Kathy Vallotton

My mind was in an intense battle to find peace as the enemy chucked terrifying thoughts into my fortress like grenades thrown on a battlefield. I often found myself ducking for cover and longing for solace. The trial was kicking my butt, and God was exposing my weakness. In the midst of my inner war, I remembered what King Solomon wrote: “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe” (Proverbs 18:10). I felt God summoning me into His tower, and I had a deep conviction that He wanted to wash away my fears with His Word.

Chris Gore

When we learn how to keep our heart like Jesus did, we begin to have a healthy cooperation between what we think, what we feel, what we habitually do, and how we relate to others. We can choose the thoughts that renew us over the thoughts that destroy us. We can engage with our emotions to understand the reason for those emotions. We can re-train our body away from the slavery of engrained, destructive habits. But our will alone can never change a person. We need our will to be empowered by the Spirit, through surrendering to God’s will.