Secret Weapons
I sit down in front of an empty screen, fingers on the keyboard and almost immediately my thoughts assail me. Instead of focusing on the story in mind, my thoughts are suddenly focused inward and the negative assessment begins.
You don’t have anything worthwhile to share.
No one is interested in what you have to say.
What makes you think that you can be a writer.
These self-sabotaging thoughts are a daily battle for me. They assault each of us every day, telling us that we are not good enough, smart enough, strong enough… but we have a secret weapon at our disposal if we choose to use it. That weapon doesn’t come in the form of any self-help book or positive thinking program. It comes in the form of Jesus in our hearts and God’s word in our hands. God’s word teaches us that our thoughts matter when it comes to staying healthy of mind, body and spirit.
The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NIV)
The apostle Paul understood this powerful truth about the influence of our thoughts on our lives. If we want to live a healthy life, we must choose healthy thoughts. That starts with focusing our minds on God using the weapons that He gave us - the Word of God, the power of His Holy Spirit, and prayer.
When we start our days by filling our minds with His truth, we are equipped to squash those discouraging untruths that creep into our minds in the daily battle of life. His truth is bigger than any lies we tell ourselves.
If we allow it, the enemy will use our doubts and fears to turn our focus to the darkness that dwells in the depths of our minds. If he can turn our thoughts inward, we become self-focused, fueling those fears, doubts and negative thoughts.
We all have specific areas of our thought life that we find most difficult to overcome. Finding specific scriptures to turn to each time they enter our minds can help us achieve victory over them. This is how we take every thought captive.
Let’s use the weapons God has given us to win the battle we fight in our minds every day! We find peace in our minds when we trust in the Lord and fix our thoughts on Him.
You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! (Isaiah 26:3 NLT)
Reflection
Has there been a time in your life when you found yourself dwelling on negative thoughts? How did this affect you and your walk with the Lord?
How do you keep your mind fixed on healthy thoughts?
What are some things you can do to start each day on a positive note? How do you maintain that focus throughout your day?
Goals
Share three things you will do this month to take your thoughts captive to be obedient to Christ:
The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NIV)
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. (Philippians 4:8 NIV84)
Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. (Colossians 3:2 NIV84)
You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! (Isaiah 26:3 NLT)