The Battle for Your Mind

Mark Finley: I appeal to you today: make an eternal decision for Christ, and God will give you the strength and the grace to live a transformed life and be prepared for His soon return.
Guest (Male): This is HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message: The Battle for Your Mind. Enjoy! And remember, you can always catch up on past messages and stay up to date with HopeLives365 and Pastor Mark by going to HopeLives365.com. And stay with us for a free Bible study offer later in this program. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.
Mark Finley: The United States Surgeon General released an advisory on how social media affects children and teenagers. They said teens who spend more than three hours a day on social media double the risk of depression and anxiety. Recently, the *Atlantic Monthly* did some pretty serious research on the changes of social conditions from 2010 and onward. It was in 2010 that cell phone use exploded. It was there that social media use—Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok—exploded. Here's what the research said: something went violently, suddenly, and horribly wrong for adolescents in the early 2010s. By now, you've likely seen the statistics: rates of depression and anxiety in the United States, fairly stable in the 2000s, rose by more than 50% in many studies from 2010 to 2019. The suicide rate rose 48% for adolescents ages 10 to 19. For girls 10 to 14, it rose 131%. With the introduction of social media, people watch it and see images; people don't look like what they see in the images, and they begin to feel quite insecure about themselves. Therefore, that leads to depression, anxiety, and higher suicide rates. This problem is found in the industrialized countries of the world—Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, the Nordic countries. By a variety of measures in a variety of countries, individuals born after 1996 are suffering from anxiety, depression, self-harm-related disorders at levels higher than any other generation that we've seen and have data for. Also, loneliness and friendlessness among American teens began to surge about 2012. It's interesting; my wife and I were at a meeting on a large college campus. As I was walking to that meeting, we saw four teenagers sitting on the wall. They were just sitting there; they weren't chatting together. They were texting. We wondered who they were texting, and they said they were texting one another. The lack of interpersonal relationships is really spilling over into the family as well. Are you aware that a major study was done on mealtime? It used to be when husband, wife, and their kids gathered together for supper, there would be dialogue. "Johnny, how's your day going?" "Mary, how'd you do in school today?" "Oh, yeah, what about that band you play in after school?" There was this dialogue that would take place between parents and children. In the study that was done, 70% of the families now had at least one individual on the cell phone during supper. Have you ever been to a restaurant and noticed a husband and wife who go out to eat together? She's looking on her cell phone and texting, he's looking on his cell phone and texting, and there's no communication between them. Researchers from the Cleveland Clinic indicate that these behaviors—the excessive use of social media, hours every day on Facebook, Snapchat, etc.—lead to increased irritability, anxiety, depression, sleep issues, lack of self-esteem, and lack of focus and concentration. There was a funny story—it would be funny if it wasn't tragic—in the *Christian Science Monitor*. There was a lady on a bus in Northern Greece. She was so engaged in her cell phone she got off the bus and forgot that her four-month-old child was left alone on the bus. The bus took off. The woman is on her cell phone texting, listening, chatting, and the bus is gone. Suddenly she realizes, "I left my kid on that bus!" She hires a taxi, they chase down the bus, and fortunately, they got the baby back. But the baby was crying and crying. The devil's trying to capture our minds through our senses. What is the remedy that Scripture gives to us so that we can guard the portals of our mind? 2 Corinthians 10:4-5: "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for the pulling down of strongholds, 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." First point we notice is this: in our own strength and through our own power, it is impossible to guard our senses. The devil is much stronger than we are. That's why it says the weapons of our warfare are not carnal—that is, we cannot fight the battle in earthly flesh—but mighty in God for the pulling down of strongholds. We have mighty spiritual weapons: prayer, Bible study, meditation, and allowing the Spirit of God to guide our thoughts. In Christ, we can pull down the strongholds of evil, casting down every high thing that exalts itself. That "high thing" in the original language is really fascinating. It has to do with towers and walls. It's kind of like Joshua marching the armies of Israel around Jericho and the walls fall down. What God is saying is, as you walk with me into battle—not in your strength, but in the power of the Spirit—these strongholds of the devil that have gripped you, chained you, and enslaved you, will come tumbling down. How do we do that? How do we bring every thought into captivity to Christ? Here are four simple spiritual disciplines that you can practice to accomplish this goal. Number one: daily ask the Holy Spirit to guide, direct, and shape your thoughts. As you awake each morning, ask God to sensitize you to hear His voice. In John 16:13, the Scripture says, "When He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth." When you get up in the morning, say, "Lord, I want Your Spirit to guide me today." There's a wonderful simple story in 1 Samuel where Hannah, the mother of Samuel, brings him to the temple to be mentored by Eli. One night Samuel's sleeping on his mat there, and Eli's in another room. Samuel hears a voice: "Samuel, Samuel!" Samuel gets up and runs over to Eli and says, "Eli, were you calling me?" "No, I wasn't calling you. Go back to sleep, young man." Samuel goes back to sleep and hears the voice again: "Samuel, Samuel!" He gets up and runs to Eli. Eli realizes it must be God calling him. The next time he hears, "Samuel, Samuel!" Samuel says, "Speak, Lord, Your servant hears." Every day, I want to be so sensitive to the Holy Spirit that I say, "Speak, Lord, Your servant hears. Lord, guide me today." So, first: daily ask the Holy Spirit to guide, direct, and shape your thoughts. Secondly: turn off your cell phone for at least an hour a day to meditate on the Word of God. It is the Word of God that brings spiritual strength to our lives. Psalm 119:130: "The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple." God's Word brings light into our soul. Psalm 119:133: "Direct my steps by Your word." Verse 147: "I rise before the dawning of the morning and cry for help; I hope in Your word." Verse 148: "My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on Your word." Verse 154: "Plead my cause and redeem me; revive me according to Your word." Some people wonder if Christian meditation is found in the Bible. It is. What's the difference between Christian meditation and Eastern meditation? In Eastern mysticism, people are taught to look within themselves and find the God within themselves. That is totally contrary to the scriptural concept of meditation. Jeremiah 17:9 says the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. We're not trying to find the God within us by some mantra. In Christian meditation, you meditate on three things: the Word of God, the works of God, and the ways of God—the three W's. The Word of God: you meditate on the Bible; we look out of ourselves. The works of God: God's amazing creation—the beauty of creation, the infinite variety, and the power of God to have the tides come in and say, "You come and no further," the power of God to have the planets revolve around the sun. Then the ways of God: how God has led us in our past life, the providence of God. We look back over our lives and see God's leadership. So, if you want to guard your senses, first: daily ask the Holy Spirit to guide, direct, and shape your thoughts. Second: turn off your cell phone for at least an hour a day and meditate on the Word of God. Thirdly: before reading or viewing anything questionable, ask God to reveal by His Spirit if this is something that will enhance your spiritual life and bring glory to His name. Put everything you view, you see, you hear, and you test to the test of Philippians 4:7-8. The world is getting ready to lose its mind, but you and I need not lose our minds. "The peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus our Lord." What is it that guards our minds? "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true"—the word true there is *alethios*, true in opposition to falsehood. If you let your minds be filled with falsehood, fiction, and the falsehood of Hollywood and television, you'll not be able to discover truth from error, and you'll be deluded by Satan. Whatever is true, whatever is noble—upright. Is what I'm watching or listening to upright? Whatever things are just—righteous. Whatever things are pure—not tainted with immorality or sexual innuendos. Whatever things are lovely—people are not being blown apart; this is not some violent scene. Whatever things are of good report—if you can share it with your children and other Christians. If there is virtue, if there is any praise, meditate on these things. We meditate on that which will build our characters and that which we can share with another generation. Fourthly: take a break. Go on a television or social media fast. Determine how long your social media fast would be—one day, two days, three days. If you tell me you could never do that, it means you're addicted to it. Take the time you would have spent on social media and take that time to meditate on God's Word and pray. Let's suppose I've been spending two and a half hours a day on social media. Take that time—spend an hour in the morning reading the Bible, spend time in the afternoon meditating on the Word of God, the works of God, and how God has led your life. Someone told me this past week they get so distracted by texts coming in and are tempted to do Facebook. Sometimes it makes them so irritable because they're doing two or three things at once and can't concentrate. But if they take the cell phone and put it away, even after two hours, they feel much calmer and more peaceful. Use the time you are fasting from social media to repent of the time you've lost spending on these worthless things. We live in a busy world with more distractions than ever. The more distracting these entities of movies, television, and social media become, the more our minds are open to the delusions of Satan. When we compromise our integrity and violate our conscience by the things we're watching and listening to, we open our mind to deception. What is compromise? Compromise is to yield to the inclination to please self or others rather than having my mind fixed on pleasing God. Compromise bends the truth. Compromise shapes God's Word to accommodate my desires and is influenced more by those around me than the God above me. Romans 12:1-2: "Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." God is inviting us today to make an all-out, total, absolute commitment to Him. Commitment strips away the excuses and makes us serious about our relationship with God. In the spring of 1519, Hernan Cortez stepped on the shores of Veracruz, Mexico, with his 600 men. Before him were the indigenous population and the mighty Aztecs. He turned and looked out to the ocean with his men. They had crossed the Atlantic and come through the Gulf of Mexico. There were their four ships. Some historians say that he shouted out, "Burn the ships!" and they burned them all except one. The point is: he said to his men, "We are making a commitment. There is no turning back. Burn the ships." I say to you today, commitment is saying, "Burn the ships." Whatever in my life is distracting me from Bible study and prayer—anything in my life that is controlling me, that I'm becoming addicted to, that is dominating my time rather than my relationship with God—if I want to be ready for the coming of Jesus and if I've been changed by grace, redeemed by love, transformed by the power of Christ, I have new thought patterns. I guard my senses and I'm careful at what I bring into my mind because I know that thoughts and feelings are translated into actions. Is there some commitment God is leading you to make today? Have you been dominated by Hollywood productions? Have you been enamored with certain television programs that you know are not in harmony with God's will? Have you been so absorbed with and addicted to social media that it has distracted you from the things of eternity? I appeal to you today: make an eternal decision for Christ, and God will give you the strength and the grace to live a transformed life and be prepared for His soon return. Let's pray. Father in Heaven, we thank You with all of our hearts for the grace of God. We thank You that we're saved by grace through faith. We're thankful that through Your Holy Spirit, You convict us and point out these things that are distractions to us. We do pray today that we would guard our senses. I pray for somebody today that's been enamored with Hollywood: break the chains. I pray for somebody that's been in bondage to television: give them victory. I pray for somebody that's been addicted to and enamored with social media: Lord, I pray for them today. I pray that Your Spirit would be so manifest that we would have victory in the name of Jesus and be ready for Your soon return. In Christ's name, amen.