God desires to give every single one of us freedom. Not just freedom from the slavery of sin, but freedom from guilt, doubts, fears, accusations. Sometimes we will even doubt our salvation!
Most of us are all too familiar with the extreme feeling of anxiety and fear that can cause us to panic. Whether it is about a situation, a friend, a family member, or even something completely irrational. He wants to give you peace. It is not the kind of peace that can come from any medication, no matter how powerful. It is the peace that we cannot understand, because it surpasses our understanding.
“But if the Holy Spirit controls your mind, there is LIFE and PEACE.” Romans 8:6
We need to understand that fear, worry, anxiety, and doubt are all subtle tactics by satan to bring us down and destroy us. Do not believe these lies or fall into this deception!
David said in Psalm 34 “I prayed to the Lord and He answered me, freeing me from all my fears.” It says in Psalm 143 that his enemy has chased him, and forces him to live in the darkness, he lost all hope, that he was paralyzed with fear. In Psalm 77 David cries out to God telling him that he can’t sleep, he is so distressed he can’t even pray. Does this sound familiar?
We first have to identify the lies and deception, and bring it from darkness into the light. Whether that is saying them out loud, writing them down, or talking to a godly friend. Ask the Holy Spirit to be in you and to give you this peace. The battle begins with our thoughts, and for many of us it can become our entire battle. Jesus died that we might not be in bondage to these things at all.
“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw close to God, and He will close to you.” James 4:7
We take those thoughts and make them obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Replace them with truth. Memorize scripture that relates to that specific thought. When those thoughts come into your mind, immediately pull out the Word of God, pray truth. Get books that have a biblical foundation and spend time reading them. (I highly recommend “Bondage Breakers” or “Victory Over Darkness” by Neil T. Armstrong).
We know that the battle is spiritual, in Ephesians 6:11-12 it says plainly that the battle is not against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rules and authorities of the unseen world, the wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. But God has given us armor for the battle, three of them being the belt of truth, the shield of faith to stop the arrows of the enemy, and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:13-18).
“In this way, God disarmed the evil rules and authorities. He shamed them publically by His victory over them on the cross of Christ.” Colossians 2:15
Jesus already died and won this battle for our minds, and the enemy has absolutely no power over us. This is a process, and it takes work and time and practice. There are probably things in your life that will need to be changed, but there is victory only in Christ!
Claim that victory Jessalyn! I needed this today. My mind has been filled with worry, but God is sovereign. Thank you for the reminder!