Topic: Know the Truth [Joyce Meyer Devotional 25 March 2020]

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Jesus said If you abide in My word [hold fast to My teachings and live in accordance with them], you are truly My disciples. And You will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.— John 8:31-32 (AMPC)

In my book Battlefield of the Mind, I share a story about Mary and her husband, John, who was a very low-key, laidback person. He had been verbally abused by his mother and taunted by playmates in childhood, so he had grown to hate confrontation, and couldn’t stand up to Mary’s strong will. In his own way, John was as much a prisoner as his wife. He blamed her; she blamed him—it was a perfect picture of the enemy’s deception at work.

John was convinced that it didn’t do any good to stand up to anyone, because he was going to lose anyway. He thought the only way to get along was to be quiet and accept whatever ­happened.

John also believed another lie: that he wasn’t truly loved by God, because he wasn’t worth loving. Because he felt that way, he had believed Satan’s lies. “I felt as if God said to the world, ‘Believe in Jesus and you’ll be saved.’ I got in on some kind of package deal—but I never felt I was worth loving.”

That is one of the enemy’s biggest lies: “You’re nobody. You’re not worth anything.” If he can convince you that you’re too far gone or too worthless, he’s set up a stronghold in your mind.

Although John was a Christian, his mind had been imprisoned by his enemy for decades. His mother hadn’t told him that he was good, worthwhile, or a child of God. His friends didn’t encourage him, and in the first years of his marriage to Mary, her criticism convinced him even further that he was a hopeless failure.

John had to learn that he is important to God, that he’s loved, and that he’s as valuable to the kingdom of God as Paul, Moses, or anybody else. For John to win his battle and cast down the mental strongholds Satan had built, he needed to know the truth. Jesus said, …“If you . . . [hold fast to My teachings and live in accordance with them], you are truly My disciples. And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free” (John 8:31b–32).

John learned truth as he read God’s Word, prayed, and meditated on what it says. He also learned as he applied God’s Word in his everyday life and had the experience of watching it work. Experience is often the best teacher. Over the years, I’ve learned through God’s Word and life’s experiences that His Word is alive, full of power, and can tear down the strongholds Satan has built in our minds.

When you truly know that the weapons you need are available to you, and begin to use them, you’re on the road to freedom. As you learn to resist the enemy, call him on his lies and replace them with truth, your life will become so much better!

Prayer Starter: Father, please remind me (especially when I don’t feel loved) that I’m important to You, and that You love me. Help me to truly learn who I am in Christ, and to know that I’m no less valuable to You than anyone else. Thank You for loving me, and for the confidence I can have in You! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.