by A Cooper

Created on: November 22, 2009   Last Updated: November 23, 2009

A spiritual stronghold is the result of wrong thinking or beliefs that have taken root in an area of your life. The stronghold can be purely mental, in that only you are aware of its presence, or it can present itself in a physical sense, such as alcoholism, sexual perversion, etc. Others may not be aware that you battle wrong thoughts, however, those thoughts that you allow to take hold of your mind, reveal themselves through not only your actions, but the manner in which you live your life. The core issue in both of these manifestations is your thought life.

It is important that the Christian continuously "renew their mind" to shore up any weaknesses in their defense against the evil one of this world. Paul says, in 2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV) that "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." The weapons that we use are those that God supplied us with when we became born again.

Imagine trying to keep a thief from coming into your home when you don't repair the front door. It may seem ridiculous, however that is just what some Christians do, spiritually speaking, when they don't "...take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ". Wrong and ungodly thoughts, planted by the enemy, will start to germinate, and if they are not pulled out of the garden of your mind quickly, the thoughts will begin to grow into an area of predominance in your life. The result is a spiritual stronghold.

When a stronghold has been established in your life, it is important to know that if you are a believer in Christ, you have been given the power and authority, through Christ, to defeat and tear down that stronghold. You don't have to continue living the same way that you have been. If you are saved, then God has drafted you into His army. It is no coincidence that God's Word uses military terminology when talking about these issues. We are in a battle.

Paul, in his letter to the church at Ephesus, gives a very descriptive picture of what the armour of God looks like, as well as the functions of each piece. The shield of faith described in this passage, along with the helmet of salvation are powerful tools at your disposal, however the key is that you need to pick them up and use them. Putting on the helmet of salvation includes knowing the rights you have been given by Christ to defeat the enemy. The shield of faith will block the "arrows" or lies that come into your life, and when you have "by constant use ... trained yourself to distinguish good from evil," you will be in a good position to defeat your foe.

In practical terms, you must not allow your mind to be a dumping ground for Satan. If a thought enters your mind, deal with it immediately. If you know in your heart that God would not approve, discard it and replace it with the Truth. If you do not fill your mind and heart with God's truth, then the enemy will surely find a way to fill it with his "truths".

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