface that remain unnamed within you, things you either haven't acknowledged or would rather ignore..
Without a name, we can't be specific.. We have an enemy who loves to cloud our minds over with generalities & a vague sense of anxiety. No wonder we can't make a decision. Let's begin to create space for the naming and, in turn, a more gently informed decision-making process. [35]
◘ .. As people who put their trust in Jesus, sometimes we don't know what to say when we see someone going through an impossible time. Instead of giving them space to name their own narratives, we rush them into a narrative that makes us feel more comfortable. It can be easy to refuse to let people grieve the way they need to grieve by naming their circumstance for them, saying phrases like, "God is in control" or "Consider it all joy!" or "God works all things together for good."
He is, it is & he does. But we are all on our own journey to living in to those truths. We would do well to create space for others to walk a little ways into that truth and begin to name their own narratives in time. We would do well to give ourselves that space too. [37-38]
◘ .. We often don't give our narratives much thought. We just let time roll into itself, day after week after year. And then we realize, when we look back, that our story has changed. Our work today is to take a moment & notice the narrative, open it up in the presence of God, and allow him in to be with you, to gently confront the false beliefs if needed, and to provide you with the peace of his presence. [38]
◘ .. This, too, is a plot point.
Though it may be long, it isn't the whole arc.
The middle still counts even though it's ordinary.
Maybe the middle counts the most of all. [39]
◘◘ podcast
4. Picture God
Never believe anything bad about God.
~ Dallas Willard
◘ ... If we believe God is distant, we will feel alone & untethered in our decision-making.
◘ ... If we believe God is like a carnival barker presenting three cups, we will feel cheated or duped when we assume he is forcing us to guess which one is hiding the right answer.
Do we believe God is like a puppeteer, a kind old grandfather, an abusive parent, a greedy king, a manipulative mother, or a golden retriever?
I can't say how God will speak to you. But I can say with a fair amount of confidence how he won't.
He will not shame you into better behaviour.
He will not trick you.
He will not tease you.
He will not laugh at you.
He will not terrorize you.
He does not pull rugs out from under you.
He does not drop the other shoe.
He does not pull fast ones.
He will not roll his eyes, throw up his hands or turn his back on you.
God is your Shepherd ... [46-47]
◘◘ podcast
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
What lies are you telling yourself about who God is?
How does seeing your decisions through this false lense of God impact your decision making?
How might these change if you told yourself the truth instead?
Can you identify passages in the Bible which help you to see the truth?
We discussed last week:
A God who wants to test us and encourages us to turn away from good things;
A God who cares about the bigger picture;
A God who is there when we are going through hard times.
All these images are built in truths, but we saw how those truths can be twisted in our own minds to form false, and destructive, images.
e.g.:
A God who not only challenges us but tries to trip us up;
A God who sees the bigger picture but doesn't care about our day-to-day lives outside of how that fits into the bigger picture;
A God who is only with us through the hard times so we don't feel his presence when things are going well.
. . . Previous chapters 1 & 2
the NEXT RIGHT THING:
Emily P. Freeman
3. Name the Narrative
In her book Walking on Water, Madeleine L'Engle says, "our names are part of our wholeness." ...
If naming can do all that - christen us into life & release new growth - is the opposite also true? Can allowing things to remain unnamed and unacknowledged hold the life back? Naming is powerful when it comes to people. But it's powerful for other things too.
Maybe the reason why a particular decision you are carrying.. feels difficult is because there are things beneath the surface that remain unnamed within you, things you either haven't acknowledged or would rather ignore..
Without a name, we can't be specific.. We have an enemy who loves to cloud our minds over with generalities & a vague sense of anxiety. No wonder we can't make a decision. Let's begin to create space for the naming and, in turn, a more gently informed decision-making process. [35]
◘ .. As people who put their trust in Jesus, sometimes we don't know what to say when we see someone going through an impossible time. Instead of giving them space to name their own narratives, we rush them into a narrative that makes us feel more comfortable. It can be easy to refuse to let people grieve the way they need to grieve by naming their circumstance for them, saying phrases like, "God is in control" or "Consider it all joy!" or "God works all things together for good."
He is, it is & he does. But we are all on our own journey to living in to those truths. We would do well to create space for others to walk a little ways into that truth and begin to name their own narratives in time. We would do well to give ourselves that space too. [37-38]
◘ .. We often don't give our narratives much thought. We just let time roll into itself, day after week after year. And then we realize, when we look back, that our story has changed. Our work today is to take a moment & notice the narrative, open it up in the presence of God, and allow him in to be with you, to gently confront the false beliefs if needed, and to provide you with the peace of his presence. [38]
◘ .. This, too, is a plot point.
Though it may be long, it isn't the whole arc.
The middle still counts even though it's ordinary.
Maybe the middle counts the most of all. [39]
◘◘ podcast
4. Picture God
Never believe anything bad about God.
~ Dallas Willard
◘ ... If we believe God is distant, we will feel alone & untethered in our decision-making.
◘ ... If we believe God is like a carnival barker presenting three cups, we will feel cheated or duped when we assume he is forcing us to guess which one is hiding the right answer.
Do we believe God is like a puppeteer, a kind old grandfather, an abusive parent, a greedy king, a manipulative mother, or a golden retriever?
I can't say how God will speak to you. But I can say with a fair amount of confidence how he won't.
He will not shame you into better behaviour.
He will not trick you.
He will not tease you.
He will not laugh at you.
He will not terrorize you.
He does not pull rugs out from under you.
He does not drop the other shoe.
He does not pull fast ones.
He will not roll his eyes, throw up his hands or turn his back on you.
God is your Shepherd ... [46-47]
◘◘ podcast
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
What lies are you telling yourself about who God is?
How does seeing your decisions through this false lense of God impact your decision making?
How might these change if you told yourself the truth instead?
Can you identify passages in the Bible which help you to see the truth?
We discussed last week:
A God who wants to test us and encourages us to turn away from good things;
A God who cares about the bigger picture;
A God who is there when we are going through hard times.
All these images are built in truths, but we saw how those truths can be twisted in our own minds to form false, and destructive, images.
e.g.:
A God who not only challenges us but tries to trip us up;
A God who sees the bigger picture but doesn't care about our day-to-day lives outside of how that fits into the bigger picture;
A God who is only with us through the hard times so we don't feel his presence when things are going well.
. . . Previous chapters 1 & 2