What To Do With the Voices in Your Head

If we quiet down our bodies and minds, it doesn’t take long for the voices to surface. On Sunday we took some time to ponder how Jesus spent time in the desert and had to contend with the same sorts of voices we do: the demands to be powerful or popular or perfect. Here’s where that passage starts:

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” - Matthew 4:1-3

One of the things that Matthew makes sure that we notice is that those voices come after the voice of God calling Jesus “my son whom I love” in the passage immediately before this one.

Take some time to ponder this image and the quote below: tune in, by Lisle Gwynn Garrity, @sanctifiedart. What stands out to you about how Jesus hands these different voices? Do you hear an invitation to a different way of being today?

In this image, the words of the Tempter hover in the background. The Tempter’s voice lingers like a ringing in Jesus’ ears, saying: “Take charge. Hoard your power. Dominate. Control.” Somehow, Jesus has deciphered that these words are simply background noise. He closes his eyes and goes inward, wrapping himself in a posture of self-embrace. From this introspective perspective, Jesus essentially says, “Get behind me, Satan.” - - Lisle Gwynn Garrity