How do we bring our thoughts captive to Christ?

“May we bring every thought captive to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5)

We discipline ourselves, asking God’s help to become aware of negative or sinful thoughts, and we replace them with thoughts and prayers from the truth from God’s Word. For example--

• if frightened, we find refuge in Him (Psalm 57:1),
• if worried, we find peace in Him (Philippians 4:6-7),
• if confused, we find direction in Him (Psalm 32:8),
• if weak, we find strength in Him (Isaiah 40:29),
• if in sin, we find mercy in Him (1 John 1:9),
• if tempted, we find victory in Him (1 Corinthians 10:13),
• if grieved, we find comfort in Him (Psalm 34:18),
• if our world is falling apart, we find stability in Him (Isaiah 28:16),
• if lonely, we find company with Him (Matthew 28:20),
• if lacking confidence, we find encouragement in Him (Psalm 3:3),
• if tired, we find our rest in Him (Matthew 11:28),
• if under attack, we find our stronghold in Him (Psalm 9:9),
• if overwhelmed, we find our help in Him (Psalm 33:20),
• if about to give up, we find our hope in Him (Psalm 71:5),
• if troubles come, we find our refuge in Him (Psalm 57:1).


Let every affirming thought become a prayer!

What has the Lord been saying to you?

Lord, teach us to hear Your voice. (John 10:4-5)

When we don’t have a ready answer to this question, we should ask ourselves why, because Jesus promises that His sheep will hear and recognize His voice. And in Mark we read that “when He was alone with His own disciples, He explained everything” (Mark 4:34). Whatever He did with His disciples then, He is willing to do with us today, just as whatever He taught His disciples is for us as well. If we spend time alone with Him, He will explain things to us.

When you seek Jesus’ guidance, do you ever wonder if you are hearing His voice, or if it is your own bright idea—or even Satan trying to mislead you? We needn’t be concerned about this, because Jesus promises that we will recognize His voice: “…[the shepherd’s] sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger…because they do not recognize a stranger's voice.” (John 10:4-5, italics added)

Jesus doesn’t speaking audibly to most of us, but some would say He speaks much louder than that! Through His Spirit He speaks to our hearts, principally through His Word, through prayer, other godly people, and circumstances. He is our Wonderful Counselor (Isaiah 9:6), willing to give us His counsel—but we must cultivate a listening ear (Mark 4:9).

Learning to hear our Shepherd’s voice comes through our daily experience of spending time with Him, coming to know Him (John 17:3), becoming deeply and intimately acquainted with Him (John 10:14), enjoying the fellowship of spiritual intimacy (1 John 1:3). This doesn’t happen in the busyness of our service, but as we sit at His feet (Luke 10:38-42). It’s a daily choice we make.

Do we share Paul’s passion to know the Lord? Should we?

The Apostle Paul’s passion to know the Lord, to live in a close, personal relationship with God, was the driving force of his life and service. The full meaning of the word “know” in the Greek helps us better understand the kind of relationship with the Lord that is essential for us…

[For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly]…. (Philippians 3:10a, AMP, italics added)….

Jesus uses the same Greek word, ginosko, in describing how He knows us and we’re to know Him—in describing how we must know Him:

“I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me….” (John 10:14, italics added)

“Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” (Matthew 7:22-23, italics added)

How do we develop such a relationship?

Through spending daily time alone with God in prayer (Matthew 6:6, 9-13). As we spend time alone with God in prayer, He welcomes us into a personal relationship of growing spiritual intimacy, one in which we not only sense His presence and speak to Him as we move through our days, but also learn to hear His voice:

...the sheep follow [the shepherd], for they know his voice. (John 10:4-5, italics added)

Daily consistency is the important thing. Our prayer time does not have to be for a long period of time, but spending some time with God every day is not an option if we want to know God in a personal way. God will honor even a few minutes a day if we devote them to Him, reading His Word and praying as Jesus taught.

from e3 Ignite Your Prayer Life Prayer Journal, pp. 4-5

How many letters to raise support should I send?

Jesus made it clear He will provide for those He sends out on mission when He sent out the 72 with nothing but the clothes on their backs, and told them to look for those who would take care of their needs (Luke 10:1-8). He Himself, and the twelve who were with Him, were supported by the women who traveled with them (Luke 8:1-3). He sent His disciples specifically to the man who was preparing the upper room for Him (Mark 14:13-16), and even after His death His body was laid to rest in a tomb provided by Joseph of Arimathea (Matthew 27:57-60).

We who serve in ministry are to be responsible to do our part, as the 72 were instructed to seek out men of peace who would supply their needs. But clearly, those who provided them food and shelter on their mission journey had hearts that had been prepared to be generous when asked.

Surely all who give themselves to the mission call of the Lord of the Harvest can stand on His promise to supply their needs, even as the Apostle Paul did:

"Not that I [the Apostle Paul] am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account. I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God." (Philippians 4:17-18)

The next verse, “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19) includes the promise for those who give. There is certainly the sense that all who go on staff with e3 or join our mission teams are giving to God’s kingdom work. When we answer His call, will He fail to meet all our needs?

Is it necessary to excel in the grace of giving?

Only if we want to experience some wonderful blessings! God promises that when we give, we will receive—“a good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Luke 6:38)

Think of this. The word translated “excel” means to abound, even “super-abound” in giving, to give in excess, the idea of holding back nothing. One translation says “to be eager to give, and to give more generously than anyone else.”

When the apostle Paul tells the Corinthians to “excel in this grace of giving” (2 Corinthians 8:7), he is laying down an important kingdom principle: we should be generous givers. This is fairly easy when things are going well, but when finances are tight, many of us are tempted to delay or scale down our financial giving, even our tithe. It’s our choice, but if we do, we may miss out on some of God’s most generous blessings:

“‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.’” (Malachi 3:10, italics added)

“…I [Paul] am amply supplied, now that I have received…the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:18-19, italics added)

Our God is a giving God who honors His promises when we live by His principles. May He give us the courage to excel in the grace of giving.

If the Spirit lives in us, why would Paul command us to be filled with the Spirit?

We are promised that the Holy Spirit is gift to all believers (Acts 2:38-39)—He lives in us (John 14:16-17). Why then are we commanded to be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) as though it is our responsibility? And how do we go about it?


Paul is very clear about this when he tells us to surrender our bodies as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1-2) and to put off the old self and put on the new (Ephesians 4:22-24), and when Jesus said we must abide (live, remain) in Him, our true vine (John 15:5). The Holy Spirit surely lives in us from the moment we are born again, but He cannot fill us until we begin to live a life of surrender and submission to our Lord, intentionally turning from our old, sin-filled lifestyles and determine to live as children of light (Ephesians 5:8). How can our true vine fill us with His life if we have unconfessed sin or are full of self?


How can we be Spirit-filled if grieve the Spirit (Ephesians 4:30) or quench His presence within us (1 Thessalonians 5:19)? He is grieved with we sin by doing what we know we should not do, when we ignore is gentle conviction of sin and fail to confess and be forgiven (1 John 1:9). He is quenched when we fail to do what we know we should do (James 4:17), when we ignore His leading (Romans 8:14).


How can we be sure we are emptied of sin and self and our old ways so that the Spirit can fill us each day? Jesus said we should spend time alone with God every day (Matthew 6:6), and in that time, we should surrender (Matthew 6:10) and confess our sins (Matthew 6:12). We do this not by spending a lot of time every day, but by praying with intention and purpose for at least a brief time each day, laying our hearts open before the Lord (Psalm 139:23-24). If He shows us anything we must deal with, we simply confess or let go and ask for a fresh filling of His Spirit. He desires to give us the Spirit more than anything else (Luke 11:13)!

How well do you hear God’s voice?

If Jesus promised that His sheep will hear His voice, and recognize that it’s Him (John 10:4-5). This should be our experience today. He doesn’t speak audibly to most of us, but He does speak clearly to our heart—if we’re listening.

When Jesus began to teach His disciples about prayer, He told them to go into a room (Matthew 6:6), the word He used was tameion which is sometimes translated “closet.” In the Greek of His day, tameion referred to a bedroom, the most private room of a home where intimacy developed between husband and wife. Jesus didn’t mean we must go into a bedroom or closet, but that we should follow His example and find time to be alone, in solitude with God (Matthew 14:23). By using the word tameion, Jesus is telling us that when we find such uninterrupted time to be alone with God, we can develop a relationship of intimacy with Him, intimacy of the heart and soul.

Quiet time alone with God provides an atmosphere in which we can best hear His voice, most often as we are prayerfully reading His Word. It doesn’t matter where or when we have this time, but we must make it a daily priority if we want to develop the communion of an intimate personal relationship with Him. Our service for Him, no matter how energetic and demanding, is no substitute. There is no substitute.