Fear Is a Liar: Take Captive Every Thought

SHOW NOTES:

EPISODE SUMMARY: In this episode, I share an excerpt from Step Three of my new book, Living Perfectly Loved. Do you know that God cares a lot about our thought lives? His Word says, “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him” (Matthew 12:35 NIV). Until learning the significance of this, I was mostly unaware of my innermost thoughts. I often didn’t realize that it was my thought choices that were holding me captive to fear! Rather than continuing to allow my thoughts to take me captive, I learned that I have the authority to take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ! To help with the process of identifying fear’s lies and replacing them with God’s truth, I’ve provided a link for you to get A Guide to Taking Every Thought Captive: Replacing Worn-Out Lies with God’s Truth, a free resource I’m offering from the appendices of my book (located below in my Episode Resources section). This guide contains some of the most common lies we often fall prey to, along with two truths from Scripture that you can use to combat the lies. Fear is a liar—but by wielding the sword of the Spirit you can overcome every lie the enemy would try to use to tear you down, and begin living daily in the liberty Jesus died to give you. 

CONNECT WITH KELLY: I’m your host, Kelly Ann Snyder, a Christian writer, speaker, and teacher. Grateful to God for rescuing me from the grip of anxiety and fear, I created this podcast, started a blog, launched a small group for women at my church, and wrote my first book titled, Living Perfectly Loved, to encourage, equip, and inspire Christian women to live free from fear and full of joy, secure in God’s perfect love. I enjoy fresh flowers, nature walks, decorating my home, sipping tea, and studying God's Word. Visit my website at kellyannsnyder.com to learn more about me and Living Perfectly Loved Ministries, including information that can help you take the next step forward in your faith journey.

You can also purchase my new book on Amazon today: Living Perfectly Loved: A Christian’s 12-Step Journey to Freedom from the Grip of Anxiety and Fear

Find me on my Facebook Page @kellyannsnyderauthor and on my Facebook profile @kellyannsnyderofficial, as well as on my Instagram account @kellyannsnyderofficial. I look forward to connecting with you soon!

EPISODE RESOURCES: A Guide to Taking Captive Every Thought: Replacing Worn-Out Lies with God’s Truth (FREE PDF Download)

DISCLAIMER: The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any condition or disease. This podcast is not a substitute for consultation with a licensed practitioner. Please consult with your physician or healthcare specialist regarding the suggestions and recommendations made in this podcast. The podcast host makes no guarantees concerning the level of success you may experience by following the advice and strategies she has offered, and you accept the risk that results will differ for each individual. The use of this podcast implies your acceptance of this disclaimer.

For additional help or resources, I recommend you consider reaching out to a professional Christian counselor or a pastor at a church for guidance in your next steps.

Episode Transcript

Kelly Ann Snyder (00:02):
I'm Kelly Ann Snyder.
Welcome to Living PerfectlyLoved, the podcast created to
encourage, equip, and inspireyou to live free from fear and
full of joy, secure in God'sperfect love.
If you're longing to stand firmin Christ amidst the storms of
life with a faith deeply rootedin God's perfect love, stop

(00:25):
anxiety and fear from stealingyour joy and controlling your
life, shine brightly and lovefearlessly, confident in who God
uniquely created and called youto be, then this faith-inspiring
podcast, full of practical helpand spiritual tools, is for you.
You're listening to Season One,Episode Four,"Fear is a liar:

(00:47):
Take Captive Every Thought,"brought to you by Living
Perfectly Loved Ministries andmy new book, Living Perfectly

Loved (00:55):
A Christian's 12-Step Journey to Freedom from the Grip
of Anxiety and Fear.
For all recommended resources,products, and freebies discussed
in this episode, please see thenotes for this episode.
I'm happy to announce that ineach episode this season, I will
be sharing an excerpt from mybook containing each of the 12

(01:17):
steps the Lord used to deliverme from the grip of anxiety and
fear.
In this way, you'll be getting asneak peek into my book, Living
Perfectly Loved.
I'm so glad you've decided tojoin me.
Subscribe to my email list todayat kellyandsnyder.com and you
will be kept in the loop withall book and ministry-related

(01:38):
announcements I make, and beeligible to receive all free
resources I create and sharewith my subscribers.
Visit my website atkellyandsnyder.com to learn more
about Living Perfectly LovedMinistries, including direct
links to purchase my book andinformation that can help you
take the next step forward inyour faith journey.

(02:00):
If you haven't yet listened tomy podcast trailer, I'd like to
invite you to do so afterlistening to this episode.
All right, let's get started!The following is an excerpt from
Step Three of my book, LivingPerfectly Loved, titled,"Fear is

a liar (02:18):
Take Captive Every Thought"
kitchen counter and sink stackedhigh with last night's dirty
dishes.
Peeking into the dishwasher, Ibreathed the heavy sigh.
It was full of dirty dishes,too.
Quickly, I walked away to keepmyself from becoming irritated

(02:39):
by the mess, but there was noescaping my growing frustration.
In the family room, the couchwas piled high with wrinkly, but
clean laundry that had to besorted and put away.
I stared aghast, baffled by thesheer amount of clothing one
family could cycle through in aweek.

(02:59):
Having just gotten home after along day of work, I wasn't up
for cleaning.
What I needed was a place to sitdown and put my feet up for a
few minutes.
So I headed to the TV room,desperate for some respite from
the waiting chores.
Big mistake.
There were empty popcorn bowlsand soda cans left from last

(03:21):
night's family movie night.
Throw blankets were strewn aboutthe sectional, shoes littering
the floor, along with a couplecandy wrappers tucked between
seat cushions.
Why doesn't anyone pick up afterthemselves?
The day-to-day load of work andfamily responsibilities weighed
heavily on me.

(03:41):
It seemed there was never enoughtime to be present and simply
enjoy life.
I could feel the stress andoverwhelm starting to rise from
the pit of my stomach to grip mychest.
Hot with anger and resentment, Istormed to my bedroom to lie
down.
I hoped to shut out all thatdidn't bring peace and spark joy

(04:03):
when I closed my eyes, but itdidn't work.
I started to cry.
"I can't do this anymore."Destructive thought
patterns--such as I can't dothis anymore, a phrase I used to
tell myself regularly--attackourself worth.
They are abusive and oppressive,and they will attempt to destroy

(04:24):
our identity in Christ.
The next step after getting tothe root cause of your struggle
with anxiety and fear is takinga closer look at what current
thought patterns keep you frombreaking free from anxiety and
fear.
Fear is a liar! The truth is,you don't have to let your

(04:44):
thoughts take you captive.
To take captive means to takeprisoner or to enslave.
It's easy to get swept away byour thoughts and emotions and
become a prisoner of our ownminds.
But you are not a prisoner.
You have the power to takecaptive every thought to make it
obedient to Christ, 2Corinthians 10 verse 5.

(05:08):
But what does Scripture mean bytake captive?
How do we make our thoughtsobedient to Christ?
It means that we replacethoughts that don't agree with
the Word of God, who is JesusChrist, John one verse one, or
that contradict what He says tobe true in Scripture.

(05:29):
I caught myself saying,"I can'tdo this anymore" almost
daily--in response to strugglesat work, disagreements with my
husband, an overwhelming to- dolist, or the never ending pile
of dirty laundry and dishes.
One day, I stopped and askedmyself, is what I'm saying,
actually true?

(05:51):
Can I not keep working, cleaningthe house, and helping my
family?
Can I not work throughdisagreements with my husband?
Can I not ease up on my to-dolist and set more realistic
goals for myself?
And most importantly, what doesGod's Word have to say about all
this?

(06:11):
I was starting to see hownegatively this one simple
phrase was impacting my outlookon life, my motivation for
getting things done, and mycommitment to my family.
After praying, reading my Bible,and learning the truth in
Scripture, God revealed to methat the thought I can't do this
anymore was it actually a lie Iwas telling myself.

(06:34):
The truth, according to God'sWord, was that I can do all
things through Him, Christ, whostrengthens me, Philippians 4
verse 13.
It suddenly hit me that this lieI was believing was holding me
back.
It kept me feeling defeatedrather than seeing myself as a

(06:56):
conquer in Christ.
So right then and there, I madea decision.
Instead of allowing that thoughtto continue deceiving me into
believing something untrue aboutmyself or about what God could
do in through me, I wouldreplace it with the truth found
in God's Word.
Now whenever that old lie triesto creep back into my mind, I

(07:19):
take it captive and make itobedient to Christ.
While this is just one exampleof how I started taking captive
my thoughts and making them aobedient to Christ, I use it to

illustrate a point (07:31):
God cares a lot about your thought life.
Negative thoughts can lead tomaking false assumptions about
ourselves, others, and God.
They lead to drawing falseconclusions about our
circumstances.
In choosing to believe our ownthoughts and assumptions, as

(07:51):
well as the lies the enemywhispers in our ear over the
truth of God's Word, what we'rereally saying is we don't
believe God's Word to be true.
If I say I can't and God's Wordsays I can, then I'm acting as
if God is a liar! Yikes! Ifaccording to Scripture,"A good

(08:12):
man brings good things out ofthe good stored up in him, and
an evil man brings evil thingsout of the evil stored up in
him," Matthew 12 verse 35, weneed to be sure that we are
filling our minds with andmeditating on truths that
reflect God's goodness andholiness.

(08:33):
Whether we like it or not, goodor bad, what's inside of us will
spill out onto others.
My prayer is that what comes outof us may serve to benefit those
around us and glorify God.
We have a choice--to believe ourown thoughts and feelings, or to
believe God's Word.

(08:54):
Friend, this is where your faithwill be put to the test.
Do you really believe what yousay you believe?
Have you let Scripture penetratedeep down into the recesses of
your heart and mind and becomedeeply rooted?
Will you trust God with yourlife?
Proverbs 3 verses 5 through 6instructs us,"Trust in the Lord

(09:19):
with all your heart and lean onyour own understanding; in all
your ways submit to him and hewill make your path straight."
The Lord will not lead youastray.
You can trust Him.
However you must learn to fullyreceive God's Word as truth if
you want to grow in faith.

(09:39):
If anxiety and fear have a gripon you, then somewhere along the
way you've allowed fearfulthoughts and feelings to take
control of your mind rather thanGod's truth.
The good news is you can regaincontrol of your mind.
2 Timothy chapter 1 verse 7says,"For God gave us a spirit

(10:01):
not of fear but of power andlove and self-control." If you
sense that you are makingdecisions based on what a spirit
of fear is whispering instead ofwhat God's Word has told you is
true, please do not let thisshame you in any way.
Rather, let it shine a light onthe dark places in your heart

(10:23):
and mind yet to be surrenderedto the Lord.
Let it open your eyes to theschemes the enemy has devised to
keep you from the freedom andfullness of life promised you in
Christ Jesus.
We are not subject to our ownthoughts because"we have the
mind of Christ," 1 Corinthians 2verse 16.

(10:45):
With the sword of the spirit,which is God's Word, Ephesians 6
verse 17--and the power of theHoly Spirit within us-- we can
overcome every lie that theenemy would use to tear us
apart.
If possible, stop and pray rightnow asking the Lord to show you
at least one Bible verses weekthat you can use to break free

(11:09):
from a lie you've beenbelieving.
Once God shows you the verse,make it your go-to verse
whenever that lie tries to creepback into your mind and you are
tempted to believe it.
Consider framing Scripture andhanging it up in your home.
You can keep a small notebook ofScripture in your pocket or
purse.

(11:30):
Make a point to memorizeScripture and declare it out
loud whenever you feeloverwhelmed by anxiety and fear.
This is your best offenseagainst the attacks of the
devil.
The Word of God is your sword inhand with which to pierce the
enemy's lies.
It's a source of light in a darkmoment.

(11:50):
Keep Scripture close at hand,maybe in your purse, back
pocket, or cell phone.
Use it as a weapon in your fightfor freedom.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, I confess it'soften hard to distinguish my
thoughts from Your thoughts andthe lies of the enemy from the
truth of Your Word.

(12:12):
Lord, make Your Word my onlytruth.
Began revealing Your Word to mein greater measure.
Help me to recognize Your voice.
Grow in me a desire to seek Youin Your Word, and through Your
Word, give me the wisdom andpower to overcome my every fear.
In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

(12:35):
Thanks for listening to thisepisode of the Living Perfectly
Loved podcast.
While it's true that God is loveand we are perfectly loved by
Him, we all struggle at times tolive like this true.
While we should strive to growin Christ likeness, we can rest
in knowing God loves us becauseof who He is, not because of who

(12:57):
we are or anything we could everdo for Him.
In Jesus Christ, we are enough!Remember, you don't have to be
perfect to live perfectly loved.
You have always been and willalways be a completely forgiven,
fully accepted, deeply loved,daughter the King.

(13:17):
Beautiful friend, His grace isfor you.
Please subscribe to my podcastnow and stay tuned for another
episode of Living PerfectlyLoved.
May the Lord bless you and keepyou.
May He shine His face on you andbe gracious to you.
May He turn His face toward youand give you peace, in Jesus'

(13:40):
name.