The loud footsteps of my 7-year-old echoed down the hallway. Exhausted, I tried to force myself out of bed to start the day.
I noticed a familiar uneasiness in my gut, angst in my soul, and a gloomy cloud hanging over my mood. I felt off in my body, mind, and spirit.
I couldn’t identify the thoughts at first. But they were the same recurring ones I had yesterday—You’re not enough. You’re a failure. You’ll never change.
I was sick of thinking these same thoughts. They were almost automatic now, deeply ingrained within my brain.
I climbed out of bed, but these thoughts were waiting.
I’ve struggled with thoughts of defeat, anxiety, fear, and insecurity for most of my adult life. Perhaps you have, too.
The enemy whispers subtle, sneaky lies about our shortcomings and failures. These dangerous accusations can sneak into our minds undetected. They can become a slippery slope and make gradual changes in our minds.
Over the years, the enemy’s sneaky lies may have become truths we believe about who we are. And we can’t defeat these lies on our own.
And now, as science confirms, our brains take the path of least resistance, and these same thought patterns repeat.
Our thoughts today shape our future selves, whether we realize it or not.
What Scripture Says About Overcoming the Lies of the Enemy
Here are four truths from Scripture about the battle to overcome the lies of the enemy and walk in truth:
1 – Satan is the father of lies.
“He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” – John 8:44 NIV
2 – Satan’s mission is to steal, kill, and destroy.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” – John 10:10 NIV
3 – We are transformed by the renewing of our minds.
“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
4 – Think about what is excellent or praiseworthy.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” – Philippians 4:8 NIV
We have a path forward to replace lies with truth.
Action Steps to Uncover the Lies of the Enemy
Here are four action steps on this journey of uncovering the lies we’re believing:
#1 – Pay attention and reflect on your thoughts, especially repetitive ones.
Write them down in a journal for three to seven days. Recording your thoughts will help you identify the pattern of lies you’re believing.
#2 – Identify the specific lies you’ve believed are true, but are not.
If you can’t identify the lies, you can’t remove them. For example, believing the lie that you’re not enough.
#3 – Ask yourself these questions to dig deeper:
- Are these thoughts true?
- Do these thoughts honor God?
- Are they helpful?
- Where did these lies come from?
- When did these lies start?
#4 – Pray and ask God to reveal any new revelations about your thought life and the lies of the enemy you’ve believed.
God will provide a new way of thinking if we seek His help. We need God’s transformative power to break the chains of the lies we’ve believed.
Replace Lies with Truth
Once we’ve identified the lies of the enemy, we should replace them with God’s Truth.
The Word of God is our greatest weapon (Heb 4:12).
In Matthew 4, Jesus wandered in the desert for 40 days and nights. When Satan tempted Him, Jesus fought back by quoting God’s Word three times.
We can also fight back with Scripture like Jesus did in the wilderness. The truth will set us free (Jn 8:32).
We can take each thought captive and make it obedient to Christ (2 Cor 10:3–5).
The practice of taking our thoughts captive isn’t a one-and-done item but a continual practice we do daily.
The average person has hundreds of thoughts each day, which means we should do an audit of our thoughts several times daily.
We can take power back over our thought lives with God’s help.
God designed us to need His transformative power. It’s never too late to ask God for His thoughts to become ours.
For example, we can replace the lie, “I’ll never change,” with the truth of Philippians 4:13 NIV, which says, “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.”
We can declare this truth by saying, “I can and will change. God’s Word tells me I can do all things when I have the strength and help of God.”
The process of mind renewal is a lifelong one.
Let’s be open, willing, and ready to say goodbye to lies of the enemy we’ve believed and hello to God’s Truth. The Lord is here to walk alongside us and give us the strength and power to overcome one thought at a time, one day at a time.
Kelley Spencer
Kelley is a Christian author, mental health advocate, and mother of two boys (and one in Heaven) living in Minnesota. She loves tacos, being outside, gardening, and vacationing. Kelley’s writing appears in The Mighty, Her View From Home, Dayspring, and Focus on the Family. She has God-sized dreams of publishing her first book. Grab your Free Anxious Mind three-day devotional.
