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Kyle Winkler

Kyle Winkler is the creator of the popular Shut Up, Devil! mobile app. His newest book, Shut Up, Devil: Silencing the 10 Lies behind Every Battle You Face, is available wherever books are sold. Kyle holds a Master of Divinity in biblical studies from Regent University.

sin and struggle
Faith

Andrew Farley On The Only Power To Overcome Sin, Struggle And Addictions

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

We boast about amazing grace when it comes to our salvation. But when it comes to addressing the sins and struggles that arise as we live our faith, people often turn to various means of performance. That usually comes down to more Bible memorization, more prayer, more fasting or more adherence to a set of rules.

The problem is, as the apostle Paul revealed, disciplines and rule keeping “provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires” (Colossians 2:21–22). In fact, he warned that those kinds of things tend to only empower sin more (1 Corinthians 15:56).

The Answer to Holy Living

So what’s the answer to holy living? It’s grace. The same grace that saved you is what maintains and empowers you. Of course, that includes forgiveness of sin. But grace isn’t only forgiveness. It is also the truth of who you are and what you have because of Christ. That’s the part of grace that is especially helpful when it comes to dealing with sin, struggles and addictions.

To beat vices like lust, lies, and anger, Paul instructed, “Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:24).

Many mistake “put on” as some kind of ritual of behavior modification. But it isn’t. “Put on” means to accept that you have a certain quality or character. Accordingly, when you forget the lie that you are a horrible sinner and accept that you are forgiven, clean and new in Christ, you will behave better naturally.

The Most Powerful Message

How does that work? I recently invited Dr. Andrew Farley onto my podcast to discuss this with me. He is one of today’s great minds on grace. In this revealing interview, Dr. Farley explains why the grace message is the most “high-octane” message, and the only one with the power to put sin in its place, once and for all.

Is what you’re doing not working? Why not give grace a try? Tune in to discover how. …

The Power of Grace to Overcome Sin | Andrew Farley & Kyle Winkler

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How To Experience Instant Freedom From Sin

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

The enemy’s attacks on an unbeliever are very different from his attacks on a believer.

In the lives of people who have not put their trust in the saving work of Christ, the devil’s goal is to keep them from doing so. Ultimately, he wants to keep people eternally separated from their Creator. This is what the Bible describes as the power of sin (see Isaiah 59:2; Romans 6:23).

We can probably recognize the devil’s work to keep us separated from God from our own lives before salvation. If we do not recognize it in our own past, we surely see his schemes being attempted on some of our loved ones.

He works culturally through various worldly philosophies and theories to veil the reality of God so that people equate all things to some meaningless accident of nature. He works personally through abuse, trauma, disaster, disease, sickness and every other fallen thing to skew the character of God so that people will not consider a god who would allow such pain. He also targets people through addictions and other vices. His goal is to consume their focus before they have an opportunity to hear the Good News.

In the life of a Christian, however, these attacks do not have the same result. That is because the moment we believed in Jesus, “our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ” (Romans 6:6). Yes, belief in Christ broke the power of sin instantly. Christians are free from it (see Romans 6:7-10).

“But What If I Still Sin?”

As exciting as this sounds, the idea that the power of sin is broken is where many believers get hung up. Because they still struggle with sin, they begin to question if they were ever really a Christian. They say, “But I still sin, I still struggle and I still feel. I guess the power of sin isn’t broken for me. I guess I’m not really a Christian.”

This is a lie! The enemy can only use sin to make us question our status before God. But because of our new identity in Christ, sin can no longer actually separate us from Him. That is why Paul boasted, “[Nothing] will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).

Please understand that the Bible does not assure that a Christian will never sin or struggle. Even the apostle John warned that those who claim to be without sin are only deceiving themselves (see 1 John 1:8). Do not fall for the enemy’s sleight of hand to link what you do with who you are. As a Christian, the Bible assures that though you inevitably still fall and fail, these failures no longer define you. This is freedom from the power of sin.

No Longer a “Sinner”

The incomprehensible meaning of this is that though you may still sin, you are no longer identified as a sinner. After all, Christ “re-gened” you with His identity! Ongoing victory in your life hinges on renewing your mind to this truth. This is precisely why the apostle Paul encouraged, “So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11).

Notice, Paul did not urge us to try to be dead to sin, as if it is something still to be done. No, he said to consider, which means to “think about carefully.” In other words, renew your mind to the truth that your missteps, mistakes, flaws, failures and shortcomings do not change your status before God.

Ongoing Victory Over Sin

With all that said, this does not mean that you should not desire or pursue growth in your life. It does not mean you should settle in the place you are today. Or that God does not care about whether or not you stop sinning. You should, of course, want to be freed from the entanglements and trappings that hurt you, hurt others or draw your focus away from God. Your heavenly Father intimately cares about what you do because He wants the absolute best for your life.

Unquestionably, sin and struggle are not part of God’s best for you. Perhaps the same ole, same ole is getting old to you. Trust me, I get it! But as I explore in my book, Shut Up, Devil: Silencing the 10 Lies behind Every Battle You Face, nothing physical, emotional or spiritual will change in your life until you start believing correctly.

I once heard the late preacher, Adrian Rogers, say, “The me I see is the me I’ll be.” That is what I found in my life. All the effort from all the years of trying to change things about me never worked to change me. Therefore, I continued to produce rotten fruit from the rotten root of how I saw myself. But when I understood the reality of my new, righteous identity in Christ and saw myself accordingly, the real transformation began to happen from the inside out.

Think of it this way: right believing influences right behaving, which results in right living. Too many of us battle because we have that the other way around.

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The Truths About Your Struggles The Devil Doesn’t Want You To Know

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

It’s a question I frequently hear. It’s one I’ve asked. And maybe it’s one you’ve asked, too. It’s, “God, why did You give this to me?” This can be any number of issues from emotional or psychological struggles, to symptoms or sicknesses, disabilities or disasters. When we struggle for so long, the tendency is to eventually blame God, which is exactly what the enemy wants.

The devil’s goal with a question like this is to take himself out of the limelight in order to make God seem to be the author of all evil. He does this to erode your confidence in God’s goodness, and ultimately, your relationship and intimacy with Him. If the enemy can influence you to believe your struggles mean that God isn’t good, He’s mad at you, or He unfairly selected you to suffer, then you’ll naturally hold yourself at a distance from the Father.

The Truth About Your Struggles

The truth about your struggle is that God didn’t set it in motion; He’s upset about it, too. It’s definitely not what He wants for you, but is a result of something gone wrong.

As I illustrate in my book, Activating the Power of God’s Word, if you pass by a junk yard filled with wrecked vehicles, you’d never ask, “Why did the manufacturer create the vehicle in that condition?” No, it’s obvious something happened that put the vehicle in that state.

It’s the same with creation.

The Bible teaches the fall of humankind at the beginning brought disease, destruction, and death into what God originally created as perfect. In other words, what we see today is not what God intended, but the results of a reckless driver named Satan and a visual impairment called sin.

Accordingly, the issues you and I face today—whether biological, psychological, or the product of environment—are each one of many aspects of life that aren’t the way they’re supposed to be. These aren’t necessarily because of any choice of your own, and definitely not because God is picking on you, but because of a fallen creation.

How God Uses Your Pain

In whatever you face today, God wants to assure you that He loves you and He’s in this with you. He promises to never leave you nor forsake you, and to provide you strength in this weakness.

Whatever your pain, struggle, disability or trial, know that while God didn’t give it to you, He will use it to make you stronger, to build your character, and to demonstrate His power. Even though you didn’t choose it, you do have a choice to make. Determine nothing will make you a victim, but you’ll use whatever it is to make the devil regret the day he ever messed with you.

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ArticlesFaith

Joyce Meyer’s Daughter: “I Tried Until I Almost Died!”

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

Growing up as the daughter of Dave and Joyce Meyer, Sandra McCollom knew about God’s goodness and unconditional love. “At eight years old, I remember sitting on the floor as my mom shared her faith with me. That’s when I received Jesus as my Lord and Savior,” she recalls. “I was always taught that God is not mad at me. I had a wonderful upbringing!”

Sandra’s Battle with Anxiety and Perfectionism

Still, as Sandra grew older, her natural personality and personal experiences influenced her to live her faith in a way her parents would never have encouraged. “I developed a wrong view of God and the way He felt about me,” she explains. “I saw Him as someone standing over me, ready to beat me over the head every time I made a mistake.” Sandra describes that the first three decades of her faith were all about completing checklists to obtain personal value and trying to uphold a rigid set of requirements to keep God happy.

Until she realized that nobody was happy! She admits, “My husband and twin daughters never knew what mood to expect from me. Nor could they live up to my impossible expectations. And I couldn’t live up to my own expectations, either.”

Finally, after years of trying harder didn’t work, she almost gave up on the faith. In the last week of 2011, Sandra remembers praying, “I can’t do this anymore, God! I can’t live the Christian life. I need serious help.” She had no idea God would respond so quickly.

Sandra’s Love Encounter with God

Only a week later—on January 2, 2012 at 5:30am—while routinely working through a devotional, Sandra asked yet again, “Father, is there anything else You would like me to accomplish for You this year?” God’s answer came in what she describes as a “tidal wave of love.” And she’s never been the same since. In her words, “For more than a decade now, I have lived in peace, rest and relaxation like never before.”

Sandra has since written a book about her experience. It’s fittingly titled, I Tried Until I Almost Died. Tune in below to hear her inspirational story and how you can experience long-lasting freedom, too.

Joyce Meyer’s Daughter, Sandra McCollom, Shares Her Story

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attack of the enemy
Faith

This Is All You Need To Know About The Enemy

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

Thoughts of encountering a lion in the wild are enough to induce paralyzing fear into most of us. Yet those most familiar with the lion’s ways, like its peers in the animal kingdom, know that behind a lion’s ferocious exterior is good reason not to be so afraid.

That’s because a lion has a relatively small heart and lungs in relation to the rest of its body. This makes it one of the slowest runners in the animal kingdom, which affects how it hunts. Since it’s likely to outrun it, the lion doesn’t chase down its prey, it stalks it.

Stay Alert!

Why am I exploring the predatory behavior of a lion? Because according to the apostle Peter, understanding how a lion hunts is crucial to knowing how to shut down the devil’s attacks. Writing to battle-weary Christians, he warned, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8, NLT).

Today, most of us only know lions from what we see in captivity. That’s why modern readers miss much of the meaning of Peter’s analogy. But not in Peter’s day. Back then wild lions still roamed parts of the Middle East. To them, a lion wasn’t a rare or even somewhat mythical creature—it was a very real threat they needed to be aware of—just like the devil.

The Roar

Following Peter’s warning to stay alert, he gives the first clue about what the enemy does. It’s in his name, “devil.” As I detail in my book, Shut Up, Devil (from which this article is adapted), the name “devil” in Greek means “slanderer.”

Surely, you’ve heard of “slander.” It means, “The action or crime of making a false statement damaging to a person’s reputation.” To slander someone isn’t only to tell a lie to someone, but about someone for the purpose of hurting them. The statement alone is enough to cause damage, regardless of whether it’s true. The devil knows this better than anyone.

This is why Peter compares the enemy to a “roaring lion.” Wildlife experts contend that most of a lion’s roars are mock roars that are meant only to intimidate its victim. Beyond its volume, however, the roar itself has little substance.

It’s the same with the enemy’s slander. The devil is always shouting about your faults, failures and inadequacies. While his accusations may be nagging thoughts that only you can hear, they can reverberate like roars in your mind until you cower to them.

Yet like a lion’s roars, you need to know that the devil’s words have no merit either. That’s because as a Christian, you are a new person in Christ who is defined by His character (2 Corinthians 5:17). This means that even if an accusation contains some truth about something you did in the past, it has no bearing on who you are today. Because God calls you new!

The Attack Of The Enemy

As I mentioned earlier, a lion’s small heart and lungs relative to its body size means it can’t chase down its prey the moment it sees it. Instead, it observes its weaknesses to determine the right time to attack. Armed with this information, when the time is right, the lion hurls itself in the air, aiming for the head … then for the mouth. Its victim dies by suffocation.

Are the parallels between the behavior of a lion and the devil firing off in your mind yet? It’s so rich! Once the enemy determines his plan of attack, he launches after your head, or at least, what’s in it—your mind.

Since the mind is the control center for our lives, this is an extremely effective strategy. If not countered, the enemy knows that a single negative notion dropped into your head works its way down from there.

The second stop is your mouth. Not literally, but spiritually. In the Bible, the mouth symbolizes your words, which represent your beliefs about yourself. As Jesus said, “What you say flows from what is in your heart” (Luke 6:45).

You must understand that the enemy does not attack merely for the fun of it. Torment or pain and grief are not enough for him. No, the devil wants to get to the heart of you. He wants you to question everything God says about you so that you do not believe it. His intention is to paralyze you with toxic emotions and behaviors that result from agreeing with his slander.

Fear Not

At this point, I hope the exploration of the enemy acting like a lion has not frightened you. Peter did not make this analogy to spark fear, but to teach us how to shut down the devil’s schemes in our lives.

As I explore in my book, Shut Up Devil: Silencing the 10 Lies Behind Every Battle You Face, though you might not be able to keep the enemy from prowling or roaring, you can keep him from getting into your mind, and therefore, out of your emotions and behaviors.

Begin by intentionally thinking and speaking a truth based on God’s Word. Here’s a great one for starters: “I am not defined by my past regrets, present struggles, flaws or failures, but I am defined by the identity of Christ.”

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ArticlesFaith

Use These 3 Types Of Words To Win Any Spiritual Battle

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

Most names in Scripture are less of a name and more of a job description. Those that describe the enemy are no exception. “Satan,” “devil” and “accuser” not only reveal who he is, but they also describe what he does. And that’s good news for us. Because by implication, the enemy’s names reveal the strategic ways to counter what he does in spiritual battle.

The Identities Of The Enemy

Most people know the enemy’s prominent Old Testament name, “Satan.” After all, the Bible references it 52 times. “Satan” is the Hebrew word for “adversary,” which defines him as one who not only opposes God but also God’s people.

Nearly tied in recognition with “Satan” is the enemy’s New Testament name, “Devil.” “Devil” is a Greek word that means “slanderer.” As you probably know, to slander is to destroy someone’s reputation with lies. That fittingly details how he works against Christians.

The third common name for the enemy comes from the specific ways he opposes and slanders. It’s, “the accuser.” In the final book of the Bible, the apostle John uncovers how the enemy works in this role: “For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God” (Revelation 12:10, ESV).

The Means Of Our Victory

Though the enemy works against us in various ways, the Bible describes a single, simple way to instantly kick him out of our lives. Just after John characterizes him as “the accuser,” he explains that the way to counter his wiles is with words: “And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11, ESV).

Discovering that words have Satan-silencing power shouldn’t be much of a surprise to Christians. As I detail in my Win With Words series, the Bible frequently teaches that words are vehicles of success and transformation for many areas of life. With words, God spoke the creation into existence (see Genesis 1). Words play a vital part in the process of salvation (see Romans 10:9). Words are what Jesus used to resist the devil (see Matthew 4). And as we’ve just seen from Revelation, words are what we may use to resist him, too.

The 3 Kinds Of Words That Win

The right words spoken in the right moment can change everything in the moment. But in spiritual warfare, I must stress that we use words only to defeat the enemy’s attacks, not the enemy himself. That’s because Jesus already defeated him on the cross (see Colossians 2:15). Nothing we do or say can accomplish what Jesus did once and for all by His blood. Our words work only because they assert Christ’s victory over the enemy’s attacks of opposition, slander, and accusation.

With that said, let’s now get strategic about what to say in these moments of attack.

Word #1: The Word Of Your Testimony

“Look what you’ve done! You are guilty!” That’s usually the start of how the enemy’s accusations begin. As “the accuser,” he whispers reminders of past sins and present struggles to insist that you should be punished by God. His hope is that you’ll fixate on the truth of what you did do or do battle, and therefore forget the greater truth of Jesus’s sin-forgiving, punishment-taking, judgment-ending bloodshed on the cross. The enemy knows that the notion that God is disappointed or mad is the greatest source of insecurity, fear, and many of our most toxic emotions. That’s why he works this angle so hard.

Believer, never allow the accuser to minimize the work of Christ in your life. The amount of evidence brought against you doesn’t matter. At the moment of your faith in Jesus, the righteous Judge threw out all evidence of your wrongdoing. That means that when the enemy comes accusin’, you may quickly send him packing with the word of your testimony. I like to say something like this: “The blood of Jesus means I am not guilty, but I am guilt free!”

Word #2: The Word Of God

Like an accusation, the enemy builds his slander on truth, which he couples with what he claims it means about you. It might sound like, “You failed back then, therefore you are horrible/unlovable/unusable today.”

Ultimately, the enemy hopes to damage your righteous reputation in Christ, even if only in your mind. That’s why the most effective counter to this attack is the truth of God’s Word related to who you are in Him. My favorite rebuke to the enemy’s slander is based on 2 Corinthians 5:21: “He who knew no sin became my sin so that I am right with God.”

Word #3: Words Of God’s Character

Finally, the obstacles the enemy often uses as “adversary” are physical attacks like sickness, disaster, and trauma. Though most people mistake that his goal with these is to cause pain, his goal is more harmful than that. The enemy uses physical attacks to convince people to distrust God.

We hear it all the time in culture. Unbelievers often say that they refuse to believe in a god who allows such tragedy in the world. But this tactic of blaming God for every problem doesn’t work only on unbelievers. Over time, the enemy coerces many believers into a distant relationship with God because of what they experience.

While physical attacks are certainly challenging, they don’t mean that God is out to get you. To ensure that what you endure doesn’t get between you and God, keep the truth about God’s character on your mouth. I’ve found that nothing repels the adversary more than the short proclamation, “God is good!”

A Final Word

Friend, please know that whatever you face—whether accusation, slander, or opposition—these are only the desperate attempts of an enemy who is defeated. Nothing he does—no matter how real it feels—can really destroy you. The cross killed his power (see Colossians 2:14–15). Therefore, you need not waste any more effort on the enemy than what it takes to use God’s Word to say, “Shut up, devil!”

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Does God Really Give The Desires Of Your Heart?

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

A spouse. A sports car. A house on the beach. A multi-million-dollar salary. What do these have in common? They are all wants I’ve heard fellow Christians contend God will provide because “He gives the desires of your heart.”

God’s promise here, found in Psalm 37:4, is an encouraging one. Yet far too many who stand on it for desires like the aforementioned remain in waiting. Consider the lifelong single man or woman who has craved companionship and intimacy for what seems like forever, yet still remains single. What do we make of this promise in his or her case? Will God come through, even in the midnight hour, to deliver a spouse? He might, but not because of their yearning.

Hear me out. I’m a Bible-promise guy. My book, Activating the Power of God’s Word, is all about declaring His promises over your life. But we must understand that doing so is not some magic solution to get all our wishes granted. Rather, we declare God’s promises to get our lives and wills into alignment with His truths.

The Real Truth

Here’s the real truth about Psalm 37:4 that you can count on.

Like almost all promises in God’s Word, this one too begins with a conditional statement: “Take delight in the Lord,” David instructs. In his next breath, he reveals the result of such delight: “and He will give you the desires of your heart.”

The first clue to understanding God’s intention is “delight.” It means, “satisfaction,” which itself is fully defined as “fulfillment of one’s wishes, expectations or needs.” In other words, the scripture says to find the fulfillment of your desires in the Lord—the person of God, made up of His characteristics of goodness, love, faithfulness and so on.

The second clue is “heart.” To be sure, it doesn’t mean feelings or fixations. No, in Hebrew, “heart” is the entirety of a person.

Put together, these clues reveal a depth to this promise, which far surpasses merely receiving everything you want. It’s this: when you fully find your satisfaction in who God is, then who you are is transformed more and more into His image. Consequently, the desires of your heart are received because they are met in God Himself.

The Source of Your Satisfaction

What does this mean then for you who yearn for a spouse? A nicer home? Or more money? Certainly, make your requests known to God; He absolutely enjoys blessing His people. But once you do, be careful not to live with your contentment hinged to receiving any blessing. Instead, live with your satisfaction in the One who is all sufficient—who truly completes you, who is your shelter and hiding place, who is the source of your worth.

From today forward, stand on the promise that who you are is fulfilled in who He is.

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How to Partner with Angels to Bring God’s Promises to Life

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

The Bible promises that God’s spoken Word succeeds in what it’s intended to do (see Isa. 55:11). Of course, this means whatever God speaks happens. But it also means that God’s Word spoken out of the mouth of a child of God has the same power.

How Angels Enact God’s Word

As I explore in-depth in my book, Activating the Power of God’s Word, the way the Bible describes that this works is fascinating, and it involves the cooperation of two beings: humans and angels. Let me first tackle the role of the angels. The Bible proclaims, “Bless the Lord, O you His angels, you mighty ones who do His word, obeying the voice of His word” (Psalm 103:20). What the first part of this psalm reveals is that God has delegated authority to the angels to enact His Word.

Think about the voice activation of your modern smartphone assistant, like Siri or Google. When you speak, “Hey, Siri” the phone comes to life and awaits your command. Of course, I don’t intend to portray the angels as robots, but I imagine that they are “always on,” listening for God’s Word. And when they hear it, they go to work to help make it happen.

How You Give God’s Word a Voice

The second aspect of the psalm uncovers the second intriguing concept. Notice it describes the role of the angels as “obeying the voice of God’s Word.” But what does this mean? We know that the Bible is considered the Word of God. But if you hold your Bible up to your ear, it doesn’t audibly speak to you. That’s because the Bible does not have a voice unless we give it a voice. Yes, we­—Christians—are given God’s Word to speak. And when we speak it, it maintains God’s authority as if He has spoken it Himself. That’s because they are His Words, not ours.

Activate God’s Word

Think about the implications of all of this. When you speak a declaration of the scripture in Philippians 4:6, “I am not anxious for anything,” you give voice to God’s Word, activating the angels to bring peace that surpasses all understanding. Or when you declare 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation will overtake me,” the angels respond to it by providing a way of escape.

Remember: whether spoken directly from His mouth or spoken through you and me, God’s Word is sure to succeed. It never falters; it never fails. It will uphold you through anything you currently face and whatever the future brings. Angels are ready and waiting to ensure that it happens.

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4 Supernatural Defenses To Combat Attacks In The Night

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

Satan isn’t creative; he is predictable. He operates from a playbook of strategies, which he launches systematically on person after person. Don’t mistake predictability for stupidity. He’s certainly cunning and knows just when to attack. Many of his plays are set in motion—not when we’re alert and strong—but when our defenses are down. It’s no surprise, then, that one of the most popular questions I receive regarding spiritual warfare relates to how to combat torment in the night—persistent nightmares, sexual dreams, or even the presence of hovering figures.

Nighttime attacks in Scripture:

Satan’s work under the cloak of the night isn’t without Biblical precedent. To be certain, it’s what led to the near-destruction of Job. Allow me to elaborate. Job was considered by God to be, “Blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.” (Job 1:1) However, unbeknownst to Job, a wager was made in the heavens, instigated by Satan. The devil argued that if God’s blessings were removed, Job wouldn’t maintain his righteousness. God allowed the test.

Satan immediately went to work attacking Job’s character, stealing his property, children, and health. Eventually, when word of Job’s tribulations spread, his friends came to determine just what was going on. They remained quiet, for the most part, seeking to properly discern the situation. But, it all radically changed after an attack in the night.

In the midst of deep sleep, Job’s best friend, Eliphaz, reported, “A word came stealing to me.”(Job 4:12–13) It was an experience so intense, in fact, that he was overcome with dread and shaken to his core (See Job 4:14). Shortly after, Eliphaz felt a spirit glide across his face, causing his hair to bristle. When a form stood before him, he heard a voice:

“Can mortals be righteous before God? Can human beings be pure before their Maker?” (Job 4:15)

These were no innocent questions about humanity’s position compared to God. No, this spirit was planting impure thoughts to put into question the very declaration God had previously made about Job. That is, it questioned Job’s righteousness. And it worked. Eliphaz quickly broke his silence to indict Job for his own distress.

So many of us have experienced something similar—dread and trembling in the night that shakes our very cores. What should be a new day filled with God’s new mercies (See Lamentations 3:22), turns into a day of feeling dirty and defeated.

Your 4 defenses:

Thankfully, God never leaves anyone to be the devil’s doormat. Even in your sleep, you don’t have to be defenseless. Nighttime is a crucial time to trust in God’s power to combat the enemy on your behalf. I’ve learned four unfailing ways to do so—sure to end nighttime attacks for good.

1) Close open doors.

Yes, you may sleep more peacefully if you close—and lock!—your bedroom door. But that’s not what I’m talking about here. There may be spiritual doors left open in your life, welcoming the enemy in to attack. These often include lifestyle sins such as offense and un-forgiveness, occult practices, or sexual immorality. To close these doors, simply acknowledge the sin and thank God for His finished work on the cross that removed it. Then ask Him to manifest the power of the Cross in your life to sever the sin’s hold on you.

2) Plead Jesus’ blood.

Speaking of the accuser, John wrote that we overcome him “by the blood of the Lamb.”(Revelation 12:11) I’ve found that invoking the power of Jesus’ blood is especially critical to ending attacks in the night. Before you go to bed, speak aloud, “I cover myself in the blood of Jesus.” I believe this places a spiritual force field around you that the enemy can’t penetrate. The blood of Jesus freshly applied on you repels Satan with a reminder of his defeat at Christ’s Cross.

3) Ask God to surround you with leagues of angels.

Within God’s Heavenly hierarchy are hosts of angel armies that He charges to guard and protect us in everything that we do (See Psalm 91:11). Many find it particularly effective to pray aloud before retiring for bed, “God, I ask you to send leagues of angels to protect me as I sleep.” You probably won’t see them, but be assured that an angelic line of defense will report to duty to surround you in your slumber.

4) Meditate on God’s Word.

God gives us His Word as a weapon in spiritual warfare. In fact, God’s Word is the final piece Paul lists in the full armor of God (See Ephesians 6:17). To keep the enemy at bay, maintain a practice of running God’s Word through your mind and your mouth. Additionally, many find it helpful to saturate their environments with the Word by playing Scripture set to music. My Experience Freedom album (available on CD and iTunes) is a powerful resource for this. It guides you in speaking the Word over yourself, and is useful to set a peaceful environment while you work or sleep. One thing is certain: The father of lies has no power when the truth of the Father is present.

Sleep in Victory:

It’s easy to get into battle mode, believing that we must fight Satan in our own efforts. But God revealed to me that spiritual warfare isn’t about having a bloodbath with a devil that’s already been defeated. No, it’s about standing in the victory of the One who defeated him. And in this case, you can sleep soundly in victory by activating God’s defenses on your behalf: His cross, His blood, His angels and His Word.

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3 Surefire Steps to Beat the Devil’s Attacks Every Time

by Kyle Winkler
written by Kyle Winkler

The Bible uses many illustrations from everyday life to relate spiritual concepts. And one of the most revealing is Peter’s illustration of the devil like a lion. “Stay alert!” Peter warned. “Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

While writing my book, Activating the Power of God’s Word, I dissected this verse in depth and found that Peter’s comparison must be no coincidence.

Like a Roaring Lion

I discovered that a lion has a small heart and lungs compared to the size of its body. This means the lion has one of the least amounts of stamina in the animal kingdom, which affects how it hunts. Consequently, the lion can’t simply attack at the time it sees its prey, because if it did, its prey would likely outrun it. So instead, the lion prowls and studies to determine the most opportune time to attack. Finally, when the lion decides to go for the kill, it does so by jumping on its victim’s head in order to get to its mouth to suffocate it.

The spiritual parallels for how the devil attacks each of us can’t be missed. Like the lion, he learns our weaknesses to know how and when to attack. Then, when he’s ready, the devil goes for our heads—our minds—in order to get to our mouths to silence our voices and steal our testimonies.

3 Steps to Outwit Satan

But this doesn’t have to be the outcome. As I explore much further in my book, the way wildlife experts say we should face a potential attack by a lion in the wild reveals so much about how we deal with the devil today.

Step 1: Stay calm and think clearly

The first step the experts say to take when a lion begins to roar is to “Stay calm and think clearly.” Easier said than done, I’m sure! But spiritually speaking, when the devil looks ready to take you down, peace is found by running God’s truths through your mind.

Step 2: Appear like a threat

Secondly, when the lion threatens to charge, the experts say it’s time to open your mouth and shout—to appear like a threat. And it’s the same in our spiritual battles. When Satan assaults with accusations, open your mouth with declarations and praise about who God says that you are!

To get started, here are some powerful declarations sure to silence Satan:

  • I am a child of God (Galatians 3:26).
  • I am a new person (2 Corinthians 5:17).
  • I am the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).
  • I am loved unconditionally (Romans 8:38).
  • I am complete (Colossians 2:9–10).
  • I am God’s masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10).

Step 3: Stay standing

And finally, if the lion decides to jump, experts say not to run or cower, but to “stay standing” is your best line of defense. And that’s also what Peter said is our defense against the devil. “Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith,” he instructed (1 Peter 5:9).

So when you find yourself in a spiritual battle, stand in the truth of God’s promises no matter how the situation looks. Stand on who God says you are, no matter what others have said. Stand on the assurance that Christ’s victory is also your victory. When you stay standing, you’ll beat that devil down over time!

3 Surefire Steps to Beat Down the Devil

 

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