Ultimate Security: Finding a Refuge in Difficult Times (12 page)

We must allow the Holy Spirit to reprogram
our thinking and give us new thought patterns
and objectives that are aligned with Christ’s.

2. Focus on the Positive

The second step to achieving trust in our minds is to focus on the positive. We recognize this truth in the following passage written by Paul to the Philippians:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6–7)

Never try to reason out the peace of God, because it
“transcends all understanding.”
His peace is something that goes beyond our power to reason out. So, how do we experience it? We just receive it from Him.

In the next verse, Paul prescribed how to retain the peace of God:

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. (Philippians 4:8)

What Paul described here is the ongoing recipe for peace: Focus on the positive. Don’t focus on the people who have harmed you. Don’t focus on the problems that may arise. Don’t focus on what is evil. Focus on what is good. Focus on God, His love, and His faithfulness. Focus on the Word of God. Focus on the people who care for you and pray for you. Think about all the good that you have received from people. Never let your mind be preoccupied with the negative.

Years ago, when I was serving with the British forces in Egypt, somebody pointed out to me that there are basically two kinds of birds of prey. There are those that kill their prey and eat it alive, and there are those that feed on rotten meat that stinks. That person said to me, “Both birds find what they’re looking for!” Our minds are like that. If we want to feed on rotten meat, we can do that. But if we want to feed on what is fresh, we can do that.
We make the decision
.

When Fear Comes

I want to point out that the Bible is very realistic. It never assumes that its recipe for peace will be applied with complete success the first time. It leaves room for an ongoing tension between fear and trust. I’m sure each of us can identify with that situation, because most of us experience it at times. King David wrote,

[God,] when I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, in God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me? (Psalm 56:3–4 nasb)

Please note that David did not say he would never be afraid. Instead, he said, in effect, “When I am afraid, I will not yield to fear. I will not focus on fear or let fear dominate my thinking. Rather, I will turn away from my fear. I will look to the Lord, and I will put my trust in Him.”

In the same way, as we turn to the Lord and put our trust in Him, we must honor His Word—because it is the expression of God’s will, counsel, and attitude toward us. Circumstances might seem to suggest that God does not care about us, that He is far away, and that our situation is not under His control. But when we put our trust in Him and His Word, we choose not to believe those lies of Satan.

When fear comes, the remedy is not to say, “I’m not afraid.” Instead, we say, “I won’t yield to fear. I won’t focus on fear. I will turn to God. I will put my trust in Him and in His Word, which never changes. Because I trust in God and His Word, fear cannot take hold of me.”

Are you facing a situation right now that is bringing fear into your heart? Why not repeat the remedy for fear out loud as your declaration of trust in God?

I won’t yield to fear. I won’t focus on fear. I will turn to God. I will put my trust in Him and in His Word, which never changes. Because I trust in God and His Word, fear cannot take hold of me. Amen.

19

PROTECTION AGAINST DISCOURAGEMENT
AND DEPRESSION

In the previous chapter, we discussed two enemies of emotional security that arise to challenge us—fear and worry. There are two additional enemies that attempt to keep us from true emotional security:
discouragement
and
depression.
Having been invited to teach and preach in many countries, I have had the opportunity to ask congregations all around the world what battles they frequently face. In those years of informally surveying Christian audiences, I have found that discouragement and depression are two of the commonest enemies of God’s people. In dealing with discouragement and depression, just as with fear and worry, it is first of all a question of what spirit controls our minds.

Listen to the Encourager

To reaffirm which spirit should be in control of our minds, let’s look at a passage from the gospel of John. This is one aspect of what Jesus said to His disciples as He was about to leave them to return to the Father in heaven:

I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. (John 14:16–17)

The Greek word translated
“Counselor”
in the above verse has also been translated several different ways in English, such as
“Helper”
(nasb, nkjv) and
“Comforter”
(kjv). Another word that could also be used is “Encourager.” The last term is one of my favorites, because, in modern English, the phrase “to comfort” also means “to encourage.”

I want to emphasize one fact very clearly and firmly:
The Holy Spirit never discourages the people of God
. He is the Encourager, not the discourager. Any spirit that works in your mind to discourage you is not the Holy Spirit! You need to be renewed in the spirit of your mind and make room for the Encourager.

Discern Truth from Lies

Jesus said that the Holy Spirit, the Encourager, is
“the Spirit of truth.”
One of the ways the Holy Spirit encourages us is by bringing us the truth. Satan is a liar, and he discourages us by bringing us lies. There is a spiritual battle being waged over our minds, and we need to respond to the right source. Some Christians find themselves in a state of mental confusion due to this battle. Sometimes, they listen to the Holy Spirit bringing them the truth. But, other times, they are caught off guard and listen to the enemy bringing his lies and discouragement.

One good way to discern the difference between what is true and what is a lie is the reality I have just pointed out—one that needs to be emphasized again:
The Holy Spirit never discourages the people of God
. God’s Spirit may rebuke us or convict us, but He never discourages us. Our ultimate input from the Holy Spirit is always positive, never negative.

Let me reassure you: If there ever is some force in your mind saying that you are no good, that you will never make it, that you will never know victory, that you are a failure, or that God has given up on you, it is not the Holy Spirit speaking to you. It is not the truth. It is a lie! Please remember that the Holy Spirit comes with the truth. The devil comes with lies like the ones listed above.

A little further on in John’s gospel, Jesus prayed to the Father,
“Your word is truth”
(John 17:17). If we put together these two thoughts—this verse from John 17 and the passage from John 14 that we examined above—we find that the Holy Spirit encourages us by bringing to our minds the truth of God’s Word. As we have seen, the truth of God’s Word for a child of God is ultimately always positive and always encouraging. In particular, the Holy Spirit shows us where to find protection when we are assailed by discouragement and depression. Where is that protection? It is, of course, in the Word of God.

God’s Spirit may rebuke us or convict us,
but He never discourages us.

Safeguard Yourself Against Depression

A beautiful verse that is very precious to me is Isaiah 61:3, where the Scriptures say that God will give us
“the garment of
praise
for
[in place of]
the
spirit of heaviness
”
(nkjv, kjv).
“The
spirit of heaviness”
is depression. When the spirit of heaviness, or depression, assails us, God has provided a remedy to keep that spirit away from us—it is
“the garment of praise.”
When we put on the garment of praise and begin to praise and worship God, then that spirit of heaviness, or depression, cannot get at us. It is defeated.

The garment of praise surrounds us and protects our whole being against that spirit of heaviness. The best course of action is to live with the garment continually wrapped around us. A person who is always praising God does not have time to be discouraged or depressed. Anytime the spirit of heaviness comes to you, remember to put on the garment of praise.

In the New Testament, Paul shared with us two other items of protection against discouragement and depression:

Since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. (1 Thessalonians 5:8)

The first item of protection is the
“breastplate”
of
“faith and love,”
worn over the area of the heart. So, the heart is protected by faith and love. The second is the
“helmet”
of
“the hope of salvation,”
which protects the mind. Specifically, it is a helmet of hope. When our minds are being assailed, we need to put on that helmet of hope, not only by refusing to give way to despair, but also by refusing to entertain the negative. We then allow the Holy Spirit to show us all the glorious and positive truths from the Word of God upon which we can base a strong, steadfast, confident hope. As with the garment of praise, when our minds are filled with hope, there is no room for depression or discouragement.

My Battle with Depression

The reality of these defenses against discouragement is very vivid for me. When I was a young preacher, I had a tremendous battle against depression for many years. In various aspects of the ministry, I was quite successful. Yet I never succeeded in dealing with this problem of depression. It was something that would come over me like a dark gray mist, coming down over my head and my shoulders until I felt like I was enshrouded under it. It would shut me off from my wife, from my other family members, and from the members of my congregation. I would feel as if I were shut up in that gray mist of hopelessness, giving me the sense that I would never make it. It was as if something was saying to me, “You’ve come as far as you can come, and you’ll never get any farther. Others can, but you can’t.”

I would regularly struggle against this overwhelming presence for many, many hours, doing everything I knew to do. I prayed, I fasted, and I read the Bible, but somehow I never got permanent victory over it. One day, as I was reading the Bible, I came to the verse in Isaiah that we just noted, which says that God will give us
“the garment of praise for
[in place of]
the spirit of heaviness.”
When I read the words
“the spirit of heaviness,”
something jumped inside me. I said to myself,
That’s your problem!

In that moment, I realized by revelation from Scripture that I was not dealing with just a mental attitude. It was not just something psychological. Rather, I was battling a personal enemy—an invisible being in the spirit world—called a “spirit of heaviness.” A spirit of depression had been systematically assailing my mind. When I realized I was dealing with this invisible being, this spirit of heaviness, I was 80 percent of the way to reaching the solution to my problem. To complete the circuit, I needed only one other Scripture. And I found it in the book of Joel:
“Whoever calls on the name of the
Lord
will be delivered”
(Joel 2:32 nasb). Immediately, I called upon the name of the Lord, and He graciously set me free from that spirit of heaviness. Then, the Holy Spirit showed me that, to stay free, I had to take the same steps that I have been recommending to you.

First, I had to put on the garment of praise.

Second, I had to stop using negative talk, no longer being a grumbler and expressing all types of fears and worries and anxieties.

Furthermore, every time I was confronted with a problem, I had to search the Scriptures for the solution to that problem, boldly quoting the answer and giving praise and thanks to God for the solution. I could no longer afford to be a pessimist. For me, pessimism was a sure way to defeat.

This was the very personal lesson the Lord gave me. By wearing the garment of praise and the helmet of hope, I came to a place of total security against those evil forces of discouragement and depression.
2

If you are facing a similar battle, fight back with the following declaration of faith:

Father, in the face of the assailants of discouragement and depression, I make these declarations:

• You have given me, at Jesus’ request, the Holy Spirit. He is with me forever—helping me, comforting me, encouraging me, and bringing the truth of Your Word to me. Thank You that His truth is always positive, always encouraging.
  

• You have given me the garment of praise in place of the spirit of heaviness. I praise You, Lord, for Your great faithfulness to me. I also take up the breastplate of faith and love, protecting my heart, and the helmet of hope, protecting my mind.
  

In the name of Jesus, I renounce and reject the spirit of heaviness that assails me, and I wrap myself in the garment of praise. I call upon the name of Jesus to deliver me from any spirit of heaviness. I declare that my speech will overflow with the promises of God’s Word—speaking blessings, encouragement, praises to God, and expressions of hope.

The Lord is my Deliverer, my Hope forever, and my eternal Source of total security. Amen.

2. For further study on the topic of hope, see
The Helmet of Hope
, available through Derek Prince Ministries, which unfolds Derek’s personal experience in greater detail.