How to Fight the Enemies of Good Intentions

In review of Psalm 119:112 it says, “I have made up my mind to obey your laws forever, no matter what.”

Bottom Line:

You need to make a one time decision and then continue to decide to follow it, each day afterwards, until life on earth ends.

What this means to me:

This verse reminds me that a decision I made to follow Jesus was one that ultimately impacted my life forever. However, I need to make daily decisions to continue to follow, especially when the going gets tough and the outcomes may look dismal.

Today's verse comes at the end of a passage starting at verse 105. The psalmist explains how God's word will guide him in life. How he has promised that he will obey it, even though he has had loss and opposition. He asks for restoration and offers God his praise, he wants to continue to learn. Even though he does not know what the future holds, he is committing to obedience. He knows that he will continue to face opposition, but regardless he makes the decision to continue to follow, as what God provides is a true treasure to his heart.

I believe that the reason why most people are ineffective in life is that they've never learned how to fight the battle of the mind.

In order for me to learn how to manage my mind, I need to deliver it from destructive thoughts. This isn’t easy, because there are three enemies that keep me from fulfilling my good intentions of changing my life.

The first enemy is my old nature. Paul says in Romans 7:23, “There is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me” (NLT). I often find myself doing things that I didn't really want to do. This occurs because the battle is going on in my mind between my old, sinful nature and my good intentions.

The second enemy is Satan. Satan cannot force me to do anything, but he can make suggestions, and those suggestions are very, very powerful. He will constantly plant negative thoughts in my mind. He’ll use other people or he’ll use the television or he’ll just throw a thought into my mind.

The third enemy is the world’s value system. Not much in our society encourages self-discipline. Every advertisement says, “You deserve a break today. Have it your way. We do it all for you.” The Bible says in 1 John 2:16, “For everything in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — comes not from the Father but from the world” (NIV).

With enemies like that, no wonder I struggle with discouragement, despair and failure.

In learning to fight this battle, I can look to 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, it says: “Though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretention that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

I have a choice. Ultimately my mind has to listen to me. God didn't give me just a mind; he gave me a will! The best time to win the battle with temptation is before it begins.

Today's verse reminds me of how to battle it. “I have made up my mind to obey your laws forever, no matter what” (Psalm 119:112 CEV).

Ultimately God’s rules and instructions are their not just to hinder me and keep me from having a good time. He provides them because they provide protection and develop good fruit. In my life, I’ve seen Satan use random thoughts and images on TV to derail me. Sometimes I even find myself comparing myself to others. These distract me and keep me from progressing. So I need to remember some of the prior steps I had learned to combat temptation, part of it is remember and bring to mind this verse from 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” (NIV).

So in order to fight the enemies of good intentions, I need to pull out this verse and then remember my ultimate commitment I have made to Christ. I do have a choice. Further, God will always provide a way out so that I can endure.

The Best Source of Information to Live Life

In review of Matthew 4:4 it says, “People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

Bottom Line:

Food alone will not feed a man’s soul; we need every word that comes from God.

What this means to me:

Food alone will not sustain my inner being. I need to the word that God speaks to guide me on how to live.

In order for me to have a healthy mind, I must feed it with truth. Good food and good calories make me stronger and healthier and provide appropriate energy. Bad calories and junk food will harm my body. The same notion is true in my thought life. I must feed my mind not with junk or poison but with truth.

The best leader will make the best decision when they have the best information to start with. Likewise I need the best information to live the best life that God wants for me. The good news is that information can be found in the Word of God.

The Bible says in Matthew 4:4, “People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (NLT).

God wants me to have the best information so that I can make the best decisions and receive God’s best for my life. I do this by feeding on the Word of God throughout my day, every day.

Given this, I try to make it part of my weekday morning routine to get into God’s word. I have found this to be such a valuable part of starting my day. It helps start me off with the right reference and helps me to be humble. It has also allowed me to handle situations differently based on what I have learned. It is my hope to always continue in this habit knowing that the best information (God’s Word) will lead to the best source of information to live my life by.

Ways To Manage My Thoughts And My Mind

In review of Proverbs 4:23 it says, “Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.”

Bottom Line:

Be careful how you think; for your life is shaped by your thoughts.

What this means to me:

Above anything else, I am to carefully guard my thoughts; for my life will be influenced and shaped by them which will ultimately determine the course I end up taking.

When it comes to my life, God is far more interested in changing my mind and my thinking than he is in changing any of my circumstances.

My natural inclination is to want God to take away all of the problems, pains, suffering, sickness, and negative conditions. But what I’m learning is that God wants to work on me first, because ultimate transformation won’t happen in my life until I can renew my mind, and until my thoughts begin to change.

There are three important reasons that I need to learn how to manage my mind:

First, I need to manage my mind, because my thoughts control my life. Proverbs 4:23 says, “Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts” (TEV). The power of my thoughts has a tremendous ability to shape my life for good or for bad.

Second, I need to manage my mind, because it is the battleground for sin. All temptation happens in the mind. Paul explains in Romans 7:22-23, “I love to do God’s will so far as my new nature is concerned; but there is something else deep within me, in my lower nature, that is at war with my mind and wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. In my mind I want to be God’s willing servant, but instead I find myself still enslaved to sin” (TLB).

One of the reasons why I get mentally fatigued is because there’s a battle going on in brain 24 hours a day. It’s debilitating because it’s intense, and it’s intense because my mind is my greatest asset. Satan wants to get a hold of it.

Thirdly, I manage my mind, because it’s the key to peace and happiness. An unmanaged mind will lead to tension. A managed mind will lead to tranquility. An unmanaged mind will lead to conflict. A managed mind will lead to confidence. An unmanaged mind will lead to stress. When I don’t try to control my mind and the way I direct your thoughts, I will have an enormous amount of stress in your life. But a managed mind will lead to strength and security and serenity.

Paul also said, “Letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace” (Romans 8:6 NLT).

I can please God with my mind, when I allow it to be fed with His Word and His purposes as well as keeping my mind focused on loving Him and Loving people. I won’t please God when I allow my thoughts to drift toward selfish ambitions and ones that may not regard loving others.

The best way to practice managing my mind to is focus on what he has told me and to avoid filling it with worthless things.

Learning to Let Jesus Help Lighten My Load

In review of Matthew 11:28-30 it says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Bottom Line:

Jesus offers those who are tired from carrying heavy loads, to show us a better way; a more restful way. Jesus asks that we take his yoke and let him teach us. His yoke is much easier to bear.

What this means to me:

As I follow and trust Jesus, he helps me greatly with the heavy loads and concerns I bear. He shows me a better and more restful way. He asks that I take his yoke and allow him to teach me. His yoke is much easier to bear.

For any burden or concern that I’m carrying and weighing me down the answer is with Jesus. Jesus says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30 RSV).

This can be a difficult verse to understood as a yoke sounds heavy. A yoke is actually a board that has two arches in it that you put over two cattle so they can pull a cart. The value of a yoke is that it halves the load. Without a yoke, one cow’s would need to pull that entire load by itself. But if you yoke up the cow with another cow, then the two cows pull the load together, and the load is half as heavy.

When Jesus tells me to take his yoke upon me, he’s not saying he’s going to give me his problems. Jesus doesn't have any problems! He’s saying he’s going to share my problem. He’s going to share my load. He’s going to take your stress on himself and bear it with me.

He says three verbs in this verse: come, learn, and take. Jesus says, “Come to me. Team up with me. Then, learn how I do it. Take on a lighter load. This is going to reduce stress. This is going to make it easier to navigate.”

When I’m yoked with Christ, I move together with him. I move in the same direction and at the same speed. And, I move in the right direction and at the right speed.

It’s always easier to have some share your burdens and make it easier on you. I’m reminded of this as my daughter and son-in-law have recently moved.  The move for them was made much easier having family and friends to help out. So as a takeaway, I need to be willing to have someone assist me and likewise I need to look for and help others out.

Also, I need to make sure that I’m taking to Jesus the things the concern or overwhelm me. He’s willing to help me and show me a better way. In short, God already knows all about my stress. The question is how will I show him that I’m ready to take on his yoke?

When I Face Attack, Learn To Rest In God’s Protection

In review of Psalm 23:5 it says, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

Bottom Line:

You treat me well, providing the best for me; even in the presence of those who oppose me. You treat me as an honored guest and fill me up with blessing.

What this means to me:

You are so good to me, providing what is best for me; even in the presence of those may be against me. You have treated me as an honored guest and continually fill me up with your multitude of blessings. Given this I should rest in your protection.

This is good advice. It seems our world is getting ruder and ruder all the time. The Internet allows people to hide behind the screen and say things online that they would never really have the courage to say to others face to face.

All this really does is reveal the smallness of their hearts. A great person will make others feel great, but small person only belittles others. Those who belittle others have a little knot for a heart, and they make fun of others because they think it will make them feel better.

So how should I handle someone who is being rude to me. The answer is, that I shouldn't. Rather I should let God handle them in his own timing. I let God be my defender, not myself.

As illustrated in the Bible, King David was a pro at this. He knew what it meant to be attacked emotionally, verbally, and physically. As a young man, he was anointed by Samuel to be the next king of Israel, but he spent two years running from his predecessor, who wanted to kill him. He hid in caves while being criticized constantly behind his back. Yet David never said a bad word against the king. He never retaliated, because God was preparing him to be the king after his own heart. David says in Psalm 23:5, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows” (NIV).

David was recognizing God’s goodness to him. God would anoint his head with oil, which is the equivalent of saying to the world, “This is my guy! Back off! This is going to be the next leader.” David’s cup overflowed, which meant God kept blessing him and blessing him, even when others attacked him. It never looked like David was stressed out. He didn't have to use up all his energy defending himself because he trusted God to be his defender.

It takes a lot of faith and humility to rest and trust God when I’m under attack, when I’m misunderstood, when rumors are spreading about me and people are saying things about me. When that happens, typically everything in me wants to rise up and do something about it. But I can be most like Christ when I remain silent under attack. Jesus was constantly attacked, yet he never retaliated, even on his way to the cross. He remained silent before his accusers because he had entrusted himself to the care of the Father. The apostle Peter has this advice, “So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you” (1 Peter 4:19).

In considering this, Its not so important for me to have the last word. For me getting in the last word makes me think that I've won or have come out on top. However, if I’m going to be humble, I should never try to exalt myself this way. In addition, it’s a lot more helpful for my health to trust my defense to God instead of spending my energy and emotions on things better left to God. This is going to be much better for my health than to stress about it.

One thing I’ll need to learn to do if I’m confronted face to face with those who are attacking me, is to simply rest in God’s protection. So I either I should walk away (so I don’t do or say something stupid) or I should do something that would bless them instead, trusting God to take care of it in his timing.

Learning That Only God Can Provide

In review of Romans 8:32 it says, “Since he did not spare even his own Son for us but gave him up for us all, won’t he also surely give us everything else?”

Bottom Line:

God spares nothing, even his own Son for us, given this, won’t he also give us everything else we need?

What this means to me:

God spared nothing for me, he even went as far as providing his own Son to atone for my sins. Given this, he will freely provide anything else I really need.

A major cause of stress is worry. I tend to worry because I wonder if I will have what I need when I’m going to need it. One thing I’m learning is that anytime I expect others to meet my needs instead of God, I’m going to be frustrated and disappointed, because nobody can meet all of my needs. My real needs can only be met by God, so a cure for stress is to learn to look toward him to meet my needs.

I remember early in my Christian walk, one of the things God helped me realize was how I had wrapped myself up in my job and what I did for a living. I tended to attach a certain amount of security to is. Then he made some changes that shook this up and made me re-think this.

Another area of caution for me is putting any security in money I might have saved up.  The tendency for me is that when I have more saved up, I forget to ask God to provide. I tend to think I have money to cover it. Unfortunately there are a lot of ways to lose my money and quickly.

Therefore I’m learning that I should never put my security in anything that can be taken away from me. I can easily lose my job, health, reputation, spouse, and my mind. But one thing I can never lose is my relationship to Christ. When I learn to put my security in that promise, then I can be assured that I can trust God to meet all my needs.

Romans 8:32 reminds me, “Since he did not spare even his own Son for us but gave him up for us all, won’t he also surely give us everything else?” (TLB)

If God loved me enough to send Jesus Christ to die on the cross, He’ll love me enough to take care of every other need I may have.

So, every time I start to get stressed out, I just need to pause and say, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1 ESV). God’s going to provide. He’s going to take care of me. So instead of stressing out, I need to look to him to meet all my needs.

I’m fortunate enough to have learned to go to God for the major needs in my life, however I often try to meet the smaller needs on my own. I need to learn to take all of my needs/concerns (large or small) to him, even stuff related to my job and work assignments.

As I reflect on everything going on in my life, I need God’s assistance with work organization structures and timing. I’m also about to take on an increased amount of responsibility. I could use God’s grace and wisdom to handle these.  At home, my wife and I have various projects to complete around the house in order to prepare for selling our house (in order to downsize.) We could use his assistance and blessings in this area as well.

I know if I ask and trust God; he will provide what I need and what is best for me. Overall I truly believe that God has a plan for me of what he wants to do through me. I need to make sure that I’m keeping an open mind and heart and a willingness to hear and see what he wants me to do.

Goals Stretch My Faith

In review of Matthew 9:29 it says, “According to your faith let it be done to you.”

Bottom Line:

Your faith has a lot to do with obtaining your goals.

What does this mean to me:

My faith in him is extremely important. God responds to this level of faith.

Today’s verse is the second part of verse that reflects what Jesus did for two blind men who asked Jesus to have mercy on them and their ultimate belief. “They went right into the house where he was staying, and Jesus asked them, “Do you believe I can make you see? ‘Yes, Lord,’ they told him, ‘we do.’” (Matt. 9:28-29, NLT). In this case their faith in believing what Jesus could do helped them achieve a goal.

As a Christian, when it comes to setting a goal it can be the same as saying, “I believe God wants me to do this by ‘such and such’ a date,” and therefore it becomes a statement of faith.

Goals can stretch my faith. First they affirm that I trust God, but they also become statements of how much I trust God. The second part of today’s verse says, “According to your faith let it be done to you” (Matthew 9:29b NLT).

Interestingly enough, not setting a goal actually becomes a goal by default. The default goal is to stay the same or to let others dictate the goal for you.

If someone was to ask me, “What's your goal for your health,” and I say, “I don't have one,” then my goal is to stay the same. When someone asks, “What's your goal in your relationships,” and I say, “I don't have one,” then my goal is for them not to get any better. If I’m asked, “What's my goal for my finances and debt elimination and I respond with, “I don't have one,” then my goal is to not change my situation. When I’m asked, “What's my goal for my business career, and I say, “I don't have one,” then my goal is to just drift along in this area.

This is why scripture encourages and teaches me to have goals. They are part of my spiritual discipline. They are a challenge of my our faith. They help to develop my character, and they help build my hope.

In thinking through this process, I think I may have be compartmentalizing my goals in the past. When it comes to goals for ministry and my spiritual life, I rely and count on God, however when it comes to some career and work goals I may be doing them on my own strength. Today I”ll also need to consider what area’s that I had not set any goals in and consider creating some.