Haunted House
Which ghosts are invading your equilibrium?
For the sake of this article let’s say the house is your body, your mind, your will and your emotions.
The haunting is whatever invades your thought patterns or emotional responses and causes your life to be in or out of kilter.
We don’t all believe in spooks or ghosts, at least, not the kind of gools or apparitions we see portrayed in movies and plays, but we do know which thoughts, feelings or emotions can trigger us into elation or depression depending on the reference, and many people are haunted by the past or even the thoughts of the future. The mind can play tricks.
Interestingly, the Bible refers to God at times as the Holy Ghost, or that is the Authorised King James translation of the Greek pneuma, which means ‘wind’, or ‘spirit’.
The Holy Ghost is also called in English the Holy Spirit.
We battle constantly with spirits. There are good spirits and bad spirits. Biblically, angels and demons are called spirits. Angels are ‘ministering spirits’, sent to serve the saints, that is, born again believers.
“Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? (He.1:14)”
Demons, conversely, are called evil spirits (Acts 19:15). They are like ghosts that attempt to haunt our thoughts and persuade us into negativity. The unsaved are consumed by them, and led by them like slaves (Eph.2:1). Believers are in deadly combat with them.
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ep.6:12)”
They are oppressors of human beings. They are spiritual depressants. They cannot make us sin but they can suggest the notion. That is called temptation, or a testing. Whether we yield or not is up to us.
We need to guard our thoughts, then, and not allow cares and anxieties to haunt us into submission to negativity. We need to guard our heart, and not allow it to be exposed to worries and fear of things which may not happen, or past regrets, or errors, or mistakes we’ve made, offences, grudges, or especially bitterness, which can bind us up and break us down and open us to demonic oppression that causes mental and even physical weakness and illness.
“Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled… (He.12:14-15)”
How can we protect our heart and mind? Pursue peace and holiness. Chase after godliness. Don’t allow that root of bitterness to become a great shadow-clouding tree of sadness and depression, building into a critical spirit and vengeful heart.
“Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life (Pro.4:23)”
To keep is to guard, to protect. A keep was a solid high tower in a castle that protected those within from invaders.
Keep holiness in and sling out oppression. Sling it out. “I will not be oppressed.” Declare it. Mean it. Believe it.
To aid in this we are to ‘cast our cares on the Lord, for He cares for us (1 Pe.5:7)’. Roll cares over onto Him. He will take care of our cares because He cares. “Be anxious for nothing”, we are told (Phi.4:6). Talk it over with God. Hand over fear and worries to the Holy Spirit. Don’t carry them. Release them. Let His peace overwhelm you.
Finally, for this post, we should allow the Holy Ghost to ‘haunt’ us if we are going to allow anything, because He will haunt us with love, joy, peace, gentleness, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, long suffering, and self control (Gal.5:22). Be obsessed with the Holy Ghost.
Be intoxicated with His love, power and clear-mindedness. “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim.4:7). This Ghost is wonderful. The Holy Ghost. This ‘haunting’ is God flooding us with His goodness.