Faith Myths

Myth #2: My thoughts have little to do with my faith.

Truth: The battle to believe God begins in my head.
What goes on in my mind regulates the spiritual climate of the rest of me. The outcome of either choosing to believe God, or mentally shriveling into doubt and unbelief, is determined by what I allow to stay in my mind.

My teenage years were filled with constant turmoil because I believed everything entering my mind originated from me. I'd follow one rabbit trail after another, trying to resolve ugly thoughts with reason or mental scolding. Guilt and doubt over my salvation plagued me until I learned the enemy often implants evil thoughts in our minds to rob our peace and joy. It had worked. My mental witch hunt kept me in a state of conflict.

Through discussing my problem with a trusted spiritual mentor, I recognized confusion, fear, and doubt as phantom rabbits sent to entice me into no-man's land. Rather than running after them and beating them into submission, I began training my mind to refocus on God whenever unpleasant and worrisome thoughts emerged. It felt unnatural at first. I wanted to chase those pesky critters. Yet as I let God deal with them, I learned the faith battle could be won right there.

Isaiah 26:3 says: "The steadfast of mind Thou will keep in perfect peace because he trusts in Thee."

Since our brains function in patterns, we can change our minds to operate in active faith. Taking issues before God in prayer each morning frees us from engaging in enticing worries as we go through the day. I often sing worship songs in my head as a reminder of God's presence at the gas station, grocery store, while doing laundry, even the mall. It's my way of establishing rhythms of faith as I live life. His peace is the gift of "staying" in Him. And if I can retrain my brain, anyone can.

We don't need to decipher where our thoughts come from, Ignoring the bad and focusing on the good isn't living in denial, it's remembering truth. And truth sets us free.

Evil thoughts may intrude, but possess no power over you as a new creature in Christ. Raising your shield deflects all the "what ifs" Satan can hurl.. Faith combined with Scripture is a spiritual weapon surpassing intellect. We don't abandon our brains, we surrender them.