Thoughts
that have come from various quotes taken from the book, "Victor - Breaking
Free From a Victim Based Society" by John H. Hovis. Click here to link directly to
the audio file.
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"You are OK with God! Your standing is assured. You have nothing to fight for – it has been freely given. Stop arguing with The Holy Spirit and start listening to the truth that He is trying to get across in these pages. Freedom is yours if you just stop arguing with God and give into His great Love for you."
As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 63.
What is it about the human race that makes us so prone to arguing? I have known people that have admitted that they argue just because it is like a sport to them. Think about it, we have debate clubs in school where we train our children techniques on how to win arguments. An entire industry of publishing exists on how to negotiate, or argue to win the best deal. There is even a line of thinking in Christianity called apologetics where we learn to argue against those who don't believe like we do.
All this arguing, does it lead to anything good? Let me tell you what it has led to as far as I see. The love of arguing has made our nation one of the most litigious in all history. Our love with arguing has made it so that our court systems are filled with person after person arguing for their rights to be right. I don't know about you but I'm not seeing a lot of good as a result of this strategy relating to our fellow man. Arguing, when it is done in such a random, abundant and victim thinking laced manner does little more than create opportunities for victimization to occur.
When you boil it all down, arguing is about winning and losing. We are a society that loves to win and hates to lose. Why? I believe it all goes back to identity. If we win, we can so relate to being a winner and we believe we will be more respected and accomplished in our identity if we are perceived as a winner. If we lose, we are so quick to let our identity be shaped in ways that can make us even more viscous in our argumentative style.
There is nothing wrong with winning in this world. Doing all we can to be on top isn't of itself a bad thing. It is when winning and losing becomes so tied to our identity that we run the risk of allowing victim thinking to dominate in our lives. Stay in that place of victim thinking and our augmentative style is prone to cause victimization to those we argue against. Wining at all cost costs plenty when it comes to the hurt that can be caused to those who dare to argue against the victim thinker.
There are tons of Bible verses on the pitfalls of arguing. Today's reading is particularly poignant to our discussion as it relates to living like the victor God has made us to be in today's society filled with victim thinking arguers.
Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. Philippians 2:14-16 (NIV)
Think about the last argument you had. Wasn't it about something someone said that made you think you were at fault? If something is our fault then we can't be blameless. Lacking in the trait of being blameless means that we were wrong and being wrong is the same to losing in the eyes of an argument loving, conflict based society. It's no wonder we love to argue. Our souls just can't handle the concept that our identity can somehow be tied to that of being a loser!
Shine like the stars in the sky... that's what our reading says about what we have the opportunity to become. That sounds like winning to me! How do we get there? Stop grumbling and arguing. It is so clear to me from the Bible that we can't get to that place of being blameless by arguing our way there. We are blameless because we are children of God. We aren't blameless because we haven't done anything wrong or are really good at arguing our way out of situations where we really are to blame. That "shining like the stars in the sky" kind of life comes when we stop arguing with God and others about who we are and start believing in who Christ has made us to be.
You are going to have more than one opportunity to argue with others around you today. I'm in no way saying that having that argument is making you out to be a victim thinker. It's all about the deep-down, hidden motives behind that argument. Arguing to win does nothing to help you to be the pure and blameless as God's child you are arguing to be. You are that even if what you are accused of and arguing against turns out to be true.
If you find that you are arguing to win, in other words to shine like that stars in the sky, do what the Bible says today - STOP! Your identity doesn't depend on you winning that argument. You are the blameless and pure child of God and that alone makes you His victor.
**********
"You are OK with God! Your standing is assured. You have nothing to fight for – it has been freely given. Stop arguing with The Holy Spirit and start listening to the truth that He is trying to get across in these pages. Freedom is yours if you just stop arguing with God and give into His great Love for you."
As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 63.
What is it about the human race that makes us so prone to arguing? I have known people that have admitted that they argue just because it is like a sport to them. Think about it, we have debate clubs in school where we train our children techniques on how to win arguments. An entire industry of publishing exists on how to negotiate, or argue to win the best deal. There is even a line of thinking in Christianity called apologetics where we learn to argue against those who don't believe like we do.
All this arguing, does it lead to anything good? Let me tell you what it has led to as far as I see. The love of arguing has made our nation one of the most litigious in all history. Our love with arguing has made it so that our court systems are filled with person after person arguing for their rights to be right. I don't know about you but I'm not seeing a lot of good as a result of this strategy relating to our fellow man. Arguing, when it is done in such a random, abundant and victim thinking laced manner does little more than create opportunities for victimization to occur.
When you boil it all down, arguing is about winning and losing. We are a society that loves to win and hates to lose. Why? I believe it all goes back to identity. If we win, we can so relate to being a winner and we believe we will be more respected and accomplished in our identity if we are perceived as a winner. If we lose, we are so quick to let our identity be shaped in ways that can make us even more viscous in our argumentative style.
There is nothing wrong with winning in this world. Doing all we can to be on top isn't of itself a bad thing. It is when winning and losing becomes so tied to our identity that we run the risk of allowing victim thinking to dominate in our lives. Stay in that place of victim thinking and our augmentative style is prone to cause victimization to those we argue against. Wining at all cost costs plenty when it comes to the hurt that can be caused to those who dare to argue against the victim thinker.
There are tons of Bible verses on the pitfalls of arguing. Today's reading is particularly poignant to our discussion as it relates to living like the victor God has made us to be in today's society filled with victim thinking arguers.
Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. Philippians 2:14-16 (NIV)
Think about the last argument you had. Wasn't it about something someone said that made you think you were at fault? If something is our fault then we can't be blameless. Lacking in the trait of being blameless means that we were wrong and being wrong is the same to losing in the eyes of an argument loving, conflict based society. It's no wonder we love to argue. Our souls just can't handle the concept that our identity can somehow be tied to that of being a loser!
Shine like the stars in the sky... that's what our reading says about what we have the opportunity to become. That sounds like winning to me! How do we get there? Stop grumbling and arguing. It is so clear to me from the Bible that we can't get to that place of being blameless by arguing our way there. We are blameless because we are children of God. We aren't blameless because we haven't done anything wrong or are really good at arguing our way out of situations where we really are to blame. That "shining like the stars in the sky" kind of life comes when we stop arguing with God and others about who we are and start believing in who Christ has made us to be.
You are going to have more than one opportunity to argue with others around you today. I'm in no way saying that having that argument is making you out to be a victim thinker. It's all about the deep-down, hidden motives behind that argument. Arguing to win does nothing to help you to be the pure and blameless as God's child you are arguing to be. You are that even if what you are accused of and arguing against turns out to be true.
If you find that you are arguing to win, in other words to shine like that stars in the sky, do what the Bible says today - STOP! Your identity doesn't depend on you winning that argument. You are the blameless and pure child of God and that alone makes you His victor.
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