ManageYourEmotionsBook8.5x5.5_RevJULY.indd

ing ability, eloquent diatribe, powerful propaganda, or reliance on charm or forcefulness of personality.” 94 Such devices often achieve short term results yet fail to provide lasting victory over the enemy. The necessities for spiritual warfare, detailed in Ephesians 6:10-19, include “the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes of the gospel, shield of faith, and sword of the Spirit, which is theWord of God.” Combining these weapons together with prayer provides a powerful arsenal against the enemy. Focus your thoughts. Since these battles tend to rage in our minds, it behooves us to fine tune our thought life, aligning it with that of Christ.As Paul also writes, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). Given assurance of demonic attack, we must take “Every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). The word in the original language has a military slant to it, sug- gesting prisoners being captured in war. Likewise, carnal thoughts, which often include false guilt, should be divinely detained and removed from our minds. Paul understood that the enemy longs to fill such a space with his stinking thinking, which is one reason why he included these words: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things” (Philippians 4:8).The word for dwell means to think about or take an account of. It’s not enough to give a brief notion to matters of virtuosity.We should anchor them in our minds, carefully meditating upon them. Forge ahead. Once you’ve completed these steps, it’s time to move on.As Paul challenges, “Reaching toward what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).Using an athletic metaphor, Paul speaks of a runner dashing to the finish line in a quest for the prize. Whereas the literal runner might receive a crown that would quickly

100