Spiritual Firewalls

How do we live a thought-by-thought life in our battle for holiness.  Our church is currently adding on and everyone involved in the process has worked for hours trying to figure out how to match two older buildings, on that is 16 ½ inches taller than that other one, and how to build the correct firewall.

A firewall has one specific purpose…to prevent a potential fire from spreading from one building to the next.  There are different levels of protection, but they all serve the same purpose…to keep the fire at bay until those who are on the other side can get out or until the fire can be put out.

Can we develop firewalls in our mind like a we have firewalls on our computer?  They serve to keep the viruses out.  What can we do to keep the enemy out of our thoughts?  What kind of spiritual firewalls can we build in our spiritual battles?

The first part is the Word of God.  We must spend time there, but the mistake is in thinking I can read a section of the Bible and go about my day.  

The second part is memorization.  I know!  I know it isn’t easy…I struggle with it, but when I memorize it, when I make the effort my thought life I simply better.

The third part is meditation.  I must take the Word with me as I go.  That’s the idea of Psalm 1!

Another part and maybe the key part is prayer.  I must learn to pray the Word of God.  I must be like Spurgeon’s description of Bunyan…if you cut him, he bleeds Bible.  

When I read it, memorize it, mediate on it, and pray it my thoughts tend to turn toward the Word and its Author and they move away from the flesh.   And when they show up…I am find the firewall quickly shutting them down.

In this battle, this thought-for-thought battle, I must develop serious levels of firewalls.