Hello creative friend!
This is week fourteen of twenty in my Freedom Friday posts on Identity in Christ. These blog posts are based on my I Am Journal and I hope you are joining me on this journey whether you own the journal or not.
Our truth topic today is: I am an overcomer!
After writing about being more than a conqueror last week, I was thinking that I wouldn’t have much to say about being an overcomer because the two seem to overlap quite a bit but it turns out that there is much to say about overcoming that I didn’t mention before. Last week we talked about our thoughts but this week we will focus more on the words that come out of our mouth.
Before we start, I want to mention that I don’t believe in “the power of positive thinking” the way that the world sometimes sees it. I don’t believe in ignoring reality and pretending that everything is ok when it’s not. Simply saying positive things doesn’t change anything, in fact it often makes it worse because when you don’t see the change in circumstances that you were looking for then you blame yourself for not thinking positively enough…or maybe that’s just me!! The last thing I need is another thing to add to my religious check list…thou shall think positive thoughts at all time… Nope, that’s not what I mean!
I’m talking about changing your mindset and beliefs so that what flows out of your mouth is in alignment with what would flow out of God’s heart for your life. That means that if your words do not contain hope, they are not from God. I promise you that you will never hear God say “I give up, things ARE NEVER GOING TO CHANGE”. Nor will you ever hear Him say “I’m stuck and there is no solution to my problem”. Or better yet, can you imagine God saying “I can’t do this or that because I’m a victim and the whole world is out to get me”. I know the last one is a bit extreme but I hear similar statements all the time. If you have this mindset, I am praying that “the God of hope will fill you with all joy and peace in believing through the experience of your faith, that by the power of the Holy Spirit you will abound in hope and overflow with confidence in His promises.” Romans 15:13. You are already an overcomer my friend, no matter what circumstances you are in. You are completely victorious because Jesus is completely victorious!! He has overcome every single problem that you have as well as those that you will have. To be an overcomer means that you believe God’s truth despite your circumstances or experience. That means that even when I am sick, I still believe that God is my healer no matter what. If I lack, I still believe that God is my provider… Jesus is our victory, both now and forever. You are born of God and “whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world – your faith (1 John 5: 4) Are these the kinds of words that come out of your mouth?
Your FAITH is what makes you an overcomer and when faith comes out of your heart and mouth instead of fear, things begin to shift and change. You can begin to see your situation from a different perspective and you can break up with defeat once and for all. Tweet That!
Overcomers don’t put up with the enemy’s lies, they tell him to take a hike! He loves to fill your head with hopelessness because once you lose hope you are easily defeated. Don’t let him, he’s a liar and always has been! Jesus said that in Him you may have perfect peace even if there is tribulation and distress and suffering, but He said to be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; He has overcome the world.” [His conquest is accomplished, His victory abiding.] John 16:33 AMP.
Now back to our “positive thinking and speaking”. One of my favorite stories that illustrate this concept is the one about Joshua and Caleb. Here’s a re-cap…12 spies, a wonderful land to conquer, a promise of victory and a whole bunch of giants… “Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession of it; for we will certainly conquer it.” 31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people [of Canaan], for they are too strong for us.” 32 So they gave the Israelites a bad report about the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we went, in spying it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants. And all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
So basically, they were defeated because of the negativity of the 10 spies that spread among the people like a disease. Joshua and Caleb were rewarded for there faith and were the only two of them that entered the promised land.
Here’s a sobering thought about this. How many promised lands have we lost because of negativity and lack of faith? And even more sobering…how many people did we drag down with us? I want to cry just thinking about it. God’s not impressed with our sacrifices, works or good deeds. He’s impressed with out faith!!
Start looking at every situation with the eyes of an overcomer and soon you will think and speak like you are one. As you begin to experience victory, you will have the courage and the hope to keep overcoming. It’s like a snowball effect which is a process that starts from something that seems small and insignificant but builds upon itself, becoming larger and more beneficial.
It’s all about how you perceive things. I often tell my kids that they can’t control what’s going on around them but they can control their reaction to it. Do you want to be like Caleb and Joshua who put their faith in God for the victory or do you want to be like the other ten spies who lost their promised land with their fear and negativity and infected the rest of the people with it?
Let us stop with our fearful and faithless talking. Let us stand boldly when we are surrounded with people who only see defeat in the situation. Let’s stand on the truth that we are overcomers because Jesus is!! God has a battle plan for your victory, ask Him!
Don’t give up my friend, no matter how many times you’ve fallen. Who knows, maybe the victory is waiting on the other side of this next attempt. Surround yourself with a few friends like Joshua and Caleb who will encourage you with faith. Be careful of people who spread fear, doubt and unbelief, it’s deadly contagious. When you experience failure, get back up and try again. Celebrate the little wins because an all or nothing mentality is sure to bring you down every time.
Have faith friend, you are an overcomer through Christ, He’s the muscle behind all this. It’s His strength, not ours…Thank you Jesus!!
An overcomer Is someone for whom negativity is a foreign language.
Graham Cooke
For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:4-5 NLT
Here are biblical declarations that you can read out loud every day. Declare truth over yourself daily and you will soon believe it! I have included a free printable for you to use, enjoy it!
1-Through my faith in Jesus, I overcome the world. (1 John 5:4-5)
2- I overcome because greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world. (1John 4:4)
3- I overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of my testimony.
4- I’m overcoming _____________, through Christ”
5- Negativity is a foreign language to me.
6- I overcome through faith.
7- I am full of faith concerning my victory.
8- I look at the battles I face like Joshua and Caleb looked at theirs.
9- When I speak, I spread faith and hope to those who are listening.
10- I am abounding in hope and overflowing with confidence in God’s promises.
That’s it for today friend, I am praying that this week, you will make a small change in how you perceive a situation so that what comes out of your mouth will be words filled with hope. I’m also praying that the small change you make will snowball into a big one. You are an overcomer and you are loved, be blessed this week!
