The Battle in Our Thoughts
The Battle in Our Thoughts
If we allow the Holy Spirit to examine our thoughts and motives, we might be surprised by what we find. Kathy Spampinato
A few years ago we enjoyed a mini vacation, including visiting some historic sights. One of these was a 17th century fort complete with cannons and high walls built for protection. This "Castle" was a strong tower and had never been captured by the enemy, although it did endure attacks, and battles were fought on several occasions. This reminded me of the spiritual battles we endure on a regular basis. There are several parallels.
Ephesians 6:12 NKJV "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Our enemy is never a person, but is often the spirit the person is aligned with, whether they know it or not.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 TPT states, "For although we live in the natural realm, We don't wage a military campaign employing human weapons, using manipulation to achieve our aims. Instead, our spiritual weapons are energized with divine power to effectively dismantle the defenses behind which people hide. We can demolish every deceptive fantasy that opposes God and break through every arrogant attitude that is raised up in defiance of the true knowledge of God. We capture, like prisoners of war, every thought and insist that it bow in obedience to the Anointed One."
We need to acknowledge that we have a real enemy, and there are spiritual forces that desire to build a stronghold in our life. They can latch onto an angry thought, or an arrogant attitude raised up in defiance of the true knowledge of God. The stronghold can be a fiercely defended opinion that we hold onto, although not a godly opinion. It can be a defense mechanism we've developed because of a bad experience or pain from the past. It can also be the idea that we deserve the right to fight back and destroy the person who crippled us emotionally or financially. We often excuse our bad thoughts and behavior towards someone else because "they did it first" to us. If we are harboring thoughts of bitterness or retribution, we are allowing a stronghold to be established in our minds, whether we ever act on it or not.
If we allow the Holy Spirit to examine our thoughts and motives, we might be surprised by what we find. Have we made room for attitudes and opinions that we would be embarrassed to admit to? We need to take these thoughts captive- like prisoners of war. The war is a battle for our minds. If we trust God to look after us and be our defense, we are then willing to examine our thought life.
There are three different sources that our thoughts stem from. The first is our own mind. Our thoughts stem from our mindset: our belief system, our worldview, our opinions, and our experience. We have learned from the past, but have we learned the lessons of love? Often our own thoughts will mimic what has been said to us, and about us, especially the voices from our childhood. The second voice of our thoughts is from the enemy. If you often tell yourself that you're stupid, and will never amount to anything, this does not originate from your own mind, or from God. These are the lies of the enemy sent to entrap you. As the above scripture states it, they are a deceptive fantasy. If you repeat these lies, and agree with them, you are aligning your mind with the one who is out to destroy you. If you agree long enough, the lies sound like your own voice and you will believe them. They will become part of how you view yourself.
The third and most important voice of your thoughts is the voice of the Holy Spirit. His thoughts are full of the fruit of the Spirit, and build us up in our confidence, our faith, and our sense of self. God desires to show you His love. His opinion of you is life-giving. You are His beloved and you can do "all things through Christ who gives you strength." Can I encourage you to ask the Lord to speak to your mind? What do you say about me God? Who do you say I am? You can look up scriptures that reinforce God's love and care for you and embed them into your brain. Let His word define your identity.
When you begin to recognize the voice of God in your own head, you will much more easily identify the voice of the enemy. Then you can take your thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ. You can refuse to agree with or believe the lies of the enemy, and effectively evict them from your mind. You will systematically take down the stronghold of lies that limits who you are, or who you will become as you continue to walk by faith.
May you be blessed and encouraged through Revelation 12:11 which talks about our spiritual battle. We are more than conquerors.
"They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony;" You can triumph in this battle over your mind. Speak the truth to yourself, and dispel the lies.
