You have probably heard the phrase, “I need to get in touch with my inner self.” These days, I am trying to get out of touch with one aspect of my inner self…My Inner Wimp.
Here I am, wrapping up one adventure, one phase of my life, and getting ready to fly into a new adventure in Virginia. Times of transition call for faith, flexibility, adventurousness, boldness, and energy. I want to arrive ready to blaze new trails, unpack numerous moving boxes, meet new people, attend to the billion and one details that go with helping kids get settled, and so on and so on. I want to hit the ground with my TACA (Transition and Adjustment to Change Accelerator) armed and ready to fire. For those of you who missed an earlier post in which I explained the TACA, feel free to scroll back to the post, “The Ornery Moving Hormone” (March 10) read about this important piece of gear that most military wives seem to be issued by the end of their first tour….
So back to My Inner Wimp.
Where does this girl come from? Why does she pop her unwelcome head up at a second’s notice, right when I am feeling good about things and feeling ready to conquer? She slips silently in the back door of my thoughts and sneakily plants something like, “You won’t be able to…, What will you do without….., You’ve made a mistake…, It’s going to be cold there…, You’re going to spend half your life sitting in traffic…., Kids do drugs there…blah-blah-blah….”
Once My Inner Wimp gets a word in, it’s amazing how my entire seemingly rational thought capability stands at attention, revs its engines and races off with breath-taking speed. It doesn’t seem to matter if I tell My Inner Wimp to shut up and get out. She speaks with an uncanny influence—even though most of what she says is untrue, often ridiculous impressions that are enshrouded in the fog of “what if…”
Last week I decided I was done letting this girl weigh me down with anxious thoughts and the unsettled feelings that change can bring. I borrowed a TACA from one of my Moving Goddess Friends, and fired off several rounds. I blasted that girl right out the front door of my thoughts and slammed the door shut. Feeling sassy and relieved, I went on about my business of getting ready to move.
She snuck back in the bathroom window a few days later.
Slowly, but surely, God is teaching me ways to deal with my Inner Wimp.
Three Steps to Getting Rid of My Inner Wimp:
1. Recognize when My Inner Wimp has slipped into my thoughts.
2. Identify the distortion in what I am thinking—separate fact from fiction—truth from supposition, real from imaginary, logical from irrational, seen from the unseen. You see, My Inner Wimp loves to magnify and over blow one small issue, making it feel all important. This distorted hyper-focus takes my eyes off the big picture and tempts me to think as if God is smaller than He is and the issue is bigger than it is. In many ways, it is an up-side down view of life. It’s kind of like looking at a beautiful painting and obsessing about one blade of grass that didn’t turn out right.
3. Change my focus. Many things are a matter of perception. I need to see clearly–to look at the right thing. I have to purposefully take my focus off what My Inner Wimp says and fix my attention on Christ. Hebrews 12: 2 puts it this way…” fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith…”
Have you ever thought about what an amazing gift God-focused perspective is?
When I see clearly, I can walk confidently.
As I think about this, the Spirit reminds me of that the righteous will live by faith, not by sight… (Romans 1:17) which includes all the worries that My Inner Wimp tries to glue the eye-balls of my attention to. The following verse is great ammo for blasting out My Inner Wimp:
What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.
Matthew 6:31-33 The Message
My Inner Wimp may show up, but she is not welcome to stay.
You might also enjoy these later posts, featuring My Inner Wimp:
Just a Volunteer…and Other Accusations from My Inner Wimp
More than a Volunteer…Putting My Inner Wimp to rest.
So glad you're here. I help busy women—gals like you— build healthy habits for living well with biblical wisdom and practical steps to deepen your faith, increase your hope, and thrive in your purpose.
I feel like “fear” has been my guide through much of life – not the Holy Spirit. I have never used the word “wimp” to describe myself, but that is exactly what I have been. When I do chose to fix my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith AND for me, more importantly, the one who has gone before, then the peace that surpasses all comprehension comes. But focusing on HIS TRUTH which is real truth, is the choice I must make!
Another great post! And it came at a perfect time for me. After praying for wisdom and then trying to have the faith that my actions would be the fruit of His wisdom, your wimp friend came barging into my head several times this past week. I like the mental image of kicking her out of the house. Kind of like sometime I say, thumbing behind me, “Back behind the Satan.” Of course, not all doubts are the work of Satan, but the concept can apply to both.
Maybe I’ll start saying, “Hey Satan, take wimp girl with you and go out for coffee far from my house!”