I awoke this AM with this conversation going on in my mind, "She NEVER calls me back!, I heard myself say with an exasperated, bitter tone. "WHOA"! I shouted, "Hold on a minute. First off, that is NOT true. Secondly, that is not how I choose to feel. I do not choose to think that way about her or anybody else! I bring those bitter thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ."
Then the Holy Spirit gave me this, "I desire My people to refuse those kinds of thoughts, but, sadly, many of my people refuse to be comforted." SELAH (stop and think about that).
He went on to say, "I sent My Holy Spirit to comfort my people,... to help them. The Holy Spirit is there to help you succeed, to help you overcome, to give you Hope and a future; to teach you to choose wisely - to choose life, but you must do the choosing. 'Choose you this day WHOM you will serve.' [Jos 24:15] "
Will it be bitterness? Will it be fear? Will you be Self serving? (and Self "anything" - self indulgence, self consciousness, self righteousness, self pity, self gratification, self hatred). All of these always leads to your enemy's camp - puts you in his clutches because self IS the old man. Self is the carnal nature. Romans 8 tells us the mind set on flesh is hostile - it is the fruit of that dark kingdom.
Self is the Sin nature you were born with; but, you have been "born again", "born from above". That means you have been given Christ's nature. You have been given His Spirit which is the epitome of NOT SELFish. Will you choose to let Him live and dwell and rule OR will you choose to live under the rule of fear or bitterness or selfishness?
You are choosing moment-by-moment WHO will rule over you. Christ's kingdom or the kingdom of darkness. There are only two kingdoms. Life in one is very different from life under the other. Life is all about choices. Good life is all about informed choices. Each one of us has an adversary (and it isn't the person who just sprang to mind). This adversary is NOT a human. Your adversary is a spirit being that is opposed to your well being. So, if you would like to be well and if you would like to enjoy life, you have to make some informed choices.
Let's talk about informed choices. Informed means we are given information with which to make a decision. But, look at the word in formed. Many of us get our information from outside sources: TV, news, book, internet, Bible, people, etc. That is good , but BEST is to get your information from the Spirit of the living God. The Holy Spirit who resides in you.
IN YOU!
Let Him f-o-r-m your attitude from INside you. Let Him IN-form you. He will say, "This is THE way, walk ye in it." He says, "For as high as the heavens are above the earth so are my thought not your thoughts." [Isa. 55:8] "For as the heaven are high above the earth, so GREAT is His mercy toward those who reverence Him." [Ps. 103:11]
Recognize that His thoughts are mercy-full. The template to know whether or not the thoughts coming to you are His thoughts is...is it LOVE?
God IS love.
His thoughts are thoughts of love. His actions are actions of love. Jesus Christ going to the cross was the ultimate act of love.
Just because a thought shows up in your mind, doesn't not mean it is from God or from you. You have an adversary who introduces his thoughts into your mind in an attempt to get you to adopt them as your own. This is where you apply the template of love.
Is it love?
Know the nature of your adversary is to accuse, criticize, find fault, blame, be offensive, etc. The thought I woke up with was a device of the enemy to get me to think like him, feel like him, adopt his attitudes and disposition and speak like him.
All in an attempt to conform me to his image and carry out his BAD will. The enemy's attempt to take me captive by the device of offense was thwarted by the Holy Spirit's rescue of bringing every thought captive to Jesus' obedience using the template of His love for me and for that woman.
Instead of being taken captive by those thoughts, I took took the thoughts captive. I applied the template of God's love and employed His way of escape. Instead of yielding to that device of the enemy and yielding to all the darkness. Instead I yielded to the Holy Spirit who IS the spirit of love and experienced the benefits of God's good kingdom.
Every device from your enemy has an escape provided by your Savior. Your Savior ALWAYS provides the escape. Your Savior ALWAYS provides the victory!
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