The Battle Within

Mental Freedom

Have you ever sat and thought, "Why am I thinking this?"Most of us on this Christian journey want to think positively, but often, intrusive thoughts win, our feelings win, and we are in a spiral and loop over one thought. I have over 40 notes on my devices about thoughts and the way we think. Why? Not that I find it interesting, it's because I have, too, struggled with this and needed answers. The Bible teaches us in 2 Corinthians 10:5 to take every thought captive to obey Christ. People who advise us tells us, but no one shows us. So let's walk through it.

The Law of Exposure

Our thoughts determine the course of our lives. There are many Scriptures to back this theory. Science has now confirmed what the Bible has already written about our thoughts. I’m not sure if you have ever heard of The Law of Exposure. It is a simple theory on how our mind absorbs and reflects on what it is exposed to the most. I once read a book called “Winning the War in Your Mind.” Not to get information on how our brain works, but I desperately needed help with the thoughts I was experiencing while processing current and past trauma. To sum up the information, our brain builds neural pathways based on what we are exposed to. These pathways then develop reactions on how to respond every time we are triggered. If every time you hurt yourself as a kid or failed a test or just felt sad, someone got you food, that person would likely become a stress eater because your brain has built a neural pathway to respond with food in stressful situations.

"Our mind absorbs and reflects on what it is exposed to the most."

As we grow older, our friends, our parents, and our siblings, they shape some of these neural pathways. So, when we are born again, we must build new ones, and that can only happen through the power of the Holy Spirit and meditation on God’s word.

This has helped me to understand why God was very adamant on Joshua to meditate on the word day and night (Joshua 1:8). He wanted Him to be completely exposed to the Word and His commandments so that when He would face trouble or battles, the neural pathway formed by the Word and Spirit of God would be the reaction rather than one of the flesh.

“Salvation renews the heart, but the mind must be retrained by the Word.”

What Should We Think About?

We become vulnerable to the attacks of the enemy when we begin to think on things that are not from God or continue to dwell on things that are not aligned to His will.

Paul tells us in Philippians 4:8 the keys to a pure thought life.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is anything praiseworthy—dwell on these things.

"Where the mind dwells,

the heart will follow."

Even Jesus Himself endured suffering beyond anything we can fathom. In the garden of Gethsemane, He experienced such intense anguish that He began to sweat drops of blood—a rare physical response known as hematidrosis, brought on by extreme emotional and physical stress. And yet, in that moment of unimaginable pressure, knowing what He had to endure, Jesus remained fully committed to the Father’s will. His prayer was simple but surrendering:
“Not my will, but Yours be done.”

Gethsemane reminds us that suffering is never the goal—obedience is. Jesus did not glorify the pain of the cross; He even asked if there was another way, but He glorified the Father through His willingness to endure it for our sake. His example shows us that even in our deepest sorrow, God strengthens us, meets us, and carries us so that His will may be revealed in us. Through God's strength, Jesus endured the cross.

We Will Suffer, but Not Alone

Jesus suffered. And because we follow Him, we will face suffering too. But the hope of the believer is found in Romans 8:18-
“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed.”

Our story doesn’t end in hardship. Our story ends in glory, in victory, and in the faithful arms of a Father who plans to give us hope, a future, and Himself. This is why Galatians 6 has carried me through some of the hardest seasons. We reap what we sow—
and those who sow to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.

So Paul urges us: “Do not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Persevere. Hold steady. Longsuffering is not defeat—it is devotion.

Questions for Your Heart

What are you waiting for the Lord to heal in your life?
What battle feels like it has lasted too long?
Where are you tempted to give up instead of lean in?

1 Peter 5:7 invites us to cast every worry, every care, every burden, and every fear on Him—
because He cares for you. And He truly does.

Prayer

Father, thank You for being near in every season—especially the long and difficult ones. Teach us to wait with hope, to endure with grace, and to trust You when we cannot see past the pain. Strengthen our hearts with the same resolve Jesus showed in Gethsemane, with the ability to glorify Your will above our own. Remind us that You are the God who meets us in the synagogue like the bent woman, who hears our cries like the psalmist, and who sustains us by Your Spirit when our strength runs low.

Help us not grow weary in doing good. Help us remember Your faithfulness. And help us rest in the promise that the glory to come far outweighs the trials we face today. Lord, we cast every burden, fear, worry, and waiting place into Your hands. Carry us, keep us, and complete the work You’ve begun in us.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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