Battlefield of the Mind

"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You." Isaiah 26:3

I just happened to be studying this verse this week in my Bible study time, and thought it tied in great with what I've been thinking about for this blog.

I don't think I truly understood this verse until about 3-4 years ago. I didn't realize that the real battlefield of my life wasn't the people around me or the circumstances---it was my mind. A war was raging. If only my mind had been steadfast. In this verse, steadfast means "to sustain, to be braced, to lean upon,gain confidence, to strengthen, to refresh." This meaning is just the opposite of what my mind was like. I think a fitting definition would have been "independent, isolated, weak, frail, insecure, depressed."

Needless to say, I was believing many lies. The enemy was whispering them in my ear constantly, and I believed them. We can't forget that Satan is "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. This characterization of the devil wasn't given by just anyone--it is Jesus Christ himself calling Satan the father of lies.

Eventhough I was a believer in Christ, I was letting the enemy torment me with whisperings like: "You're not good enough." "Your identity is found in how well you teach or sing." "If they think you've not met their standard, then you have failed." "You don't have pride issues---they are the problem." "They don't love you or esteem you." "God doesn't really care about your circumstances." And the lies go on and on.

I would let these thoughts enter my mind and I would meditate on them. I would mull them over time and time again. In fact, I was meditating on the lies much more than God's Word.

When God showed me what I was doing, and exposed the lies I was believing, it was like a huge relief. I now knew who my real enemy was. I knew his game, and I wasn't going to let him win any more battles. Sure, the thoughts kept coming, but I begin to learn to speak God's Word of Truth when those thoughts would come. I began to wield the sword of Truth--which is the Bible.

Did you know that the Bible is a Christian's only offensive weapon? All of the rest of the "armor of God" listed in Eph. 6 is defensive.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God. 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. 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.

I was beginning to learn how to hold up my shield of faith in one hand and my sword of Truth in the other! Isn't it cool that the shield of faith is supposed to extinguish ALL the flaming arrows of the evil one? It doesn't extinguish just some of those debilitating thoughts he puts in your mind. FAITH EXTINGUISHES EVERY SINGLE ONE! When we CHOOSE to trust God rather than the lies, the lies are destroyed. We must choose to trust Him, even when all our emotions and feelings tell us to do just the opposite. Remember, our emotions are an outgrowth of what we believe. So, for a long time, I chose to believe God even when I didn't feel like it. But, over time, my emotions and feelings began to reflect the truth I was proclaiming. My behavior and daily choices changed. Praise God! He is in the business of setting us free! It is for FREEDOM that Christ has set us free!

So, as we walk through this next week together lets be ultra aware of the thoughts that we are choosing to meditate on. Are they Truth or lies? What choices are we making that reflect our unbelief in God and His Word?