Spiritual Dwarf Mentality
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
By Pastor James May
Giants are in the land; giants that are thundering threats into the ears of all men. Can you hear them roar? Do you feel their taunting down deep inside? Long ago, in a land far away, two armies were set in battle array on the crests of opposing hills. The valley below was what we might call today, “No Man’s Land”. To enter into that battle meant certain death or enslavement. The armies of either side would hold no quarter, show no mercy, for they were the bitterest of enemies.
Picture yourself on that battle line because each of us are represented there. On one side of the valley were the people of God, the armies of Israel, led by King Saul. On the other side of that valley was the army of the Philistines and they had invaded the land looking for blood. There could be no peace. There could be no compromise. It was either win or die.
Out into the valley stepped a giant of a man. Now you would have thought that since Saul was king of Israel and he was so much taller than every one else, that this giant might have been him. It should have been King Saul, stepping out in faith, knowing that the God of Israel was going to fight his battle for him. But that was not so.
Instead, it was the Giant of the Philistines named Goliath. This ungodly, idol worshipping man of the world stepped forward and defied the army of Israel. He wasn’t just defying Saul and his soldiers; he was challenging their faith in their God and he was challenging the very God of Israel. “Is there one among you who would dare to fight? Let him step forward and you can watch him die?”
On that day Saul stayed hidden in his tent; hidden behind guards who were just as afraid as he was. Who could blame them? When you look at what was happening through the eyes of the flesh, the situation seemed hopeless. Goliath was over eight feet tall and looked like he was wearing a Toyota for armor, and carried a spear the size of a 4 X 8 fence post with a tip on it that looked like a missile warhead. His shield bearer was the next biggest man in the army and the shield resembled a small bateau. This was not the kind of man that you would want to get into a one-on-one fight with; in fact you probably wouldn’t want to do so if you outnumbered him ten to one.
Every day that you live you are going to face some giants in your life. They may seem like giants of sickness; giants of loneliness; giants of pain; giants of despair; giants of financial need; giants of doubt, fear and frustration. Just as Goliath appeared so much bigger, the closer you got to him; so do all of the problems that you face. If you could see that problem coming then you could have made plans to escape it, but that’s not the way it happens. You are just cruising along, enjoying life when suddenly, there, square in the middle of the path that you must trod, stands a giant, or a mountain; something that seems so insurmountable.
I talk to people in the church all the time about some of the giants that they face. I don’t care how much faith you have, there will likely come a time when your faith will waver. You can rest assured that its going to be tested to the limit. That’s the only way that you can tell whether your faith is real or not.
Sometimes, though we try to force faith to arise in our hearts, the giant seems so huge that we begin to develop a “Spiritual Dwarf Mentality”. It’s not easy living in a world of giants if you have a dwarf mentality.
We can speak of faith, but where’s faith when the giant is there? Sometimes the problems we face are so huge that they obscure our vision of Christ. I’ve been there. I’ve seen times when the giants came flooding into my life. I felt the cold grip of doubt and wondered if this would be the end. None of us are immune to the attacks of the enemy. He’s always hanging nearby, just waiting for an opportune moment to rise up against you.
Jesus told the disciples in Matthew 17:20 “ (You could not cast out that devil), “Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
We like to claim to have faith that is much more than that, but there are times when faith seems so small that you couldn’t fill that mustard seed. There are times when we develop that “spiritual dwarf mentality”.
What is “Spiritual Dwarf Mentality”? That simply means that you think too small; that your faith is too small; that your commitment to the Lord is just too small; that your trust in God is very small; and that whatever you are facing in life seems so much greater than the God you serve. I’ve seen a lot of people who had Spiritual Dwarf Mentality.
This is not a jab at those people who are born into the world with a physical condition called dwarfism that causes the body to remain small their whole lives.
There’s a program on the TV called “The Little People” that tells the day-to-day life story of a couple that live a life that is challenged by dwarfism. The husband, Bill Klein and his wife, Jen Arnold are both under four feet tall and they are newlyweds.
Yet, as you watch these “Little People”, you find that they don’t have a “Dwarf Mentality”. Though their bodies may be small, their goals, ambitions and dreams are the stuff of Giants. He owns a successful business and she is a successful Pediatrician. They face a life with all of its giant cars, homes and everything else, and they take it all in stride and do whatever they have to do to build a happy life.
A “Spiritual Dwarf Mentality” has nothing to do with the size of your body, but it has everything in the world to do with how you think and the size of your heart, and the size of your faith and commitment to Christ. You can have Dwarf Mentality even if you’re 6 feet tall.
How does a Christian with “Dwarf Mentality” see the world around him?
Every obstacle is a giant standing in the way. Their favorite words in every conversation are “can’t”, won’t, why, no and I hope so. Most of these aren’t words of faith and power but words that tend to keep us thinking in a small way.
I was looking over some material for this message and a came across one of those 12 step programs. Now most of these things don’t amount to much and some of them seem to be designed to keep you in a condition of failure because we can never really be free.
The AA 12 step program and the Narc Anon Program both force you to admit, every time you go to a meeting, that you are an alcoholic or a drug addict. Where’s the delivering power in that? Sure some folks are helped but to stay sober they have to be accountable to someone else and never miss a meeting.
Isn’t it amazing that the world lives by God’s Law more than some of those who consider themselves to be God’s people? I wish that everyone who calls themselves a Christian would also come to the church every time the doors are opened and confess that they are Christians.
If the alcoholics and the drug addicts miss one meeting they are liable to fall off the wagon, and they are proud to come together and confess that through the support they feel in their group meetings they are able to overcome their habit, even if its only for a short time. When is the last time I heard a Christian give God glory and confess that his or her faithfulness to the House of God is what keeps them from falling away from Christ?
I wonder if we changed the name of our meetings from Church Services to Faith Builder Meetings if it would matter in the faithfulness of our people? Perhaps we need to have a 12 step program for those with ‘Spiritual Dwarf Mentality” and help them to quit thinking so negatively about life and the Giants that they seem to face every day. Maybe we could call our group “Dwarf-anon” and we could develop our own 12 Step Program for overcoming “Dwarf Thinking”.
1. I admit I have power over Negative, faithless thoughts and that these Negative Thoughts make me feel bad about myself, my life, my church and even my God, and they negate the effect of my testimony around other people.
2. I believe that God is my best help and that I need to involve myself in being faithful and trusting Him more often. I haven’t done so good of a job on my own anyway.
3. I must make the decision to turn my life and my will over God and let him lead me as I walk in obedience to His Word. If I obey Him and leave the things of this world alone, he would help me be an overcomer. I’ll never overcome by continuing to live in disobedience and sin.
4. I must learn to look within and take full responsibility for my life and thoughts; even when I don’t want to. I have no one to blame for the condition of my life but myself. The life that I am living now is the result of both past and present choices that I have made, that have resulted in the consequences that I now face.
5. I admit that having “Dwarf Mentality” and thinking Negative Thoughts serves no useful purpose and only damages my faith and trust in God. Dwelling on the bad things in my life only tends to strengthen their hold on my life. I must determine to see the good in everything. My own way of thinking has been the cause of much of my physical and emotional pain.
6. I am NOW ready to think like the Word of God says to think; only on those things that are good, pure, etc. I will read or quote these words every day. I will post them to my mirrors and my refrigerator and to remind myself that this is what it takes to get rid of Spiritual Dwarf Mentality. Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
7. I will submit myself to the leadership that God has placed over me, because I realize that He has placed them there to help me to change and to grow in Christ. I submit to the teaching of God’s Word and to the leading the Holy Spirit and I desire that those who are ordained by God to teach me and lead me will be quick to tell me when something in my life needs to change, and I will not be offended by anything they tell me that is within the parameters of God’s Word.
8. I will make a daily list of all of the blessings that God has bestowed upon me; and I will quit belly-aching about the things that aren’t just the way I think that they should be.
9. I will carry the message of God’s saving grace and his power to set people free from “Dwarf Thinking” every chance I get. I realize that I am made an overcomer by the Word of my Testimony and the Blood of Jesus Christ.
10. I will surround myself, as often as possible, with people of faith; people who will build me up and not tear me down. The best place to do this is at church, with the Spirit of the Lord in our midst.
11. I will read and study God’s Word everyday; for in the Bible only can I find words of encouragement and words of eternal life.
12. I will pray every day for God to reveal those things in me that are not right in His eyes; and to help me overcome each of them and all of them. Prayer truly does change things, but only if I pray in spirit and in truth.
“Spiritual Dwarf Mentality” is the product of a lack of faith in God, an inability to trust God; hanging around with people who don’t serve God and of continuing to live in disobedience to God’s Word.
All of us know of people who continue to make wrong choices; continue to hold on to some habitual sin; and still can’t figure out why they are always in need; or never seem to get ahead in life? Do we not know that when we disobey God’s Word that we limit the flow of God’s blessings into our lives? That’s all a part of this little thing that I am calling “Spiritual Dwarf Mentality”.
Our prayer should always be, “Lord create within me a clean heart. Renew within me a right spirit. Show me those things in my life that are detrimental to my spiritual thinking and spiritual growth. Help me then to repent of those things and draw closer to the Lord.
Jesus desires that His church be a church of Spiritual Giants; people who will trust God no matter what; have faith that will move mountains; and have a testimony that they are overcomers through the Blood of the Lamb.
Are you a Spiritual Giant; or do you have a “Spiritual Dwarf Mentality”? Maybe we should follow that 12 step pattern that I spoke about. I want to look out upon a church; and a people who are truly Spiritual Giants. It all starts with me and you; look inside of your own heart and life first; then maybe you’ll be in a better position to help your neighbor as well.
