2 Corinthians 10:4-5 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
The word translated “strongholds” in this passage also means “fortresses or to make firm.” Just like military forts are established in firm places such as hilltops, Satan attempts to establish strong forts in our minds to hold our thoughts captive.
Paul defines strongholds as arguments, pretensions, or thoughts that set themselves against the knowledge of God. Any beliefs entrenched in our own thinking that are contrary to God’s revealed truth are Satan’s strongholds. It is these strongholds that hinder our prayers.
Satan’s strongholds fill our minds with fear, anxiety, hopelessness, and failure. They are thoughts that tell us there is no hope for our current situation so why should I bother to pray…not even God can help me out of this mess. It is these strongholds that make us doubt God and His power.
Consider these strongholds and Scriptures to counter attack these thoughts:
• My husband is hopeless. He’ll never change. 1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
• I’m just a carnal person. I’ll never be free from lust. Galatians 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
• I’m getting older…I feel so useless. Feebleness and disease are inevitable. Psalms 103:5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
STRONGHOLDS in our minds are formed three ways.
1. Arguments contrary to the knowledge of God: These are not usually arguments with other people but are battles in our minds that we come to conclusions by our own reasonings.
2. Pretensions contrary to the knowledge of God: These can happen when we exalt our own reasoning over God’s Word and depend on our own way of thinking.
3. Thoughts contrary to the knowledge of God: These are the thoughts that we allow Satan to plant into our minds to deceive us into thinking that those thoughts are our own thoughts…but, in reality, they are thoughts against God’s will.
These strongholds are formed by:
• Reasoning a situation in my life without looking to God for guidance.
• Drawing my own conclusions without consulting God’s Word for validation.
• Justifying my situations above God’s revealed will in Scripture.
• Devising a scheme to handle my situation that is contrary to God’s will.
These strongholds can hinder our prayer lives by turning us into double-minded people. We, on one hand, profess to live by God’s Word, yet at other times, we allow our lives to be directed by our own reasonings. We pray, “Lord, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” yet in our mind, we are considering Plan B by using our own reasonings…just in case God doesn’t answer our prayers the way we think He should.
Neil Anderson says, “Double-mindedness determines to have a Plan B of human reasoning to fall back on in case the Plan A of God’s revealed will doesn’t come through. As long as we hold a Plan B in reserve, we’re not able to pray with faith and confidence for God’s Plan A to come through. Double-mindedness leads to instability and weakness and makes us unstable in our faith and ineffective in our prayers. Much is at stake when we try to embrace God’s agenda without letting go of our own.”
Our strongest weapon to break a stronghold in our minds is to use God’s Word. I love how Jesus always used God’s Word to defeat the devil in the wilderness. Jesus listened to each of Satan’s reasons. With each reason Satan gave, Jesus refuted them with the Word of God.
James gives us four steps to destroy strongholds in our minds:
James 4:7-8. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
First Step: I must submit to God’s will and acknowledging His Will in my life.
Second Step: I must resist Satan and expose his lies by using God’s Word.
Third Step: I must draw near to God in worship. When I draw near to God in worship and resist the devil, two things will happen: God’s Will becomes clearer to me, and Satan’s strongholds become weaker.
Fourth Step: I must cleanse and purify my heart. How? By asking God to show me any way that I have used my own reasonings and been double minded. Then ask for His forgiveness for not depending on His guidance and His Word. By doing this, I can confidently enter God’s Presence with a clean heart and a single mind to pray and to worship Him.