There is a particular lie the enemy loves to whisper to women who are trying to follow Jesus—especially when they gather around God’s Word for a SIMPLY BIBLE study.
It sounds like this:
- I don’t belong here.
- I’m less than the others.
- What am I doing in this group?
- These women are more intelligent, more spiritual, more…
You fill in the blank. Comparison rarely announces itself as danger. It disguises itself as humility, discernment, or self-awareness, but it is not neutral. It is a strategy meant to steal joy, confidence, and intimacy with God.
Jesus was clear about the spiritual battle for our hearts:
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10
When the Lie Is Named
After a recent SIMPLY BIBLE leaders gathering, a trusted leader courageously texted me and named this struggle:
I often leave Leaders Live thinking wrong thoughts regarding my intellect because the women have such depth and wisdom. I ask myself, what am I doing in this group? I fully understand this is the lie of the enemy! And yet, he really hits me with: She’s everything you are not. He comes to steal, cheat, and lie.
Her honesty did something powerful: it brought the enemy’s whispered lie into the light.
When we honestly talked about this with the other leaders the next week, something felt holy. Women visibly reacted. Heads nodded in agreement. Hearts seemed to let out a sigh of relief.
A few days later, she texted me again:
Several of the ladies reached out to me regarding the spiritual warfare and their own struggles. Thank you for addressing it. I feel confirmed that it was a real struggle. So very grateful for the Holy Spirit.
This is often how spiritual warfare loosens its grip—not through silence or self-correction—but through truth spoken in community.
Can you sense the joy in my friend’s second text? That’s Jesus, the Life-Giver, at work.
A Familiar Pattern
If you’ve ever felt stretched or intimidated by this kind of study, you are not alone. The enemy may be cunning, but he is not that creative.
First, the enemy whispers lies to keep women from opening the Bible at all:
- You don’t have time.
- You don’t have a theology degree.
- The Bible is too old and too hard—it’s not even relatable to your life today!
If a woman pushes past those lies and opens Scripture anyway, maybe even joining a SIMPLY BIBLE study, the whispers shift:
- Did you hear her insight? Yours wasn’t that good.
- You missed something important.
- You’re not cut out for this kind of study.
And if she continues to grow—if she slows down, listens, and even steps into a leadership role of sharing SIMPLY BIBLE with others—the lie sharpens:
- You don’t belong here.
- Who do you think you are?
- You’re not enough.
I, too, hear the enemy’s lies. Yes, even as the author and steward of SIMPLY BIBLE, I hear the his whispers.
- You don’t belong here.
- You don’t know what the heck you are doing.
- You’re not enough.
This progression isn’t accidental. It’s designed to prevent women from experiencing the abundant life Jesus promises—especially the life that comes from deeper discipleship and enjoying Him personally through His Word.
Through leading SIMPLY BIBLE leaders, I’ve repeatedly seen this battle for the heart.
But God.
Jesus came to whisper His song over us. In Christ, we are seated with Him as children of the Living God with access to each and every spiritual blessing. God’s love, grace, forgiveness, mercy, kindness, goodness…every spiritual blessing is yours. You are God’s masterpiece, His artwork, His poem, His song.
So Paul reminds the Ephesians:
Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Ephesians 6:10
Sometimes I think I need to pull up my bootstraps and be strong, but that’s not what Paul is saying. He wants us to rely on the Lord’s strength and power. How?
Armor up. The armor Paul describes in the following seven verses of Ephesians 6 isn’t something we make ourselves; it belongs to Jesus. Isaiah tells us that “He wore righteousness as a breastplate” long before we ever entered the battle.
By His Spirit, God gifts us with the armor of God and access to Himself by dwelling within us. We are not outsiders or impostors—don’t listen to the whispered lies of the enemy! Listen to Jesus. We are His walking, living, breathing tabernacles—tabernacles clothed in His armor.
The lies lose their power when we learn to wield Jesus’s shield of faith and listen to the voice of the One who has already seated us with Himself.
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. John 10:27
Why This Matters for Bible Study
This battle touches the very heart of discipleship.
Comparison not only wounds confidence but also quietly convinces women that someone else will always hear God better. When that belief takes hold, many stop trying to listen for His voice themselves.
It feels deceptively easier and safer to rely on “experts” to interpret God and the Bible. As a result, we miss out on the very thing our hearts long for: a deep connection with Jesus. Deeper discipleship occurs when we become curious about the Bible on our own and hear His song for ourselves.
Oh that you would hear the song Jesus sings over you! It’s the very reason SIMPLY BIBLE exists.
Paul explains to His friends:
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10
The Greek word for workmanship is poiema. Do you hear poem? That’s because the words are related. Friend, you are God’s workmanship: His creation, His masterpiece, His poem, His song.
When we personally know and enjoy God through the Bible, that’s the kind of song we hear and the beauty we see. We learn that God sees us as lovable. Valuable. Forgivable. Changeable. And never alone.
We belong to Him.
I belong. You belong. We’re safe. Forever.
Jesus keeps transforming me—changing the way I see Him, myself, and others—by teaching me how to experience Him through His Word.
Not by performing.
Not by competing.
But by slowing down, opening Scripture, and listening. The cherry on top is getting to share these insights together with others—encouraging one another to hear and follow Jesus with all of our hearts.
The battle turns here, friend. When we stop measuring ourselves against others and instead meet together with God in His Word, the enemy’s lies lose their hold. We remember who we are, whose we are, and why we’ve been invited here in the first place.
Not to compare.
Not to prove ourselves.
But to know Him—and to enjoy Him. And we were never meant to do that alone. We do that best with others.
A Prayer for Us
Lord Jesus,
You have conquered. You reign. And You are seated with the Father, our Father.
Thank You.
Expose the lies that keep us silent, shrinking back, or comparing ourselves to others. Heal the places where we have believed we do not belong.
Teach us to hear Your voice, trust Your Spirit, and walk confidently with You. Help women everywhere learn to know and enjoy You through Your Word.
May Your name be known and glorified.
Amen.
If comparison has been a struggle for you, you may also find encouragement in this earlier reflection: The Power of Compare and Contrast—the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.
0 Responses
Very encouraging!