Part 4
Romans 12:2 NLT Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Proverbs 23:7 NKJV For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 KJV For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (4) (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds) (5) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
Three Levels of Thinking:
- Thoughts
- Imaginations
- Strongholds
- You determine the thoughts that you take or reject.
- You take a thought by saying it.
- You make thoughts obey by speaking God’s Word
which is contrary to that thought.
Very Important – You cannot only cast bad thoughts out – you must replace them with God’s thoughts.
- Your imagination is your ability to see with your heart what you can’t see with your eyes.
- Whether you know it or not,your imagination is dictating how your life goes.
- You get to choose whether your imagination is positive—which is hope—or negative, which becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
- The way that you change your imagination is to meditate on or imagine God’s Word.
2 Corinthians 10:4 NIV The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
What is a stronghold? In the Greek, it is defined as a fortification such as a high-walled city or castle but this word can also be translated a prison with high walls and fortifications.
We are talking about patterns of behavior that have been built in our lives, mostly over long periods of time that started with thoughts and have been established as strongholds or habits.
Habit – a pattern of behavior that we do enough until it has become almost involuntary.
I believe there are habits that we can build in our lives and some we can even overcome just through discipline. But there are others that are going to take more than just discipline; they are going to require supernatural weapons.
Isaiah 10:27 KJV And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.
Breaking Bad
You can gain the victory over the bad strongholds (habits) in your life!
- Be willing to identify the stronghold.
Proverbs 28:13 NIV Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
Darkness cannot continue in the light.
- Fast and deny the desires of the flesh to amplify the anointing.
Part of this is to deny your mind the triggers.
Only YOU can identify these.
Isaiah 58:8 NIV Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
- Pray and ask the Lord for help and He will answer.
Isaiah 58:9 NIV Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I…
- There must be some Word push-back by you.
Luke 4:4 NKJV But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD OF GOD.’ “
- Deal with one stronghold at a time.
Deal with the strongholds in the descending order of their impact on your life.
Don’t let the enemy get you busy fighting more than one fire at a time.
- Don’t try to be a hero. Get help if you need it!
Building Good
Joshua 1:8 NKJV This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
- Set the standard for your life to be God’s Word.
There is not anything that the Bible does not cover in regard to the principles to base your life upon.
The Word is the standard of measurement.
- Keep the Word of God in your eyes and in your mouth.
- Imagine your life being lived with God’s Word and new behavior.
- Stay consistent with the process of changing your thinking.
- Build a new habit on purpose!
It takes a minimum of 21 days to 254 days to build a new habit.
Stay with it!
Hebrews 6:12 NIV We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.