Today’s Devotional Theme
Personal Strongholds
Daily Scripture
2 Corinthians 10:3-6
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 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…”
Encouragement
“Stronghold: a fortified place; a place of security, protected from outside incursions.” So says a Webster’s dictionary. That pretty well describes a personal stronghold. These include traits or habits that insulate us from a stronger bond with God – things like drugs and alcohol abuse, gambling that saps our financial resources, and worry that we won’t have the money to pay next month’s bills. Two of the mind-traps that have men in particular by a throat-hold are pornography and fits of anger over little things. Anger and a sometimes poor self-image are the two strongholds that seem to have the tightest vice-grip on me. I’ve learned recently that as long as I derive a measure of perverse satisfaction from getting mad at myself over things as trivial as knocking over a glass of water, I’m not quite ready to let God go to work on my anger. It still, after all these years, resides in a fortified place in my mind, protected from the help others might be able to offer. Realizing that I have to tear down the walls that insulate my self-condemnation before God can reach into that place in my heart that hides my anger from others, is sobering to say the least.
Take Action!
Paul tells us in no uncertain terms that our war is an inner war of the mind, not a physical war (1 Corinthians 10:3). But we have weapons not of our making, mighty weapons, weapons of God that we can and must appropriate to yank down our personal strongholds. Bring every thought into captivity and obedience to Christ? Sure sounds like we can, read verse 6 of today’s scripture. And we have the help of our fellow God-followers. As James 5:16 tells us, we need to confess our sins to one another. Then we can enlist the prayers of our friends to reach into those protected places that need cleaning out. Remember, our struggle isn’t against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12), it’s against the “powers of this dark world and spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places,” as one version phrases it. Those forces are way too powerful for us to beat on our own. We need God and the prayers of others.
Come into His Presence
Our loving Father, remind us that You cannot reach into our hearts and sweep out our negative character traits until we give up the negative enjoyment we get from them. Then You can go to work with Your heavenly broom. In Jesus’s name, amen.
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