"Which One Wins?"

Series: Talking to Yourself

Tell Yourself the Truth

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A grandfather tells his grandson, “Two wolves live inside each of us, one that wants to bless us and one that wants to destroy us. They fight for control of our lives.” “Which one wins?” asks the grandson. “The one you feed.”

It’s like Paul, who said “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate” (Rom. 7:15). He’s still in control, but he’s pulled in so many directions that he ends up doing something he — the self underneath all those voices — doesn’t want to do. Ever feel that way? If so, it’s time to face the facts and tell yourself the truth about your thoughts.

The Big Idea

We get to choose which inner voice we obey. Though our heads can fill with a cacophony of voices, none of those voices define us. We decide which voice is loudest. The one we feed will win.

We can relate to Jesus’ story of the prodigal son, as the boy sat in a pigsty and pined for better days. Ever feel lost, needing to come home? But Jesus teaches that coming home is a two-step process — before the son “came to his Father” (Luke 15:20) he “came to himself” (Luke 15:17). Why does he need to come to himself? Because, as we sometimes say, “he’s not acting like himself.”

So, he reasons with himself, considering his options (Luke 15:17). A brilliant strategy! Then he tells himself what he needs to do (Luke 15:18-19): swallow his pride, own his failures, and beg for mercy. Most people would rather rationalize than do the hard, right thing. But he got up and went home (Luke 15:20).

He could have told himself he was right or had a pity party — but would that have worked? We can all invent stories about our lives to make us feel better, but maybe we should stop listening to our own stories and start telling ourselves the truth.

The Big Question

What’s the hard, right thing you need to do?