Double Minded
For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
James 1:7-8
Life is choices and we make approximately 3500 choices each day; every thought, word, and action is a choice. A Christian is given the ability by God to control their thoughts, words, and actions; but they are still our choice. Do you find yourself making Godly choices and too often making self-centered choices? We are in a war between two gods, the true God the creator of all things, and the god known as self. If we are double-minded then we have settled for worshipping both gods.
If we are double-minded with a divided heart, then we are basically trying to walk spiritually with God and at the same time walk in our worldly nature. A double-minded person can be considered as someone who is deliberately hanging on to a sinful behavior, or it can be someone that has justified a behavior and unaware that it not pleasing to God.
How does God view a person with a divided heart? The first commandment states; Thou shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3) When we have a divided heart we have two gods, the true God and self, and anything that takes priority over the true God is a worldly god. If we have accepted worshipping two gods we have broken the first commandment, can we really expect God to be active in our life and answer our prayers? James tells us that a double-minded person is “unstable in all they do, and “not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord.”
As long as we are living in this fallen world we will fight the spiritual war between these two gods. In our hearts and minds we desire to worship only the true God, but due to our sinful nature we sometimes make self-centered choices. When we make a choice that is not pleasing to the Lord we have Godly sorrow, we ask the Lord to forgive us, and we pray for his divine power to overcome. This is pleasing to God because he knows we are in a spiritual war, and the more we fight this war with his power, the more his love and divine power leads us to victory.
We keep from being double-minded by surrendering all to the Lord and trusting him completely. Unfortunately we cannot do this perfectly, but we fight this war through the power of God, and we can experience victory. We are sensitive to our conscious through the Holy Spirit and we capture the thought and win the battle before the temptation gets to strong. In all these things, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. (Romans 8:37)
Today refuse to be double-minded by living for Christ and making Godly choices. When Satan’s temptations are leading you to ungodly choices, in thought, word, or deed; capture and kill the thought, fight the spiritual war and celebrate your victory with praise and thankfulness. Experience the thrill of victory, the victory over Satan. You have the power of God through the Spirit. Everyone born of God overcomes the world. (1 John 5:4)
Prayer: Lord, keep me from being double-minded from having a divided heart. Teach me each day to fully surrender my heart to you so I can be filled with your love, peace, and joy and walk in victory over Satan through your power. Keep me in the Spirit and ready to overcome the world, to overcome Satan. In Jesus name, Amen