Living the truth

In 2 Corinthians 10 the apostle Paul answers some charges of people that he is no always real about his faith. These people claim that Paul is one way when he writes, but a totally different person when he is face to face. Paul answered these claims with the fact that the only power to live by in this world today is the truth of God. Paul goes on to speak of that power in 2 Corinthians 10:3-6:
"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled."

A stronghold takes our minds off of God and His Word. It steals our focus. It causes us to feel controlled or mastered--and powerless to fight against it. Paul really is urging us to live the truth and not lose focus on what is real. In this day to day battle we often lose our sense of reality worrying over things that don't last. We have been so distracted with what is temporary that what is real escapes us.
Many years ago, I dealt with a teenager who had come forward during a church service for prayer. When I asked him what he was struggling with, he said that he just wanted to be real. He went on to criticize other Christians for not being real around him. I encouraged him to fix himself on Jesus as He is the only truth. I would love to tell you that this teen set out to be real and live according to the Bible, but that did not happen. Within nine months this teen was wallowing in immorality, leading others down that path. Sad to say, he has justified his life to be what he considers "real" today.
The problem the way that Paul puts it, is that we must identify the strongholds in our lives that need to be removed and seek God's power to remove them. Identifying these strongholds can be tricky because we have reached a point in our lives that we are blinded from them by our own desires. We must fill our minds with God's Word, God's Truth, in order to cast down these strongholds.
So how can we know if we have a stronghold in our life? By asking ourselves:

What consumes most of my thoughts?
What steals my focus away from the truth of God's Word?
What controls my thinking?
What is it that seems to be the master of my life?

David, a man after God's own heart, realized it was important to center himself and his mind on God. He wrote in Psalm 61:8, "So I will sing praise to Your name forever, that I may daily perform my vows." I guess the point is . . . A mind that is full of truth will result in a life that is exemplified by truth.

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