READ: 1 John 2:15-17  

Here’s a scary concept. In this life we are often  at the mercy of our own minds.  What we think determines how we live.  God knows this and so does Satan. It’s no surprise there is literally a spiritual war for control of your mind.  Satan wants to destroy you.  His desire for you is a rotten life.  On the other hand, God wants you to enjoy a beautiful life.  And so, it comes down to this.  Rotten mind, rotten life.  Beautiful mind, beautiful life.

READ: Romans 8:5-11

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus[d] from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” (THE MESSAGE)

How does Satan rot your mind?  

The simple answer is found in the text. He get’s your mind FOCUSED on the FLESH. That’s it. More to the point, your thoughts are obsessed with yourself — so much so, you have no capacity to contemplate the things of God. 

On the other hand, how does God create a beautiful mind in you?  His Holy Spirit lives within you and gives you the ability to focus on the things of the Spirit.   A mind set on the Spirit brings life and peace.  A mind set on the flesh is literally a mind at war with God. 

Read these important verses regarding the war for your mind and take time to journal and pray about what God reveals to you.

Colossians 3:3; Romans 12:2; Psalm 101:3; 1 Peter 1:13; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Philippians 4:6-8

“All things as they move toward God are beautiful, and they are ugly as they move away from Him.” 

― A.W. Tozer