BATTLEFIELD OF THE MIND

Have you ever convinced yourself that something was going to go wrong? You just knew you weren’t going to get that job? Even before the interview? Then you got that job? Or you were certain the kids were going to get into a car accident driving home? And then they arrived home safely? In hindsight we often look back on situations like this and wonder why we were so worried. And sometimes have you arrived at the conclusion that your concern was “all in your head”?

Not surprisingly, the Bible addresses the “all in your head” syndrome. God understands that—if we’re not deliberate—we are capable of imagining countless scenarios in which relationships fracture and bad things happen. So He built into His Word instructions for recognizing and overcoming the inclination to let our minds run away with us.

These battles in our minds are actually a normal part of Christian experience. In 2 Corinthians 10, Paul speaks about this very vividly. In verse three he says:

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.”

Paul says we are living physical bodies in a material world. At the same time we are in a war, but the war is not being fought out in the physical or material realm. It is in a different realm. He explains in verse four:

“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds…”

God has given us the appropriate weapons because this war in which we’re engaged is not in the physical realm. Our weapons are not physical, but spiritual. God has given us spiritual weapons that will destroy strongholds. In this war there are strongholds that oppose us and oppose God. And Paul goes on to describe these strongholds in verse five:

“…casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ…”

All of these words deal with the realm of the mind: arguments, the knowledge of God and taking every thought captive. Paul has made it clear that the battlefield is the mind.

Having pressures in your mind, therefore, is not unnatural or abnormal. It is part of the Christian life. It is not necessarily a sign you are doing anything wrong, or are on the wrong path. It is just part of your total experience as a Christian.

The Enemy Within

At a certain point in my Christian experience, I made a startling discovery: I had an enemy of God in me. Even though I was a Christian, serving God, I discovered that my enemy was my own mind. In Romans 8:7, Paul explains:

“Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.”

Many people trust in education. But education will not change your mind from being an enemy of God. It will just educate your mind the way it is. If you have a carnal mind and you go to seminary for five years, you could likely emerge with a highly educated carnal mind inside of you.

There has to be a total and complete change.

In 2 Corinthians, Paul says that God has given us the appropriate weapons. There are many weapons for us to use in this war, but I believe the two most essential are time spent in God’s Word and prayer.

Three Strongholds

In 2 Corinthians, Paul speaks about “strongholds.” Another translation says, “strongholds in our minds.” What are those strongholds? I have given much thought to this, and I would suggest to you they fall under three main headings.

The first one is?pride. The greatest stronghold of all in the unregenerate human mind is pride—self-serving, self-preserving, self-exalting pride.

The third stronghold is?preconception—thinking you know something that you don’t, presuming to have a clear picture of something that you haven’t.

Let me offer you a way to check yourself for a stronghold. If you find yourself agitated at the mention of one of these strongholds, you should be honest enough with yourself to consider it something to be dealt with. The most important reason to face this is that these strongholds block the entrance of God’s Word to your life. In Psalm 119:130, we learn:

“The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.”

Do you want light and understanding? Or do you want to continue in semi-darkness and ignorance and prejudice? The choice is yours to make. If you want light and understanding, you’ll need to come against those fortresses in your own mind with the truth of the Word of God and with the power of prayer. Humble yourself and let the Word of God do its work in you—change you, adjust you, remake you, refashion you.

You may wonder how it is that I know so much about you. I don’t. I know about all of us. We are all susceptible to these strongholds. We are all in a spiritual war in our minds, and God has given us the weapons for victory.

The Helmet Of Hope

I learned firsthand how to use those weapons. I achieved a certain measure of success in my ministry. We regularly saw people saved and healed and baptized in the Holy Spirit at our church. Yet, I had personal problems for which I did not have any answer. In particular, I had a problem of recurrent fits of depression that would come over me like a dark, heavy cloud. The cloud seemed to press me down and cut me off from normal communication with other people—even with my family.

I struggled against this by every means in my power that I knew of. I prayed. I fasted. I made resolutions. I did everything that I knew to do, and it got no better. In fact, the more I prayed and fasted, the worse it got.

I had come to the end of my solutions, and one day a phrase in Isaiah 61:3 captured my attention:

“The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness…”

When I read that phrase I suddenly realized that I was dealing with a spirit—a personality that studied me, knew my weaknesses, knew how and when to attack me. I was not dealing with mental or psychological conditions merely in myself. I was not dealing merely with a habit pattern. But there was a person set against me—by Satan himself—studying me and plotting my downfall.

Then I saw why the pressure got worse the more I wanted to serve the Lord: because the mission of this spirit was to hinder me in my service for God. When I was somewhat slack and indifferent, the pressure was lifted. But the more dedicated and earnest I became, the more the pressure increased. I was dealing with a personality with understanding that knew just how and when to apply the pressure.

Recognizing the identity of my enemy was a tremendous step forward. I searched the Scriptures and found a verse that I believed would bring me the solution to my problem. Joel 2:32 says:

“It shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered.”

I believed this promise was just as all inclusive as John 3:16:

“Whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

I saw Joel 2:32 as a promise specifically of deliverance. I put the two Scriptures together—Isaiah 61:3 and Joel 2:32—and I prayed a very specific prayer. I named the spirit (the spirit of heaviness) and I claimed God’s own promise (“Whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered”).

I prayed, “God, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ—according to Your Word—I’m asking You to deliver me from this spirit of heaviness.” And when I prayed that specific, scriptural prayer, I was delivered. The pressure was lifted.

Then my learning experience continued. I learned that it’s one thing to be delivered; it’s another thing altogether to stay delivered.

God began to show me that He had done His part, and now I had to do my part. He had set my mind free from this demonic pressure. Now it was up to me to re-educate my mind—to cultivate a totally different outlook and way of thinking. Before I was delivered, I was not able to do it. After I was delivered, it was my responsibility to do it. God had done His part in delivering me, but I had to do my part in maintaining my deliverance.

I believe this is true in almost any realm in which God intervenes on your behalf—salvation, healing, deliverance. God does His part and then it’s up to you to do your part. Your part is to maintain—to hold on to what God has given you.