"Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields fruit in season and whose leaf does not whither - whatever they do prospers." (Psalms 1:1-3 NIV)
I would like to start out today's post by asking a simple question.
Where are you planting your roots?
Before I go any farther, I would like to ask you to take out a piece of paper and a pen. Take a moment to prayerfully journal your thoughts on this question on your piece of paper. Ask God to show you where you have planted your roots in every area of your life in the season that you are in right now.
Are you ready to continue? Good.
Let me explain why I asked you to write down your thoughts about where you are putting down roots. The last few weeks, I have been struggling with rooting my thoughts in truth. I have had several nights where the enemy has attacked my mind with lies, anxious thoughts, and what ifs. It was so overwhelming because they would just keep coming into my mind to the point where I felt like I was paralyzed in a deep fear that I would never be able to heal from my trauma. He tried really hard to rob me of my rest. In the day, when I would wake up to spend time with the Lord in my prayer and Bible study, I would be at peace and was filled with the joy of the Lord for that day. But at night, when I was alone with my thoughts and everyone else had gone to bed, the enemy waged war against my soul. And by waging war against my soul, he tried very hard to root my soul in lies rather than truth. He knew I was trying to move forward with my healing and that I was trying to root my healing in Jesus and not in distractions. Let me tell you something, the devil does not want you to find freedom in the truth and when you are searching for truth in Jesus, the devil loses. And the devil doesn't like to lose.
So after a couple days of prayer and asking the Lord to show me how I can defeat the enemy when he tries to attack me when I am alone, he reminded me of something from my childhood. The Lord reminded me of when my brother and I were little and my mom would sit down with us before we went to bed at night. She would do devotions with us at night and then she would teach us to say the Lord's prayer and the prayer of Jabez every night before we went to sleep. I didn't realize it as a child, but my mom was teaching my brother and I how to be rooted in truth both in the morning when we would get up and in the evening when we would lie down to sleep. In the morning we practiced this by praying the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18) over us and by doing devotions together in the morning when we woke up during breakfast before school. At some point, I had forgotten how to guard myself in the way that mom had taught me. And because I didn't guard my mind, the devil was able to sneak in and tell me lies that were not rooted in truth. Honestly, it got so bad that I started to become afraid of the darkness of night so I began to live in fear of the night.
Last night, the Holy Spirit taught me how to wage war against the devil by rooting my thoughts in scripture and in the Lord's prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) and the prayer of Jabez (1 Chronicles 4:10). Jesus even provided me with a good devotional book that is designed with a devotion and prayer for the morning and the evening. For the first time in a year, I felt at rest and at true peace during the night. I did not live in fear of the night, rather I took up my Bible, the sword of the spirit, and I slayed every lie and demon that has been waging war against my soul since my mom passed. I quite literally turned the tables on Satan's battle plan, and waged war against him.
Just like Jesus is teaching me how to meditate on his word morning and night, and to wage war against the devil in a new way, I want to give you those same tools today. You are going to need a Bible, journal, and a pen. Also if you have a devotional book or a Bible study that you feel that the Lord has guided you towards then bring that as well. If you don't have a devotional book, then pray and ask Jesus to reveal his word to you. Once you have read through your devotion and scripture, write down the scriptures that are provided or that you feel that Jesus is speaking over you. Then reflect on what you have learned, by writing down your thoughts on what Jesus has taught you through his word. Also include a way that you believe the Lord is asking you to apply his truth to your life. If you don't know how, then ask him to show you. Finally, write down a prayer to God, and pour your heart out to him on whatever may be on your mind, release all your worries and thank him for taking care of all your needs. I find it helpful to do this both in the morning and the evening before you lay down to sleep. It has given me so much peace at night and joy in the morning to spend time with Jesus in this way.
As we end our time together, I ask that you take your journal and pen, and on the same pages that you wrote where you have been planting your roots, I want you to write down your thoughts on this question:
How am I going to root myself in God's truth today?
And then, I want you to write down this simple declaration and speak it out loud:
"Today, I choose to take up my roots out of the desolate places and plant them by the streams of living water. "
Dear Lord, thank you for teaching us how to wage war against the enemy's schemes. Teach us how to root ourselves in truth and to plant ourselves by the streams of living water. Teach us how to meditate on your words day and night. In Jesus name, Amen.
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