What are your last wakeful thoughts before you fall asleep each evening, the thoughts that follow you into sleep, whether consciously or subconsciously, informing your dreams? Mine tend to be instant replays, like a slide show of conversations or events from the day. Sometimes I’m deliberate about transferring them into longer term storage because they’re beautiful memories I hope never to forget. Other times, every stressor, every ounce of angst over a situation I’m praying through but over which I have absolutely no control surfaces at the precise moment when my eyes are comfortably closed, and suddenly my mind resists the free fall that I’m desperately longing for with every fiber of my exhausted being.
I am by nature a night owl. My brain functions at its peak in the wee hours. In as much as it lags until mid morning, it comes to life after ten pm. As an empty nester, this was ideal because my schedule had little impact on anyone outside my home. I simply worked around the important things. Now that I am enjoying a bonus season of babies with my grandchildren, I work a little harder to balance my mental and physical stamina. I still do my best reading, studying, and writing late in the evening, but I’ve learned to rest and to write when I can as well.
This is one primary reason I choose a plan to read through the Bible as the last mental activity of my day. This is not a single verse or two with a devotional thought attached. This is serious scripture- four to six chapters daily. This is not the time for study. My purpose is twofold. I am learning to speak the language of my Heavenly Father more fluently by constant exposure, and as a friend and mentor once shared, I’m re-papering the walls of my mind. You cannot empty all thought from your mind, but you can constantly redecorate. The more God thoughts I line the walls with, the less room there is for anything troublesome.
Combatting wayward thoughts requires diligence and practice. Martin Luther said, “You cannot keep birds from flying over your head but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.” You cannot keep the devil from suggesting thoughts, but you can choose not to dwell or act on them. Our enemy is an opportunist. The hound of hell can smell trouble a mile away and he is wily. His same bag of tricks still works so well for him. The father of lies is well versed in deception, and make no mistake, he knows the scriptures, so he knows his fate. This is what keeps him on the prowl, seeking whom he may devour for he knows his time is short. (I Peter 5:8, Revelation 12:12)
“Afterward, the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to experience the ordeal of testing by the accuser.
And after fasting for forty days, Jesus was extremely hungry.
Then the tempter came to him and said, “How can you possibly be the Son of God and go hungry? Just command these stones to be turned into loaves of bread.”
He answered, “The Scriptures say: Bread alone will not satisfy, but true life is found in every word that constantly goes forth from God’s mouth.””
Matthew 4:1-4 TPT
https://bible.com/bible/1849/mat.4.1-4.TPT
Jesus fasted in the wilderness forty days and nights, a day for every year or Israel’s wilderness wandering. Barren conditions make for an ideal testing place. I can think of times when I’ve been hot and hungry, but never to this extent. We once took our three young children on a walking tour in Washington, DC. We had never been ourselves and so we planned to see as many monuments as possible in one day. We had no idea of the distance from one to the next and we expected to be able to pick up food and drink along our route. You may be laughing at our naïveté but I assure you, it was no laughing matter. We survived, wiser for the wear and dignity intact, but I am still unable to imagine the hardship Jesus faced. He experienced every conceivable challenge you and I will ever face without sin, something you and I cannot do, to be able to take the wrath of God upon Himself, the sinless for the sinner, on the cross.
“Christ suffered for our sins once for all time.
He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God.
He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.”
1 Peter 3:18 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/1pe.3.18.NLT
“This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.
So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.”
Hebrews 4:15-16 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/heb.4.15-16.NLT
“Then the accuser transported Jesus to the holy city of Jerusalem and perched him at the highest point of the temple and said to him,
“If you’re really God’s Son, jump, and the angels will catch you. For it is written in the Scriptures: He will command his angels to protect you and they will lift you up so that you won’t even bruise your foot on a rock.”
Once again Jesus said to him, “The Scriptures say: You must never put the Lord your God to a test.””
Matthew 4:5-7 TPT
https://bible.com/bible/1849/mat.4.5-7.TPT
“For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go.
They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.”
Psalms 91:11-12 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/psa.91.11-12.NLT
It’s right there. Satan quoted scripture effortlessly to the Word Himself, he just stopped one verse too soon.
“You will trample upon lions and cobras; you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!” (Jesus did that too!)
Psalms 91:13 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/psa.91.13.NLT
It’s never wise for me or you to engage in a battle of wits with this enemy. Only Jesus stopped him in his tracks with a word and triumphed over him on the cross, and because He did, you and I have permission to call on God for help in the mighty name of Jesus.
“The weapons I fight with are not the weapons the world uses.
In fact, it is just the opposite.
My weapons have the power of God to destroy the camps of the enemy.
I destroy every claim and every reason that keeps people from knowing God.
I keep every thought under control in order to make it obey Christ.”
2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NIRV
https://bible.com/bible/110/2co.10.4-5.NIRV
“From then on Jesus began to clearly reveal to his disciples that he was destined to go to Jerusalem and suffer injustice from the elders, leading priests, and religious scholars.
He also explained that he would be killed and three days later be raised to life again.
Peter took him aside to correct him privately.
He reprimanded Jesus over and over, saying to him, “God forbid, Master! Spare yourself. You must never let this happen to you!”
Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get out of my way, you Satan! You are a hindrance to me, because your thoughts are only filled with man’s viewpoints and not with the ways of God.”
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If you truly want to follow me, you should at once completely reject and disown your own life.
And you must be willing to share my cross and experience it as your own, as you continually surrender to my ways.
For if you choose self-sacrifice and lose your lives for my glory, you will continually discover true life.
But if you choose to keep your lives for yourselves, you will forfeit what you try to keep.
For even if you were to gain all the wealth and power of this world—at the cost of your own life—what good would that be?
And what could be more valuable to you than your own soul?
I, the Son of Man, will one day return with my messengers and in the splendor and majesty of my Father. And then I will reward each person according to what they have done.”
Matthew 16:21-27 TPT
https://bible.com/bible/1849/mat.16.21-27.TPT
“Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
“I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”
“Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’”
Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus.”
Matthew 4:8-11 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/mat.4.8-11.NLT
As in all things, Jesus is our best example, especially when facing temptation and battling wayward thoughts. A severed branch is dead, so we must remain in Him and His Word in us in order to be living and fruitful. (John 15) A verse a day is a good way to start the day but it will not be sufficient for the long haul. The Bible is an all-you-can-eat buffet that builds spiritual muscle and character, leaving you healthier with every visit, provided you are in Christ. “For it was I, the Lord your God who rescued you from the land of Egypt.” God, in Christ, rescued you and me from our slavery to sin and death and welcomed us into a life of freedom and abundance. He redeems a life of meaninglessness, replacing it with a life of purpose. God says, “Open your mouth wide and I will fill it with good things.” (Psalm 81:10)
Before his crucifixion, Jesus prayed, “I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world.
I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one.
They do not belong to this world any more than I do.
Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth.
Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world.
And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.
I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message.”
John 17:14-20 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jhn.17.14-20.NLT
Read those words of Jesus as a promise. Jesus asked God to keep His followers safe from the evil one. We do not belong to this world. We are not our own. We were bought at a high price. (I Corinthians 6:20) Our heavenly citizenship is secured by the blood of Jesus. He also asked God to teach us His Word, which is Truth. We have the gift of the Holy Spirit, our Heavenly Advocate, to teach us and remind us of everything Jesus taught. (John 14:26) Jesus gave Himself as a holy sacrifice so that you and I could be made holy by this Truth, and He is sending us out into the world as ambassadors for His eternal Kingdom. (II Corinthians 5:20) The fact that you are reading these words means that God heard and answered His prayer. We are those who believed through the message of His first disciples, but we will not be the last.
No matter what your last thoughts are before sleep finds you this evening, remember to acknowledge your Maker. (Ecclesiastes 12) He will help you take every thought captive, making it obedient to Christ.
“Pour out all your worries and stress upon him and leave them there, for he always tenderly cares for you.
Be well balanced and always alert, because your enemy, the devil, roams around incessantly, like a roaring lion looking for its prey to devour.
Take a decisive stand against him and resist his every attack with strong, vigorous faith.
For you know that you’re believing brothers and sisters around the world are experiencing the same kinds of troubles you endure.”
1 Peter 5:7-9 TPT
https://bible.com/bible/1849/1pe.5.7-9.TPT
“Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him.”
Psalms 91:1-2 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/psa.91.1-2.NLT
“In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe.”
Psalms 4:8 NLT
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