Get Victory Over “Vain Imaginings” and “Evil Forebodings”
There will always be trouble in the world, that much you are assured. Paul told Timothy that, “…in the last days there will come times of difficulty.” (2 Timothy 3:1) Jesus Christ, said, “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) But when you’re struggling with a spirit of fear and evil forebodings or your mind is trapped by vain imaginations, you need a supernatural strategy for victory!
Everyone experiences seasons of trouble, or a feeling of evil forebodings when bad things happen, and trials and tribulations in the fallen world. There will always be “wars and rumors of wars” of every kind and the fear tries to come in. (Matt. 24:6) Economies. Your health. Your family. Education systems. Careers. Finances. Relationships. Death. Pandemics.
Many people experience fear, anxiety, panic, evil forebodings, and depression not about what is happening, but about what might happen. That is an important distinction! What will happen? Only God knows – and you don’t! Satan doesn’t know either!
What is Evil Foreboding? Fantasy + Fear
Evil forebodings or a foreboding spirit are demonically inspired thoughts filled with fear. Vain imaginations are the realities that you create in your own mind from a place of fear or panic. Doctors, presidents, scientists, news reporters, prophets, pastors and experts of every kind are all fallible human beings, mistake-prone and definitely not Omniscient.
Only God knows what will happen and He promised His Holy Spirit would tell you what you need to know, when you need to know it about what’s coming next (John 16:13) so control your mind to stay away from vain imaginations. They’ll take you down to a place where the enemy can get a grip on your mind.
Remember this from Philippians 4:5-8:
- The Lord is at hand.
- Don’t let yourself become anxious
- Pray about everything
- Give thanks to the Lord
- Refocus your mind onto things that are of the Truth of God’s Word, honest, just, pure, lovely, things that bring good news, virtuous things and things for which you can praise the Lord
Evil forebodings are fear-centered and are part of Satan’s strategy to keep your mind trapped and controlled by him. Stay close to the Lord and abide in the spiritual protection of worship.
John said that, “…there is no fear in love,” and he also said that, “GOD is love”. (1 John 4:17-21) God doesn’t bring love or create love. He IS love. When evil forebodings or fear comes upon you,run to the Lord! The opposite of fear isn’t courage. It’s love. The opposite of love isn’t hate. It’s fear.
The fear of the unknown is part of Satan’s strategy to terrify you, but Jesus is not Lord over the realities you create with your mind’s “What if” scenarios. Those are “vain imaginations” and you must cast them down. God is Lord over the realities that He creates – His plans, His paths and His own purposes. When you allow your mind to wander into “What if”, you drift away from the light and go into the darkness. God isn’t there! (1 John 1:15)
Confront Evil Forebodings and Get a Grip on God’s Reality
When you try to guess what the future holds in any particular situation so you can know what to expect, you’re in a vain imagination. Then, you’ll experience turmoil and fear because you’re creating a future that God didn’t create. Remember this, when fear comes upon you: YOU DO NOT KNOW THE FUTURE… AND NEITHER DOES SATAN.
When you’re struggling with a sense of doom, or evil forebodings, or the fear of the unknown, focus on what you do know about God. You will find that in His Word (Hebrews 4:12). You are blessed by God beyond any curses of the world and His power is ultimate over all others.
The world will always be filled with plenty of bad things, but you worship a GOOD God! Worship will help keep your spirit strong so you can cast down vain imaginations of your fleshly mind. Issues with fear, anxiety, depression and panic that try to come upon you all can be directly traced back to “vain imaginings” and a sense of “evil forebodings” which are nothing more than lies from Satan.
When you’re struggling with a sense of doom, or evil forebodings, or the fear of the unknown, focus on what you DO know about God.
~Alicia Purdy
Your enemy is trying to tempt you, to drag you away from the light and into his darkness, into worlds that you create in your own mind under his influence, apart from the future and hope God has planned.
- In the Amplified Bible, Proverbs 15:15 says, “All the days of the desponding and afflicted are made evil [by anxious thoughts and forebodings], but he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of circumstances].”
- The Living Bible puts it this way: “When a man is gloomy, everything seems to go wrong; when he is cheerful, everything seems right!”
Only God knows the future and when you try to imagine it, or even “plan” for it, you experience a future without God in control because you created something apart from God’s perfect plan.
The worst part? Vain imaginations are all in your head! But once you believe them, your enemy becomes the god who reigns over that false state of existence. You may need to call in for spiritual backup in casting down vain imaginations is getting the best of you. Share your struggle with a more mature believer. The Lord’s Army are people of victory and they’ll support you in this battle!
Take authority, in the name of Jesus and cast down those vain imaginations. Fight evil forebodings with the truth of God’s Word. Cast those powers down from their high places. Take control over your thoughts and be very protective about keeping your mind and spirit strong through worship, the Word of God and the power of prayer.
Thought for today: Strength for Today, Bright Hope for Tomorrow
Paul wrote: “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds…” (2 Corinthians 10:5)
While the rest of the world is searching for goodness, light and hope – you have it! You must build yourself up in your faith and use your authority in Jesus’ name to cast down “every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5
Stop looking for predictions and forecast models. Stop listening to the world’s interpretations of the events. Stop reading about death and darkness. Remember what Jude wrote when he said, “But you, beloved, build yourselves up in your most holy faith. Pray in the Holy Spirit…“ (Jude 1:19-20)
In addition to the strength and support of another believer, you’ve also been given the weapons you need to fight with. A cord of three strands is not easily broken:
- The wisdom of the Word of God
- The power of prayer in the Holy Spirit
- The supernatural weapon of God’s presence through praise and worship
You are not defenseless in any battle you’ll ever face, but the enemy traffics openly in the terrors and nightmares of “what if” so stay out of his territory and plant yourself in the light!
Build Up Your Faith in the Lord and Confront Fear with the Power of God, who is LOVE
“The Right Hand of the Lord Has Unlimited, Unmatched Power”
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