Guard Your Thoughts

 The Word:

“For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds”. 2 Corinthians 10:4 ESV

A Reflexion:

” I can’t help you, I can’t even help myself.” These were the thoughts of a friend of mine trying to give counsel to a young person. I believe in cultural strongholds. The influence of paganism is evident in the western world. Cultural Marxism has gained a foothold in America’s educational system – which influences every sphere of society. The Believer’s mission is to share the countercultural message of the Kingdom of God to the world. We can’t change our culture unless we allow God to change us. Learning how to watch over our souls in prayer is significant for our influence to be effective. Hopefully, this quote by Dean Sherman will be helpful:

” I have heard people use the term strongholds to refer to humanism, Islam, communism, and other religions and institutions. However, in II Corinthians, strongholds does not refer to massive, complex systems, human or demonic. Here it refers to the strongholds of the mind. These strongholds are castles in the air built up in our minds through wrong thinking—through unbelieving, depressed, fearful, and negative thinking. . . . Every military post has guards. They stand quietly at their posts until they hear a rustling in the bushes. Then they immediately ask: “Who goes there?” and are prepared to evict any intruder. We too need to post a guard at the gate of our minds to check the credentials of every thought and every imagination, ready to cast down that which is not true, not righteous, or not of God. If it doesn’t belong, out it goes. This is spiritual warfare: being alert to every thought. The Bible says, “As he thinks within himself, so he is” (Proverbs 23:7). One of the devil’s greatest schemes is to nullify the effectiveness of Christians who are genuinely saved. Even if they go to heaven when they die, Satan will be happy to blunt their lives while on earth. He disables them, stealing their days, months, and years by influencing them to think wrongly. Unfortunately, Satan has successfully neutralized thousands of potential victors this way.” (1)

Watch And Pray:

Father, we thank you for the spiritual weapons you have given us. Help us to meditate upon Your Word daily. Help us start each day in prayer and to post a guard at the gate of our minds. Your Word says that the way we think dictates our behavior. Lead us in victory over our minds so that we can be effective agents for your Kingdom. In Jesus’ name, amen.

(1) Dean Sherman, Spiritual Warfare for Every Christian: How to Live in Victory and Retake the Land (Seattle: YWAM Publishing, 1989), 52–53.