Louie Giglio has written an amazing book with the subtitle: “IT’S TIME TO WIN THE BATTLE OF YOUR MIND….” In this part two of the book review, I’ll cover how Louie Giglio begins to teach us how to win that battle.
We have so many stressors in our lives. Mr. Giglio has a list on page 34 which include, calamity, pressure, anxiety, addiction, divorce, depression, and family collapse. I’ll add some of my own… high cost of living, political unrest, crime, wars and rumors of wars (sound familiar?). In Matthew 24:6 Jesus tells us not to be troubled.
“And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” (Matthew 24:6 KJV)
Mr. Giglio processes that idea further when he says, “Right in the middle of all the calamity and strife, the God of heaven calls you by name and says, ‘Please, sit down.”” (p. 34) And in that same section the author points out that in such a fast-paced world we go to other things instead of taking the time to sit down with Jesus at his table. And this leads to definitely being troubled.
We miss the benefits of sitting down. Things like…
- Victory over sin
- An unmuddied mind
- Freedom from bondage
- The ability to control our fears
- And the ultimate benefit—is not something God gives us, but it is God Himself.
- “We are invited to have a relationship with Almighty God.” (p. 36)
“We’ve come to accept the Enemy sitting at our table as normal…. We give him permission anytime we say things like, ‘Oh, that’s just the way it is these days.'” (p. 43) How many times have you said that? Thats “just the way it is”. And yet, it doesn’t have to be. “Allowing the Enemy to have a say in our lives should not be normal.” (p.44)
John 2:16 tells us the “three big items in the Devil’s tool kit”:
- The lust of the flesh
- The lust of the eyes
- The pride of life (see p. 46)
And Satan works through lies:
- The lie of comparison—he tries to direct you to someone else’s table. (p. 51)
- The lie that you’re doomed—but, God doesn’t say “you’re going to the valley. He said your are going through the valley. In other words—you are going to make it.” (p.54)
- The lie of worthlessness—” the Devil wants to lead you. Either to an overinflated ego or to an underappreciated sense of just how significant and valuable you are.” (p.57)
- The lie of me against the world—”Sorry, but you can’t reflect the bounty of all that’s on your table if you’re walking around with your fists clenched.” (p.63)
- The lie that there’s no way out—This is where the “even though/I will” faith comes in that I spoke of in last week’s blog. (see pages 65-67)
It helps to look at the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the fiery furnace found in Daniel chapter three. Here are their own words of “even though/I will” faith found in verses 16 through 18 of that chapter when faced with being thrown into the fiery furnace for not worshiping false gods.
“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” Daniel 3:116-18 (KJV)
“You were created in the image of God. You were called to greatness. You are God’s workmanship, a child of the King, and God wants to set you free from anything that’s holding you back. God wants you to live in the fullest potential that he has for your life. (p. 73)
But, “we live on a battlefield…. The Enemy wants to kill your dreams. He wants to bury the purpose God has placed inside of you. He wants to steal your sense of self-worth and confidence and hope.” (p. 75)
“One of the biggest ways he works at doing that is with unchecked thoughts.” (p. 77) “Romans 12:2 gives this stiff warning: ‘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….'” (p. 80-81) In Hebrews 11:25 the Bible says,”Moses chose not ‘to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.'” (p.82)
The author says, “If you’re feeling lousy and you sin in an attempt to feel better, whatever pain you’re feeling right now will still be there tomorrow morning, only worse.” (p.83)
“When we struggle with sin, God does not take our sin neutrally. He convicts us of our shortcomings, but He only does so because He cares about us. He loves us so much He doesn’t want us to continue down a harmful path. If you feel the need to pivot in your thought life, you’re feeling the need for repentance, and that prompt is from God.” (p.86)
Next week I will finish the last part of the book. I highly recommend adding it to your library. For myself, I struggle with all the above. But I especially struggle with not making myself sit at the table prepared for me in the midst of the enemy. I tend to look for my own solutions instead of just sitting down and reaping “the benefits of victory over sin, an unmuddied mind, and the ability to control my fears,” ect. I am working on myself to think of God first and seek His help with the problems of life.
Maybe your are too. And like me, maybe you are searching for how to deepen your relationship with God and make your life better.
So, have a great week and keep searching!