SIMPLICITY IN CHRIST: Morning Thoughts for Battles You Face Today

But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2 Corinthians 11:3 NKJV

Good morning, brothers and sisters in Christ.

May you rejoice in this gift of another day to experience the sufficiency of Christ who lives in you today … right now.

And let’s face it … there will be battles today in this fallen world. Christ has won the war. But while we are here on earth, we will face opposition from the world, the flesh, and the devil (who uses the world and the flesh to lie to us and lure our dependence away from our loving Father God).

So here are a few thoughts and scriptures that may help as we face our today:

TODAY, REMEMBER . . .

SAY YES (surrender) to GOD!!!!

and you will be saying NO to the DEVIL! (You can’t be saying YES TO GOD and YES to your enemy at the same time).

Submit therefore to God. 
But resist the devil, and he will flee.
James 4:7 NASB

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you at the proper time, having cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares about you. 
Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. So resist him, firm in your faith …
1 Peter 5:6-9 NASB

PUT ON JESUS Today … you already have HIM but now LET HIM LIVE THROUGH YOU — TODAY!!!

For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
Galatians 3:27 NASB
[This is already true of us IN CHRIST}

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
Romans 13:14 NASB
[In our daily life, we chose to make this true in our present experience by surrendering to Him.]

HE HIMSELF is every “piece of your ARMOR.” Rehearse WHO HE IS IN YOU today:

See the previous post: CHRIST the ARMOR of GOD

AND REMEMBER ...

the BATTLE is in your MIND

But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2 Corinthians 11:3 NKJV

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not wage battle according to the flesh, 
for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 
We are destroying arguments and all arrogance [lies and confusion in your mind] raised against the knowledge of God, 
and we are taking every
thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NASB

Ask God for TRUTH to replace the LIE you are hearing in your head. HE will speak TRUTH to your mind and heart.

START here if you like and grab hold of what jumps out at you. Then meditate on the corresponding scriptures:

Because I am in Christ...

I Am Loved
I am a child of God-John 1:12
I am beloved-Romans 9:25
I am chosen-Colossians 3:12
I am loved by God as much as Jesus is-John 17:23, 26 I am Jesus's friend-John 15:15
I am inseparable from God's love-Romans 8:37-39

I Am Acceptable
I am accepted by God-Romans 15:7
I am righteous-2 Corinthians 5:21
I am a saint-1 Corinthians 1:2; Ephesians 1:1 (NASB) I am not condemned-Romans 8:1
I am completely forgiven-Colossians 2:13
I am holy and blameless-Ephesians 1:4

I Am Valuable
I am God's masterpiece-Ephesians 2:10 (NLT) I am adopted-Ephesians 1:5
I am God's treasure-Matthew 13:44
I am God's pearl-Matthew 13:45-46
I am a new creation-2 Corinthians 5:17
I am designed by God-Psalm 139:13-16

I Am Secure
I am more than a conqueror-Romans 8:37
I am complete in Christ-Colossians 2:10
I am safe in Christ-Colossians 3:3-4
I am seated in the heavenly realms-Ephesians 2:6 I am eternally in Christ-John 10:28
I am united with Christ-1 Corinthians 6:17

(From God's Best-Kept Secret: Christianity Is Easier Than You Think by Mark Maulding)

REST IN YOUR JESUS today!

My favorite way to start my day is with this beautiful hymn: BE THOU MY VISION.

There is a “never sung stanza” that I discovered and now sing early in my day:

Be thou my breastplate, my sword for the fight
Be thou my armor, and be thou my might
Thou my soul’s shelter, and thou my high tow’r
Raise thou me heav’nward, o pow’r of my pow’r

For the story behind this hymn (previous post) and links to three different renditions of it on youtube, click here:

SIMPLICITY IN CHRIST: Be Thou My Vision

REMEMBER

You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.
1 JOHN 4:4 NASB

For whoever has been born of God overcomes the world; 
and this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. 
1 John 5:4 NASB

TRUST HIM!!!!

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
    and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
    for those who love him.”

10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.

13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. 14 But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For,

“Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?
    Who knows enough to teach him?”

But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.
1 Corinthians 2:9-14 NLT