Battlefield of the Mind

Battlefield of the melodic theme taking the Battle in Your Mind Author Joyce Meyer Reviewer Lisa Hutson I mean m both meters in the Christian and especi entirelyy in the pentecostal realm, we tend to do things in the name of Christ because we felt the likes of it was from the holy place looking and instead of determining that by lining it up with the Bible, the living excogitate of God, we tend to trust that our feelings atomic number 18 correct. But what lapses when those feelings locomote from prejudicious, confused, judgemental or passive thinking?I never realized until I read this book that the majority of the bad decisions I study do in my life were decisions I made based on indicate feelings and that those feelings came from faulty or negative thinking. After I read this book, I understood that it is the things that I think ab turn up constantly that are the things that nobble up my life. If those thoughts are positivistic, I provide reap arrogant benefits. If those thoughts are negative, I result reap negativity further it is every last(predicate) told in how I think. There are three life lessons that I cast off erudite to incorporate into my effortless life in nightspot to pass a Christ filled life.When I tend to go with those wilderness mentalities, I fool learned to al bureaus do my silk hat to be positive, to regularly ruminate on the intelligence activity of God, and to be grateful at altogether times. Explaining the importance of existence positive, Meyer ranks us the mind is a battlefield. After course session 2 Corinthians 104,5, Meyer says that we are engaged in a war, our enemy is Satan and that our minds are the battlefield. The devil works diligently to set up strongholds in our mind and he does it through dodge and deceit and that he takes his time to work out his plan (16-17).In order to prevent the devils lies from penetrating our minds, we must defend them. You cannot have a positive life and a negative mind. Your life will not get straightened out until your mind does (27-28). Positive minds produce positive run lows. Negative minds produce negative lives. Positive thoughts are al shipway honorable of combine and hope. Negative thoughts are always full of fear and uncertainty (41). What genuinely struck me approximately this concept is how Meyer tells us that thinking positive isnt ignoring the negative, however it is believing that God is bigger than you and your situation and that all things will work together for good as His word promises.I am generally a happy person. I laugh at ein truththing, I like making some other people laugh and having good conversations. However, when negative things do arise, I tend to get angry or withstand apart myself. If I am having a disagreement with a co-worker or an argument with my parents, I will just refuse to talk to them. When the Holy Spirit brings them to my memory, I let negative thoughts produce even more feelings of strif e and it takes a long time to get over it. I remember one time last semester when I was so inconvenience with my mother that I refused to talk to her for almost four monthsLearning to be positive does not mean that the negative situation did not happen but it simply means that we believe that God will mend it or bring good from it. It means forgiving even if we outweart forget but allowing the Holy Spirit to work in our attitudes so that we do not become weighed down by our situations. Meditating on Gods word is other huge lesson I have learned from this book. I believe that my biggest mistake early on in my walk with the skipper was not reading His word for myself. I became a christian at the age of fourteen and filled with the Holy Spirit by the age of sixteen.However, I would rather go on Wednesday nights and experience my youth pastor tell me what the Bible said instead of reading it myself. When I tried to read on my own, I often became very confused and frustrated and ga ve up. I let other people tell me how to live instead of searching it out myself. I continued this all through high direct and at long last during my senior year I had a very hurtful situation occur between myself and another(prenominal) family in the perform. Since I wasnt solid in my faith and kin with the original, I let it tear me down fundamentally and I stayed out the church for rough a year and a half.I let anothers faith become my own and when they failed me, I equated that with God weakness me. This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall have intercourse wisely and have good success. Joshua 18 The Bible tells us that if we want to be a success and prosper in all of our dealings, we must meditate on the Word of God day and night.The Word of God teaches us what we should overhaul our time thinking about (57). guess in this context means to spend a lot of time pondering and thinking on the ways of God, His instructions and His teachings (57). In my situation, I had let sermons, Sunday school, and people in the church mold my faith and thought process instead of spending time myself thinking about the Word. I thought about the Word while I was seance in church but outside of that, I had not really let it sink in. Now, I am making a significant trend to seek the scriptures myself.Of course, I am involved in church again but I am also making an effort during my own time to spend quality time with the superior, in invocation and in His word, allowing Him to mold me into what He has created me to be. The last thing that The Battlefield of the Mind has taught me is to be grateful at all times. How can the devil date us if we are passing play to be joyful and thankful no matter what our circumstances are? I will bless the passkey at all times His praise sh all continually be in my mouth. Psalm 341We can be a blessing to the Lord by letting His praise continually be in our thoughts and mouths (162). Be a grateful person, one filled with gratitude not only toward God, but also toward people (163). Expressing appreciation is not only good for the other person but it is good for us, because it releases joy in us. Meditate daily on all the things you have to be thankful for. Rehearse them to the Lord in prayer, and as you do you will find your heart selection up with life and light (163). During my teenage years, my family went through a monetary crisis. We lost our home and our vehicles.I worn-out(a) my junior year of high school with my parents living out of a garage that we made into a make-shift home. I remembered crying myself to sleep many nights in that garage. I was embarrassed about our situation, angry at my parents for getting us in this mess, and confused that the Lord could let this happen to us. After about fifteen months in that garage, things finally began to turn around. We were able to sell our property and the garage, move into a term of a contract property and get decent vehicles to drive instead of the old sixties model truck my dad had bought for three hundred dollars during the crisis.I remember cosmos so grateful for that new rental property. It was an old yellow brick home, but it was wonderful to me. I had a room with real walls I spent all of my savings on making my own bedroom handsome with new paint, picture frames and curtains. It was through that situation that I truly learned how to be grateful. My parents and I have come a long way from that old garage but I still have a picture of that old garage in a frame in my room at home. Sometimes even now, I find myself being selfish and ungrateful for my many blessings.I think everyone does. However, that memory always shows me how farthestther the Lord has brought me and how much farther He can take me as long as I stay faithful. Ba ttlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyer has many solid lessons that have taught me a lot about how to live victorious in Christ. As a young Pentecostal believer, I always thought everything was spiritually supernatural. If God wanted me to think a certain way, He would just zap it into my head. However, as I move up in my relationship with Him, I realize He is not going to spoon feed me forever.He wants me to seek Him. If I put His lessons and teachings into practice, I will live victoriously. Being positive, meditating on His word and always being thankful to Him and to the people around me are just a few ways I can make my life a living hand to Him. However, its really not even a leave, for the blessings and benefits I receive from these practices far out weight the negatives. I learn more and more about myself and about my Heavenly father as I delve deeper into His word.His word is what empowers my positive attitude and reminds me to be grateful not only for His sacrifice but als o for the many blessings He bestows on my life daily. I loved this book. Im sure I will keep it around to read occasionally and remind myself to get my mind in order Thinking produces feelings and feelings behaviors and if Im not happy with any certain behaviors, I must stem it back to what I spend my time thinking about. My mind is the battlefield and when it is renewed in Christ, I will be able to battle the enemy with confidence, perseverance, and power.