The second step to killing the “Selfie” is to REPLACE what it’s saying with what God says. Once we recognize there are two dueling natures inside of us and we begin to distinguish which is which, we then have to go about the difficult task of replacing the “Selfie” with the “Spirit.”
First of all, you must understand that our DEFAULT is to listen to the “Selfie.” Before you became a follower of Jesus that’s all you knew! That’s the only voice you listened to! There is a gross misunderstanding that we tend to have about why we do the things we do. Often when we give in to temptation we attribute it to the devil. “The devil is really attacking me right now” or “The devil made me do it!” I believe we give the devil WAAAAY more credit than he deserves. Scripture says in James 1:14 that MOST of the time when we sin it’s a result of being “dragged away by our OWN evil desire and enticed.”
I have a pair of house slippers that I LOVE to wear. The only problem is that they’ve started to smell - REALLY BAD. I mean so bad that flies pass out when they get near them. They’re bad. They need to be replaced with new ones, but they’re soooo comfortable! I don’t want to have to break in a new pair of slippers! The reason many of us have trouble replacing the “Selfie” in our lives is because we just LIKE it. It’s so comfortable! It’s difficult to break in a new way of living! But we have to understand that NOT killing the “Selfie” will ultimately kill us!
The “Selfie” is masterful at deceiving us. No one has lied to you, disappointed you, and hurt you more than YOU!! So it can be really tricky to even recognize the lies of the “Selfie.” Once we do recognize them, however, the next thing to do is to REPLACE them with truth. Let me give you a few examples of lies that I have a tendency to believe:
1. This is your life. You do what you want to do!
2. You’re a failure. Quit trying to shoot for great things!
3. You should give up. You deserve to slack off!
4. Your wife isn’t paying attention to you enough or meeting your needs.
5. It’s just one innocent look. It’s no big deal.
Now I’ve learned that these are the things my “Selfie” tends to tell me. Now let me show you how I’ve learned TRUTH that replaces each of these:
1. 1 Cor. 6:19-20: “You are not your own; you were bought with a price! Therefore honor God with your bodies!”
2. Eph. 3:20: “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine according to His power at work within us”
3. Gal. 6:9: “Do not grow weary in well doing for at the proper time you will reap a harvest, if you do not give up.”
4. Phil 2:3-4: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, rather in humility value others above yourselves, not looking out to your own interests, but each of you to the interests of others.”
5. Luke 11:34: “Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your whole body also is full of darkness.”
God’s Word is the only and best replacer of the lies of the “Selfie.” Right now stop and write down 3-5 things you hear “The Selfie” tell you on a consistent basis. Then search for scripture to replace those, memorize that scripture and be ready to use it anytime you hear the “Selfie” tell you those lies. If you have trouble finding scripture that speaks to your particular lie, feel free to email me at [email protected]. I’d be glad to help out!
- Davey Blackburn
Davey Blackburn is the lead pastor of Resonate Church. You can find him on Twitter at @daveyblackburn.