The Power of Your Mind

There are people whose minds are like an open field that anyone (or animal, for that matter) can go through and drop unwanted seed.

When you leave your mind open this way, any worthless seed can be thrown in it and it’ll grow. It’s your spirit that the Bible describes as a field, not your mind.

And because your spirit is only accessible through your mind—which is the door to your spirit—nothing can get in there that you don’t first allow in your mind. That’s why the Lord instructs us: “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23).

The word, “keep,” used in this scripture is the same used in Genesis 2:15: “And the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” It doesn’t suggest putting or separating the garden away to somewhere safe. It actually implies taking care of it in a protective way and ensuring its security against any external aggressor.

The Good News Bible translation puts it clearer. It says, “…the LORD God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and guard it.” The word “guard” has a military connotation, which suggests protecting from attack or maintaining in safety from danger. You’d agree that if there’s no enemy or adversary, there wouldn’t be any need to guard something that belongs to you against an attacker.

Truth is, there’s an adversary, and that’s why the Lord instructs you to keep—or guard—your heart with all diligence. I love James Moffat’s delivery of Proverbs 4:23-24. He says in his translation, “Guard above all things, guard your inner self so you can live and prosper. Bar out all thoughts of evil and banish wayward words.” Have you ever heard someone say, “I was barred from joining the team”? It means he was prevented, kept out, blocked, or disallowed from joining the team.

That’s how the Bible tells you to guard your heart, by barring (disallowing, keeping out) all thoughts that are not consistent with God’s Word. Now, this doesn’t sound like the evil thoughts are originating from you, does it? What it simply shows is that there’s a devil out there trying to send the wrong thoughts into your heart (through your mind). So you’re admonished to bar his evil thoughts and banish his wayward words.

If someone says something to you that challenges God’s Word, bar it from your mind! Don’t try to accommodate it or reason it out. The Bible says to guard your heart with all diligence, so you must recognise that God is not going to guard your heart for you.

 The responsibility is yours. But the good news is that you’re not helpless as to what to do. You’ve been equipped with “the whole armour of God” (Ephesians 6:11), and what you need to do is put it on and never take it off! With your armour in place, you’ll be able to bar every evil thought or idea against God’s Word that tries to assault your mind

The Power of your mind by Chris Oyakhilome Pages 40&41