When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned.
-Galatians 2:11, NIV
If you are like me, one of the problems I brought to my first marriage was a lack of assertiveness.
The temptation to become passive and then resentful was a cycle I found too easy to feed. I rarely spoke up for myself. Instead, my issues got internalized, which was unhealthy.
The internalization of boundary violations was especially true if I anticipated the other person would not respond well to my asserting my boundaries.
Sound familiar?
God continues to work with me on this. I have definitely improved over the years. However, I know I still need to continue my growth.
-We get to decide what we find acceptable or unacceptable treatment.
-We get to choose to whether we speak up or stay silent about that treatment.
-We get to decide what we believe is true and what we believe is false.
-We get to decide whether we stay in the presence of an abuser or walk away (maybe even permanently).
These are all options we have. I write this to encourage myself (and you). We need to remember we have power even in difficult circumstances.
The feelings of powerlessness often come with a lie. At least, this is what I believe. Those feelings often obscure the power we DO have!
I hope you will commit with me to strengthen our assertive muscles as we step more fully into the personal power and authority God has given us!
