Defeating the Devil’s Mind Games

Life happens, daily.

People speak, act and change, governments rise and fall, life begins and ends, the weather changes drastically, traffic ebbs and flows—all outside of our control without our input or permission.

It is often those moments which we can’t control that disturb our thoughts the most. Those are things that play over and over in our minds while we lay awake at night, wondering if we will see every hour tick ‘round on the clock because we can’t switch off our brains to sleep.

The truth is, we will never be able to control everything around us, but we can learn to control those thoughts that stride onto the battlefield of our mind like they own the place and send us spinning in circles. It is a position of strength to be able to sit back and realize, “This is not my circus, and those are not my monkeys!” Or, as King David said, “This battle belongs to the Lord!”

In that moment of surrender, we become the ringmaster in this circus called life! No longer is life pushing us about, but we step into the realm of authority in which God intended for us to live all along.

The importance of my ability to control my own thoughts was never more real to me than in those moments when life and death were hanging in the balance. When those who should have protected me betrayed my trust; when fear paralyzed my muscles until they became rigid; when disappointment was a given and hopelessness was normal; when thoughts of suicide hung over me and life seemed too painful to keep going.

And when I’d had so many seizures that I needed to learn to walk again; when the doctors told us that our unborn baby was deformed and offered us a termination; when our child was sent home from the hospital to die; when we were sued, and it looked like we would lose everything.

When life hurt so badly it was hard to breathe…It was in those times that our survival depended upon the ability to listen to the voice of God above the noise of the circus.

One day, the Lord showed me that I had power over my thoughts through a simple picture of an airport control tower with planes circling around it. Each time a plane approached the tower and came into radio contact, it had to request permission to land. Those planes did not have the authority to land without the go-ahead from the control tower.

Our thoughts are like those planes. We cannot stop those planes from coming into contact with our minds, but we do not have to give them permission to land!

This is what the Bible is talking about when it mentions taking every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). We can literally recognize and isolate thoughts and judge whether they are good, bad, or ugly. In other words, are they from God, the devil, or just our flesh? A great way to decide this is John 10:10:

The thief cometh not but to steal and to kill and to destroy. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Does the thought bring fear or dread? That would be from the enemy. Does it fill us with love, joy, peace? That would likely be God. The flesh can be a little harder to distinguish sometimes, but if we are seeking first the kingdom of God, chances are that our ambitions will be in line with His. Failing that, the Holy Spirit will guide us in the right direction because we are in relationship with Him.

In finding a thought circulating that’s not good or God, serve the eviction notice! That would be anything that challenges a promise of God: fear, anger, poverty, sickness, despair, etc.

This amazing ability on the inside of every believer enables us to be in control of our emotions rather than having our emotions control us. Thoughts left unattended can quickly turn into a runaway herd of wild horses—they need training before they overrun the circus!

Thought Replacement

In order to change your thoughts, you can’t just say, “Stop thinking about that!” For example, let’s say I tell you, “Think of a fish.” Your fish could be any number of species, with an infinite combination of shapes and colors. However, if I say, “Think of a purple fish with green stripes,” a new picture will pop into your head.

Yet if we want to completely change the thought of a fish, I would need to redirect the picture in your mind completely. I might say something like, “Think of a snow-capped mountain, towering over a green valley filled with wildflowers.”

Did you notice that the picture in your mind completely changed from the fish to the mountain vista?

We control our thoughts and emotions using this same tactic: by replacing negative thoughts and emotions with the Word of God!

For example, rent is due this coming Friday, but you don’t get your regular paycheck until next Friday. Many of us have faced this exact situation! Our natural minds might think, Oh man, I won’t get paid in time, and I don’t even have close to the money I need to pay rent. What am I gonna do? Maybe our landlord will give us an extension. But I want to be faithful; I don’t want to be late! I’m going to get evicted…Where will we go? I could ask my friend if we can stay with them for a while, but I don’t want to impose. What if they say no? There isn’t even enough room in our cars for all of us to sleep in there! Where will we shower? I don’t want to be homeless!

Wow, do you see how those thoughts went through expecting to not have money to pay rent, to imagining coping with homelessness? This is how the natural mind begins to rationalize our circumstances without any thought to what the Word of God says, even as a believer wanting to do the right thing. And these are the circles of thought that keep us anxiously awake at night!

We have to replace these thoughts with the promises of God, the Word of God, and visions and imaginations of what we are believing God to see!

Let’s take the example above and replace those thoughts with the Word:

“Jesus, You said not to worry about our physical needs because our good Father God already knows that we need them. My paycheck is irrelevant in this situation, Lord, because You supply all of my needs according to Your riches in glory. I have favor with God, favor with man, and a good understanding. I ask You for wisdom with my finances, and I know that You are giving me that wisdom. Rent, you are paid, in Jesus’ name! Lord, I don’t know how You are going to pull this off, but I know You will! The how doesn’t matter because I know the end result will be amazing. We will be in this home, with food to eat, no lack in our lives, and with an abundance to give to every good work. I am Yours, and I lack no good thing! You take care of my family. I cast this care upon You, right now. I put my trust in You, Lord, and I know You will never let me down. It is finished, in Jesus’ name!”

Now you have replaced those negative imaginations of homelessness with the truth that God always comes through for you, He will never let you down, and that He has promised to even provide more than enough for you! You have also given Him free rein to resolve this challenge however He sees fit. You haven’t placed Him in a box by demanding the how. For example, “Lord, I ask that You have a random stranger hand rent to me in the street!” Instead, you have just said, “Lord, I trust You to provide for our needs in the best way possible.” His plans are so much better than anything you can dream up.

This is your life, your air space. You can start controlling the air traffic in it today. Deny negative thoughts permission to land and watch the transformation in your life that happens as a result!

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us (Ephesians 3:20).

Refusing Defeat

Sometimes seeing the victory means refusing to see defeat. This was something that I realized shortly before moving to the United States, lying on my back in a grassy field! I had chased our cat across the farmyard in a vain attempt to rescue a baby rabbit that was dangling from its mouth, when my foot became lodged in a muddy rut under the grass. Momentum carried me past that hole, and I heard a loud crack originating from my ankle, which hadn’t made the journey at the same speed as the rest of my body.

A half-mile from the house, all alone in the wet grass, I began to picture myself hobbling through the airport on crutches, dragging three small children and eighteen pieces of luggage toward the plane. We were in the middle of packing the house to move continent, and a broken ankle was not something that I had time for at that moment!

Suddenly, I had a choice to make. I could lie there and hope someone might hear me screaming, crawl back to the house across the field, and continue to imagine myself in a cast, or I could change the picture.

Because I had prepared myself by spending time in the Word of God and learning His promises, out of my mouth came a shout. It was my giant-killing battle cry, and all it said was, “Jesus!” I leapt to my feet and ran all the way home on a broken ankle. Yes, those first steps hurt—a lot—but by the time I got home, my ankle was healed!

I rejected the picture of myself hobbling through the airport on crutches and replaced it with an image of healing and victory. I’m not some super-duper Christian. The Word of God works, no matter who you are! If you will put your relationship with God first place, and use the Word to prepare yourself for victory, you can have the same results.

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things (Philippians 4:8).

If your thoughts aren’t conforming to these guidelines in Philippians 4:8, it’s time to change your perspective. What are you picturing? What does victory look like to you today, and what are you shouting at your giant? Take some time and reflect on the negative imaginations you have been having. Then deliberately research and find scriptures that will combat those thoughts. Begin to meditate on the positive and paint a new picture in your mind of success rather than failure.

Have those scriptures handy: carry them around with you on notecards, or in your smartphone. As you practice thought traffic control, you will find that seeing things from God’s perspective becomes easier, your faith will grow, and you will see the impact as you begin to walk through life as a victor!

Fully Equipped

If we are to stand up to the enemy, we need to go out to battle properly dressed. Good armor is unique and custom made for the bearer. No one can wear your armor and you can’t wear theirs. David found this out when Saul tried to clothe him in his armor to fight Goliath. David tried it on, but it was heavy and cumbersome. It didn’t fit David’s body, nor his fighting style (1 Samuel 17:38-39). He was an expert with a slingshot, not with a sword. The armor he needed wasn’t of the physical variety. David’s armor was built from his faith in God, and that is what led him to victory over his giant.

In the same way, God has given us armor that fully equips us for our battles. It is designed specifically for us and is donned and used by faith.

Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to with stand in the evil day having done all to stand (Ephesians 6:13).

God has given us a whole suit of spiritual armor to protect us and equip us for life in the world. Many Christians are so overcome by the fact that they have their helmet of salvation that they fail to put on the rest of the armor—they are naked, streaking believers wearing just a helmet! What a picture!

The armor of God is comprised of spiritual clothing rather than the tangible clothing we are accustomed to putting on every day. So, how do we actually dress ourselves in equipment that cannot be touched? These clothes are put on through faith, using our confession and imagination, fueled by our everyday relationship with God.

As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him… (2 Peter 1:3).

Every benefit of our faith comes through relationship with God. As we know Him more and more, we can fully take part in every blessing He has given us, including the armor of God. Our trust in God—which can only be developed by spending time with Him—enables us to partake, take up, put on the armor of God and see His promises working in our lives.

God is a spirit. Therefore, He communicates with us spirit to spirit. We hear His voice, and build our relationship with Him, spiritually. God gave us spiritual armor because we are in a spiritual battle. So, we need to know what our spiritual weapons are and how to use them spiritually.

Put on God’s whole armor [the armor of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies and the deceits of the devil. For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere. Therefore put on God’s complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place]. Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate of integrity and of moral rectitude and right standing with God, And having shod your feet in preparation [to face the enemy with the firm-footed stability, the promptness, and the readiness produced by the good news] of the Gospel of peace. Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one]. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:10-16 AMPC).