The Power of the Will
The first thing to understand is that nothing in the world is as strong as the human will. In fact, the human will is so powerful that even God does not control it. This might seem surprising, but having a will means having the ability to make choices for ourselves.
God has given each of us the gift of willpower, which plays a crucial role in shaping our destinies. Your will directs your life and serves as a way for God’s plans to unfold here on earth. When God created the world, He intended for us to use our wills to help carry out His intentions. The challenge is that your will is uniquely yours.
The will is both a remarkable and perilous gift. It’s remarkable because it gives us power similar to what God has — the ability to make impactful choices. However, it can also be dangerous since we can choose to go against what God desires for us. This is what makes willpower such a powerful thing.
God designed our wills to help fulfill His greater purposes, wanting us to align our choices with His will. However, this ability to choose also means we can decide to go in a different direction, even away from what the one who bestowed this gift wants. It’s essential to keep this idea in mind as we navigate our lives.
The Seat of the Will: Conscious and Subconscious Mind
We all have two parts to our mind: the conscious mind and the subconscious mind. Think of the conscious mind as the part that’s aware of what we’re thinking and doing right now. The subconscious mind is deeper and doesn’t always surface, but it’s incredibly powerful and plays a significant role in how we live our lives. You can consider your heart as a symbol of your subconscious mind, meaning it’s where our true thoughts and feelings reside.
When we repeatedly think about something — like a message or a habit — we initially process it with our conscious mind. This constant repetition causes the information to sink deeper into our subconscious mind. This is where things can get tricky. As long as information remains in our conscious mind, we can easily forget about it. However, once it’s embedded in our subconscious, it can influence our behaviors and choices without us even being aware of it.
There’s a famous saying that goes, “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” This emphasizes that who we truly are is shaped by what’s in our subconscious mind. Essentially, if someone can influence what goes into your subconscious, they can influence you.
The key to changing bad habits or negative thoughts lies in first addressing your conscious mind. If you keep feeding it positive or uplifting information through repetition, it will eventually make its way down into your subconscious. This is why many people struggle to break free from habits they’ve had for years; their subconscious is still running those old programs.
It’s important to be mindful of what we watch, read, or listen to. Just like a computer, our minds can get filled with unwanted information. If we constantly expose ourselves to negative or harmful content, that information becomes part of us and affects our behavior.
The Bible warns us to be careful of what we hear, because if we’re not cautious, harmful thoughts can settle in our subconscious. From there, they can influence our actions and emotions — it’s where all the important decisions in our lives come from.
So, how do we clean out all the negative stuff that’s settled in our subconscious? It can be a challenge, much like getting rid of viruses on a computer. Sometimes, you need a fresh start. In this case, that fresh start comes through spiritual renewal or transformation, often described as being “born again.”
To truly change and replace those negative thoughts, we need a new source of information — like the teachings found in the Word of God. By consistently filling our minds with positive, uplifting content, we can drown out the unwanted messages that have lingered for far too long. This process can lead to true change in how we think and live our lives.
The Battle for the Soul
he mind is at the heart of the soul. So, what exactly is the soul? Think of it as a combination of three parts: the mind, the will, and the emotions. These three elements together make up your soul. What is your soul? It’s your mind, your will, and your emotions — everything that makes you, you! Feelings, decision-making, and thoughts are all part of your soul, which is why it’s so crucial in our lives.
In life, there is a constant struggle for the soul of every person. The Bible even says that those who win souls are wise. Why is that? Well, it’s easy to win someone’s body or even their spirit; for instance, becoming spiritually reborn can happen almost instantly. But winning over a person’s soul is a much bigger challenge. My role as a teacher is to focus on your soul. I want to help you understand and nurture your soul. You might be present here seeking a connection with God, but transforming your soul takes time and effort.
This battle is significant; it affects not just you but also your family, community, and even your workplace. Your soul needs protection because there are forces out there trying to influence it. Remember, the soul is the first component of communication, created by God. Why? Because it acts as a bridge between your spirit and your body. While your spirit is not the issue, your soul often can be, since it determines what your spirit absorbs.
The devil knows that the key to influencing people lies in their souls — specifically, their mind, will, and emotions. Your soul connects your spirit to your body.
Now, here’s something to think about: your soul picks up information through your senses (like seeing, hearing, touching). Everything you perceive goes to your soul first before reaching your spirit. Therefore, it is essential to be cautious about what your soul is absorbing. That’s why Jesus advised being mindful of what you hear — what you pay attention to can significantly shape your life.
Your soul gathers input from the world around you, which then gets transferred to your spirit. Be careful about what your soul accepts, as it can influence your entire being.
In essence, understanding your soul and its role is fundamental to navigating life. It influences how you feel, think, and act. Always remember to guard your soul and nurture it positively.
Body, Soul & Spirit
Every day, you face a struggle within yourself — this involves your spirit, body, and soul. Your body gathers information from the world around you through your senses: what you see, hear, taste, touch, and feel. This information is then sent to your soul, which processes it and passes it on to your spirit.
When your spirit receives this information from the soul, it has to figure out what to do with it. If your spirit wants your body to take action, it communicates with the soul. Thus, the spirit gives instructions to the soul, which then tells the body what to do. Sometimes, however, the body doesn’t want to follow the spirit’s guidance, leading to a struggle.
This struggle can be described as a mental battle, a conflict within the soul. The spirit may identify certain information gathered from the body as harmful or wrong, but the soul points out that this is the only information the body has provided. Faith grows from what you hear, and hearing occurs through your body. The body receives messages, the soul processes them, and the spirit then reflects on these messages.
If your spirit is connected to a positive source, like the Spirit of God, it will recognize harmful information for what it is. The spirit will try to convince the soul that this information isn’t good and will urge the body to change its sources. However, the body may resist these instructions because it enjoys certain experiences, even if they are not right. The soul may find itself caught between the spirit and the body, leading to confusion and an internal battle.
This internal conflict can result in unhealthy habits and choices. The soul plays a crucial role in this relationship, as it has the power to accept or reject the information it receives. The soul can only guide the body based on what it receives from the spirit, and the spirit can only work with what the soul provides. This is why it’s important to focus on spiritual growth and not just give in to physical desires.
Ultimately, what you feed your soul is important. The soul nourishes the spirit while also influencing the body. Be mindful of what you listen to, watch, and experience, as these things can have lasting effects. Just like with unhealthy habits, if you expose your soul to harmful experiences, it can become difficult to break free.
To overcome negative habits, you need to replace them with positive ones. It’s about downloading new, uplifting information to support your growth. Remember, the path to true freedom lies in consciously shaping what influences your soul.
God’s Purpose in All This
What is God’s purpose in all this? First and foremost, it’s important to understand that humans consist of three parts: we are spirits living in bodies, and we have souls. Our spirit is who we truly are, while our bodies and souls are how we express ourselves in the world. Essentially, if someone has control over your soul, they influence your entire being. That’s the key point.
God’s original intention was to oversee the world in a way that comes from the spiritual realm, using our spirits, which exist beyond what we can see, while we live in our physical bodies here on Earth. In simpler terms, God intended to guide and govern the world through you, using your spirit that resides in your visible body. He wants His will, which is not visible, to manifest through your actions.
The soul serves as a bridge for God’s kingdom to operate here on Earth. It’s crucial to grasp this concept. God desires to influence the world through your soul. That’s why the Bible emphasizes the importance of your soul prospering; it states that your overall well-being is tied to how well your soul is doing. If your soul isn’t thriving, then aspects of your life won’t flourish either. If you don’t fill your mind and heart with the right information, you may harm your life.
The Kingdom of God is about the well-being of your soul. For God’s influence to reach the world, His principles must first take root in your heart. If the Kingdom of God can’t reach your soul, it won’t be reflected in the world around us. The change begins within; it starts in our hearts.
When Jesus began His ministry, His first message was to “repent,” which means to change your mind. This focus on changing the mind highlights the importance of the soul. If He can help you change your perspective, then God’s Kingdom can manifest in the world.
An essential point to consider is that there are two opposing forces at play: God and Satan are both after your soul. They wish to influence who you are at your core because whoever wins this battle for your soul will ultimately influence your actions and choices. Often, we get distracted by things that seem supernatural, missing the fact that the real battle is for our thoughts and feelings.
As I looked into Jesus’ teachings, I noticed how consistently He addressed our minds. He encouraged people to listen closely to His words because they hold spiritual wisdom that can transform lives. The challenge is that our minds, which encompass our thoughts, emotions, and decisions, are often where we face struggles.
Consider our emotions for a moment. When faced with difficult situations, it’s often our feelings that pull us back into unhealthy habits or relationships, even when we know they aren’t good for us. It could just take one tempting phone call for you to feel weak and return to a situation you’d rather leave behind. The internal battle intensifies, especially when you sense a warning inside urging you to stop, yet your emotions take over.
Recognizing these emotions is critical. The fight isn’t simply about spiritual practices; it requires us to take control over our choices, whether that means returning to a place of prayer or making healthier decisions for ourselves. We need to remind ourselves to stay focused and steady, as our emotions can be challenging to navigate.
The Power of Media
What is media? It’s often said that the soul is like a bridge that connects us to God. Let’s take a moment to understand what media really means. The term “media” comes from the word “medium,” which means something that stands between two things. It’s crucial for everyone, especially young people, to understand this concept.
Today, I’m discussing something very important that could impact our lives for years to come. There is a powerful influence on our souls that we may not fully realize. With so many TV channels and radio stations available, each one tries to capture your attention and influence your thoughts. This isn’t just entertainment; it can be a way to control how we think and feel.
When we talk about media, think of it as a middleman. It’s the medium through which messages and information travel from one source to us, the audience. For example, Jesus is described in the Bible as the mediator between God and people. This means there’s only one true way to connect with God — through Jesus Christ.
While many great leaders and figures have shared messages throughout history, according to the Bible, Jesus is the only mediator we need to connect with God. It’s important to recognize that if we rely on other sources, we might not get the true message we’re looking for.
When I travel and speak to audiences where different languages are spoken, there is usually an interpreter present between me and the crowd. I trust that this interpreter will accurately convey my words, but there is always a risk that the message could get lost or changed in translation. This makes the role of the interpreter incredibly important because they significantly influence how the audience receives the message.
In this scenario, the interpreter stands at the center, determining what people understand. So, as important as the speaker or the audience may be, the interpreter holds a crucial role in communication. It highlights just how impactful media can be in shaping our perceptions and beliefs.
When you turn on the radio, TV, or CD player, or even when you pick up a new book, you’re taking a leap of faith. You need to hope for something good to come out of it. This is especially true when it comes to understanding the Bible, as we often rely on outside sources to interpret it for us. It’s important to realize that the way information is delivered — a concept known as “media” — shapes how we receive and understand that message. The people who create the message may have their own intentions, but if the media misrepresents their ideas, then we might misunderstand them.
That’s why we can’t just let anyone share their messages with the world. There are so many channels out there broadcasting various perspectives. Take, for example, a popular artist like Eminem. He’s incredibly famous and attracts thousands of young fans at his concerts, where it almost feels like a worship experience. While people might be moved by his energy, we have to ask which values or themes they are actually embracing.
There’s a significant portion of our society that connects with what artists like him are communicating, and we need to ensure that the right messages are being shared. We should focus on examining the core message of any medium rather than just criticizing the medium itself. The media has the power to either confuse, clarify, distort, or protect the meaning of a message. It can either strengthen or undermine an idea.
The way the media presents information shapes what the audience understands and believes, which is why we need to pay attention to the messages coming into our homes. Consider shows like “My Two Dads” or “Will & Grace.” These programs communicate themes that might challenge traditional views, and if children are watching these shows without any context, they might be misled.
To counter this, we should provide alternative perspectives. For instance, after a show that might present confusing messages, someone like me could step in to clarify and correct those ideas. We shouldn’t shy away from these conversations; instead, we must engage with them directly. It’s crucial that we’re active in guiding the discussions our children are exposed to, helping them understand the differences between various messages in a thoughtful way. After all, we should be in the world, navigating it without being swept away by everything we see and hear.
Compiled — Transcript of Dr. Myles Munroe’s message on the Power of Media
