Breaking Strongholds

“For though we walk in the flesh we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and begin ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled” -2 Corinthians 10:3-6

I have been taking a Bible study at my church, called “Rooted in Christ.” This Bible study opened my eyes to a few strongholds I have in my life. So, in pure fashion I have to share what I learned.

There are four main strongholds we have in our minds:

  1. Fear – The debilitating sense of anxiety that restricts us.
  2. Confusion – That causes double mindedness and restlessness.
  3. Anger – Producing frustration, agitation, and can harm our lives.
  4. Despair – Making us believe that life is not worth living

I think strongholds don’t just affect our minds but our souls as well.

The human body has three parts the spirit, soul, and body (or flesh). Our souls are made up of our minds, will, and our emotions. It’s in the area of the soul that most inner healing is required.

The word “stronghold” is defined in the Greek language as ochuroma which means military fortress. In ancient times it was used to denote a safe place, but also referred to a person attempting to escape reality.

A stronghold in a person’s mind is when a thought which is usually easy to dismiss evolves into a reinforced combination of entangled thoughts that become stuck like a knot that is not easily loosened.

A person with a mental stronghold can find it almost impossible to shake off or dismiss their thinking and it begins to overwhelm their mind to the point they are being controlled by it.

Everything begins to be played out through the lenses of the stronghold. For example, if it is fear then everything is viewed through the prism of fear. Or like mine when is insecurity. My insecurity is persistent and difficult to overcome a pattern of doubt around other people which causes me to believe I am of little worth.

A person that is struggling with a stronghold perceives everything that happens to them through a twisted and knotted thought pattern.

Simply put it’s an imprisonment of thinking. In other words, that we can incarcerate ourselves and we only the key to unlocking the cell door that has imprisoned us.

A stronghold in the mind is a spiritual fortress made up of wrong thoughts and it can be a fortified dwelling place that satan likes to hide and operate. It’s a battlefield of the mind.

The Bible pictures the mind as being held by the enemy which can be a waging war. The Bible says false argument and lofty opinions are counter to God‘s truth. They are areas where we are in bondage that affect our way of thinking in the worst way (2 Corinthians 10:5).

I am sure I got my insecurity strongholds from my childhood. And anything that has longevity developed roots, anything that had roots will become a strongholds. Which means it’s going to require power to demolish it.

But when we are able to remove the stronghold it gives Satan or his minions no place to live.

Strongholds are lies of Satan hiding in human reasoning waiting for us to agree and to approve of them.

Favorite Topics

What topics do you like to discuss?

I like to discuss what is the focus of people’s purpose in life. Everyone has a purpose and talking about it with others can help us understand what they are.

I was prophesied over many years ago that I was a bridge for people struggling with hardships. I have people come up to me and just unload are their problems on me. So it’s easy for me to share my thoughts of what I’ve been through.

Why Does Meekness Matter?

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” -Matthew 5:5

Meekness is one of those things you probably skim over when you read the Bible. But if it’s not important why did Jesus make a point to talk about it.

I used to think a bunch of meek people gaining control of the earth kind of sounded like something in a science fiction movie about a bunch of weak people and global domination. A image of smiling push overs.

But, Jesus was the ultimate example of meek in Matthew 11:28, and He’s the exact opposite of a pushover. Moses was also described as meek. In Numbers 12 Moses is leading the nation of Israel and his older siblings who launch a verbal attack against him, regarding his wife, where Moses is a picture of stillness and doesn’t defend himself.

Instead, we see that God defends him mightily. He calls both Aaron and Miriam out and makes them answer for their words. God declares how faithful and above reproach Moses has been and how He was given the privilege of hearing from Him directly. And then Moses sister was struck with leprosy and as sent out of camp for seven days before being healed. He questions why they weren’t afraid to speak out against such a godly man who had done nothing wrong.

Imagine standing nearby and witnessing that. How gut-wrenching would that be for Aaron and Miriam? But still, Moses begs God to heal Miriam.

Moses wasn’t concerned with defending himself let alone launching a counter-attack on his brother or sister. He was slow to anger, leaning into a trust and deference of God. And rather than gloat about the justice that was eventually served, he cried out in the interest of his sister -please heal her.

Meekness means to have a controlled strength that puts everything in the hands of God. It is founded on the trust in God and always denies itself. We can see meekness grow alongside humility and wisdom. Which seeks another person’s interest at the expense of it’s own. And its pure, peaceable, gentle, and open to reason in James 3:13-17.

Meekness should not be confused with cowardliness or weakness. It is not being afraid to stand up to someone, but having the courage to trust God for justice.

We see this again in David’s life before he was made king. Many times he had the strength and power to take the throne from Saul and he would not do so. Many times he quieted his flesh’s whispers that said “Why should you tolerate this? He should pay for this!” and he chose instead to trust the Lord his God with quiet submission (1 Samuel 26:10-11). How opposite is our culture today? We have an entire world that roars against this attitude.

Jesus said, “Meek shall Inherit the earth.” He has a habit of saying things that make me and probably all of us scratch our heads. Is there a sense that the meek have already inherited the earth? The Bible says that all things are ours in Christ, and Paul declared that he has nothing and yet he has everything. If you take swipes at a meek person and they take it in stride, do you have power over them? If they are content and satisfied on this side of eternity in a way they have inherited the earth. This is of course my opinion.

But there are future expectations too. Revelation 21:4 says,

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes…”

There will be purification of souls. Literally, everyone in heaven will live on a new earth and will be meek. To be otherwise would be inconsistent with righteousness.

This leaves us in a position of hope and certainty.

Things To Remember When Sowing Seeds

When sowing seeds for God’s kingdom, we have to remember we are the sower, not the guardian over them. Not all seeds will yield fruit, because the harvest depends on the field, not the sower, sowing seeds can be a demanding task, and God’s principles of sowing and reaping are unalterable.

There are a few principles we need to remember when we want to sow seeds.

  • You are a sower, not a guardian:

We must focus on doing what is right and good, regardless of the immediate outcome or reaction we receive. It is not our job to control the results, but to plant the seeds.

I heard someone talking about how they were planting seeds in someone that they wanted saved. Yet they weren’t expecting where the seed landed and grew. The person’s goal was for a friend to be saved, but her son was instead. They didn’t understand how the seed grew in her son and not who they intended it for. We plant the seed, but God is the guardian -the one who controls the growth of it.

  • Not all seeds yield fruit:

Not every seed or good deed will bring immediate or visible positive results. Some seeds may fall on barren ground, and that’s okay.

  • The harvest depends on the field, not the sower:

The receptivity of the field or person or situation you are trying to impact is crucial for the harvest. A seed planted in fertile ground will grow, while a seed planted in barren ground may not.

  • Sowing seeds is a demanding task:

Doing what is right and good can be challenging and requires time, energy, and resources.

  • God’s principles of sowing and reaping seeds are unalterable:

The Bible teaches that,

“Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” -Galatians 6:7

This principle applies to both positive and negative actions.

  • Sow with faith and persistence:

Even when we don’t see immediate results, we should continue to sow good seeds with faith, knowing that God will eventually bring about a harvest.

I have continued to sow seeds, for years and when I least expected it, they grew sprouts and brought people to have faith in Jesus and become saved.

  • Always sow with generosity:

The Bible encourages us to sow seeds generously, because those who soe sparingly will reap sparingly, and those who sow generously will reap generously (2 Corinthians 9:6).

  • Don’t get discouraged:

Even if we encounter setbacks or disappointment, we need to remember that God is not mocked, and He will eventually bring about a harvest (Galatians 6:7).

  • Seek God’s guidance:

We should always pray for wisdom and discernment as we sow seeds, and trust that God will lead us in the right direction.

It’s important to remember Galatians 6:8,

“Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will real destruction, whoever sows to please the ( Holy) Spirit from the Spirur will real eternal life.”

Its important to realize that of we sow seeds for our personal gain nothing good will can from it. We will not receive the goodness of God’s blessings.

Taking Risks

Describe a risk you took that you do not regret.

There is nothing certain in life other than death and taxes, which means that every single thing we do requires some measure of risk.

Living a fulfilled life requires us to throw ourselves of proverbial cliff daily and discover whether we will sink or soar.

When I met my husband I was going through some depression. I seen a very lifted, midnight blue truck drive by me. I decided I wanted to drive it.

I flagged the guy in the truck down. He pulled over and I got out. I firmly told him I wanted to drive his truck.

He laughed, not to be rude, but because I am 4 foot 11 inches tall. When he opens the door the cabin of the truck hit my waist.

Laughing He said , “you do, how are you going to get in?” he got out of the truck handing me the keys. I grabbed the side of the door handle and pulled myself up. He got in the passenger side and we drove off. I drove about 3 blocks and pulled over. That truck was shaking it had so much power under the hood.

I said, “I’m done.” After that he wanted me to go get a drink with him. I told him I would follow him in my car.

He ended up becoming my husband. Through the fights and struggles he has never left my side in 36 years.

It was risky the way I met my husband. So many things could have went wrong. But in the end it was a risk worth taking.

Our Identity In Christ Jesus

“Identity” is something that is the buzz today. It’s almost impossible to avoid a media discussion about gender identity, sexual identity, or racial identity. So called “identity politics” are increasingly dominating every part of our lives. While this is a popular topic right now, it’s really not a new topic.

The Bible actually speaks to the issues of human identity, and does so quite frequently. In fact, the first thing the Bible says about humanity is that we are made in the image of God. That’s what makes us who we are, that’s our ultimate identity, the starting point of all the others, spouse, parent, child, student, employee etc… It’s the presence of sin that causes us to invert that order, making the socio-temporal identities our ultimate identities.

If you think about it Adam and Eve attempted to elevate themselves as equals to God which was the first identity crisis, one we are still feeling the effects of today.

In humanity today there is nothing more important than answering the question “Who am I?” We are taught and even indoctrinated to believe that all things are meant to serve our attempt to discover and live out our version of our identity. We have become increasingly individualistic. We live in the age of “selfies” and a “you do you” mentality. A person’s identity, or their particular mode of self expression is sacred in our current times. There is nothing more important, our society says, than allowing people to identify themselves hoe they see fit.

There a store in my rural town where an employee identifies as a cat. I never thought I would see such madness in my town. But it’s just not a “my town”problem but a world problem. Maybe it’s a church problem which is not immune to promoting this kind of ideology either. Why talk about sin when people feel much more comfortable being told God wants them to be happy being themselves. The false “health, wealth, prosperity gospel” of the past several decades may be giving way to what we might call false identity gospel. The false gospel that tickles people’s ears to believe that God simply wants you to be content with who you are. As long as you’re being true to yourself and you’re “following your heart” you are following God.

The question is “What is your only comfort in life and death?” My answer is “That I am not my own.” But that’s further from the prevailing mindset of today.

The tragic thing is that countless people today find their identity in the wrong thing. They answer the question above “Who am I?” based on relationships, job performance, self-expression or even their circumstances. In which will always come up short of giving them the satisfaction they are after. It might feel good for a while but it never lasts. The happiness that these identities offer is always fleeting and fading.

The hunt for our identity should be something that is true in every circumstance we are in. If we try to identify ourselves on transient things we find ourselves constantly disoriented, lost, and unfulfilled.

This is an age old problem. Humanity has and will continue to spend everything in pursuit of satisfaction, in pursuit of a name. We will spend everything, and gain nothing. We can search our whole lives for an identity, only to end up anonymous and unknown.

Maybe this is a sad outworking of that first identity crisis that happened back in the Garden of Eden. Thankfully God doesn’t leave I’d with our empty definitions of ourselves or our shattered self-conceptions of ourselves. Maybe there’s hope for us yet. What we see in the Bible is the story of God coming down to humanity in Jesus in order to give us a new identity. Not only a new one, but a better, richer, more satisfying identity than we could ever give ourselves.

Every thing we need for a freeing and fulfilling identity is found in Jesus. Our identity isn’t something we come up with ourselves, but something we are given to by Jesus. When He becomes our identity.

2 Corinthians 5:17 states,

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ (Jesus), he is a new creation. The old has passed away, behold, the new has come,”

There two little words that have a powerful affect in the question “Who am I?” Those two little words are “in Him.” “Who am I in Him?

The answer to the identity question “who am I?” is no body. We are no bodies, but in Christ Jesus we are part of God’s family through the work of adoption when Jesus died and was resurrected for us. We became fully and forever cherished by God the Father. Through Jesus we became children of God.

Our identity is not our shameful past but in our gracious pardon.

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ, who don’t want according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” -Romans 8:1

Jesus received the brunt of God’s wrath on the cross so we could know the blessing of His forgiveness.

Many people try to define themselves their accomplishments or their own desires and achievements in life. They present a picture of themselves they want to get through social media in the vain hope people will buy their lie. But, it’s an exhausting fiction to maintain.

We don’t need to achieve perfection, because we have received perfection through Jesus. His sinless life. His righteousness. His unstained merits are given to us and we are received by God for Jesus’s sake.

“For Him who knew no sin He made to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” – 2 Corinthians 5:21

This may only scratch the surface of our reach in our identity in Christ Jesus. Hopefully we will be able to taste and see the goodness of God.

God has blessed us in Christ Jesus with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3).

Actions Always Have Consequences

Write about a time when you didn’t take action but wish you had. What would you do differently?

Every action causes a ripple effect. Whether that action was good or bad.

Many years ago I worked for a company that gave its employees a stock with their company. But later,

My action that I made with that stock led to some pretty bad consequences. I sold my stock when I left that job. I didn’t understand how stocks worked back then. The company is a multi billion dollar company today.

My action to sell that 1 stock then could have changed my life forever.

Truth Seekers

“Now these were more noble than those in Thessalonia, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, examining the scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” -Acts 17:11

I think there are three aspects of the true seekers in God. There is something that followers of Jesus that set us apart from the rest.

If we say we are people of God, or children of God, who know the truth and believe the truth, and live by the truth, then we need to show a uniquely different character, a great compassion, and a deep conviction.

We are called to be the light and the salt of the Earth which is our character, we are to love even our enemies a love that is forgiving and unconditional, and a uncompromising commitment to the truth of God.

We are called to stand out in three areas, and not blend in with the rest of the world, to such an extent that we are undistinguishable.

  • Character

Our character is who we are, not what we say or do. We can say all the religious words we want and not be a true seeker of God. We can do all the “religious stuff” and yet not be godly.

It is not what is happening on the outside that makes us. It is what is on the inside that matters.

It is more than what you claim you know or believe in. It is more than how you look or sound. The Pharisees in Jesus time were very preoccupied with these.

God is more concerned about what’s on the inside, than the outside.

If we take a jar full of water with its lid, loosely put on and tilt the jar. Water begins to leak out and drips onto the floor. It’s not that the lid was not tightened or the pull of gravity. The water spilled because there was water on the inside. What was on the inside is what comes out.

It is not what goes in that defines you, it is what comes out. our character is who we are.

It’s not just what we say or what we do, although what you say and do does reflect your character but sadly it’s not always true.

Character is who we in our circumstances. It is who we are even when nobody is watching.

God is most concerned about this. Jesus came to transform our lives, not to give us a good life, although it is true that knowing Jesus does bring us blessings. But Jesus did not come for just blessings, he came to get rid of sin and changed us from being sinners to someone who can reflect his righteousness and beauty.

Don’t be too concerned about how others see you, but be concerned about how God sees you.

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer” -Psalm 19:14

If you take care of your character, your reputation will take care of itself.

Talent is a gift, personality is a gift, but character is a choice.

  • Great Compassion

One of the most impactful ways became shared. God‘s heart with others is to live compassionately. You show compassion is a step outside of ourselves and love another in times of weakness.

To live compassionately is to posture, your heart continually toward giving, grace, and love to those who need it the most. Compassion is at the heart of who God is.

“Love your neighbor as yourself” -Leviticus 19:18

  • Deep Conviction

Having a strong, unwavering belief in God and a commitment to living according to His will rather than based on emotion of feelings.

It’s our foundation for a life of purpose and resilience that is rooted in faith and deep understanding of God‘s character and teachings.

It’s a dedication to living a life that aligns with God‘s principles and values, even when it’s difficult or unpopular.

Deep conviction is grounded in truth and reason, not fleeting feelings or personal desires.

A strong conviction about God can bring a sense of peace and security, knowing that you are following a path that is rooted in truth.

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” -Hebrews 11:1

Nervousness

What makes you nervous?

I tend to overthink everything I ruminate on the “what ifs” or worst case scenarios.

Medical experts say that the brain’s amygdala interprets these thoughts as real threats, that trigger a stress response. Which released cortisol and adrenaline , that cause physical symptoms like a racing heart or sweaty palms and reforge the nervousness.

It’s a vicious cycle of overthinking that fuels anxiety which makes you overthink more.

I have to consciously focus on things that I can control, rather than the things I can’t.

The Key To Recharging

How do you unwind after a demanding day?

The key to recharging after a long day is different for everyone.

For some it’s taking a nap, or taking a bath and even meditation.

It can even be taking a walk and doing some light exercise.

Mine is going for a walk and soaking in a hot bath.

What works for us depends on our personalities and needs. It’s about finding your balance.

Using Social Media

How do you use social media?

I use social media to talk to a few old friends from high school.

I look at local news in my area. And even a group the reports the weather. Which is crucial when living in mountainous areas.