2 CORINTHIANS IO:4-5
In the passage above, we are reminded that our weapons and the war we fight are not of the flesh or in the physical world. Instead, they are of the Spirit and in the spiritual realm. The Word of God points us to the Kingdom of God-a reality that surrounds us and that is in us! It's a totally new way of thinking, different from the way our carnal, fleshly minds think. So as we work to move our flesh and our minds toward Kingdom living, we must align every thought with the Word of God. Over and over again every day, we should ask ourselves,
What does God have to say about this? Every thought that is contrary to God's way must be "taken captive." Then we can toss that thought out and replace it with God's truth. His truth then becomes our activation point or our weapon. • When a fearful thought comes into our minds, we take that lie, turn to the Word, find the promise, and then declare the truth. • When the enemy tells us we're no good or defeated, we take that lie, turn to the Word, find the promise, and then declare the truth. • When all the circumstances around us scream defeat and failure, we take that lie, turn to the Word, find the promise, and then declare the truth.
Taking every thought captive is a discipline. We must guard our hearts and minds. We must be alert to every notion that enters our thinking and measure it against God's Word, which wins the contest every time! I once heard a pastor say, "Whenever you are confronted with a circumstance, you need to ask yourself three questions: What does God say about it? What does the enemy say about it? What are you going to say about it?" I ask myself those questions all the time. It's a simple way to take every thought captive and choose Christ's way every time!
I like the way this popular prose puts it: Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Watch your actions, for they become habits. Watch your habits, for they become character. Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny. Our thoughts are important. So important that Paul gave us clear guidelines: "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever ever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of
good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy- meditateon these things" (Philippians 4:8). Your thoughts have power. Consider the things you are thinking ing about. Test them against the Word of God and then make the necessary changes. You will be amazed at the changes in your life as your thoughts become more like the thoughts of God.
Verses to read and Meditate on:
2 Corinthians 10:4 ; Philippians 2:5; Philippians 4:8