HEAD GAMES: The Battlefield of the Mind
(Part 1) It¡¦s a man¡¦s prerogative, too!
NOTE: PPT with excellent graphics available for this series. Contact me at rife@jubileechurch.com. There are more messages to this series.
INTRODUCTION:
We¡¦ve always heard the saying, ¡§It¡¦s a woman¡¦s prerogative to¡K.(allow crowd to answer) ¡KCHANGE HER MIND.¡¨ Well, it¡¦s a man¡¦s prerogative, too. We can change our mind if we want to.
Illustration: Young man who wants to get his own car, but has to cut his hair.
We are in a spiritual struggle. A war. It¡¦s played out in the Battlefield of our Mind. Our mind literally, controls everything we do. It tells our bodies how to function. It controls both our voluntary and involuntary actions. It controls our emotions. It¡¦s the center for our being. That¡¦s why the enemy attacks us there. If he attacks us there, then it only makes sense that we should protect it. But part of protecting is cleaning it. Because if he has been there before, he has left behind residual damage; like a virus that will continue infecting our thoughts.
We may have wrong thoughts about ourselves, others or our life situations that need to be changed.
And Paul tells us in Romans 12:2 (NLT) that we must change our minds to be able to live in the good, pleasing and perfect will of God.
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. Romans 12:2 (NLT)
So how can we change the way we think?
Our actions are a direct result of our thoughts.
ƒÞ Proverbs 23:7 (NLV) For as he (a man) thinks in his heart, so is he.
ƒÞ If we have negative thought-life, we¡¦ll have a negative daily life.
ƒÞ You cannot have a positive life and a negative mind.
ƒÞ For the believer, if you¡¦re going to have a successful spiritual life, right thinking is a vital necessity.
The devil is a liar. (John 8:44)
ƒÞ You¡¦ve heard it, but it¡¦s so easy to forget that powerful truth.
ƒÞ If it¡¦s a thought that is coming into your mind that is contrary to the Word of God, then you know it¡¦s a lie. If it¡¦s a lie, then you know who it comes from¡XThe father of lies.
Know your weapons.
2 Corinthians 10:4¡X We use God¡¦s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.
ƒÞ The Name of Jesus¡Xa name of authority¡Kit¡¦s above every other name.
ƒÞ Word¡Xpreaching, study, seminars, hearing, speaking the word.
ƒÞ Prayer¡XAsk for God¡¦s help.
ƒÞ Praise¡XThe enemy cannot stand to be in an atmosphere of praise.
Think about what you are thinking.
ƒÞ Matthew 12:33-35 (NLT)
33 ¡§A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad. 34 You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say. 35 A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.
*Our heart is actually our ¡§mind.¡¨
ƒÞ This involves take a conscientious look at my own thought-life. It is a painful process to face your faults and deal with them. Generally speaking, most people justify misbehavior. They allow their past and how they were raised to negatively affect the rest of their lives.
The mind and the mouth are connected.
ƒÞ Proverbs 18:21 (NIV)¡XThe tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
ƒÞ Matthew 12:34 (NIV)¡XFor out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.
Don¡¦t give up.
ƒÞ We like everything instantaneous. We get discouraged if we don¡¦t begin to see an immediate makeover. (This isn¡¦t extreme home makeover; or body makeover, or Flip this House. Even those shows are only on for an hour or thirty minutes, but they take days and even weeks to complete.) But it took a lifetime to get you to where you are, it will take time to renew your mind.
ƒÞ Galatians 6:9 (NLT)¡X So let¡¦s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don¡¦t give up.
ƒÞ You will mess up. When you do, don¡¦t receive condemnation.
Romans 8:1 (NLT)¡X So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.
ƒÞ Illustration: Baby learning to walk, falls many times, but he always gets right back up and gets going again.
God is working on our behalf.
ƒÞ Romans 8:28 (NLT)¡X And we know that God causes everything to work together[a] for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
This scripture doesn¡¦t say all things are good; it says all things work together for our good.
ƒÞ (Personal illustration of Shay and I having a flat in Starkville, MS. Just minutes after I pulled off the road, a police car raced by us with sirens blaring. Once I got the tire changed, we continued just a mile or so down the road where there was a terrible car accident. The Lord spared us from being in that accident.)
CONCLUSION
ƒÞ Isaiah 43:18-19 (CEV)¡XThe LORD said: 18 Forget what happened long ago! Don’t think about the past. 19 I am creating something new. There it is! Do you see it? I have put roads in deserts, streams in thirsty lands
Illustration:
A young man had just gotten his driver’s permit and asked his father if they could discuss his use of the car. His father said he’d make a deal with his son. "You bring your grades up from a C to a B average, study your Bible a little, get your hair cut and we’ll talk about the car.
"The boy thought about that for a moment, decided he’d settle for the offer and they agreed on it.
After about six weeks his father said, "Son, I’ve been real proud. You brought your grades up and I’ve observed that you have been studying your Bible, but I’m real disappointed you didn’t get your hair cut.
"The young man paused a moment then said, "You know, Dad, I’ve been thinking about that, and I’ve noticed in my studies of the Bible that Samson had long hair, John the Baptist had long hair, Moses had long hair and there’s even a strong argument that Jesus had long hair.
To this his father replied, "Did you also notice that they all walked everywhere they went?"
The son then said to his dad, ¡§You know dad, the idea of a hair cut is beginning to grow on me.¡¨
