Six Practical Ways to Take Your Thoughts Captive

June 24, 2019 by jstults 4 Comments

It was on my mind first thing in the morning, last thing before bed, and seemingly every other moment in between. I just couldn’t seem to escape the negative thoughts that had plagued me all week long.

The negative attitude I wrestled with came out not only in my thoughts, but in my speech, as well. Every chance I had, I grumbled about the undeserved injustice to my husband and to the Lord. I felt trapped by my own sin.

Take your thoughts captive.

The Spirit nudged me time and again, yet I couldn’t quite figure out how to do what Scripture so clearly teaches and make myself obedient to Christ. The idea seemed good in theory, but much more difficult in practice!

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (NIV – emphasis added)

We know that as Christian women, we are responsible for not only our actions, but also our actions and attitudes. We know we’re supposed to control our thoughts and to renew our minds, but how do we actually do that?

The following practical tips will help you take your thoughts captive!

6 Practical Ways to Take Your Thoughts Captive

1.Truth Journaling to take your thoughts captive.

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32 (NIV)

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 (NIV)

Scripture teaches us that a knowledge of God’s truth brings real freedom! And that transformation takes place as we allow our minds to be renewed with such truth. When we feel paralyzed by a negative attitude, we must take our thoughts captive by comparing each thought with the truth.

You can easily do this by simply writing down a lie you might be tempted to believe or a wrong thought you’re having and then write the truth right next to it. Even better, add a scripture to back up the truth you wrote down.

If you struggle with the same negative thoughts often, you’ll want to pay close attention to the next tip because it is a natural extension of truth journaling!

2. Scripture Memorization & Meditation to take your thoughts captive.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

I have hidden your word in my heart
that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:11 (NIV)

Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Joshua 1:8 (NIV)

The Bible teaches us to think about things that are true, honorable, pure – everything that is good (rather than everything that is negative!).

One of the most practical ways to “set your mind” is to memorize and meditate on Scripture, especially bible verses that pertain to the particular negative thoughts that plague you!

Do you wrestle with Anger? Memorize and meditate on Proverbs 15:1. Unforgiveness? Memorize and meditate on Ephesians 4:32. You get the idea – find a bible verse that speaks to your specific negative thoughts and take your thoughts captive!

The more time you spend with scripture, the easier it is for the Spirit to bring those previously memorized verses to mind in the midst of a negative thought. In addition, hiding God’s Word in our hearts (memorizing it) and meditating on it can actually prevent sin and encourage obedience in our lives!

Even Jesus fought temptation using scripture when faced with the enemy in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-4)!

3. Sensory Input for taking your thoughts captive.

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. Colossians 3:1-2 (NIV)

Next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world. ~ Martin Luther

One trick for changing a thought pattern my husband and I learned through counseling is to use some sort of sensory input as a trigger to remind you to focus on truth or reality rather than fear, anger, etc.

My husband prefers a physical object (like a coin he can keep in his pocket) to touch when negative thoughts assail him, while I prefer to turn on some encouraging music.

Perhaps you need a visual reminder (like a Bible verse or a quote) placed in a strategic spot is a better form of sensory input for you. Likewise, your sense of smell could be a better trigger for truth through the use of an essential oil or a scented lotion.

Find a method that works best for you – something that will get your attention and remind you to set your mind and heart on things above!

4. Confessing your sins to take your thoughts captive.

Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper,
but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy. Proverbs 28:13 (NIV)

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. James 5:16a (NIV)

Hidden sin festers like rotten food, destroying us from the inside out. However, we cannot overcome what we aren’t willing to even acknowledge.

As Christ-followers, we are called to honest confession (1 John 1:5-9) because dragging our darkness out into the light brings freedom!

Confessing sin isn’t easy, but it is necessary for real Christian growth. If you struggle to take your thoughts captive, enlist the help of an accountability partner – someone rooted in the Word and reliable enough to confront you regularly about your thought life.

An accountability partner can serve not only to help you drag sin out into the light, but they can also be a good prayer warrior on your behalf, which leads to the next tip for overcoming negative thinking…

5. The Power of Prayer for taking your thoughts captive.

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. Romans 8:5 (NIV)

The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16b (NIV)

If we want to be Spirit-led women, then we must set our minds on God’s ways rather than our own desires.

Yet some days, setting our minds on the Spirit feels impossible, doesn’t it? Whether we are simply wrestling with the flesh or experiencing a spiritual attack, resisting negative thoughts is often a moment-by-moment choice.

Alongside the Word of God, prayer is our next best weapon against the lies and temptations we face daily. Prayer is powerful, friends!

If your negative thoughts have to do with your self (your flaws, your identity, etc.), then ask God to guard your mind and keep you centered on His truth (Philippians 4:6-7, 1 Peter 5:7).

If your negative thoughts concern others, pray for them (Matthew 5:44). Ask God to give you His love for them.

When you’re really wrestling with a sin or an issue, enlist other prayer warriors like the apostle Paul did (Philippians 1:19, Romans 15:30). After all, even Jesus requested the prayer of his closest friends when he faced the cross (Matthew 26:36-38). link to Divine Encounter

6. Physical activity to take your thoughts captive.

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:22-24 (NIV – emphasis added)

One final practical way to overcome negative thinking by adjusting your attitude is to get some exercise! The natural endorphins released when we are physically active can turn a sour mood into a sweeter one. I’ve witnessed this truth at work not only in my own life, but also in the life of one of our sons who always has a lot of pent up energy and emotions.

Angry thoughts, in particular, can often be overcome by working out some agression physically (go for a walk or run, punch a punching bag, etc.). Sadness and anxiety can also be helped by a brisk walk, especially if it gets you outdoors into nature!

And while you’re exercising your body, you can exercise your mind by training it to think on all that is true and lovely.

As much as we might wish for it, there is no magic pill to cure a negative attitude. Even the tried and true methods mentioned above for an attitude adjustment won’t always work alone. Many times we need a combination of scripture, prayer, confession, accountability, and other practical helps to overcome our negative thoughts!

Don’t give up, friend.

Renewing your mind isn’t a one-and-done deal. It takes real perseverance!

But as women who are new in Christ, we are no longer slaves to sin.

Choose a mind that’s been renewed!

Jen 🙂

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Why You Need to Study God’s Word for Yourself

November 5, 2018 by jstults Leave a Comment

My fun-loving pastor (who also happens to be my husband) really enjoys teasing others to the point that I’m convinced teasing is actually his primary love language. One of his favorite jokes in church settings is to use the eleventh commandment to his advantage.

When speaking to a church member recently, he said something along the lines of, “You know the eleventh commandment says ‘Thou shalt volunteer five hours a week until the work on the church building is completed.’”

The usual response to one of his eleventh commandment statements is surprise, often followed by confusion.

Those who know his teasing ways well are quick to catch on while others question whether or not there is an eleventh commandment, but many just accept what he says as fact. He IS a pastor after all, so he must know what he’s talking about, right?

Of course, my husband is quick to point out his own teasing, but in our current world, not all would-be deceivers are benevolent. In fact, most are quite the opposite – most set out to deceive us in order to lead us away from God’s ways and toward our own destruction.

From the story above, you can see how blind acceptance of what another person claims to be true about God’s Word can be a real problem for God’s people. Confusion over God’s truth has been a problem since the very beginning when the serpent in the garden used a portion of God’s very words to deceive Adam and Eve.

When Christians are unfamiliar with what the Bible actually says, when they haven’t dedicated time to learning biblical truth for themselves instead of just believing what they’ve been told, they become easy targets, sitting ducks. If you fail to study God’s Word for yourself, you set yourself up for a failure of faith.

How can you recognize or contradict false teaching if you don’t first have a foundation of truth?

How can you overcome spiritual warfare and answer Satan’s lies with truth without knowing where in the Bible to find it?

How can you lead others to walk in truth, too?

3 Vital Reasons to Study God’s Word for Yourself

As Christian women, we must choose to prioritize the practice of real Bible study so that we have what we need to stand firm when doubts come knocking, when trials threaten to overwhelm us, when Satan tempts us, and when the world attempts to manipulate us.

1. Stand firm in your beliefs.

Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. Colossians 2:6-8 (NASB)

We want to be captivated by Christ and His truth, not taken captive by false teachers or worldly wisdom.

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We need to be more like the Bereans, who when they heard the gospel, examined Scripture daily to see if it was really true (Acts 17:11)! The only way to grow in your understanding of Christ and how to follow Him is to study God’s Word for yourself.

I’ll never forget the lesson I learned about this truth during my first biology class as a freshman at a Christian college. Since I spent much of my growing up years as a missionary kid, I lived a fairly sheltered life. So I was surprised to discover that my faith-professing biology professor at my Christian college believed in evolution. In fact, not only did he believe in evolution, he actively worked to convince us that real faith, strong faith was compatible with this belief, also.

He even insinuated that to believe otherwise was either to be ignorant or to have weak faith.

In the months that followed, I felt increasingly conflicted. I valued academics and knowledge, but I also valued my faith. I wondered if what I believed about God being the Creator of the Universe was really true or not.

It was a mini crisis of faith for me, and I was on my own. My parents were still serving overseas – literally halfway around the world.

At some point I realized that choosing what to believe was totally up to me now. I had to decide for myself what to believe about the beginnings of our world, and I could only do that by studying the Word. So that’s what I did. I studied the biblical account of Creation. I studied what critics said about a seven-day creation model, as well as what Christian scientists said about it.

Eventually I came to the conclusion that I either believed God’s Word or I didn’t, and if I didn’t, well then my entire salvation was a lie because a virgin birth is just as “scientifically impossible” as Creation.

I came out of that crisis with a firmer belief than before because instead of relying on what my parents and other Christians claimed to be true, I had studied it out for myself. I’ve never questioned that particular doctrinal belief since then. Instead of being susceptible to the persuasive words of my professor, I could stand firm in my belief because it really was MY belief, not just teaching passed on to me by someone else.

2. Grow into a mature believer.

Here’s the truth, friends: we most certainly can and should learn from other Christians and leaders in the faith. In fact, that’s likely how believers who are young in the faith gain much of their knowledge initially. But at some point, we have to grow up in the faith and quit relying on others to tell us what God’s Word says.

For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil. Hebrews 5:12-14 (NASB)

At some point, we must choose to dig into the Scriptures and discover truth for ourselves, and we CAN do that with the help of the Holy Spirit! Don’t content yourself with mere milk, friends, when the banquet of the entire Bible is yours to feast on!

If you don’t study God’s Word for yourself, then your faith is only as strong as your trust in what others say. Living on second-hand knowledge is choosing stunted growth.

If you want to be a strong Christian women with confident faith, you must begin by studying the Bible.

3. Experience the abundant life He has planned for you.

For the next few weeks, we’ll be looking at the spiritual discipline of personal Bible study and the promising benefits that are ours for the taking!

The Benefits of Bible Study series will lead you to understand not only the importance of studying God’s Word but also the blessings of it, as well. What you may not realize is when you study God’s Word for yourself, you reap rewards beyond acquiring knowledge and understanding – bonus benefits, so to speak. Likewise, there are some not-so-pretty consequences for lacking an understanding of the Bible.

Failing to spend time in Scripture is like turning down a gift! Who does that, right? 😉

At the end of the series, I’ll be offering some practical tools and resources to help you learn how to make God’s Word a vital part of your everyday life – through Bible study and meditation, scripture memorization, and so forth. So plan to stick around, and invite your friends to join us, too!

For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Romans 15:4 (NASB)

Let’s be women of the Word!

Jen 🙂

7 Scriptures for a Steadfast Heart

February 12, 2016 by jstults 8 Comments

Steadfast.

The word brings to mind a calm assurance, an unwavering faith, and unchanging character. Steadfast is a gentle power complimented by humble quietness.

A steadfast woman is a woman at peace.

This is my desire, friends, to be a woman who is steadfast in heart, faithful to Jesus and to her family. I want to be the kind of steadfast woman who is Christ-confident rather than self-confident, who utilizes the gifts He’s given not for her own glory but for His glory.

Steadfast.

Last year the Lord kept bringing to mind the word Persevere, and if you follow along with this blog or the BCOT facebook page, then you know why I needed that word! We’ve been through a season of turmoil and change that still hasn’t quite settled.

Yet in the midst of all the chaos, I’ve found a more confident faith.

I’m not just referring to the recent reminders that Jehovah Jireh provides for all of our needs, but also to the understanding that He directs our paths in ways that don’t always make sense. What I’m learning is to trust His voice rather than letting doubt seep in through cracks chiselled by the questions of others and by my own fears.

So this year, my One Word is steadfast.

That word applies to so many areas of my life in which I wish to remain secure and consistent. So, I’d love to share with you these verses for a steadfast heart.

7 Scriptures for a Steadfast Heart

Steadfast faith

Over these past few years of writing and speaking, my faith journey has taken many unexpected twists and turns. As I continue to grow in Christ, I want a steadfast faith, one that remains consistent no matter what challenges life throws my way.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Ps. 51:10 (NASB)

I want to remain confident in that work-in-progress promise found in Phil. 1:6.

Steadfast Marriage

Faithful readers will already know that my husband and I have faced significant challenges in our marriage. However, the Lord has been faithful to see us through many trials and to help us see the progress along the way. I find that I don’t panic anymore when conflicts come. I’m no longer enslaved by the enemy’s lies that our marriage will never be any different or that we might as well give up trying to change it!

“After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore you and make you strong firm, and steadfast.” 1 Pet. 5:10 (NIV)

Being steadfast in my marriage this year means that I won’t despair during difficult seasons, but I’ll have a calm assurance that we will come out on the other side not only intact but stronger! It also means I’ll keep doing the good work of becoming a wife after God’s own heart.

Steadfast Parenting

Lately, the Lord has been convicting me that we need to keep persevering in our parenting methods even though our children are getting older and more self-sufficient. I want to be a steadfast parent who stays the course rather than one who gives in to laziness. My job is not yet finished! 🙂

“Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.” Gal. 6:9 (NASB)

Steadfast Writing

Being steadfast in the area of writing means I will aim to be more consistent, and that I will obey that still small voice when the Lord prompts me to sit and write.

“This hope we have as an anchor to the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast, and one which enters within the veil…” Heb. 6:19 (NASB)

It also means that I will grow in confidence in the voice He has given me so that I don’t make comparisons or look for outside approval. My heart’s desire is to write for an audience of One.

Steadfast Weight-loss Journey

(Sigh….) Many of you know I’ve been working toward some weight-loss goals since last year. I only got rid of a little over 25 pounds, yet I persevered through injuries, illnesses, schedule changes, and the upheaval of changing ministries this past fall. This progress was only possible through the power of Christ in me!

“My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises!” Ps. 57:7 (NASB)

This year I’m aiming for another 50 pounds gone, an average loss of a pound a week. So, being steadfast in this area means I’ll keep plugging away at healthy eating and exercise while trusting the Lord to take care of the results.

Steadfast Church-planting

Being steadfast as a church-planter means I’ll be secure enough to be a fool for Christ, willing to take risks because my faith is firm and my identity is secure. It means I will keep doing the work the hard work, but I’ll trust Him for the results.

I can also be steadfast by pushing myself beyond my own comfort zone, especially when it comes to evangelism and by trusting the Lord to continue providing for our physical needs.

Steadfast Mind

I want to be like the Proverbs 31 woman who does not fear the future but greets trouble with an unshakable faith (v.25).

“The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You.” Isa. 26:3 (NASB)

As this year progresses, I’m excited to see how the Lord continues to use the word steadfast to teach me.

Will you choose to be steadfast this year?

Jen 🙂

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