I asked my friend Jacquelyn who is wise beyond her years to write about what it means to capture and replace those thoughts.
Have you ever thought about how your friends and family would describe you? Or how about how YOU describe you? Unless your interviewing for jobs, you probably don't have to really think about your personality very much. But, we all "describe" ourselves to our self on a daily basis.
"I'm not confident" "I'm weak" "I'm not smart enough" "I'm too judgmental" "I'm worried" "I'm depressed" "I'm not good enough at ____"
It happens without us even realizing it. It's part of our daily brain function-and it's a sin.
God says we are created in HIS image. God is perfect. He made us perfect. He sent Jesus to redeem our sin nature. We are redeemed. We have new names.
I am no longer not good enough.
"For [I am] God’s masterpiece. He has created [me] anew in Christ Jesus, so [I] can do the good things he planned for [me] long ago." (Ephesians 2:10 NLT)
For me, it's not enough to tell myself "don't be depressed". That's probably akin to a smoker saying "don't smoke". All I can think about is how I'm depressed. I have to replace my false identity with God's truth. God gave us the Word to find our new identity. Here are a few common thoughts about self, God's truth about those thoughts, and verses to back it up.
I would love to be able to send it to you!