After my initial conversion to Christianity, it didn’t take long for me to realize that an inner war had been declared and that my mind was where the heaviest skirmishes were taking place.
The ground force troops had been released when I began to recognize that if I was ever going to see victory over my flesh, it would have to first be won in the battlefront of my thinking. The word tells us, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee” (Proverbs 23:7).
I immediately jumped into the foxhole of truth that I found in Galatians 2:20: “I am crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ living in me, and the life I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God.”
That hand grenade of a verse had become my John 3:16, if you will, as far as grounding me in the reality that until I die spirituality, no real life was ever going to come forth.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.” (John 12:24).
I once heard a well-known man of God describe to an audience his early morning ritual. He stated that the very first thing he does after shutting off the alarm is he stands up, stretches, thanks God for a new day, and then… HE DROPS DEAD!
Of course, the audience roared with laughter. Then he quipped, “No, really, I am dead serious!” More laughter ensued. After the hilarity had finally subsided and all eyes were “ten hup” to the wisdom of his next statements, like a good soldier of the Lord, he began to strategically take us through the process of daily mortification of the flesh. The first rules of engagement include the following:
- Announce that your carnal mind has been declared DOA (dead on arrival).
- You’ll now be reporting to a new commander in chief from this point on.
- Never forget, the battles are won and lost in the arena of your mind.
I now faithfully report to my commanding officer every morning. And I’m proud to say I am gaining more and more ground over the lies of the enemy. Some days I find myself dying a thousand deaths within a 24-hour day. This carnal mind does not die easily, but it has to submit to the authority of Jesus Christ.
So now, every morning, I hear the reveille of God’s bugle as He wakes me up to the reality that, yes, the battle is on, but THE WAR HAS ALREADY BEEN WON. I simply stand in an unwavering faith, believing that it is no longer I who lives, but Christ living in me. As Romans 8:37 says, Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Missey Butler
