Spiritual warfare lesson guide and teaching how to apply God’s word

This article is part 2 of a 3 part series. If you have not read part 1 you may do so here:

Part 1 (Introduction):
Overcoming obstacles and failures through instilling a positive mindset.


Some people understand God’s truths and the concepts but they waver when it comes to applying those truths.
I want to give you a little understanding about the difference between knowing God’s truths and actually living them.

Using a metaphor

In order to explain the difference so that you may clearly understand, I’ll use a metaphor. So let’s say you watched the most fantastic class with the best teacher in the world about personal hygiene. The class had multimedia presentations, movies, basically everything you can possibly imagine on how to have good personal hygiene.

You came out of that class bursting with information on how to have the best personal hygiene possible. Suppose that after that class you went home and didn’t brush your teeth every morning, didn’t take a shower, and basically didn’t take any of the steps that you needed to have personal hygiene.



Sure you knew what you had to do – in fact you knew so much that you also could actually teach a great lesson on personal hygiene. But still, you didn’t do what your rational mind knew you should do. It didn’t matter that the class that you watched was great and that everything seemed so fantastic. When it came time to apply the truths that you learned you simply didn’t. That way you couldn’t reap the benefits of all of that knowledge.

This example may seem simple but it’s necessary to have a clear metaphor such as personal hygiene to transfer this example into the spiritual realm. In the same way, we may listen to various spiritual teachings but if we don’t find a method to actually apply those truths, we won’t reap the benefits of them.

How can we remember God’s truths when the going gets tough?

It seems that the Word of God completely slips our minds when we are in the middle of daily life. It’s even worse when we are in the midst of the storms of life. We tend to put our eyes on the circumstances instead of looking up to the Lord. He is the source of positivity.

He is the fountain from which we can drink eternal waters and overflow with joy.
In the following verse we see that we must put on the Lord Jesus Christ:

Roman 13:14
But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to [fulfil] the lusts [thereof].

Now how do we do that? How can we put on the Lord? How can we live in Him, being led by His Spirit?
We need to do this daily….by the hour…..by the minute.


I have a little acronym for it to be very easy for you to remember the action steps that you need to take in order to achieve God’s will for you and stay on the right track with your thought life.
Every day put on your spiritual C.A.P.E.

The acronym is C.A.P.E.
C- Capture the thoughts
A- Apply God’s word
P- Pray in His Presence giving Him your thought life and asking him for His grace to do His will.
E- Enabling power is given to you from the Lord that will energize and excite you.

Let’s start with the first letter:

C stands for Capture those thoughts.

You must grab certain thoughts before they grow and become destructive. And by this I mean- you need to be aware of what is going on in your mind and you need to stop wrong thoughts dead in their tracks.

I know that this is not easy because many times thoughts seem like snowballs going downhill making them hard to stop when they begin to grow and gain momentum. And if the snowball really grows it can cause an avalanche. That’s precisely why you need to catch the “forming snowball” right at the beginning before it grows.


Identify the thoughts.

The way to get them in the initial stage is to identify them through talking it out, writing it out or asking yourself certain questions. Here’s an example of a list of questions that you can ask yourself in order to identify the error.

• When did you start feeling sad or anxious or like doing something that you know is wrong?




• Can you think of an event that triggered these feelings?




• What are the root thoughts that you are having that are provoking all of this?

These are some questions that you can ask yourself and talk about it until you identify the root of the issue. You can write it out in a journal or even talk to a trusted friend. If you talked to one friend and it didn’t help, you may look for help from another friend. Sometimes I talk into a recorder and the Lord shows me exactly where the wrong thought came in (just by recording myself).


You have a real enemy.

If you make this a habit in your life there is no way that a wrong thought can remain in your mind for long. The fact is that if you’re constantly aware of the thoughts going on in your mind, the devil won’t be able to plant his seeds of lies in your heart. Satan will throw so many darts (wrong thoughts) at you attempting to get you off track. He will use every venue that he can find. He’ll use T.V. shows, friends, family members, magazines, media, etc.


He’s out to destroy you. When you’re searching for those wrong thoughts, it’s like getting a magnifying glass out and looking deeply into your heart to find what needs to be changed. The devil knows that if he can plant seeds of doubt into your mind, he can hinder your faith in the Lord. And if he’s able to do that, then how will you be able to do God’s work?

The importance of remaining in the faith.

When you believe in God’s purpose for your life and you’re close to the Lord’s heart, you will be able to hear what He wants you to do. And you can do it. When faith is stolen from your heart what do you have left?

When that faith is robbed, you will only be able to achieve works of the flesh. And in the flesh we can’t possibly please God (*Romans 8:8) and really can’t produce eternal fruit.
We can only produce fruit if we are in Christ.

John 15:5
I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

But remember that identifying the problem is just the beginning of solving it. Just as a doctor needs to apply the right medicine to the ailment. Discovering the ailment is just the beginning of things.
After you’ve identified the wrong thoughts swarming around in your mind, you need to take the next step.

A- Apply God’s word to your thoughts.

So this is what you need to do:
The next time you start to feel a lack of peace or you perceive that you are not resting in God, ask yourself the following questions:
Are these thoughts that I’m having in accordance to the Word of God?
Do they align with the mind of my Creator? Many people are aware of inner thoughts but they don’t apply God’s Word to them. That makes them susceptible to be deceived by their own hearts. Contrary to what the world teaches, God’s word says that our hearts are wicked and full of deceit. So therefore our feelings should not guide our lives if they are not in alignment with the Word and the will of the Lord.

Jeremiah 17:9
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

By letting God’s Word be a mirror to our hearts we are able to clearly see when we are being led astray.

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

After you’ve asked yourself those questions to bring to the surface what’s going on in your mind, then you can ask yourself the following questions:

• Are the thoughts that I’m having in agreement with God’s Word?




• If I truly believe to be right, then where can I find a verse that agrees with the mindset that I have right now?




• What has the Lord told and confirmed to me personally that is opposite to what I’m thinking at this moment?




• What sermon could I listen to that would help me move forward?

This is when you should take out your Bible and begin to study what God has to say about the subject that you’re thinking about.


Satan whispers in our ears several thoughts. If you find that the thoughts that you are having do not align with God’s truth, then you need to apply God’s Word to your thoughts and destroy any lie that you may have in your mind. With God’s Word you can unmask any idea that doesn’t come from above.
And that makes it easy to discard wrong thoughts. This is the process that is described in

Romans 12:2
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

In order to experience this transformation we need to be constantly vigilant and not letting our minds conform to thoughts that are not true according to God’s Word.
So many people may even find out what their thoughts are but they don’t even attempt to transform their minds. I’ve seen people bring out the thoughts that they have through talking or writing and instead of moving on to the second stage which is to verify if those thoughts are true or not, they convince themselves of the lies. They deceive themselves. And they remain in bondage. Here’s a verse that clearly shows us this spiritual battle:

2 Corinthians 10:5
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

But thankfully we are not bound to lies. We have the Lord Jesus who has come to set us free from all lies and enable us to cast down these imaginations. If we actively participate to overcome and win this spiritual battle then the deceiver will not grab our hearts and we will be set free by the Lord.

John 8:32
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
He has come to transform us and to give us new life through His truth.

John 10:10
I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

It is at this stage that you make a new decision on what you will believe and what you will do. If your mind was going the wrong way you do a complete turn around and go the right way. The good news is that you don’t need to do this work in your heart by your own strength.
The next article will be the last part of this 3 part series and will cover the last steps of putting on your spiritual C.A.P.E. which are:
P- Pray in His Presence giving Him your thought life and asking him for His grace to do His will.
E- Enabling power is given to you from the Lord that will energize and excite you.


This article is part 2 of a 3 part series. If you have not read part 1 you may do so here:

Part 1 (Introduction):
Overcoming obstacles and failures through instilling a positive mindset.

Eagle image credit Heartlight