Are you suffering from strongholds?
Let me explain you what is a stronghold?
A stronghold is a thought pattern in the mind. A stronghold refers to a deep-seated wrong thought that is influencing your general thoughts, character, your personnel life, your action etc. This may restrict your personal growth, it mat obstructs your normal lifestyle and it may steal your joy. This may sometime lead you to depression, discouragement or anxiety. These thoughts may be related to some bad experiences of past, some wrong understanding or fear of future. In present time suffering with strongholds in mind is a chronic sickness for many.
According to the dictionary “a stronghold” means- a fortified, military fortress. So strongholds are fortified places or strong places which are difficult to conquer.
Bible tells us that these strongholds are actually created in your mind. There are lies and false understandings in your mind that pretend to be true. This may keep a person in bondage.
From where do these things come?
These come from many sources- like from your upbringing, from your family, from the world, from your failure, from the enemy etc.
Example: constant doubt, fear, destructive thought patterns. negative Self-Image, Fear of Failure, Perfectionism, Limiting Beliefs, Rigid Mind set, victim mentality etc.
The strongholds pretend to be true and counter God’s truth. The strongholds don’t allow the person to understand or apply God’s word in his life. Stronghold may give justification – why you should not believe and apply God’s word.
Effects of strongholds:
Stronghold creates bondages in our mind.
It stops you from believing in goodness of God.
It diverts your mind from God to the world or to your flesh or to the enemy.
It allows enemy to damage you internally. As a result you live in fear, shame, guilt etc.
Effects your character:
your speech- communication,
your thought pattern,
your confidence level may reduce,
You may live in anxiety and lose your inner peace.
You may easily be angry at almost everything
You may be confused at all matters requiring decisions
If the strongholds are not removed they may allow demonic power to enter your mind.
A stronghold in your mind can become the dwelling place of demon. The demonic forces can operate in your life through the stronghold.
How a stronghold is created?
How lie creates a stronghold in your mind?
First of all you believe a lie/ you receive a lie from some sources and stats believing it.
Then the lie may create fear in you. If you fear that lie for long time it means you are worshipping that lie.
If you fear something that means you are worshipping that.
If you are worshipping that for a long time that creates strong hold in your mind.
The mind is the battlefield which the enemy wants to capture. Why? They know that if they can control the mind they can control the person. Enemy wants to control your thought and through that your life.
The lie makes the stronghold. But the person does not understand that it is lie. You believe it as a true.
Sometime a person with a mental stronghold finds it almost impossible to dismiss the thought from their mind and as a result he is controlled by it. He starts seeing everything through the lenses of the stronghold. For example if you are having fear in your mind, as a stronghold then you may see everything around you through the lenses of fear.
Some people do not understand that they have strongholds in their mind. Some people even though they can identify it but they do not know how to come out of it.
How to remove it:
2 Corinthians 10:3-6 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 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, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.
- Identify the lie in the stronghold: the lie is the seed of the stronghold. You need to identify it first.
- Repent for believing the lie
- Forgive the people related to the incident
- Replace the lie with God’s word: do not allow the lie to come back
- Spend time with God and his word.
- You may need to be delivered from demonic sometime.
- You can self-deliver yourself or you can take help from another believer
