Some people think that you won't struggle with certain things because you have a relationship with Jesus. There's a lot that has changed about us but some things remain like the struggle with low self-worth and various identity issues. There are many strongholds a Christian still has even though they've been redeemed. So if your stronghold is low self-esteem, let's discuss how to build your self-esteem as a Christian.
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What is Self-Esteem?
Self-esteem is confidence in one's worth or abilities; and self-respect. It's how you value and perceive yourself and is similar to self-worth. Self-esteem is built over time and is usually developed as a child.
In my opinion, healthy self-esteem is an essential foundation after accepting Jesus Christ. I say this because self-esteem is a stronghold and bedrock of a person. It's so pivotal that it can determine how much you actually believe about Christ.
Self-esteem has the power to alter your belief system and as a result advance or delay your destiny.
How Self-Esteem Impacts Your Destiny
I struggled with low self-esteem growing up. Childhood was a little unstable as my parents were going through a divorce. My dad struggled with a long-standing drug addiction and my mom was emotionally wrecked. It was hard to believe that I was worthy of love and acceptance. I was also the middle child of 7, so it was easy to get lost in a large family.
My childhood circumstances planted strongholds of rejection and abandonment which affected my identity as a young woman. Because of this, I struggled to believe God's promises. It was hard hearing God say positive and uplifting things about my future when I was so accustomed to instability and negativity.
If I allowed that to continue, I wouldn't be doing what I'm called to do today. I would've allowed the stronghold of low self-esteem to keep me hostage and limit what I could achieve through Christ. Here's the video explaining that time I laughed when a prophetic woman told me to start believing God's word. Push play and it will start right before the story.
😅 Isn't God a good, good Father? He knew that I struggled to believe Him so He came to tell me to start believing. Your lack of belief in God can be tied to low self-esteem because you don't believe good things can happen for YOU.
Your belief system alters your destiny because you act from belief. In other words, what you believe is what you will do. Have you heard that famous saying from Henry Ford?
“Whether you think you can, or you think you can't – you're right."
This is biblical. Proverbs 23:7 says, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." If you think you're not worthy enough to receive from God, you probably won't receive-- not because of Him, but because of you. Faith pleases God and it takes faith to believe that you are valuable, honored, and loved by God.
Now let's see how we can get you out of your own way by building your self-esteem.
How to Build Your Self-Esteem Biblically
Repent for allowing the stronghold of low self-esteem to dictate your faith in God. Your destiny and identity in Christ are not up for questioning or debate just because someone or something made you feel less important.
Forgive the people who did not build you up and affirm God's love in your life. Work on letting go of what they did or didn't do, or what they said and didn't say. Forgive the ones who rejected you and let you down and made you feel insignificant.
Now that you've broken the power of the stronghold with repentance and forgave those who tore you down, you need to renew your mind. Rebuild yourself by studying God's nature and His love for you. Passages like Psalm 139, Psalm 8, 1 Peter 2:1-12, Isaiah 62, Isaiah 40, Luke 12:1-7, and so many others are great passages to study.
Worship God in song by singing about His greatness. Fall in love with who God is and He will show you how to properly love yourself. It's because of His great love that you can see yourself correctly and then love your neighbors well. Loving God is the remedy for all inharmonious issues within your human nature.
Surround yourself with a bible-affirming community. Attend a church, or bible study, and add a counselor or self-esteem coach to your team. Get away from environments that impact your self-esteem negatively. That could look like limiting social media, television, and superficial friendships. You know what those triggers are.
Be Consistent
You could add more things to this list that build your self-esteem, however, be consistent. All five of these steps are things every believer should do daily and more so when you have identity crisis like low self-esteem. Don't allow the enemy to creep back in with his tactics to keep you in limited beliefs about yourself and God.
Was this helpful? Give us 5 stars and a comment below. To help you get started building your self-esteem, I have a free course called Bold & Beautiful: Overcome Insecurity and Fear of Opinions.
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