An in-depth look at the source and Biblical solution to twenty common strongholds used by the enemy to rob your joy, steal your peace and kill your purpose.
This book takes an in-depth look at twenty very common strongholds and God's solution to bringing these strongholds down. As Christians, we do not have to live in constant defeat and misery. God has an answer and a plan for our lives.
Being able to avoid the enemy's schemes by being aware of the ways he tries to knock us off our God-given course.
Life is like a long, long race. While living in northern California in the mid-90s, I determined to complete the “Death Ride.” The event's name has recently been changed to the “Tour of the California Alps” to be politically correct. The Death Ride is a cycling event south of Lake Tahoe, where the goal is to cycle up and down five separate mountain passes in less than twelve hours. The course is 129 miles long, with a total climb of 15,000 feet. So, I bought a decent road bike on clearance and began to train. Cycling is a unique blend of fitness, skill, knowledge, and equipment. If you are cycling for fitness, the weight of your bike does not matter. If you are cycling for performance, every ounce counts, and you can spend a lot of money to make your bicycle weigh a few ounces less. What was surprising to me was what I witnessed during the Death Ride. The bikes were a collection of fantastic performance machines, but many of the riders were not. Many of the riders who were unable to complete the arduous ride attempted to carry a weight that prevented their success. There is only minimal benefit for your bike to weigh a few ounces less when you, as the rider, need to shed twenty-five excess pounds. This experience reminded me of Hebrews 12:1 (AMPC), where it states, “Therefore then, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses [who have borne testimony to the Truth], let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us.” If we expect to move ahead in our lives, we need to set aside the unnecessary weight. The weight that we think hinders us is often not the weight slowing us. Felt shortcomings are used as excuses for advancement when they matter little. We believe the weight holding us back is our lack of finances, physical abilities, environment, heredity, or present-life situation. These excuses are the equivalent of spending hundreds of dollars, so your bicycle pedal weighs a few ounces less while you still carry an excess of forty pounds. The weights we need to set aside that are holding us back are called strongholds, and God has provided the means to tear them down. 2 Corinthians 10:4 (NIV) “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.”
What is a stronghold, and how do we tear them down? A stronghold is a barrier to experiencing God and His path and plan for your life. A stronghold is any and every system of belief, state of mind, or external circumstance that distracts from knowing God by turning your attention onto yourself. A stronghold is a distraction, a burden, or a stumbling block. If the enemy can cause you to focus on yourself, your situation, turmoil, or emotional pain, the stronghold will effectively block your progress. If you expect to move ahead successfully in your life, keep in mind the advice in Hebrews 12:1 (AMPC), and - “let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us.” The encumbrance is the stronghold, and the sin which so readily clings to and entangles us is the cry from the wounded, afflicted, offended heart proclaiming, “IT IS ALL ABOUT ME.” This “all about me” worldview may be appropriate if you are three, but it is not warranted or productive if you are an adult. No, you may not speak those words, but instead, you will disguise your victim role in language and beliefs that ultimately steal, kill, and destroy your voice, dreams, and life. Please do not fool yourself; it is not all about you. It is all about Him. This human tendency to take an insult and embrace it is why it is essential to be aware of strongholds and the areas in our life that are stopping our growth.
We experience a stronghold as an ongoing self-focusing rumination. About what do you ruminate? Are you aware you are ruminating? Chances are good; you are either ruminating on an offense or meditating on the goodness of God.
So, what are these strongholds? To aid in understanding, I have divided the various strongholds into categories. The categories are existential strongholds, environmental strongholds, and personal strongholds. We will be looking at twenty specific strongholds. This list addresses most of the strongholds used by the enemy to steal, kill, and destroy. The enemy cannot physically put a brick on your path to stub your toe, but he can whisper a thought that can cause you to fall off a cliff.
Existential strongholds result from the fall of man as recorded in Genesis 3. When God breathed life into the first man, God also gave him His image. The intact image of God was part of humanity’s DNA. In the original design, humankind was to experience intimacy with God and other humans. We had purpose and power as co-creators with God. We were not designed to experience death but to live for eternity in a relationship with God. We were made with the capacity for intimacy, meaning, purpose, ability, immortality, and wholeness. With the fall of man, our God-given image was damaged. We now wrestle with the existential strongholds of isolation, meaninglessness, powerlessness, mortality, and spiritual emptiness. We feel disconnected because we are disconnected. The enemy uses these strongholds to drown you in the sea of “if only.” “If only I had more friends; if only I had more money; if only I was smarter; if only I had a new house; if only I had better opportunities; if only I had a better education; if only; if only; if only… Struggling with these issues drains a little bit of our grit daily. We are now more vulnerable to stress and environmental pressures. Your bucket that contains the grit you need for your day has several holes in it because of these existential strongholds. The good news is that Christ died for you to bring you back into a relationship with God and provide a path where these grit-bucket holes can be patched. God, through Christ, has provided a way for restoration.
Environmental strongholds are the result of stress-producing events in our lives and the way we approach those events. We face daily events that are threatening, require change, cause confusion, strain our sense of responsibility, or cause shame. The enemy uses the strongholds of fear with worry, confusion about self, uncertainty, misplaced responsibility, and angst about past transgressions to steal, kill, and destroy. These environmental stressors face us daily; we experience them and deal with them. They cause us to focus on the immediate and urgent and set aside the important and the eternal.
Personal strongholds are those that directly affect our worldview. Some of these strongholds are how we choose to interact and interpret the world, and others are situations that leave us feeling hopelessly stuck. All these personal strongholds are a response to a real or perceived offense and encourage us to be powerless victims. If the offense is perceived as injustice, the result is bitterness. If the offense is a perceived lack of something necessary, the result is greed. If the offense is a perceived unbearable loss, the product is grief. If the offense is a perceived loss of control, the result is legalism. If the offense is experienced as physical pain, the result is agony. If the offense is a perceived craving for a substance or activity, the product is an addiction. If the offense is deep insecurity, the result is self-love or narcissism.
The enemy uses the strongholds to cause disease in your soul, to get you to take your eyes off God and focus on yourself. It may be my many years of work as a physician, but if you struggle with life-altering symptoms, the right place to start is to diagnose the disease. Do you feel stuck? Are you growing? Strongholds will show up disguised as fatigue, discouragement, loss of energy, loss of joy, and peace, with a lessening of the fruit of the Spirit.
The first place to start tearing down strongholds is to pause and pray Psalm 139:23 (TPT), “God, I invite your searching gaze into my heart. Examine me through and through; find out everything that may be hidden within me. Put me to the test and sift through all my anxious cares.” He is the Great Physician; He will show you the areas of your heart that require healing.
Once you identify the stronghold, you need to see it for what it is; a lie of the enemy leading to your destruction. Now you need to apply your Spirit-infused Godly grit to tear down that stronghold. You do not need to go chasing after strongholds; tear them down as they show themselves.
Maintain your primary life focus. Seek to know God in all you do and all you experience. Keep exercising and utilizing your God-given voice.
Remember the words of Jesus in Matthew 11:28-30 (TPT), “Are you weary, carrying a heavy burden? Then come to me. I will refresh your life, for I am your oasis. Simply join your life with mine. Learn my ways and you’ll discover that I’m gentle, humble, easy to please. You will find refreshment and rest in me. For all that I require of you will be pleasant and easy to bear.” Tear down those strongholds, cast them aside; do not carry unnecessary weight.