The Battle Between Our Two Ears

If you don’t like your life, change your habit. If you don’t like your habit, change your actions. And if you don’t like your actions, change your thinking. If you think like the world thinks, eventually you will act like the world acts. Unrestrained thoughts produce unrestrained actions.

After Jesus overcame the temptations, He returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit. He went to his hometown, Nazareth, read the Scripture in the synagogue, and said, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” - all bore witness to Him and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.” (Lk.4:16, 21-22) But then they began to say, “We know Him, is this not Joseph’s son?” In just a few moments, they had a completely opposite opinion about Jesus to the degree that they wanted to kill Him.

Mark 6:3 says, “Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him, that he even does miracles! Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.

It is not like an offense where you hurt my feelings and I’m mad at you now — it is an intellectual offense.  What they were witnessing in their heart, they canceled with their thought. It is possible to cancel what was released in the spiritual realm in the thought process, and when that happens, even the anointing in the Son of God, as He came in the power of the Spirit, was shut down for a breakthrough in that city.

The same thing can happen to us today. It is easy to recognize the human side of our familiar friend and at the same time, we fail to recognize the Spirit of God working in the person. Our thought patterns and set value systems can hinder our discernment to see and appreciate a change in our fellow brother’s life. The battle is between our two ears. That’s why it is important for us to operate in the renewed mind.

These past couple of months we have been praying for our youth as they went to Baltimore for Compassion Commission. Now that they have come back, can we believe that what we have been praying for is happening? Will you be able to recognize the Spirit of God working in your friend, your sibling, your children, and our very own young people? “And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy.” (Acts 2:17-18)