What Are You Listening To?

When I hear that question, “What are you listening to?” I know it is not always about listening to music.  What I am referring to are the kinds of things that infiltrate our thoughts and minds every day.  Are they positive or negative, destructive or encouraging, motivating or defeating, tempting or uplifting, truth or lies?  One thing that I have started to see and understand more clearly is that Satan’s most popular and frequent target is our attacking our minds. If he can consume our thoughts with things that are not true or tempt us to do things we should not do, then it will often affect our actions and how we live our lives each day.  Surprisingly, there are many believers in this world who are totally unaware of this whole concept and the reality of spiritual warfare. There are many scriptures in the Bible that confirm this fact, and that this is indeed a battle for the mind.

II Cor. 10:3-5 talks about how although “we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.”

Another verse, II Cor. 11:3 – Paul states, “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”

Does this mean he can “read” our mind or our “thoughts”? Of course not, but some people may think this is true because they believe those lies.  Satan is very limited in how he can attack us as believers because we are filled with the Holy Spirit and we are new creatures in Christ.  We have to continually remind ourselves that the Spirit of God is always in our midst, and that the presence of Christ lives within our heart, our soul, our mind and spirit.  Unfortunately, even though the Enemy knows he cannot read our thoughts, he still has the ability to “whisper” all sorts of lies, temptations, negative, stressful things into our minds.  So how do we keep from becoming overwhelmed or making bad choices?

 

First, we need to be focused on the truth of who we are in Christ, of knowing how much He loves and cares for us and to know that He wants to accomplish positive things in our lives for His glory.  We need to be reading the scripture regularly because that is one of the main ways He communicates with us.  We can open the Bible and read a passage, and the Spirit of God can literally speak to our hearts and help us to see His truth.  Remember how Jesus kept using scripture from the Old Testament to cast Satan away from Him as he was trying to tempt Jesus who was fasting in the desert?  This is basically feeding our souls and ultimately strengthening and nourishing our minds so that we can be encouraged in our faith.  Then when we hear these lies from the Enemy, we will be able to recognize and reject them because we have become more enamored in our love and appreciation for the Lord.  We also need to focus our mind on the Holy Spirit so that we can live a life of peace, as Romans 8:6 says, “To set the mind on flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”

 

Secondly, we need to be praying more.  The communication we have with God through prayer is a great opportunity for us to strengthen the connection we already have with Him.  That’s one reason I enjoy listening to worship songs throughout the day that help me to reflect on my walk with the Lord as I sing and pray to Him.  Now sometimes we may have doubts in our heart and minds as we think, “Oh the Lord is just not listening to me…or “He’s not going to answer my prayers”, or “Why should I pray…He’s just too busy to pay any attention to me…” and where do you think those thoughts come from?  That’s right!  Satan.  He will continually try to attack our minds as we continue to try and strengthen our relationship with the Lord.  We will be able to sense the Lord’s presence in our heart, mind and soul especially if we do this on a consistent basis.  It’s also good to pray with others because even then, we can sense that He is in our midst when we are praying together. 

Another thing we need to be careful about is what choices we make in our lives. For example, if we are living a lifestyle that is dishonoring and not pleasing to the Lord, then we will have a difficult time hearing His voice.  It is at that point that our ears and minds are severely clouded with so many unhealthy things that hinder us and which inevitably affect how we “hear” the truth that the Lord wants us to know about.  But it is never too late to restore that relationship with Him once we decide to stop making bad choices, and if we decide to focus on the truth of God’s word, the stronger we will become in keeping the Enemy from defeating us.

Romans 12:2 states, “and do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”  The “renewed mind” of believers is another way that helps us be strengthened and not fall prey to these attacks, but we have to remember that this is a lifelong process.  We have to constantly keep our thoughts focused on the truth of God’s word and the way His Spirit helps us because the Enemy is not going to give up on us.  Even though he knows he is defeated and has lost the war, he also knows he has not lost some of the battles he brings our way  because we sometimes choose to listen to his lies and we do not believe the truth that God wants us to know.  Why does it matter to him if he wins that battle and not the war?  Because if he wins, then we lose.  We will become more overwhelmed, isolated and self-absorbed to the point that we will not be the person the Lord wants us to be, and He will not be able to use us to reach out and help others. Basically, if we think we are a weak and defeated person, then we will begin to feel and act like one.  

Thankfully, those of us who have a true relationship with the Lord and are “new creatures in Christ”, recognize that we cannot be “possessed” by Satan, (II. Cor. 5:17), but we can become oppressed and strongly influenced by him, if we choose to listen to his lies, instead of to the Spirit of God who resides within us.  Isaiah 26:3 says, “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in You.”

 

In II Corinthians 4:4, it points out that, “the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”  Unfortunately, Satan does have access to blinding the minds and filling the thoughts of those who do not know Christ.  He can even read the thoughts of those who give him access.  The story of Judas is a clear example of someone who allowed Satan to mess with his mind, and he ended believing the lies that Satan bestowed upon him. John 13:2 states that “During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him.” and In John 13:27, it states that after Judas ate the piece of food, “Satan then entered into him...”  It is clear that ultimately his choices were affected by the Enemy because of his failure to respond and truly believe in Jesus Christ as his Savior. 

I’ve heard this story about a Cherokee grandfather told to his grandson about the battle of two wolves inside us all…how one is evil, filled with anger, greed, resentment lies and pride.  The other is good, and filled with joy, peace, love, hope, humility and truth.  The grandson thought about it and asked, “Which wolf wins?” to which his grandfather quietly replied, “the one you feed.”  That is true for us too… if we choose to listen to the lies that Satan sends our way each day, then that is the “wolf” which will overcome and defeat us.  But if we focus on the truth of what scripture says about us and our relationship with God, and if we listen to the positive, informative things that the Holy Spirit wants to share with us, then we will be able to overcome those spiritual attacks of the Enemy.  At times in my life, I have chosen to believe those lies and not the truth. But I am becoming more motivated now to continue to feed my soul with the truth of the Lord through His word and to become more proactive as I continue to hear His voice while I dismiss the evil thoughts that still try to invade my mind from time to time.  Thank you dear Lord that I get to listen to you…and that you still speak to my heart.  Amen!

A Different Pair of Glasses

I know not everyone wears glasses.  I did not start wearing them on a regular basis until about ten years ago, and it was only to help me with my reading.  I can drive without them and walk around the house without them, but I usually always keep them on because they do help me see things better.

 

I thought about how we all see things from our own perspective, and we don’t often see the “big picture.”   I remember years ago someone mentioning to me about tapestry and all the work that is involved in creating the beautiful artwork out of fabric and thread.  Often we will only be able to see the back side with all the tangled knots and stitches where various threads and colors are visible, but we can’t really see or even imagine what it’s going to look like until it’s done (if we have the patience to wait that long).  It is at that point where we can see how beautiful the tapestry really is as we stand back and look at it from the front (rather than the back side), from left to right, from top to bottom, to everything in between – we can see just how lovely this artwork really is --- in spite of the all the work that had to be done to make it look that way.  

 

Now of course, some of us would choose to walk away before it was ever completed because we did not want to wait, but if we did go back and look at the completed “work”, the “big picture”, then we would take on a different attitude and perspective about what really happened in the process.

 

Now I’m not talking specifically about artwork, tapestry, stitching, etc.  I’m talking about LIFE and how we perceive it because of the type of glasses we’re wearing.  If we are looking at life through our own perspective, we will never be able to see the reality of what life is all about.   Even if we’re going through a hard time, it is so difficult to have a clear and healthy vision of what’s happening.  We tend to become isolated, and self-absorbed and believe things about ourselves, our lives, our family, etc. that are not really true. 

 

But after all the trials are over, we can usually look back and say, “wow…thank you Lord for getting me through that mess, or thank you for taking that person out of my life, even though it broke my heart, or thank you for helping me find a different better job, even though I was unemployed for several weeks/months” –and many other things like that.  We don’t usually see “the big picture” until much later, but keep in mind, we CAN see the big picture before the end of the situation IF we choose to wear a different pair of glasses – the ones that He gives us.  

I can see this now so clearly because of the various things I’ve experienced in my own life.  I am learning that I need to wear these glasses while I’m in the midst of any difficult situation so I won’t be tempted to go back and see things from my view instead of His. 

Many of us have seen the movie, The Matrix, which came out in 1999.  I have seen it several times “back in the day”….and I remember the first time it brought to my mind….how to see things as they really are…depending on which “pill” you took (the red one or the blue one)…and of course, depending on which “glasses” you wear.  

 

Everyone was seeing the earth so much differently than it really was.   This guy Morpheus awakens this person, Neo, to the real world, a ravaged wasteland where most of humanity had been captured by a race of machines that lived off of the humans' body heat and electrochemical energy.  In the process of all this, these people’s minds were imprisoned within an artificial reality known as the Matrix.  They were living in a world that was so much different than what they perceived it to be.  Below is a quote from the movie:

 

“The Matrix is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now, in this very room. You can see it when you look out your window or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes. It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth.”  (Morpheus in the movie, The Matrix)

Every time I think of all that went on in that movie, it makes me realize that even today, many of us do see things differently because we often allow these negative thoughts and actions to strongly control our lives.  Additionally, if we keep on focusing on these negative matters, it will continue to adversely influence how we live, how we think, how we feel, and what we do. 

 

Now keep in mind…sometimes the things we focus on are part of reality and the world we live in.  For example, if we watch too much of the current news on TV or the internet, we can become quite despondent because of all the horrible things that are happening in our town, in our country and all around the world.  If we overly focus on what we should have done differently in our past relationships with our family, our children, our spouses, etc., then sometimes we can become even more depressed and discouraged because of the things that did and did not happen.  We have to deal with it by NOT continuing to look back in the past, but to try and keep looking forward with those new glasses that we received from the Lord which enable us to see things from His perspective and not our own.   

A lot of what we look at through our own glasses can be truth and lies.  The things which are “true” can be used by the Enemy to remind us of what we don’t have and can so strongly discourage us from moving forward.  That’s when the Lord can help us focus on the truth that He has given us through His word: 

 

 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Rom. 8:28).   We will become stronger people as we endure these hardships because His word says we “can do all things through Him who strengthens us.” (Phil. 4:13).

 

Our own glasses can also cause us to focus on lies which the Enemy can use to point out things that are NOT true about us.  He can whisper into our minds and say how bad, how worthless and how horrible we are.  He can cause us to think about all our flaws, our faults and all the bad things we may have done in our lives….but when we put on the right pair of glasses, then the Lord can help us to see that we are indeed His children, that we are forgiven, that we are totally different in how He perceives us, that He loves and cares so deeply about us, and that He has forgiven us for every bad thing we’ve ever done in our life.  

Of course, He does expect us to move forward and to make better choices and to live a life that honors Him…still, He also knows that even after we become followers of Christ, we will make mistakes, we will make bad decisions and we will do things that will disappoint Him – but remember, when we wear those new glasses, we are reminded that “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9) and that we are to “be strong and courageous.  Do not fear or be in dread of them (the enemy), for it is the Lord your God who goes with you.  He will never leave us or forsake us.” (Deuteronomy 31:6)

 

II Corinthians 1:3-4 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort –who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

 

Another thing to keep in mind is that despite all these trials and hard things we’re going through, we can still often be used of by God to help and bless others as they are going through their own difficulties.  When Jesus was on the cross, He felt so abandoned, so alone, as he shouted out to His Father, “Why, oh why have You forsaken me?” although He knew He was being offered as a sacrifice for OUR sins, not His own…because He never did sin…yet He was still hurting so badly at that time.   Even in the midst of all this stress and pain He was experiencing, Jesus had a heart of passion to reach out to those who were also going through a hard time.  He felt compelled to ask His best friend and disciple, John, to help His mother, Mary, get through the hard times after He was gone.   (John 19:26-27), and then just before He died, one of the guys who was being crucified at the same time said to Him, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” to which Jesus replied, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:42-43). 

 

“Hard times” is something that we will all continue to struggle with throughout different seasons of life, but we will have to constantly remind ourselves to deal with these things in the right way – to listen and believe the truth of how God perceives us, to demolish the lies we hear from the Enemy and our own negative thoughts, and to ultimately deal with these issues in a way that will Honor God.   And when we put on these new glasses, it will help take our focus off ourselves and to see everything through His perspective and not our own. 

 

In closing, I want to share one last thing.  Last year, I showed this video to some ladies who were in a Bible study and I was teaching about this subject – seeing things differently from God’s view even when we’re going through “hard times.”   I, along with several others, had been going through some trials and difficult times.  I bought several pairs of these 3D glasses from a local museum that people buy when they go see a Cosmic Concert at the planetarium and had the ladies put them on while we watched this video on Youtube, where the band Tenth Avenue North played this song, “Worn.” 

I wanted them to hear the words to this song from a different perspective, and it really helped many of them “see” what I was talking about (it also helped me…) [smile]

Here’s the link to the video and here’s the words:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUEy8nZvpdM

 

Worn – by Tenth Avenue North

I'm tired, I'm worn - My heart is heavy
From the work it takes to keep on breathing
I've made mistakes - I've let my hope fail
My soul feels crushed by the weight of this world
And I know that you can give me rest
So I cry out with all that I have left.

Chorus –

Let me see redemption win
Let me know the struggle ends

That you can mend a heart that's frail and torn
I want to know a song can rise from the ashes of a broken life
And all that's dead inside can be reborn - Cause I'm worn…

I know I need - to lift my eyes up -- 

but I'm too weak - life just won't let up
And I know that You can give me rest - 

So I cry out with all that I have left

Chorus --

Let me see redemption win
Let me know the struggle ends
That you can mend a heart that's frail and torn
I want to know a song can rise from the ashes of a broken life
And all that's dead inside can be reborn - Cause I'm worn

And my prayers are wearing thin
I'm worn even before the day begins
I'm worn I've lost my will to fight
I'm worn so heaven come and flood my eyes 

Chorus--

Let me see redemption win
Let me know the struggle ends
That you can mend a heart that's frail and torn
I want to know a song can rise - from the ashes of a broken life
And all that's dead inside can be reborn
Yes all that's dead inside will be reborn
Though I'm worn 
Yeah I'm worn

Baggage Claims

This whole topic of “unresolved baggage issues” has become more obvious to me in this “stage of life” than it ever has been before….I just wish when I was younger that someone could have helped me to see and understand this whole subject and the consequences of not dealing with these issues.  Thankfully, over the years I have learned more about this, and I have worked through my baggage, and as a result, I feel like I have become much healthier (emotionally and spiritually) in my perception of who I am because of all that I’ve been through in my life, both good and bad.  More importantly, it is because I know that the Lord has brought healing to my heart and soul and has helped me become a “different” person than I was before. 

Now even though I have worked through these things, I sometimes get "reminded" from time to time about who I was, how I was, what I did not have, what I could not have, and all the other negative things that were in my life...but thankfully, when those thoughts come into my mind, I can usually dismiss them when I re-focus on the truth of who I am in Christ and that He is continually transforming me into His image.  That definitely helps me to diminish those adverse negative thoughts.

First, let me describe what this is all about.  I believe that every person in this world has “baggage issues” whether you're married, single, divorced, widowed, male, female, younger or older.   It’s how we deal with these things which determines how every area in our life will be affected.  A “baggage issue” is something that people go through as a result of:

1.  Some kind of abusive or neglectful problems we may have had as a child with a relative, friend, neighbor, etc.  I understand that some kids are not necessarily mistreated physically by a parent, relative or friend, but they can experience rejection, verbal abuse or neglect by that person (who, by the way, more than likely was suffering from their own unresolved baggage issues)...and it's sad because a lot of children don't know how to deal with these things when they're young or even when they do "grow up."
 

2.  Some of us when we were young kids, may have watched our parents go through some difficult times in their marriage, which may have led to a divorce.  Those kinds of situations can really affect kids especially as they grow older -- as they deal with anger issues, resentment, even distrust of someone of the opposite sex based on what they saw in their parents' relationship.

3.  Unfortunately, there are some people, who as a child, may have experienced sexual abuse by a family member or a “friend of the family” and that undoubtedly resulted in some serious issues throughout their life.  I have seen that if one does not confront or deal with these things – then it will inevitably continue to perpetuate itself in a detrimental way throughout their life and will adversely affect their relationship with their family, their spouse, their children and others they encounter, work with and care about.

4.  Hurt or neglect from a relationship, i.e., someone you dated in high school or college. Sometimes when we were younger and involved with a person and it did not work out for whatever reason – we will tend to feel rejected or hurt by that person, and we can have problems with forgiveness which can lead to “anger issues” and other serious things.  Even if we have legitimate reasons to feel hurt because of what that person did to us – we still need to proactively deal with these things in our life, or we will become just as messed up, if not worse, than the person we broke up with (or who broke up with us).  It would have been better if we had viewed the situation as:  (1)  “wow…so glad I got out of that situation before it led to a really destructive relationship,” or (2)  I see that it just wasn't “meant to be” or (3) I see that we were not really all that compatible.  But for many of us, we never knew "how to" do that or how to think that way "back in the day."

5.  Rejection and abandonment from a spouse that leads to divorce.  I have seen in many marriages that even if they don’t recognize the “baggage issues” in themselves or the person they're married to – then often it will culminate into a divorce.  The sad thing is that even if you have worked through your own issues while you were married, but your husband or wife did not work through theirs (because they were either not aware of them or not willing to deal with them) – then often it will still result in a bad breakup. 

6.  Another sad thing is that when people refuse to deal with these issues, then these "unresolved baggage" problems will follow them right into the next relationship, and will ultimately mess that one up too...and it will go on and on, repeating the cycle of people's unwillingness (or unawareness of how) to unpack their baggage.  These unresolved issues can also negatively affect their friendships with other people, their relationships with their children, other family members, their interaction with their neighbors, their co-workers, etc.

Now I know that none of us are "perfect" and we all have faults, flaws, problems, and other issues...and it's how we deal with these things that will cause our relationships with others to flourish and expand or become demolished.  When we meet someone that we're interested in, we should not be extra critical and look for all their faults, but we should also not ignore the "red flags" of things we observe in that person which help us to see that he or she may not be "healthy" for us.  Once we have worked through and unpacked our own baggage, we ultimately end up having a different perspective when it comes to viewing other people (without being judgmental).  We can have compassion for those we see who are struggling just like we did, but when it comes to "dating" relationships, we should have a better perception of what we know is best for us, and not be willing to "settle for less than the best."

Another problem with dating someone with serious baggage issues is that it can cause one to feel like they have to “rescue” or “fix” or “repair” that person – which is also an unhealthy way to deal with relationships.  That’s what the “enabling” or dependency type persons do when they see people who are messed up – they feel like it’s their job to “fix” them.  BUT…keep in mind, we can help that person, and we can be supportive of them without being enabling.  

As I said earlier, everyone comes with baggage, but it’s more important to find someone who loves you enough to help you unpack (and you can do the same for them). We need to be loving, helpful, supportive and encouraging, but we need to do so in a way that does not hinder or mess up the relationship.  It is a two-way situation where each individual should be willing to help the other person in a healthy way and to be willing to accept help from that person who is reaching out to them.

 

Another thing we need to do in dealing with the “baggage issues” is that we should look forward and not keep looking back into our past.  Too often when we focus on what “shoulda, coulda or woulda” happened, we are not able to see the positive things that are going on in our life right now, or we can’t seem to perceive that any good things may happen in our future – because we are so consumed in our thoughts about what used to be, or what we lost, or how we were hurt, etc. – instead of focusing on what and where we are in our life right now, especially as we know that God will use all things, good and bad, to strengthen us (Romans 8:28). 

I have seen many people who are my age (50’s and up), both married or single, who have gone through so many hard things in their life and have struggled with so much hurt, rejection, abandonment, etc. and they still don’t know how to deal with it.  Some think it’s too late to change or become different – but it is never too late.  With God’s grace and healing, we can each become a better person in spite of what we went through – and we can live our life in a way that will honor Him, and we can help others too.  Now some may need to go see a counselor to help deal with specific things they do not understand or that were extra painful and difficult.  We just have to keep looking forward and not be consumed about all the sad, unfortunate things we have had to deal with in our life.  We can't change what happened to us in the past, but we can be different in how we "see" what the Lord has for us in the future.

I know that as a Christian, I can see things differently now.  It's like wearing a different pair of glasses, and I can often see the “big picture” from God’s perspective and not my own – and I can also see now that nothing is ever wasted in God’s economy, that He will use even the bad things that have happened to us – to help us become stronger in our faith, and to help us reach out to others going through a hard time too.

II Corinthians 1:3-4 says, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 

the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our 

troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we 

ourselves receive from God.”

So keep in mind that it is much better to unpack this baggage than to keep it wrapped around your life in an unhealthy way.  Keep looking forward and know that it's never too late to deal with these things, and remember that the results will greatly benefit you and everyone around you because the Lord cares so much for you!