Strongholds

As I have been writing about managing our thoughts and working off of Carolyn Leavy’s process; thoughts -> emotions - > attitudes -> behaviors, it is important to look at what happens when thoughts become entrenched and therefore, attitudes and behaviors also become entrenched. This is what Paul addresses in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
(2 Cor 10:3-5) For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. {4} The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. {5} 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.

A stronghold (according to author and counselor, Jim Logan, “is a mindset impregnated with hopelessness that causes me to accept as unchangeable something that we know is contrary to he will of God.” In other words, a stronghold refuses to believe that we have divine power to tear them down. Strongholds are built on the basis of a lie not the truth.Strongholds are torn down in the same way they are uilt up. Two lines of thought contribute to strongholds: strongholds, rationalizations and high places. Rationalizations are thoughts developed apart from the truth of God. We rationalize when we think without being informed by the reasoning truth of God. High places are like those in the Old Testament, they are places of worship. They are places that we hold on to; they could be things, relationships, attitudes that we believe we deserve to hold to, that for us are security, define our meaning in life, something that we blieve we cannot let go because life would be lost, they are a ‘high places of worship.’ Tearing down strongholds requires a rigorous honesty before God with our thoughts and a willingness to allow God’s truth to reign supreme.

(John 8:31-32) To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.

Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."