Everyone gets attacked, injured, cheated, or harmed in some form during their lifetime. If not physically, then emotionally. We’re all victims in moments of life’s challenges and difficulties. John 16:33  said that “in this life, you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world.” So, what do you do when you feel like a victim? We should affirm the reality of the innocent victim’s suffering as we have the opportunity to address it, but we do them a grave disservice if we allow ourselves to fall into a victim mentality.

How do you overcome a victim mindset and walk in God’s victory? We will talk about the six steps to getting there.

Step 1 – Stop making excuses.

You are requiring that someone else come in and override your fault for you, which they can’t do. The truth is, someone will always have it worse than you, and better than you and it doesn’t matter. You can continue to blame others for the defeats in the challenges and settle for less than God’s best for your life, or you can choose to embrace the truth. 

Step 2 – Take ownership of your needs.

In most cases of victimhood, the battle is more in the mind and it stems from the inability, or the unwillingness to take ownership of one’s wants and needs. If you feel powerless my friend, I want to encourage you to get help in dealing with that.  If someone is violating your needs, learn to set boundaries. You are not a victim of this other person’s bad behavior. 

Step 3 – See yourself and God correctly.

When we slip into a victim mentality, our vision is a little distorted. We aren’t viewing through the lens of scripture. Instead, we are viewing through the lens of experience.  Instead of seeing God, as our provider, our justice, our avenger, our guide, we see him as just someone else who was abandoned and forgotten. What does God say about you? You are a victorious Creation in Christ. So what do you say about God? Do you say that God has forgotten you rather than believing His word that he will never leave you or forsake you? 

Step 4 – Find the root before you construct.

Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you where this began, ask him to reveal the root. Jesus can heal all wounds. But sometimes it’s helpful to get additional help to work through those residual emotions that have seeped into other areas of your life.

Step 5 – Repent.

You may be thinking, why do I need to repent? There’s nothing you need to repent of except allowing yourself to stay stuck in a victim mentality and not believing God’s Sovereign justice will prevail in your life. Still, for many with a victim mentality, it shows up in everyday life. A victim mentality magnifies the harm that is done to us and it blinds us to our own sin. It tells us a false narrative explaining our situation, so that blame lies exclusively with other people or circumstances. God never calls us victims of our circumstances. We are called to take responsibility for our actions. Your mental actions need to be repented of. 

Step 6 – Forgive.

Jesus said, “Father forgive them for, they do not know what they’re doing.” After you have forgiven your offender, it might be time to turn that forgiveness on to yourself. No matter your circumstances, no matter what you faced in life, you are an overcomer if you are in Christ. This does not mean that we won’t face hardships. It means that even in hardships, we can be victorious because we belong to God. It means that in the midst of the difficulties I continue to believe that God wins in the end. The victorious believer does not allow the actions of others to steal their peace in persecution.

Thank you for stopping by to read my blog. Remember, we can do all things through Christ.