Articles
The Mind is a Battlefield
The sound of metallic thunder rings throughout the landscape as the armies of two fierce commanders draw their battle lines. Carried by righteous warriors, a wall of shields and swords illuminate into the distant horizon. Opposite them, a shadow of darkness smothers the light it touches like a storm cloud on a sunny day. There is an eerie silence upon the battle lines, until suddenly…they cry out and charge into each other with the force of a freight train. The battle for your mind is noisy and chaotic. However, will you be too distracted by the sounds of those around you to fight effectively? Or are you going to listen for God’s commands that will allow you to shout victory for Christ?
In Numbers 13, the Lord commanded the Israelites to send spies out into the land of Canaan so Israel could gain knowledge of the promised land. The Israelites sent out one spy from every tribe as the Lord commanded and they reported back that the land was fertile as God had promised (Num. 13:27). However, the Israelites’ faith faltered when they heard about the inhabitants of Canaan (Num. 13:28-29). Nearly the whole Israelite nation became so focused on the enemies around them that they forgot the God who was leading them.
Instead of listening to their commander who parted the Red Sea and guided them safely through the wilderness, they listened to noise of fear around them (Num. 13: 30-14:2). Numbers 14 describes how the Israelites became so fearful of the people in the land of Canaan that they rebelled against God. They questioned in verse 3, “Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword?...Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” The Israelites’ fear convinced them it would be better to run back to a life of tortuous slavery without God than to face the nations of Canaan with Him.
God’s chosen people decided to have a worldly perspective of the challenges they would face after entering the promised land. Choosing a worldly attitude over a Godly one resulted in the people remaining in the wilderness instead of finding victory in the promised land. Proverbs 4:20-23 reminds children of God that His words of eternal life should be held tightly in their hearts. Thus, we need to be vigilant in protecting the truth that will sustain us everlasting. As a child of God, will you be listening to the noise of the world around you like the Israelites? Or will you focus your heart to the commands of God that will lead you to eternal victory?
