Are you feeling in bondage to some bad behavior you can’t seem to break free from? You’re wondering, “What’s the use? I keep messing up & giving in.” This is more than a physical or psychological battle. The Apostle Paul refers to this as spiritual warfare, & that our weapons have “divine power to destroy strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:4). A stronghold is prison–a fortified position under enemy control.
The devil’s weapons are lies & temptation. Jesus refers to our enemy as the “father of lies,” but “the truth will set you free” (John 8:32, 44). The enemy has seen your weakness & knows where to clamp on the ball & chain. You may believe the lie: “I can’t escape. I can’t stop or change my ways. It’s just the way I am.” You may find yourself trapped in a horrible cycle of trying, failing, crying out for help, then failing again. You say, “God, if You’ll only forgive me, I promise I’ll never do this again.” But you do. Nothing changes, so you resign yourself to thinking God’s not going to change you. But you already hold the key to the chain & dungeon door.
It’s like a dog trying to escape an invisible fence where she’s kept in the yard by a wire buried around the perimeter. When the dog, wearing a transmitter collar, crosses the line, she gets a slight shock so that she learns not to escape. After a while, you could even take off the collar, & she still won’t cross the line. Jesus has taken off your collar! You don’t have to stay in the devil’s backyard anymore!
The truth is that you’re God’s handiwork. Paul writes: “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). You are capable of far more than you know! God says you can do the things He’s planned for you to do. The truth is that you’re a new creation in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). You are not yet what you should be, but you are not what you were. You’re God’s work in progress. The Bible word for that is “sanctification.” He’s working in you to make you what He created you to be, transforming you into the image of His Son! You can make the changes not by mere human effort but by His power (Phil. 4:13).
Besides believing lies, you may also be failing to capture wrong thoughts. Instead of being the captive, you need to be the captor–taking “every thought captive to obey Christ…” (2 Cor. 10:5), which includes everything we’re exposed to that opposes what God has already told us. We’re going to run all of our thoughts through the grid of Scripture. That’s our truth detector. The Bible is our filter for comparing what people say to what God says.
One of my favorite phrases is: To change the way you live, you have to change the way you think; to change the way you think, you have to change what you fill your mind with. Are you reading your Bible & filling your mind with what God says (Phil. 4:8)? Discipline your mind to think those kinds of thoughts.
What does the Lord say about you? Among the many things are that He loves you & made you His child & friend (John 1:12, 3:16, 15:15). You’ve been washed, made right with God, set apart, united with Him, & now belong to Him (1 Cor. 6:11-20). You’ve been redeemed, forgiven, made righteous, & sealed by Him (Col. 1:13-14, 2 Cor. 1:21-22, 5:21). You’re free from condemnation, more than a conqueror, & unable to be separated from God’s love (Rom. 8:1-2, 8:31-39). You have direct access to His throne of grace which you can approach with freedom & confidence (Heb. 4:14-16, Eph. 3:12). You’re an overcomer because God who is in you is greater than the enemy in the world (1 John 4:4). You’re assured that God’s working all things for your good, & will complete the good He’s begun in you (Rom. 8:28, Phil. 1:6). You’ve not been given a spirit of fear, but of power, love & a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7).
You may say to yourself, “I can’t shake this bitterness of what was done to me.” Decide to take those thoughts captive, & release those feelings to God. It doesn’t mean you’ll forget them, but that you will not take them to heart & dwell on them because you’re not a victim–you’re a victor in Christ! “I can’t stop this bad habit & discipline myself.” You may battle strong physical & psychological urges, but you’re an overcomer in Christ who will not be mastered by anything! “God could never forgive me. I’ve blown it too bad.” But the truth is God’s grace is greater than your sin, & you have a power beyond yourself!
Have you given up? Don’t. “For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me” (Col. 1:29). Even in the darkest, most desperate moments, don’t give up because God will never give up on you.