Study with Me - Chapter 5 Thoughts

Hi Ladies -

Thank you so much for your patience. Not only was I gone over the weekend the notes I originally started just weren't flowing. I kept trying to finish them and couldn't get them to go. So I scratched started over and it worked so I guess I was just down a wrong path and God wanted me to go somewhere else. I do pray for His leading so I guess that was a tug on the bridle. :)

Father God, I thank you for our time together. Open our minds and hearts to receive your word. Help us to apply it to our lives. In Jesus name, Amen

How many times have we heard or said "I don't want to get my hopes up, then I wont be disappointed if it doesn't come through". Joyce points out right away that this sets up for a negative life style. God tells us that with out vision we will perish -
Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision [no redemptive revelation of God], the people perish; but he who keeps the law [of God, which includes that of man]--blessed (happy, fortunate, and enviable) is he

I went through some very trying things in my first marriage. I believed, loved and feared God, but didn't have a relationship with Him, but I always had hope. Hope for a better life, Hope that some day.... Now that doesn't mean that I was always positive. I dealt with a lot of negativity, and so bounced between the two, hope and negativity.

James 1:6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

And therefore I did not have a lot of success, receiving or walking in faith. See I had to come to the realization that I had to be honest with myself and take ownership of what I was doing wrong. But then what happens? We beat ourselves up for doing something wrong - NO! We need to lay it down, accept that we are a new creation.
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Give your negativity to God, let Him change it and us.

Again we need to examine our thoughts and what we say. Remember faith comes by hearing.... even if we hear ourselves. Spend a day listening to what you and others say. Make notes mental or written, what positive words and phrases are stated and how many are negative.

Joyce talked about "Evil Forebodings" Have you ever got the feeling that something bad was going to happen? You couldn't put your finger on it but you had this heaviness on you that you just couldn't shake. So everywhere you went you were looking for a sign of what was going to happen. Joyce was experiencing this and God told her is was "Evil Foreboding" Then Joyce came across this scripture:
Proverbs 15:15 All the days of the desponding and afflicted are made evil [by anxious thoughts and forebodings], but he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of circumstances].(amp)
We need to shake off these thoughts and meditate on positive thoughts, Gods word and promises for our life.

Keep your tongue from evil.
1 Peter 3:10 “ He who would love life And see good days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips from speaking deceit
Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.

Then please remember as we learn more of Gods word and we strive to change we will transform "Little by Little" as we learned in chapter 4.

Thank you Father God for you mercy and kindness. Thank you for your gentle nudge that helps us to change and the freedom we experience when we do. In Jesus name, Amen.

Thanks Ladies for your comments and participation.
Lynn

Study with Me - Chapter 5

Hi Ladies,
I will be leaving tomorrow and not returning until Monday afternoon or evening. It is my 11th anniversary and we are going camping with family and friends. I'm hoping to post a start to chapter 5 in the morning. However if I don't and you are ready, go ahead and post some comments here and I will finish my comments when I return. I know several of you will be out of town or have other commitments too so this might be a good weekend to take off of the Blog.

If I don't post tomorrow before I leave Hugs and Kisses to you all and I'll talk to you soon.
Loves,
Lynn

Study with Me - Chapter 4

Hi Everyone,
If this is your first time here we are doing a study using the book "Battlefield of the Mind" by Joyce Meyers. You are welcome to join in anytime, just click the button on my side bar and it will take you to the Intro. We would love to have you comment and let us know you're here.

Well Ladies you all are coming up with great comments and insight, but that's what we are praying for. We want to grow more and more each day, which leads into the next lesson.

Chapter 4 - Little by Little

In this chapter, Joyce is focusing on cutting ourselves some slack. I've heard & believe we can be our own worse critics. We never feel that we match up. But remember "Only a fool compares".

I think we need to quit looking at others and seek God to find out who we are individually supposed to be. I also believe that a lot of wrong thoughts have to do with the "Stinking Thinking" that we are not quick to cast out. God calls them vain imaginations. 2 Corinthians 10:5 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. And for me I love that she uses Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

Romans 8:1 was a hard pill for me to swallow - but very beneficial to receiving Gods mercy in my life. Like Joyce states, this doesn't happen overnight, it happens "Little by Little" then one day you look back and you see where you were and where you are.

I know some of us journal and that is a great way of encouraging yourself as you reflect on the battles that God has brought you through. If you haven't written in a journal, maybe you would like to try it to see if it helps you as well. There may be times when we are only taking ground an inch at a time but adding those inches together will soon become the MILEstones of our lives.

I'm going to cut you loose you all are doing a great job of commenting and gaining from each other, and I'm learning from you as well. So let me know if anything in the chapter touched you.

Father God, Thanks again for more time so we can fellowship together. I again thank you for the wisdom you give us as we study your word and change our lives to walk closer to you. Help us to embrace you as our Father to crawl up on your lap and let you hold us and kiss us with your love and mercy. Help us to always remember the security we feel when we let you direct our paths. We love you, In Jesus Name, Your girls.

Blessings Ladies,

Lynn

Study With Me - Chapter 3

Hi Everyone If this is your first time here, we are doing a study using Joyce Meyer's book "Battlefield of the Mind" So to go to the beginning click the button on my side bar or scroll down to the "Study with me Intro"

Father God thank you that we have another opportunity to study and ponder your word. Give us wisdom to discern how to apply theses messages to our lives. In Jesus name Amen.

Chapter 3 - Don't Give Up

Joyce was talking about having a Wilderness Mentality, and I think we all get there sometimes. That rut that keeps us going around the same Mountain. "But that's the way we've always done it."

Matthew15: 6 So for the sake of your tradition (the rules handed down by your forefathers), you have set aside the Word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect]. (amp)

One day I was on my way to work and talking with God. I was thinking - Wow that's bad it took them 40 years to make an 11 day trip. They wandered and wandered, grumbling and complaining, all they had to do was listen to God and follow Him. All they had to do was to be grateful. That wasn't very smart, they could have had it all, and it took FORTY years. Then I heard God speak into my Spirit, "And how old are you Lynn? And when did you start really being obedient to my words?" Ouch! What was that about Judge not lest ye be judged. :)

The important message that Joyce was getting at in this chapter is "Don't Give Up". No matter what we've done or haven't done, keep going. If you miss your mark, pick yourself up and keep going. Again, don't let all those negative thoughts that come to you take residence in your mind. If we know how to worry, then turn it around and meditate on Gods word.

Ponder on areas that you have struggled with. (There's those strongholds again.)

Have you reached the victory circle or are you still in the race? - (Remember Don't Give Up!)

If you are still in the race is your 11 day journey past the 11th day?

What is holding you back?

What can you do to finish that race?

If you are in the victory circle what revelations did God give you to cross the finish line?

Looking forward to hearing what you have to say.

Thank you God for your wisdom and strength as we renew our minds. In Jesus Name Amen.

Have a Great Blessed Day!

Lynn

Study with Me - Chapter 2

Hi Everyone
If this is your first time here, we are doing a study using Joyce Meyer's book "Battlefield of the Mind" So to go to the beginning click the button on my side bar or scroll down to the "Study with me Intro"

Father God I thank you so much that we can come together and study and fellowship about you. Please help as we desire to know you more. In Jesus name Amen

Chapter 2 A Vital Necessity

Obviously this whole study is going to deal with our mind and our thoughts. In the Intro and Chapter 1 we dealt with thoughts that lead to strongholds in our lives. We also worked on trying to break them a part into the truth and the lie.

In Chapter 2 Joyce wants us to see why it is Vital to line our thoughts up with Gods word. The first part of Proverbs 23:7 says For as a man thinks in his heart, so is he. You might wonder, what does that mean? I go back to my saying "What you feed will grow." If you give a fearful thought a lot of attention, it will grow, and you will become fearful. Fearful = Full of Fear, As a man thinks (He thinks fearfully) so is he (He is full of fear)

Now on the other hand you can have a fearful thought come to you, but if you speak to that thought with Gods word-it will shrivel up and die.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

My husband and I had been asked to share a few words at our Bible Study about what has helped us to be friendly and reach out to others so we agreed. Over the course of the next few weeks we prayed about what to say and looked up some scriptures but decided we would let God guide us when the time came so we weren't just reading off a cue card. Well the day of the study came and my husband gets an abscessed root canal. Half of his face is swollen and red. Not only did he not look his best he was in some severe pain. So a couple of hours before the potluck Bible study, that is supposed to have a surprise speaker the surprise is on me. I am the surprise speaker. YIKES!!! See what I hadn't admitted through this whole thing is I had counted on my husband to be the one to speak. After all he's had more experience sharing Gods word and knows the scripture references better. NOW we're talking some fearful thoughts. "You are going to make a fool out of yourself and your husband" and on and on.... Whoa Whoa Whoa God called us/me to do this and if he called me He would equip me. So my husband and I went over some scriptures to share, (I did make some note cards for reference) and some thoughts we had previously gone over. So I packed the food I was taking to the potluck and off I went. (Yes I prayed all the way there) I was still experiencing fear come at me - but I wasn't allowing it to be fed. So after all of us ate and then the surprise speaker was announced - minus 1. Surprise I'm doing this solo. :)

When I started I was nervous, but I leaned on God and the Holy Spirit took over. I can't tell you what all I said,but it was one of the most awesome experiences I have ever had. For weeks people came to my husband and told him how the words I spoke touched them. It wasn't me, it was God. I let him give the speech.

Now I told you that story to say this - What if I had chickened out? What if I had meditated on making a fool out of myself? First peoples lives would not have been touched and encouraged to reach out to others. Secondly I would still be in bondage letting fear control my life. See when we lean in on God we get to see his glory manifest in our lives. Which in turn builds our faith in what God can do with and through us. (Yeah little ole you from po dunk USA)

See it was vital for me to line up with God's word so I could push past the fear by leaning on Him and complete a task He wanted done. It not only affected me but the people I spoke to and the people that they reached out to, because God showed them how to through me.

Zechariah 4:6 Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.

Have any of you had an experience where God called you out of your comfort zone?

Did you go or stay back?

How did it affect you walk with God and others?

I'll end with prayer and a few more scriptures to ponder.

Romans 8:5-6For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Psalm 19:14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.

Father thanks so much for helping me with revelations to share. Thank you that we gain wisdom and insight as we study together. Thank you for my new friends and sisters that are taking this journey with me. In Jesus precious name. Amen

Leave a comment or e-mail!

Blessings,

Lynn

Study with Me Chapter 1

Hi Ladies, we had some good insights and revelations already just on the intro. We are going to learn so much. Chapter 1 is picking up where the intro left off with a war in our minds. So before we get into this lets Pray:

Father we are gathering again today to learn more of your word. Help us to put your word to use in our lives. Reveal to us what areas of our lives need to change, give us strength and courage to face and change them. In Jesus name Amen.

Right off we see that Mary has strongholds, and it shows us how these strongholds came about. They were built little by little. Now look at the strongholds that you identified in the Intro. Were there thoughts that you meditated on over and over. Did you have the attitude "Well Bless God I will never......? Okay we will go on! :)

Now lets go on to John he had issues of his own. He was passive & non confrontational. I liked where he said he hoped it would just work itself out. Yep, that used to be me. Head in the sand, if I don't look at it, it doesn't exist. NOT! His stronghold of "I'm going to lose anyway in the end so why even start anything" was a stronghold that was birthed in me during my 1st marriage. Which in turn enabled more abuse to occur.

A big part of these mindsets again goes back to Romans 12:2 "Do not be conformed to this world, Stop there for a minute. Now right off the cuff - we say we aren't and maybe we aren't but lets dig real deep for a nugget. What part of this world do we let in? In Mary's case to fuel her fire it could have been as simple as male bashing jokes about lazy/domineering men that make women do everything. Repeating these offenses into her spirit making the strongholds in her grow. Now for John, he already had a feeling of inadequacy, so his might have been listening to friends or co-workers talk about nagging, pushy wives that are never satisfied. What we feed in our lives will grow. Now lets finish the scripture: But be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Two things here #1. We have to renew, rebuild and remodel our minds, and what is the blueprint of that remodel? It is Gods word! #2. To Prove the good, or acceptable, or perfect will of God. (I know we are or should be striving for the perfect but one step at a time. We are works in progress right?) Okay now God gave us everything when Jesus died on the Cross. Gods will is His word. He gave us free will to do what we want. So if we want what He wants (His will) then we need to line ourselves up with His word.
John 8:31-32 If you abide in my word you are my disciples indeed. (32) And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free!
There is time in our lives we need to face these giants. Be honest with yourself and with God. Is there a thought or thoughts that you have allowed to dominate you or your behavior?

My pastor did a sermon one night about offenses and bitterness. He said we have those times we will let it go except this one little offense that we want to hang onto. It's our pet - our friend. He said we can even name it. Here Fluffy Fluffy Fluffy, come here. We pet it and hug it. It's ours and we can keep it. It was so funny because it's true, there are things we want to hang onto and not give up. So what mindsets and strongholds are we hanging onto that we need to give up to the Lord. (Remember the truth sets us free)

Only you know what strongholds you have and what they have created in your life. There may be some major repair work for the demolishing they have created. It may take time, and patience and tears. But always know that God is on your side. He will never leave you nor forsake you.

This chapter gave us some things to really think about, as we seek to be more and more like God and we are cutting those bad spots out of our lives. Again reflect on yourselves and identify areas that may be strongholds in your life and mindsets that don't line up with Gods word.

I'll leave you with a couple of scriptures: Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (nkjv)
Isaiah 26:3 You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you because he trust in you (nkjv)

Father help each of us as we dig deeper in your word reveal areas the need healing and pruning. I thank you we have all come together here for your glory. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Well Ladies what are your thoughts on the chapter and my comments.
Be Blessed,
Lynn

It's Here! Study with Me - Intro

Hello everyone!

Well by your comments and e-mails I don't know who is more happy about this you or I. I know the ones of you that have gotten your books and workbooks have read and done the intro and anyone else that would like to join we are doing a study using "Battlefield of the Mind" by Joyce Meyers.

So I'd like to start with a prayer;
Father God as we start this study I ask that you watch over us lead us each in the way you want us to go. Reveal to us what areas of our mind and life that are not lining up with you and give us the strength and courage to change. In Jesus Name, Amen


The intro starts off giving Proverbs 23:7 "For as a man thinks in his heart so is he" (nkjv)
* Take a few moments of honest reflection and ask yourself - What do I really think of myself?*What do I really think of my life?
Write them down and cover them up, or fold the paper over. Now honestly reflect on what you say out loud about yourself and your life. Do you say things like "Oh I'm never prosperous", or 'I'll never have that", I'm not pretty, skinny, talented...... Joyce would call this "Stinking Thinking". Can you look in the mirror and look at your self and say I'm pretty or I love you? That is probably an exercise we could all work on. What we say about ourselves, is what is truly in our hearts. And what is in our hearts is what is in our minds.
Maybe we should tuck that little piece of paper aside and as the study goes on see how our answers change.

Romans 8:5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live life according to the spirit, the things of the spirit. (nkjv)

Have you ever tried to quit something, or diet? As long as you keep thinking about not doing it, it's a struggle. But if you put your focus on God instead, it just happens. What we focus on becomes a mountain in our life. Good or Bad!

Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world. But be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (nkjv)

For me I think a big part of our mind struggle has to do with the world we live in. A world that is flooded with sexual innuendos just to sell a product, even a hamburger and fry. As easy as it would seem to live Godly if we could lock ourselves away and not see anybody else, that is not what God called us here for. That is why we need to line our thoughts up with Gods and get strong , because there is a war zone out there and yes the Battlefield is in our minds.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down 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. (njkv)

This is a real hunk of meat to grab and if it is not clear now it will become more and more alive to you as we go on! What you will find out is that Satan can not physically touch or harm you. "of our Warfare are not carnal" carnal means flesh. What he does is attack your thoughts. A stronghold is an area that the devil has taken a little piece of truth and added to it and built it up so big in your life that now its a stumbling block to your victory. We will in Jesus name break down these strongholds and learn to live in the fullness God has promised us.

One of my favorite scriptures is John 10:10 the thief does not come except to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly.


Here are some things to think about. You don't need to answer them to me if you don't want to but I do want you to think about them.
* Do you know of any Strongholds in your life?
*What are they?
* What lies does Satan use to build them?
Now try to break that apart, since we know that Satan uses a little piece of the truth to make it believable.
*What is the little piece of truth?
*What is the lie?
I'll give you an example: The truth is I need to lose some weight. The lie would be "your fat, you've tried dieting it didn't work, you will always be fat". Once you break out the lie it loses its power.

It's only the intro and I can see God doing so much. I haven't set up a "Mr Linky" as I said before, so you can comment here if you want, you can do a post on your blog or if you want to share something private you can e-mail me. Please at least let me know you've been here, I will somewhat gauge how fast we move on by how much time I think you will need.

Father I thank you for the work you are doing here. I ask that you help each of us as we do this study to breakdown strongholds and free our minds. In Jesus name, Amen

God Bless you all,
Lynn

Study With Me - Roll Call

Well I don't who's getting more excited to start, some of you or me so I want to take a roll call on who's ready and see if we can get this going. YEAH!

Who wants to study? Who has the Book(s)? Are you ready to Start?

Go ahead and at least read the Introduction and do the Study guide pages for it. (If you haven't already :)! )

Leave a comment and let me know, so I know if you have your stuff and are ready. Once I've heard from the ones I already know want to do the study I'll do my first post. With the ones I know about, I think we are covering from Coast to Coast and Sea to shining Sea. If you want to put what State you are from on your comments you can, so others can see who's all here.

I haven't set up a "Mr. Linky" (partially because I don't know how) but I think we are small enough we can make comments here or if you want to post something on your blog you could. I am trying to let God guide this to see where we want to go with it. We may start one way and change to something else before we are done. The important thing is we are going to dig into Gods Word and have some good time of fellowship and friendship.

God Bless my Friends and talk to you soon.

Lynn