Shutting the Mouths of Liars

"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8

As I began this morning with prayer, I opened to the psalms and prayed with Psalms 63 & 64. Psalm 63 is a psalm about ardent longing for God; thinking of Him day and night, yearning and thirsting for Him. But the last three verses of this psalm switch the focus of this topic rather starkly:

“But those who seek my life will come to ruin; they shall go down to the depths of the earth! They shall be handed over to the sword and become the prey of jackals! But the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by the Lord shall exult, for the mouths of the liars will be shut!” Psalm 63:10-12

I honestly didn’t catch this at first, and proceeded to Psalm 64, which is exclusively about malicious deceivers being punished by God. I was reading this psalm, and realizing that the dread foes, the ‘mob of evil doers’, these conspirators, are not flesh and blood enemies. Praying against our enemies and evil doers, is praying against the demons and the devils themselves! But also - and importantly – for me, it means praying against the thoughts inside my own head that tell me I’m not good enough, I’m not smart enough, I’m not holy enough; I’m weak, I’m hopeless, I’m unloved, etc. All of these are lies. I know this, and yet, I still believe them! On a daily basis I believe them. I am encouraged praying these psalms against my enemies with the view that I’m not praying against flesh and blood enemies (though, I do also pray that those who perpetrate evil in this world will absolutely be stopped), but I am praying against all of the invisible powers that come against me that attempt (and too often succeed) to drag me down, and make me feel less than and not good enough. Praying against the evil doers starts by praying against my own restless thoughts. It starts inside. And works its way out… If a robber comes into your house, and there’s a band of others outside trying to work their way in too, how much sense does it make to let the robber that is already in your house run rampant, while you attempt to fend off the others? Wouldn’t it make sense to try and stop the robber that’s already in your house first? Get him out, and then continue to work at preventing the others from also entering. Otherwise, much more will be stolen and much more damage will be done. 

The same goes with the emotional and spiritual world. I have to be vigilant in fighting off the invisible enemies around me, but if I first don’t get rid of the ones inside me, they are going to run rampant and I will be much less effective at defending myself against the others. So first, I have to clear out the complete garbage in my own mind; the thoughts (lies) that run wild in my own head. The demons are tricksters, as Psalm 64 tells us: “They devise wicked schemes, conceal the schemes they devise; the designs of their hearts are hidden”. The thoughts they present might not seem like a ‘wicked scheme’ – but they are, that’s the point – to try and trick us with thoughts that seem like they are true, but are not, and actually degrade us: I’m not good enough. I’m a terrible sinner. I just don’t have what it takes. I never do anything right. What starts as a simple, single moment of weakness or shame suddenly becomes our whole identity! Our whole life! It is true that we ARE sinners. And we DO make mistakes. But this is absolutely NOT what Jesus wants us to use to define ourselves. He tells us that we are loved, worthy, beautiful, forgiven, redeemed, chosen, destined, favored, wanted, enough.

Why is it easier to believe the lies than the truth? How do we not see the many lies we believe while we’re believing them? Well, the more that we are exposed to something, the more we become accustomed to it and think that it’s ‘normal’ or ‘right’. So if we are told these things in a variety of different ways whether through family upbringing, or other damaging relationships throughout life, etc. we believe them. And the more we hear it, or that it’s implied, or the more that we start to subtly reinforce it in our own minds, the more that it becomes truth for us. We’re exposed, we’re comfortable, it’s familiar, it’s normal, it’s right. Except that it’s so very wrong. And it takes time and practice to start calling the lies LIES, and to fend them off for what they are: enemies. Enemies that steal and destroy - destroy our identity as chosen and loved sons and daughters of God; destroy our joy, our hope, and our freedom.

There is something else important about the end of Psalm 64 which says:

“But GOD will shoot arrows at them and strike them unawares. They will be brought down by their own tongues; all who see them will shake their heads. Then all will fear and proclaim God’s deed, pondering what has been done. The just will rejoice and take refuge in the Lord; all the upright will glory in their God.” -Psalm 64:8-11 (emphasis mine)

So if you are feeling a little powerless right now (another lie, by the way), you are most certainly not. Because God fights our enemies with and for us. We can’t do it by ourselves, and that’s okay, because we’re not supposed to. God is the vindicator. And He will fight for us. He’s the general, we’re the soldiers. We have to do our part, but He’ll make the tough calls; He’ll be there when the odds are against us and the chips are down; He’ll lead us through the battle to victory. The victory is the Lord’s. So take comfort in the fact that the final vindication isn’t up to us, and that God will strike down the enemies once and for all. And we, the just ones, will glory in our God.

But how do we do this? How do we, God’s little soldiers, fight these enemies and not let them get inside our heads? Scripture. That’s literally the answer. It’s so simple. Every time I read scripture, lies are debunked. Which means I need to read a whole lot more of it. Fill your mind with truth and there will be less room for the lies. Slowly, they will just get pushed out. Slowly, they can creep back in, which is why we must read scripture constantly, vigilantly, daily. This keeps the enemy where he belongs – away from us, and not residing in our minds where he can (and does) wreak havoc.

I definitely do not read enough scripture. And I’m resolving today to change that. I can’t let a day go by without opening up this bible and letting the grace that emits from the living word fight my battles. We have what we need to do this you guys! We just have to use it! There’s no magic wand or a flip of a switch and BOOM, enemies gone (boy, but wouldn’t that be nice!). BUT, there’s no complicated crazy formula either. It requires a little bit of effort, but it’s incredibly simple. You can do it. And so can I. If I want to stop letting my enemies and their thoughts and their lies get the upper hand in my daily walk, I have no choice but to make sure that scripture permeates my walk. Like it says in the last line of Psalm 63: I want my liars’ mouths to be SHUT! I don’t want the demons walking with me and talking to me! I want the LORD! Who’s with me? 

I’m resolving today. Will you join me?