Broken Lenses: Identifying Your Truth in a World of Lies

By Emily Bernath

Broken Lenses reveals the truth of who God made people to be and the freedom that results from living out that truth.

A rape survivor, Emily Bernath’s life quickly turned away from having everything to feeling hopelessness and worthlessness. It was during that time of being open about her experience that it became apparent to her just how many other people experience those same feelings and so easily allow things that aren’t true about them define who they are. Broken Lenses stems from a passion to take outreach to the next level. Inside, Emily identifies some of the most popular lies people believe about themselves and pulls out the 12 biggest Biblical truths Christians should embrace in their own lives, such as “I am lovable” and “I am not a failure.”

With her scientific background and tell-it-how-it-is approach, Emily analyzes and connects each truth to God’s word through a few key lessons for each truth. She calls out the ways in which the enemy prevents people from believing these truths about themselves and what it looks like to truly embrace each of these truths. Ultimately, Broken Lenses helps readers achieve a more intimate relationship with God and the freedom that He desires each of his children to live in.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Jun 4, 2019
• ISBN: 9781642793079

Emily Bernath

A passionate advocate for survivors of sexual assault—and a rape survivor herself—Emily Bernath began writing out of her passion for women’s ministry. Her personal tragedy led her into periods of darkness that she was only able to move beyond with the support of others and the healing power of Jesus. After rediscovering her faith and identity in Christ, Emily was able to discover freedom from the shame, condemnation, and abuse she experienced. Today, she lives to be a resource for other sexual assault survivors and help them find that same freedom.  In her advocacy work, Emily has spoken at many events, radio shows, and been featured on FOX 13 Salt Lake City. She teaches classes about the spiritual impact of sexual assault and how faith plays a role in a survivor’s healing journey. She also supports survivors by serving on the board of Reveal to Heal International—a faith-based non-profit that seeks to address sexual abuse prevention and awareness. In her career as an author, Emily has won multiple book awards, been featured on CBS in both Salt Lake City and Toledo, and done book signings in eight different states. Her third book, Broken Lenses Volume 3: Experiencing God’s Freedom in a World of Sin, addresses the personal nature of God and his desire to connect with his creation. When she’s not writing, Emily Bernath enjoys drinking good coffee, playing softball, supporting her local church, and connecting with other people to hear their stories. She currently resides in Salt Lake City.

Book preview

Introduction

Iprayed to receive God into my life at an early age—I know, that’s likely what you expect a Christian author to say, and knowing that may even give you the impression that I had my life together sooner than most. In reality, I made that prayer because I was both desperate and tired of suffering. I lived for years with the constant fear that I was alone. One day, I was told by someone that we are never alone because God is always present. I decided to find out if this presence was true, and asked God that if he was there with me, to take away my fear. Without fail, God took away my fear that same night. I knew he was real, but I would remain blind to just how much God cares about me for years.

I had this desire to be intimately known, and I needed answers. I knew what I wanted, but I didn’t know how to find another person who shared that desire. Determined that I could find what I was looking for, I went on a search. Once I graduated high school and left home, my search and need to be known grew deeper. I distanced myself from the impersonal God I grew up with, and instead, I began to seek out a life of partying. Because I didn’t know what my true identity was at the time, getting drunk made it easier to talk to people. The problem was that unless I was in a drunken state, most of those people lost their interest in me. Out of my own desperation to stay relevant, I continued further down the path of drinking.

My search ended one night when I was raped. In an instant, I went from searching for a way to be known, to feeling like no one would ever desire to get to know me again. On the outside, everything looked normal. I looked normal. On the inside, I felt disgusting and screamed to get out of my own body. I called out God’s name for the first time in years. I couldn’t believe he would let something like this happen to me. What did I do to deserve this?

I never knew the importance of an involvement in a community of women until the rape happened and it was seemingly too late to find one. I numbed my pain by drinking more excessively because it was the only way I knew how to distract myself from my own disgust. Until, a girl I had recently met asked me to go to church with her. Living in a state of rock bottom and seeing the fact that someone was willing to invest time in me, I figured I had nothing to lose and so I went. From this friendship, I was reintroduced to the Bible and began to see myself in a new, true light—a light that gave freedom and led me to the relationship I wanted all along—a relationship with God.

Now, I know where truth is found and I am confident in the person God made me to be. My tell it like it is personality allows me to weed out the lies Satan likes to tell us and send them back to where they came from by the power of the Holy Spirit. My desire is for each of you to live in the freedom that is found from knowing the truth of who you are and the truth of the one who made you.

Who were we made to be? Our identity? Our reason for being on this earth? We all have one. We all desire at some point in life to know our purpose. For any invention, innovation, or formula created, no one knows more about the purpose for creating them than their creator. In the case of every human being on this earth, that Creator is God. God wants each of us to get to know him on an intimate level. In doing so, we can also get to know ourselves.

The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. Acts 17:24-27 NIV

In my own effort to seek and find God, he opened a door in my heart and gave me a very specific message to communicate. My hope is that this book provides a light to you and helps you learn and discover your true self. God made each of us the way we are for a specific purpose. He desires nothing more than to have a relationship with every single person on this earth in order to show us that purpose and the path for our lives.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

The world today surrounds us with distractions and tries to lead us away from the path God has for us. Some would say the world is a really dark place. Although darkness exists, God promises to all those who follow him that they will have the light of life.

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. John 8:12 NIV

When we have the light of life, darkness has no power over us. This means that Satan, being darkness, has no power over us when we are in God’s light. He has no choice but to run away.

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7 NIV

Once we know the truth about who we are, we can live in freedom—the kind of freedom which can only be found in God and his truth.

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. John 8:31-32 ESV

It is important to note that God’s truth sets us free. We have been freed from the bondage our sin creates. When we accept the punishment Jesus took on the cross for our sins, we are freed from that bondage. With this freedom, we are able to live out the life for which God has created us. Through Christ, we all have the strength and ability to love one another in the same way that God loves us. Freedom is a calling we each have on our lives.

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: Love your neighbor as yourself. Galatians 5:13-14 NIV

However, as long as we live on this earth, various lies will be said to us. Lying is the language of the enemy. As described by Jesus in the book of John:

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44 NIV

Although it is true that Satan will attempt to feed us lies for as long as we are on this earth, we do not have to believe them. Through God’s power we are able to overcome all of the lies thrown our way.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Ephesians 6:10-11 NIV

Part of that armor of God we are told to put on in order to fight against the devil’s schemes consists of knowing the truth.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Ephesians 6:13-17 NIV

Just as the Bible warns us about the enemy being the father of lies, we are also told where the source of truth comes from.

Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6 NIV

Living in the fullness of who we were made to be consists of placing our faith in Jesus who is the way to true life. When we accept Jesus’s punishment for our sins, we receive God’s Holy Spirit, allowing us to form a relationship with God. A relationship with God is the most important relationship we can ever invest in. No one wants to spend time with us more than he does, and no one sees us in the same light as he does.

My prayer for everyone who reads this book is that it would be a tool in shedding God’s light into all areas of your life. I pray that as a result of that light, you would be able to see yourselves in ways you have never seen yourself before, and that you would see yourselves in the same way God sees you. I pray for freedom and truth to shine in any areas of your life currently being ruled by lies, and for the truths about God to be revealed to you—truths about his love for you and how much he cares about you. May this book bring you a renewed vision in the way you view your reason for being on this earth and in the way you view the one who brought you here.

I Am Interesting

Lesson 1: Paying Attention

Being asked what interests us is a fundamental and go-to question many people resort to when first getting to know someone. On a materialistic level, this question is likely extremely easy for almost everyone to answer. It could be any sport, hobby, or craft. We all have things of interest we devote our free time to. However, what if we switched the wording of the question What are your interests? to What makes you interesting? Chances are, that second question is much more difficult or even uncomfortable to answer. But why? The truth I am interesting is necessary to have as a foundation to building one of the things God is interested in most: relationships. Most of us don’t walk around saying how interesting we are, but the belief of this truth impacts both the way we view ourselves and how we view others dramatically.

Thinking about my own life, the struggle to believe this truth began at an early age. Most of the people who met me after high school would have a hard time believing this, but I was by far one of the quietest kids in my class for all of my childhood. I grew up with the mindset that, the more people knew about me, the more evidence they had to form false perceptions or stereotypes about me. My fear was largely the result of an insecurity about my own identity. I wanted close relationships with people, but I wasn’t confident enough to share my personal story with them to get there. I knew I was more than a stereotype, and if people were actually interested in getting to know me further, they would have learned that too.

How do we believe the truth I am interesting?

Interest: noun curiosity, concern; verb to engage the attention of¹

How do we engage the attention of something? One of the avenues leading to the belief of feeling interesting is through the belief that we can engage the attention of people, or that they want to pay their attention toward us. What makes arriving at this belief so hard?

To address this, we look to the fact that the phrase paying attention specifically includes the word paying in it. This indicates that in order for someone to focus their attention on or toward us, it costs them something. In my case, the cost was spending the time with me and them getting to know my true self.

Regardless of the cost’s nature, when we struggle to see our worth, chances are we also struggle to see how someone else could want to pay their attention toward us.

What do you find yourself paying attention to?

Can you think of any instances where you felt unworthy of someone’s attention?

The truth is, God sees each of us as being worth the cost of his son’s life. He is extremely interested in our well-being and desires each of us to pay attention to the things he has for us. What exactly should our attention be placed in?

God’s Word: Pay attention to all that I have said to you, and make no mention of the names of other gods, nor let it be heard on your lips. Exodus 23:13 ESV

God’s Commands: The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. Deuteronomy 28:13 NIV

The Hearts of Others: But the LORD said to him, Pay no attention to how tall and handsome he is. I have rejected him, because I do not judge as people judge. They look at the outward appearance, but I look at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7

As these verses suggest, our attention is to be put in things which cannot be seen by the human eye. Placing our attention in things unseen requires a greater level of interest and investment. Wherever our interests lie, our attention lies also. Our attention holds extreme value. The enemy also recognizes the value of our attention, so much so, that he tries to steal our attention constantly.

How often do you find yourself becoming distracted from the things you should pay attention to? What draws your attention away during those times?

We don’t pay attention to things because we have to, but because we made the choice to. Having a physical presence and actually paying attention are vastly different.

When we successfully identify that people pay attention to us because they take interest in what we’re saying or doing, believing the truth of I am interesting becomes much easier.

How can you be more intentional in the ways you pay attention to others so that they know you show interest in them?

Do you ever struggle to feel that God is paying attention to you? If so, why?

How might you be able to pray into that situation and ask God to show you the attention he has for you?

Lesson 2: Curiosity

Since the dawn of our creation, curiosity has been a part of human nature. Dating back to the first sin committed by Eve in the garden, Satan fed into Eve’s curiosity of the forbidden fruit and enticed her to take the bite. Just as Eve had a curiosity about the forbidden fruit, we each have different subjects of curiosity. Our curiosities lead to either good or sinful results dependent upon how we act on them.

Having five older siblings, I was always curious to know what their lives were like. Often times when they entertained my company, it included sports and video games. Let me tell you, no other elementary school-aged girl at that time knew more about basketball in the Michael Jordan era than I did. I got pretty good at playing basketball on video games too.

Our curiosity leads to a variety of both good and bad outcomes. Eve’s curiosity was one of the variables that led to the first committed sin, but Isaac Newton also discovered gravity due to his curiosity of seeing an apple fall from a tree.

In another definition of interest we see the word curiosity.² How does this concept of curiosity connect to where we place our interests?

Curious: adjective having a desire to investigate and learn³

When anyone possesses a desire to learn or know more about us, it’s because we’ve piqued a curiosity in them. They are interested in us. This concept of piquing the curiosity of others was a contributing factor of my inability to see the truth that I am an interesting person. I often thought to myself, Someone couldn’t actually be curious enough about the little they knew about me to want to learn more, right? There is no definite truth in that statement, but that’s exactly what the enemy wanted me to believe, and I did. Believing this, I shielded others away from being able to get to know more about me. For the entirety of my childhood, shielding people away didn’t seem like a big deal. I didn’t need to have the skill of opening up to people because God blessed me with many great friends very early on in life. I kept the same five closest friends I had in first grade all the way through graduating high school. Aside from those friends, I prevented myself from forming newer potentially great and sustaining relationships.

When on the level of others wanting to get to know more about us, this concept of curiosity is somewhat easy to grasp. But, what if we instead internalize the focus and look at curiosity in the sense of us wanting to get to know ourselves better? Is it possible for someone to know us better than