Strongholds => created based on lies or belief systems we choose to believe that go against what God’s Word says.
Everyone has experienced pain and/or trauma. When we come to those decision points, we have to choose to believe God’s word and live by faith or believe the lie of the enemy and live in unbelief.
Isaiah 5:18 What sorrow for those who drag their sins behind them with ropes made of lies.
The stronghold that you create inside your mind, becomes a tool used by the enemy – Satan - to keep you from perceiving God’s truth. You think you’re safe, but it’s actually a prison for you.
We are fighting spiritual wars on two fronts: Both Sin in us and Satan, our enemy.
While strongholds are reinforced by the demonic realm they are not a spirit. You can't cast them out. Scripture tells us you can only pull them down.
But scripture does tell us in Matt 16 and Matt 18 (principal of binding and loosing) that thru Christ we have the power and authority to bind the spirits that are feeding those strongholds in us - to help us as we work through pulling those strongholds down.
We create habits of justifications, fixations, addictions, obsessions, compulsions, or extreme fear and anxiety. At the root of each these is a stronghold.
These strongholds skew how the world looks around you.
What the Word says...
2 Cor 10:3-5 New Living Translation 3 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. 4 We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. 5 We destroy every proud obstacle (thought, belief, lie) that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.
What do Strongholds look like?
Unforgiveness
- you retreat into isolation from others.
- you hold grudges.
- you erupt in anger or Do you boil inside.
- you think of ways to get even with others who hurt you or those you love.
- you bury the wrongs done to you without really addressing them.
- you feel sorry for yourself.
- you carry bitterness and anger towards those who have hindered you or willfully or purposely wronged you.
- Instead of stating the truth, you make excuses for those who wronged or hurt you.
- you ever think of yourself as a martyr
- you ever think, Nobody has had it as bad as me.
- you insulate or protect yourself behind the walls of defensiveness.
- you distrust others.
- you say, I just can’t forgive [which really means you won’t forgive].
- you find yourself thinking, I’m angry with God for allowing bad things to happen to me.
- you act like nothing happened instead of confronting issues that have hurt you.
- you think or say, I can’t get over my past.
Insecurity
- do you feel invisible and insignificant (even around those who should know you best)
- do you walk into a room and immediately think that everyone in there is more [anything] than you are
- are you paralyzed by making decisions
- do you let events from the past dictate your present/future life
- do you immediately assume that every set-back in your day is a direct result of your incompetence
- do you avoid making eye contact
- are you afraid to speak up
- do you over-analyze conversations long after they were finished
- do you act in certain ways in order to be accepted by the crowd.
- do you find yourself questioning yourself or hesitating in areas where you once had freedom?
- single ladies- do you believe that you are less of a person because you are single
Injustice (root is pride)
- Do you get all out of whack when things are not fair?
Poverty
- Are you a hoarder? Or are you greedy or stingy?
Rejection
- Do you think you are worthless - not lovable - I don't have any friends. - My family doesn't love me - No one loves me
- I can never be good enough for <fill in the blank>
Fear
Do you live in a state of high anxiety?
Does fear rule your life?
How many times a day do you include the word “fear, afraid, anxiety, stress” in your sentences?
People Pleasing
Do you worry about others acceptance of you? Do you tell little white lies to make people feel good about themselves?
Do you make decisions based on what others think?
Do you play favorites? Do you elevate one person above another?
Mom’s – do you favor one child above the other? I’ve seen families disintegrate because of this.
Anger and bitterness
Do you say hurtful things to others?
Do you think of ways to get even with others who disappoint you?
Do you snub others who have hurt you or someone you love?
Pride
Do you always one up the other person? Are you ungrateful, self-righteous, self-centered, insensitive, materialistic, seek position or attention, stubborn, impatient or do you mock other?
Vanity – mixed with insecurity
Do you have to look a certain way to feel good about yourself?
Have you gotten yourself into deep debt buying all the latest high-end fashions, jewelry, makeup and hair products?
Do you always have to be the center of attention?
Do you think too highly of yourself? The Bible warns us against that.
Comparison/Competition (vanity and pride mixed in)
Do you criticize others for <fill in the blank>. A critical spirit is death to relationships.
Speak truth in love, but a judgmental, critical attitude will destroy others around you.
Do you compare yourself (looks, talents, skills) with others?
Do you always have to win? And when you don’t you get angry and pout.
Jealousy and Envy
Do you envy others position or ministry?
Do you feel jealous when others have more things or are praised more or recognized more?
Entitlement
Do you think the world owes you?
Do you think you deserve the best – first place in all things?
Control
Do you nag your husband, your kids, your extended family or friends?
Do you hold things close to your chest with your job, your ministry – making sure no one can mess with it? No one can do it as good as you – so you just go ahead and do it yourself.
Are you contentious – always ready for a fight?
Married ladies – Do you withhold sex to punish him when you get angry?
Sexual
Do you have a problem with pornography – believe me, I’ve counseled many women who are as addicted as men.
Do you believe you have to have sex with a man you’re not married to be loved or to keep him. Are you promiscuous - sleeping around with different men?
Are you married and having affairs? Physical or emotional or spiritual affairs.
Do you get lost in fantasizing?
Addiction
Are you addicted to prescription pills or illegal drugs, alcohol?
Are you addicted to food?
Are you addicted to shopping?
Unbelief
Do you find yourself thinking I can't do this...life, motherhood, or even Christianity. Or do you have thoughts of suicide?
Cultural Strongholds
- My story of Blue fingernail polish!
- Racism
- Politics
- Cell phones – yes mama’s – nothing breaks my heart more than to see a mother’s face in a phone with her child pawing at her for attention.
- Workaholic – your children mimic what they see.
Do you run to anything else, other than God, in a crisis? If so, it’s a stronghold
Remember that whatever becomes a fixation, an obsession, an addiction – anything that occupies your thought process on a neurotic level is based on a lie and is a stronghold.
It is what is keeping you from walking in freedom.
All of these are lies and they are an offense to God. They keep you from knowing God!
Strongholds are thought systems that have been darkened. They impede our ability to know what is truth and what is a lie.
The enemy has no power over you except what you allow him to have.
If you’re born again, Satan can’t touch your spirit. But you give him access to your soul (mind, will and emotions) through your strongholds.
He can’t possess you, but he can oppress you.
How do we break down the strongholds? …
Here's what to do to start your walk to freedom.
First – break down the strongholds that are keeping you from KNOWING GOD!
1. Begin by prayerfully asking the Holy Spirit to reveal the root of this stronghold and the oppressive spirit behind it and bind that spirit (Matt 16:18-19).
2. Ask a trusted friend or mentor to pray with you. If you don't have a mentor, ask God to bring someone into your life that will speak truth to you.
3. Repent of the times you have believed the lies.
4. Take each thought the Holy Spirit reveals to you captive. Renounce it. Replace it with God's truth. Quote God’s Word. Pray God’s Word. If you can't find scripture, reach out to someone who can help you.
5. Declare your identity in Christ. You have been REDEEMED! Walk as a child of God!
6. Stay in the Word of God. Remember, victory comes with consistency! Spend time with God daily and meditate, filling your mind with who He says you are.
7. Thank God for all He has done and will do as He promises to set you free!
You have no excuse not to pursue freedom.
If your life, as it is today, still looks the same in 1 year, you have no one to blame except yourself.
When you stand before God you can’t say, “I didn’t know”.
Freedom = Crucified with Christ.
Freedom comes by
1. Confronting and overcoming the strongholds in our lives. Break the demonic strongholds using the divine tools God gave us: The Holy Spirit, Prayer and God’s Word – the sword of Truth.
2. Laying your dreams, your will, your idea of what life should look like at the cross.
3. Dying to yourself – who and what you think you are or what your life should consist of.
You see, I engaged with God to break down the strongholds in my life. Today, when SIN in me or the ENEMY of my soul tries to raise these strongholds back up – I beat them down with the Word of God! I declare who I am in Christ! I walk in freedom daily.
You can experience that same freedom too.
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