Guard Your Thoughts

 ^“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 10:5, NIV)

Out of all of God’s magnificent creation, only mankind was created in His own image (Genesis 1: 26-27) with a mind like His that can think, reason, feel, express emotion, and make choices.  In Genesis 3, we first see this battle of the mind in action as Eve allows the serpent to fill her mind with doubt, deceit, and sinful desires.  Since Eve did not guard her thoughts, she chose sin which gave way to death. (James 1:14-16)  Battles are constantly raging in our minds, so we must always be prepared to defeat the enemy’s lies with God’s truth.

To guard our thoughts effectively, we must put on the mind of Christ. (Philippians 2:5) Having the mind of Christ requires that we first know God and the truth as revealed in His word.   When we accept Christ as Savior and surrender to His Lordship over our lives, we receive new life and His Spirit indwells us, enabling us to guard our minds.

^“The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.” (Romans 8:6)

God desires to fill us with His truth which will deflect any arrow of deceit the enemy may hurl at us.  God commanded His people in Joshua 1:8 to meditate on His Law day and night and to obey all of it so that they may have prosperity and success.  The Lord promised His people that when the Messiah came, He would write His law in the minds and hearts of His people. (Jeremiah 31:33)  It is imperative that we know His law well, without adding to it, distorting it, or taking away from it, so that we may quickly recognize any falsehood and dismiss it before it takes root in our minds.

God’s word also teaches us what should consume our thoughts. We are to study what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy. (Philippians 4:8) Those who are trained to identify counterfeit money study authentic currency instead of various counterfeits until they know the real currency so perfectly that any deviation from what is truly genuine becomes blatantly obvious.  When we meditate on God’ truth and reject falsehood, our thoughts are kept secure.

In addition to knowing God personally and understanding His word, we must guard our thoughts by fixing our minds on Jesus and trusting in Him completely.   As long as our minds are focused on Jesus, we will experience God’s perfect peace.  (Isaiah 26:3)  Let us not to rely upon limited human understanding, but choose instead to submit to Him.  (Proverbs 3: 5-6) When we trust in Him and seek Him through prayer, He will guide and guard our thoughts. 

In addition, must regularly renew our minds with God’s truth as He transforms us into His image.  (Romans 12:2)  Writing in a journal has been a beneficial tool for me personally.  Writing out His truths helps me remember them.  Meditating on these written truths impresses them on my heart.  Through prayer, God has revealed personal applications of those truths in my life which I have recorded in my journal.  As I reflect over these journal entries, I see God’s direct answers to prayers and am reminded of His faithfulness which helps me trust Him more.   Seeking honest accountability from trustworthy, faith filled friends adds another hedge of protection as we strive to guard our thoughts and keep our minds renewed in Christ.

In Ephesians 6:10-17, we are reminded that the biggest battles that rage against us in, around, and against us are spiritual in nature, so therefore, we must put on the full spiritual armor of God.

¹² 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. (Ephesians 6:12)

As shown in the diagram below, this armor consists of five pieces of defensive armor (salvation, righteousness, truth, faith, and peace), and only one offensive weapon, "the sword of the spirit which is the word of God" (Ephesians 6:17b).  Our defensive armor protects us from fatal blows by the enemy of our souls, and the assurance of our salvation covers our mind.  Between battles we may stow our sword in the belt of truth, but when the enemy taunts us with lies, waging battles against our minds, we must wield the sword, turning every advance against us back onto the enemy with the word of God. The word of God is what kept temptation from wounding Christ in the wilderness, and the word of God will push back  the lies, accusations, and fears Satan hurls at us back upon him where they belong.

As an epilogue, I have shared a sample list of common lies we women often hear and truths from God’s word to refute each lie.  This list has been a useful resource for me as I struggle daily to defeat Satan’s lies with the truth, taking every thought captive to obedience to Christ.

Satan's Lie:   It’s hopeless and impossible.
God's Truth:  All things are possible through Christ (Luke 18:27)

Satan's Lie:   No one loves you.
God's Truth:  I love you perfectly forever.  (John 3:16, Jeremiah 31:3)

Satan's Lie:   Life is overwhelming, so give up!  
God's Truth:  My grace is sufficient. (2 Corinthians 12:9) 
                      I will help & deliver you. (Psalm 91:15)

Satan's Lie:   You can’t do it. 
God's Truth:  In Christ, you can do all things. (Philippians 4:13)  

Satan's Lie:   If you try, you will fail.  
God's Truth:  I will equip you to abound in good work. (2 Cor. 9:8)

Satan's Lie:   God let that happen, so He is not good.
God's Truth:  God works all things together for good.  (Romans 8:28)   

Satan's Lie:   God can’t forgive you for that.   
God's Truth:  Confess, and I will forgive you. (John 1:9)

Satan's Lie:   You can’t forgive yourself.    
God's Truth:  There is no condemnation in Christ. (Romans 8:1)

Satan's Lie:   You aren’t smart enough.   
God's Truth:  God gives wisdom.  (1 Corinthians 1:30)

Satan's Lie:   You are all alone. 
God's Truth:  I will never leave or forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5)

Satan's Lie:   Value comes from external beauty.  
God's Truth:  Your inner beauty is of greatest worth. (1 Peter 3:4)

Satan's Lie:   You aren’t lovely or special.   
God's Truth:  You are wonderfully made. (Psalm 139: 13-15)

Resources for Additional Study
 Lies Women Believe:  And the Truth that Sets them Free by Nancy Leigh DeMoss

The Mind of Christ by T.W. Hunt

This post was adapted from a devotion originally written for the women's ministry at pray.org