Weeding Out the Lies and Responding With Truth

Voices In My Head Part 4

We all hear voices in our heads. How do we weed out the lies and respond with the truth?

The Best Kind of Lie

Satan knows that the best kind of lie—the one you are most likely to believe–always includes a bit of truth. For example, say I lost my temper and yelled at the store clerk. After the fact, I might hear this little voice in my head telling me: You yelled at the store clerk. That means you are a bad person. It’s easy to believe that lie because it has some truth in it. The truth is I lost my temper and yelled. The lie is, “that means I am a bad person.”

Our Internal Lie Detector

Next time you notice a negative thought rolling around in your head, look at it this way: most likely it is a lie planted there by The Master Deceiver. Thankfully, we have an excellent internal lie detector: the Holy Spirit. He will help you weed out the lies, and respond appropriately.

So take a moment, step back, and ask God to show you the truth. This prayer helps me a lot in that process:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts. And see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way. Psalm 139:23-24

Our “hurtful ways” are the habits of thought and action that hurt us and those around us. Since our actions originate from our thoughts (what we believe), our minds are where the battle for truth largely takes place. (Joyce Meyer’s classic book the Battlefield of the Mind points this out beautifully.)

Let’s get back to the example of the lie “I yelled at the clerk, and that means I am a bad person.”

Truth: I yelled at the store clerk. I messed up.
Lie : that means I am a bad person.
Truth: because of Christ, I am no longer condemned. He has paid the price for my sin, and I am made clean. I am not a bad person. I am his precious child.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1.

Lead Me in the Everlasting Way

The last part of Psalm 139 says “and lead me in the everlasting way.” God leads us to the proper way to think, but he also leads us in how to act. Here are some ways God can lead in this situation:

Ask forgiveness. Apologize to the clerk.

If it is possible on your part, live at peace with everyone. Romans 12:18 BSB

Accept God’s forgiveness and forgive yourself.

Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Luke 6:37 BSB

Be free. Reject shame. Quit beating yourself up.

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Galatians 5:1

Learn from your mistake. “Father, why did I overreact? What is behind all this emotion? What patterns of thought would lead me to react that way?”

But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you. John 14:26

Look ahead, and move forward.

Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Phil. 3:13-14 NLT

Stay Alert.

Stay alert. Satan is a masterful liar. It is his main tactic for causing destruction in the human race. Jesus warned: be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8

But don’t panic.

Don’t panic. God is with you. Jesus said

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not be afraid. John 14:27

God will help you sort it out. When those voices in your head are negative–and they often are–ask God to help you weed out the lies, and show you the truth and lead you in the best way forward.

How do you discern Satan’s lies from the truth?