Sometimes, I think people forget that we are in a spiritual battle – Righteousness vs. Wickedness.  The devil is counting on individuals not being aware of his game plan of destruction, division, and death. He wants us to be distracted by the frivolous while he incorporates his diabolical agenda.  Apostle Paul warns us to open our eyes!  He states in Ephesians 6:12-13 (ESV), “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”  In other words, we need to always ask the Holy Spirit for discernment when we listen to the media, politics, and people in general.  We need to ask ourselves: “Is what I’m hearing in alignment with scripture?  Does this please the Lord?  Is what I’m listening to producing peace and righteousness, or chaos and turmoil?”

A Sneaky Approach
The devil is very strategic with his methods.  One technique he uses is releasing the spirit of fear.  Fear’s purpose is to intimidate, bully, and put people into paralyzing bondage.  However, the bible says in 2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV), “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

Strategies to Combat the Spirit of Fear
The Lord doesn’t want us to sit back and be bamboozled by fear.  He wants us to fight back!  Through Jesus Christ, we are victorious and more than conquerors.  Here are a few strategies to put fear in its place:

• Rebuke it in the name of Jesus. For example, say “Spirit of fear, I resist you and cast you out of my life, home, and family in the name of Jesus – and don’t come back!  The blood of Jesus is more powerful than you and covers me and my entire family.”
• Memorize and Meditate on scriptures of Peace & Faith.
• Spend time declaring scriptures and make them personal.  For example, with the scripture Psalm 91 say: “I dwell in the secret place of the Most High God…” etc.
• Take a sabbatical from the negative reports of TV, social media, and people – or limit how much you listen to each day.

PRAY THIS PRAYER:  “Lord, I praise you as the God of Peace.  Please forgive me for allowing the problems of the world to be more real than you in my life.  Drive fear out of my heart and life.  Comfort me by your Holy Spirit and your word.  Help me to believe and focus on you more than anything else.  Fill me with your peace and love.  Father, please remind me to look to the hills from where my help comes from.  My help comes from you – the One who created heaven and earth.  May I keep my eyes on you and zero in on your holy word.  In Jesus’ name – Amen.”