Do you feel stuck in your walk with God? You want to believe what the Bible says but feel consistently overwhelmed by guilt over past sins or fear about what lies ahead. What voices are you hearing and how can you begin to get out of the rut?
The Word of God abounds with wonderful teachings about the goodness of God and His bountiful plan for our lives: to prosper us, not to harm us, but to give us hope and a future. We are assured that He works all things together for good and is for us, not against us, in all things.
Our heavenly Father wants us to forget about the past, recognize that our sins have all been forgiven and that He remembers them no more. He is in the midst of every circumstance, will never leave us nor forsake us and gives us wisdom when we ask for it. His desire is that we look ahead with hope and expectancy, walking in faith with Him on life’s journey.
The demonic realm also has a plan for our lives and seek to kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10). Just as God is impressing His thoughts and Word upon us, the demonic realm is working to dominate our thought life with their vision for what lies ahead. While our human soul man, including our unrenewed mind and memory, can be triggered to generate unholy musings, we must recognize that demon spirits also are capable of interjecting their lies into our consciousness.
Let’s take a brief look at some of the most common themes so you can discern the source of the thoughts as they bombard you at different times:
Reminding you of your past:
- “You had your chance, and you blew it.”
- “You call yourself a Christian; how could you have done that?”
- “You are where you are because you cheated on your spouse”.
Building despair in the present:
- “God will test you and you won’t pass the test”
- “God is punishing you; what you are going through now is payback.”
- “You are all alone in this; you made your bed now sleep in it”
Stoking up fear for the future:
- “Bad things will happen because you don’t deserve to be blessed.”
- “The situation will never change”
- “Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.”
As I meet with clients, I am often saddened that so many have a very unbiblical view of themselves, God and Christ’s finished work on the cross. They do not understand the Father’s character and nature and His heart for us. The narrow road that leads to life (Matthew 7:13-14) is treacherous to navigate if your life if your vision is impaired or faulty and traumas await as one veers off course.
How Do You Counterattack?
Once you accept and understand the approach your enemy will try to take, you are halfway to victory. Taking thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10:5) is a very proactive process that requires discernment and effort to implement effectively. Your thought life is not going to wander into God’s corral of protective custody, you alone must round them critters up!
You cannot stop thoughts from entering your mind, but you can keep them from staying by replacing the demonically-sourced lies with God’s truth. Knowing God’s word, what He says about you and His heart for you, is a critical step to securing victory. You must know it and then choose to believe it, in spite of our emotions.
For example, maybe you are overwhelmed with guilt and shame:
“This is happening because you had that abortion.”
The truth in God’s word asserts that when we come to Christ, all of our sins are cleansed and God remembers our past sins no more. What does that imply? God will not remind us of sins He does not remember. The devils are masters at that and they can work through others also, not just your own thought life. Capturing that lie, replacing it with the truth in mind, standing upon it and declaring it to the tormentors comprise a powerful battle plan. Are you up to it?
You might declare, “Yes, I did those things, but Jesus has forgiven me, cleansed me and remember my sin no more. You spirits of guilt and shame, get out of here and leave me alone in Jesus name!” If you do this diligently and are still tormented, you may need to do more. Keep on reading…
You can take the first step if you purpose to believe what God says and not what you are feeling.
We cannot trust our emotions because the demons can mess with them through impacting our thoughts. Getting our thought life in order is crucial so that our feelings are not used to mire us in guilt, shame, despair and hopelessness.
If you are behind in this area, then take the bull by the horns and commit to being part of a Bible-preaching church, as well as spending your own time feasting on the written Word. There is no substitute nor shortcut gaining this knowledge and receiving revelation from Holy Spirit.
If you are trying to wage these mind battles and consistently find yourself on the losing end, the source of the torment may be internal rather than simply demons attacking you externally. If so, you’ll need a different approach to secure victory, one which includes getting deliverance from the indwelling spirits.
Don’t wallow long on your own; seek competent pastoral assistance if necessary. If you cannot find it where you live, or are leery of confidentiality issues, prayerfully consider connecting with us.
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