Mind Games

Satan knows how to control us. He uses mind games. The more we grow spiritually, the stronger his tactics become. His biggest, strongest, and surest weapon is fear.  

Remember Joseph?  He’d become second in command in Egypt after arriving there as a slave. There was a famine and he moved his father and brothers to Egypt to survive. That generation of father and brothers had all died. Now it was the grandchildren of Jacob and their descendants—and they had multiplied and become powerful! They’d become so powerful that it sent alarm bells to the new king. 

Satan doesn’t just work in the minds of believers. He filled this new king’s mind with fear. The king said, “Look, the people of Israel now outnumber us and are stronger than we are. We must make a plan to keep them from growing more.” A plan was created out of fear. 

So the Egyptians made Israel their slaves. So in four verses, Israel went from “multiplying greatly and becoming extremely powerful” to being made slaves. How does that happen??  Fear. What tactics did Egypt use? We don’t know. The Bible doesn’t tell us how Egypt made Israel slaves. But we do know it was created out of fear. The Egyptians worked the Israelites mercilessly—they wore them down. And then the king told the midwives to kill their babies (which they refused to do because they feared God!). So Pharoah commanded every Hebrew baby to be thrown into the Nile. 

Here’s what we know…the whole sadistic plan was birthed out of fear. That’s how Satan starts every evil plan. It’s also why God tells us to “take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ!” (II Corinthians 10:5) Stop fear at the first thought. Satan is the author of every fearful thought. Just remember when you become fearful that Satan is wanting to destroy you. You must have “multiplied and become extremely powerful” for him to want to stop you. So he’s planting fear in your mind to control you. And it works. 

Satan fears believers will multiply and become powerful. So he plays mind games using fear as a weapon of mass destruction to stop them.  

He’ll do whatever it takes. He wants slaves.

God Partners with EVERYTHING!

Joseph was young…and he was favored by his father over his 10 older brothers.  And they hated him.  It didn’t help that Joseph tattled on them.  And the coat of many colors?   It was the straw that broke the camel’s back.  Well…almost.  

Joseph began having dreams. He dreamed that his sheaf of wheat stood up and theirs bowed down to his.  They hated him more.  Then he dreamed that the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed down to him. His father even reprimanded him at this point!

I always kind of laughed at these stories thinking, “Joseph was just an immature kid!”  It even hurt my heart that Jacob showed favoritism to one of his twelve sons.  I always wondered if Joseph regretted telling his dreams to them.  

You know the story…his ten older brothers hated him so much they conspired to kill him. Instead, they ended up selling him into slavery.  He went from slavery to prison and prison to ruling over Egypt. And his brothers came to buy grain from him…and bowed before him.  

If Joseph hadn’t told them his dreams, they never would have known the significance of that moment!  And Joseph learned that God partners with EVERYTHING for our benefit.  He can take our mistakes, our sins, our mess-ups and turn them into something amazing!  God restored these brothers’ relationships.  And do you remember what he told his older brothers?  “What you meant for evil, God meant for good.” Genesis 50:20

God can use EVERYTHING in your life for good, too.  

Difficult People

Have you had a difficult person in your life?  Have you rehearsed in your mind a hundred times what you wish you could say to them?  Have you tried drawing a boundary?  Jacob eventually did just that…but that’s not the way he started out.  

Jacob fulfilled his name “supplanter.”  He traded soup for his brother’s birthright and then deceived his father for Esau’s blessing.  But he met his match when he went to his Uncle Laban’s house.  I’m sure God needed a mirror to show Jacob his own heart—so he could see what he would become if he didn’t change.    

Jacob worked for Laban for seven years to marry his daughter, Rachel.  But the morning after his wedding, he woke up to find Rachel’s older sister, Leah, had been given to him instead of Rachel.  So Laban told him if he’d commit to working for him another seven years, he could have Rachel, too.  

That was only the beginning.  Jacob ended up working for Laban twenty years—for his two daughters and then to build his own flock.  During that time, he was made to absorb every loss himself.  Laban changed his wages ten times.  Bottom line?  Laban was underhanded and mistreated, abused, and stole from Jacob. He was a difficult person—or a tyrannical  antagonist. 

When Jacob left to take his family and possessions to his former home, Laban chased him down, ready to demand what was his. But God met Laban and warned him, “Leave Jacob alone!” When they met, Laban accused him of running off with some of his possessions.  Jacob had finally had a belly-full and unloaded. He found his voice! (He was probably empowered when Laban admitted that God had told him to leave Jacob alone!) He spoke truth in full righteous anger.  

What happened? Laban backed off. In fact, I believe he was so shocked at Jacob’s anger and the TRUTH that he decided to create a boundary (a pile of rocks) “so neither could cross it to harm the other.”  Ha! I think Laban was scared. And…he knew God was on Jacob’s side. 

I’ve seen this happen so many times.  An antagonist tries to control, manipulate, intimidate, and even abuse others. But when strongly confronted with TRUTH, they back off.  Until they’re confronted, their bad behavior will continue. Truth is powerful!! Know that God is on the side of truth because Jesus IS Truth!  Use your voice—it sets captives free. And boundaries can become a very good thing.  

Oh!  And later, Jacob wrestles with God and prevails!   God renames him Israel “because you have fought with God and men and have won.”  Which man did Jacob fight?  Laban.  He won the battle against Laban…a very difficult person. 

“ And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.”  John 8:32

The Broken Yoke

Jacob had stolen Esau’s blessing.  It was the blessing reserved for the firstborn (Esau).  But Rebekah, their mother, had come up with a deceptive plan and Jacob implemented it.  His father, Isaac, felt something was “off” when Jacob came to him; he asked questions seven times to make sure he was blessing the firstborn.  

When Esau then came in for his blessing, Isaac began trembling.  He knew he’d been duped.  He told Esau his blessing had already been given to Jacob.  When Esau began weeping, Isaac blessed him with this:  

“Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above.

40 By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; and it shall come to pass, when you become restless, that you shall break his yoke from your neck.”

The deceitful plan and Jacob getting the BEST blessing had become a yoke around Esau’s neck.  Isaac used “yoke” as an analogy for slavery.  Esau would be a slave to Jacob.  Now Esau was never literally a slave of Jacob’s…but because of the pain of this situation, Esau was an emotional slave to Jacob.  He spent the better part of the next twenty years yoked to Jacob in his anger.  

Are you yoked to someone because of an injustice, abuse, mistreatment, dominion, painful words, or any other foul treatment?   There’s good news for you in this story!

Isaac told Esau he could break free from this yoke.  The Hebrew definition says “you can break free when you trample about, become restless, become lord (master), ruler, have dominion.”  How do you break that yoke?   You trample about until you have dominion over it.  That may look like you examining what happened in your life from every angle. It may involve counseling. It will definitely take time wrestling with this issue in your life.  You’re not trampling it just to wallow in it—you want to rule over it.  You want to break away from it!   You want SPIRITUAL FREEDOM!!!

Esau found that freedom.  I believe he had that freedom when he went to meet his brother as Jacob was coming home.  God tells us that Jacob bowed before his brother seven times—the number of completion. It was over.  Esau was no longer a slave to his brother.  The yoke was broken.  

You can be free, too. Break that yoke!!

Not Attached to Outcome

Not Attached to Outcome.  I first heard this phrase from my good friend, Jan Stockdale—and I recently read a book using the same phrase.  

Maybe I need to explain what it is and what it’s not.  Let’s look at Jesus and Judas.  Jesus invited Judas to follow him—and even discipled him.  But Jesus gave Judas space to make his own choices.  He wasn’t attached to the outcome.  

Did Jesus WANT Judas to follow him?  Absolutely!   Did Jesus pray for Judas? Yes!  Did Jesus encourage him?  Of course. Did Jesus speak truth into Judas’ life?  You know he did.  Jesus loved Judas and offered all that he was to him.  But he also made space for Judas’ choice.  There was no coercion, no guilt, no manipulation.  Jesus offered and then let Judas decide—for better or for worse.  

I realize I’ve been very “attached to outcome.”  I care very much about the outcome of the choices of my family, my close friends, and my church.  I want them to succeed, to love God with all of their hearts, and to live righteous lives. 

Now I can pray that way—and should pray that way. I should even teach them truth and disciple them. But once I become attached to the outcome of those things, I begin applying pressure (even subconsciously), or I distance myself from them because I disapprove of their choices.    

Living a life “not attached to the outcome” means I’m going to love these people regardless of their choices.  I’m going to pray for them, walk with them, help them, and encourage them.  If God allows each of us choices KNOWING we may not choose him…how can I carry expectations for the choices of others?  Those expectations will eventually turn into coercion, guilt, manipulation, or abandonment.  

You can walk in faith and still not be attached to outcome.  You can pray and still not be attached to the outcome. You can teach truth and still not be attached to the outcome. You can even grieve over others’ choices and not be attached to the outcome. It’s trusting God and His relationship with that person.  I can respect their relationship without imposing myself in the middle of it.  It really boils down to this…do I trust God?  Am I willing to let others make their own choices? Or…do I want to control everyone around me?

Caring about the outcome usually happens when Satan reminds me of how someone else’s choice may affect me.  And then I have to remind him:  NATO…Not Attached to Outcome. After all, Judas’ choices greatly affected Jesus. God had already told Jesus that his plan included the cross for his reconciliation to mankind—and it would have happened one way or another. Jesus just made space for Judas’ choice.  

Spring Festival

I was in 6th grade  in 1967 and had been through the traumatic experience of moving across town in Pampa, Texas and changing schools from Woodrow Wilson Elementary to Lamar Elementary.  Sixth grade was the last year of elementary school and most of the kids at Lamar had gone to school together since 1st grade (we didn't have kindergarten then).  And I moved after school started and was thrown into that mix.  My saving grace that year was my music teacher, Sue Higdon.  Apparently, my music teacher at Wilson had told her I played piano because she was ready to hook me up as soon as I stepped into the classroom (which also gave me some standing with my new peers).  I'd had piano lessons for all of two years. HA!  But apparently, I had enough skills to accompany the songs we sang. We'd moved in the fall of that year and the choir was already preparing songs for Pampa's annual Spring Festival.

Pampa's Spring Festival was one of the biggest musical events of the town--the other being the high school musical--all under the direction of Dr. Hugh Sanders.  But the Spring Festival was a concert of all of the choirs from elementary to high school and the junior high and high school bands which took place in the high school gym.  The bands were on the floor and the elementary and junior high choirs sat on the lower spectator risers while the high school choir in their gowns and tuxes had the prestigious risers placed in the center of the gym under the west basketball goal.  There were individual songs sung by the combined elementary schools, the junior high schools and the high school.  But the grand finale was a song sung by all of the combined schools and accompanied by the bands.  There were probably a dozen pianos scattered across the high school gym floor which the respective pianists of the schools played...of which I was one.  Imagine!  Me--a twelve-year-old in the midst of this grandness--the biggest thing Pampa did each year!

It was more nerve-wracking playing for the elementary schools' songs.  Of course, there were probably six more accompanists playing with me (of which some were adults), but I knew my mistakes would stand out more.  I'd practiced my heart out and was ready to give the performance of a lifetime.  And my mistakes were barely noticeable in the grand scheme of things.  But probably one of the greatest moments of my life at that time was accompanying the grand finale with all twelve pianos playing together with the band.  I was probably the only person who could even hear my piano. But a young twelve-year-old girl got to experience being a part of something BIG--something bigger than herself.  And the grandness of that moment was an experience I'll never forget!  And because I was made a part of something so magnificent, I caught the vision of eventually wearing a gown and singing and playing in the high school concert choir.  Which I did.

I was thinking on this experience this morning and was comparing it in my mind to the body of Christ.  What if we graced young believers this way?  What if their contributions were received and appreciated as much as those of the mature believers?  What if their mistakes were overlooked or not even noticed?  What if we enveloped them into the big picture of what God is doing and they felt important, loved, accepted...needed?  What if they caught the vision?

I finished my 6th grade year as an accepted member of my new class.  I can thank my music teacher for that.

Take Time

Can I encourage you in something?   

Take. Time. With. God.  

Take a day, a weekend, a week—whatever this season in your life allows!  Get away or send your family away on an extended family visit.  Have some undivided time with God!  Turn your phone off.  Turn the TV off.  Put the book down. Keep it simple.  Take your Bible and journal and spend time hearing God’s Word to YOU!!   He has things to say. Let him bring healing. Let him massage your heart. Let him guide you. Let him encourage you.  As things get harder, we need more time alone with God—not less.  Take Time.