Life Without Leeches
Bad attitudes are like leeches on a healthy body. All it takes is one parasitic thought to latch on and start draining every bit of life out of the soul! I know this to be true, but sometimes I grab the leech out of the murky water myself, hold it to my head, and pull in a deep breath while its strong jaws attach to my mind like a suction cup.
“You are never going to be a writer. No one cares about what you have to say.” Or “Do you remember what that person did to you? You have every right not to like them.” The voice makes me a little weaker. I shove my hand to my face, attempting to rip off the tiny beast wreaking havoc on my emotions and disposition, but I can’t get it off. I’m being drained dry by something so minuscule and innocuous.
My next thought bombards me, “I’m being set up! Someone wants me out of commission! The Devil planted this leech on my head!” And now I realize that I am targeted by the enemy of my soul. Never mind that I’m the one who reached down into the bucket, pulled out the instrument of destruction, and helped it make a home on my head. If I am not the one who planted the leech, how can I be responsible for what damage it inflicts?
Sounds like a pretty weird and unlikely scenario, doesn’t it? While I haven’t been fishing for a bucketful of leeches, I have allowed some wrong thinking and emotions to take up space in my mind. I’ve opened the door, set the dinner table, and prepared the guest bedroom for some bad attitudes to take up residence in my thoughts. And the worst thing about it is that I blamed Satan for the mental attacks. Don’t get me wrong, the enemy is not innocent, and he has launched his share of spiritual bombardment my direction, but not this time. This was a 100 percent me—my flesh, my unrenewed thinking. Oswald Chambers explained it this way: “We blame things on the devil that are actually the result of our undisciplined natures.” I’ve given way too much credit to the Devil and not enough accountability for myself. It makes my ego feel better to say, “I’m just being attacked in my mind” than to say, “I’m still wrestling with some old ways of thinking.” If I’m not responsible, I’m off the hook!
But it isn’t that easy. Faith isn’t sitting back and allowing God to do everything while I take my Sunday nap. Faith is a walk—sometimes a climb—uphill to meet myself face on and put myself in my place. Luke 21:19 reminds us, “In your patience, possess your souls.” Note what Jesus doesn’t say. He doesn’t say that in your praying, you will possess your souls. He doesn’t say that in your hours of Bible study, you will possess your soul. He says, “In your patience.” Jesus is talking about the process of faith that is a journey, like Abram leaving his father’s land and going to a place God showed him. Or Moses exiting Egypt with millions of Israelites in tow. Faith doesn’t mean that you won’t encounter enemies; faith reminds us that we often bring our enemies inside of us.
Prayer is powerful, but there are times when we have to remove the leech ourselves. God isn’t going to do it for us. Do you know how to remove a leech from your skin? You have to break the suction. You have to insert a flat object between the leech’s sucker and the skin, and then you flick it off. God will not use a Men in Black neuralyzer and wipe out all of your bad or unproductive thoughts. We must do battle with those things ourselves. And it takes time—that's where the patience comes in.
What does it look like to break free from those thoughts and attitudes that keep you in a state of anemia?
Listen to the Holy Spirit when He tells you that your thoughts are spiraling off track. He will make you sensitive to what you hear, say, and allow to stay in your mind if you ask Him.
Confront those thoughts immediately (Do this out loud if you can). Remind yourself that those attitudes, beliefs, opinions, and feelings are no longer part of who you are and give them their eviction notice. This breaks the suction between yourself and those leeches.
Speak the truth of scripture out loud. If you are struggling with thoughts limiting God’s work in your life, then declare, “The Word of God says that I am created in the Image of God. God is a Creator; therefore, I am creative. God is limitless and knows no boundaries. So if I’m facing boundaries, they aren’t from God. They are from me." This is like flicking the leech from off your skin.
Be prepared to face those leeches again. Mindsets didn’t develop overnight, and they won’t be defeated overnight.
Guard your heart. Leeches lurk in shallow water where they can hide among the vegetation and blend in with water disturbances. Don’t put yourself in situations or allow yourself to hear things that would draw you back into those environments.
When you finally gain freedom from those bloodsuckers, you will have possessed your soul. Paul says in Romans 8:6, “So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.” I prefer life without leeches, don’t you?