6 Practical Steps to Becoming Self Aware
Biblical Self-Awareness: 6 Steps from Genesis 1 in Creation
Today is the day, he told himself. He had it in his calendar for weeks, but it felt like months. Today is the day I'm going to blow up my marriage, ruin my career, and devastate my relationship with my kids.
John, like most people, had it all worked out—exactly the kinds of big mistakes he would make to tear down his life and family.
Where Do We Begin? Learning from God's Creation Process
We all begin in the same place: the unknown. The parts of us where no light has yet shone. The things we do but don't know why. The deep inner tugs and desires that we can't even see clearly.
Genesis 1 reveals even God's deliberate process to bring order from chaos—starting with the earth in Tohu va-Vohu (תֹהוּ וָבֹהוּ, pronounced: TO-hu va-VO-hu). This same sequence offers us a blueprint for self-awareness: sorting through our tangled thoughts and feelings like anxiety and depression, distinguishing truth from confusion, and creating space for life and flourishing. By following these steps, we move toward the good life God intends—ordered, purposeful, and full.
Tohu va-Vohu is the Hebrew phrase describing the state of the earth before creation in Genesis 1:2. It's been translated as:
"Unordered and uninhabited"
"Waste and void"
"Formless and empty"
"Chaos and desolation"
In many ways, this describes our inner world—unordered, chaotic, or empty. Tohu va-Vohu is our default state unless we take intentional steps to bring order and meaning to the chaos. We carry a jumble of thoughts, feelings, and desires but often lack the words or awareness to make sense of them.
The 6 Steps
These steps don't always have to happen in this exact order, but skipping one might keep us from developing the awareness we're seeking.
1) Stop — Create Space
Take a pause in your day. Busyness and avoidance often keep us from this work. We must intentionally stop and create time for reflection.
There is no self-awareness without pause moments—without stillness.
"The word discipleship and the word discipline are the same word... Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from being filled up. Discipline means that somewhere you're not occupied... to create that space in which something can happen that you hadn't planned or counted on."
—Henri Nouwen, Moving from Solitude to Community to Ministry
2) See — Wayyar (וַיַּרְא) — To See, To Appear
The first divine action in Genesis after the Spirit hovers is the word wayyar (pronounced: vah-YAR), meaning "to see," "to appear," or "to show up."
To see something means both to perceive it and to be seen. Like light itself, it reveals and is revealed. God pauses to truly see what is there.
As we sit with God, new things surface. What once hid in the shadows begins to emerge.
"...Whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away... where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom... we are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory." (2 Cor. 3:15–18)
Transformation is progressive—"ever increasing"—and comes from the Spirit. To truly see, we must come before the Lord with unveiled faces, honest and open.
The Zulu greeting "Sawubona" means "I see you."
Do we truly see ourselves? Do we see others? The more we know who we are, the more we can Sawubona—see and be seen—in love and grace.
3) Sit With It — Rachaf (רָחַף) — To Hover or Brood
The Spirit of God is described in Genesis 1:2 as rachaf (pronounced: rah-KHAHF), which means "to hover" or "to brood." It conveys a protective, nurturing presence, like a bird sheltering its young.
To brood also implies a quiet, patient waiting—leaning into the unknown rather than running away from it.
We don't want to skip this step. If we give surface efforts, we get surface results. Some parts of our inner selves need time and patience to activate and transform.
"The soul is like a wild animal... if we will walk quietly into the woods, sit patiently by the base of a tree... the wild animal we seek might put in an appearance."
—Parker Palmer, A Hidden Wholeness
"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." (Exodus 14:14)
4) Sort It Out — Badal (בָּדַל) — To Separate, To Divide
Next, God badal (pronounced: bah-DAL), meaning "to separate" or "to divide," bringing order from chaos by distinguishing light from darkness, land from sea, day from night.
Sorting our inner experiences clarifies and prioritizes them, helping us discern truth and meaning.
Ask yourself:
Is it life-giving or life-draining?
What proportion is me, others, or circumstances?
Is it a surface emotion or a heart's desire?
Is this sin or not sin?
Is this biological, psychological, spiritual, or social?
Which motivations drive this—fear, love, shame, pride, confusion?
Deuteronomy 30:19–20 calls us to choose life. Standing between Mount Gerizim (blessing) and Mount Ebal (curse), Israel saw the vivid choice before them—life or death, flourishing or desolation.
God invites us to this same choice today: discern what leads to life.
5) Say It — Qara (קָרָא) — To Call, To Name, To Proclaim
God qara (pronounced: kah-RAH) means "to call by name," "to proclaim," or "to cry out."
When we name feelings or desires, vague emotions become tangible and actionable. Naming allows us to test anxious thoughts, grieve loss, correct false beliefs, or pursue Godly desires.
Speaking truth aloud, and sharing it with others, often brings greater clarity and healing.
Name the feeling. Name the thought. Name the desire.
6) Surrender It — God, as Elohim (אֱלֹהִים) The Creator and Sustainer
Finally, we surrender to Elohim (pronounced: el-o-HEEM), the majestic and powerful Creator God who orders the cosmos and whose face is turned toward us.
After seeing and sorting, Elohim fills what was formless with life and beauty. This work continues through His Spirit in us today.
Awareness without surrender can mislead, but awareness surrendered to God brings true transformation.
"Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
—Psalm 139:23–24
A Few Final Reflections
The Spirit hovers (rachaf) over the Tohu va-Vohu—the chaos within.
God shines light and wayyar—to see and appear.
God patiently broods and waits (rachaf).
God separates and sorts (badal).
God calls and names (qara).
God sustains as Elohim, creating order and life.
This is the journey of self-awareness God invites us into.
You may wonder, "Do I really need to sort through all this?" If even God began creation by sorting things out, then yes, so must we. Without this sorting, life remains chaotic; with it, God brings peace and purpose.
Ready to sort through your inner chaos? Schedule counseling or join our mailing list today.
Source: Stephen Carter
Learn more about Tohu va-Vohu through the Bible Project: Genesis 1 Video
