5 Ways to Destroy Strongholds In Your Life

Strongholds are horrible aren’t they? They usually start in innocence, but before you know it, they can have the tightest grip on you and you are struggling to get free. Honestly, it’s no easy feat destroying strongholds. It takes persistence, faith, and a whole lot of prayer to destroy them, and then keeping this up to keep them at bay. 

But when they break, the freedom this brings is truly amazing! If you’re currently feeling trapped, don’t worry! God knows what you’re going through and He can help you through. I hope the five ways below remind you that it’s possible for you to be free!

1) Be aware of what the enemy can do

Sometimes, it can be difficult to recognise when the enemy is attacking us. However, if we think of the characteristics of a snake, we understand how the devil operates. Snakes are sneaky creatures. They slide around almost effortlessly, and can get into dark and enclosed spaces. They also wait for their moment to strike. 

This is the same with the devil. He sneaks around, waiting for opportunities to pounce, attacking us where we are weak in our faith. That is why it says in the book of Ephesians not to give any opportunity to the devil because once he strikes, it makes getting back up that much harder.

“...and give no opportunity to the devil.” Ephesians 4:27 (ESV).

Snakes also whisper, often in the form of hissing. This is a tactic of the enemy where he whispers lies to us. Often we think that those around us are doing the whispering, which can lead to us feeling hurt and angry. This is how the devil likes to attack relationships and can be a big reason why relationships fall apart. We must learn to be slow to anger when these situations arise, learn it’s not you against them, it’s you both against the problem.

We get a fantastic illustration of how sneaky the enemy is from the Narnia films, when we watch the actions of the White Witch. In the first movie particularly, she encounters Edmund, the third of the Pevensie children. (By the way, I’ll be referencing Edmund’s journey through the films as illustrations for these points.) 

Quickly flooded with fear from encountering the ‘Queen of Narnia’, Edmund tells the White Witch that he has 3 other siblings and only his younger sister Lucy has been to Narnia before. Instantly the White Witch realises that Edmund is one of the chosen ones that will one day rule Narnia, breaking her curses and ending her rule in the process. 

During their first meeting, the White Witch entices him with a magically made hot chocolate and a tub of turkish delight. Being only 10 years old, this of course wins Edmund over. She then proceeds to ask him about meeting the rest of his family, to which he quickly shares how unspecial his siblings are. The White Witch feeds on this hate Edmund has, and manipulates him into bringing them into Narnia, telling him they can become his servants when she crowns him King.

This is a big way the enemy works, through manipulation, feeding on our jealousy, and by telling us what we want to hear. Be aware of the enemy disguising himself in order to divert you away from God. 

“But I am not surprised! Even satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” 2 Corinthians 11:14 NLT.

2) Identify the root causes of your strongholds

This is something that can be really tricky. Most of us know the things that have a hold over us in the wrong way. Some of us may remember when this stronghold first began or how we were introduced to it. But sometimes things go a lot deeper. Maybe it’s something that happened way back in our past that we’ve forgotten, or maybe we continue to linger on a feeling we felt when the stronghold first happened. 

For Edmund, the root cause comes from his greed for turkish delight, jealousy, and anger toward his siblings for constantly telling him he’s doing things wrong. A bit of self control and communication between siblings sure would have gone a long way in Edmund’s situation!

3) Remove temptations that trip you up

How many of us know that when temptations come knocking, they sure can look awfully tempting, like the best cream donut in the bakery. It’s so easy to justify indulging in a temptation just once more before giving it up for good. But how many times have we said this is the last time? It certainly is a vicious cycle that can be difficult to break. 

The good news is that we have never encountered a temptation that someone else hasn’t conquered. With God it is possible to remove temptations, we just need to be alert and we must follow His guidance.

“The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure.” 1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT.

For Edmund, let’s look at the third Narnia movie, the Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Here, Edmund encounters a magic pool that whatever or whoever touches it turns to gold. The atmosphere of this pool, along with the knowledge that Edmund could make a fortune, overruns his mind with the temptation of power and greed. When his sister Lucy makes him aware of the way he’s thinking, they distance themselves from the pool, therefore removing the temptation to fall into sin.

4) Have accountability that speaks truth and grace

This is such a key step. I myself have tried to change many things on my own, and each time I was not at all successful in the long run. The first step in having accountability is trusting someone who will actually help you properly and won’t just say what you want to hear. Having a good accountability partner will speak to you with both truth and grace. This is a great combination of a loving action that will help us improve and change. 

“Let every word you speak be drenched with grace and tempered with truth and clarity. For then you will be prepared to give a respectful answer to anyone who asks about your faith.” Colossians 4:6 TPT.

For Edmund, his older brother Peter makes for a good accountability partner. While they butt heads a lot in the beginning (Peter definitely could have used nicer words at times with Edmund), throughout the Narnia stories, Peter helps guide Edmund through the battles they face. They really become accountability partners for each other, as each brother helps the other through their challenges and temptations.

5) Pray with God’s Word and in the authority of the Holy Spirit

This is the most important step of all. Without the Holy Spirit, no chains can be broken, no stronghold can forever be gone. It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that victory is won over evil and it is how we break through any sin that has a hold over us. 

As Edmund is the first to be officially deceived and tempted by the White Witch, he knows more than his siblings what power she holds. After Aslan kills her at the end of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, her image is brought back through black magic in the Prince Caspian movie. From inside a block of ice, she attempts to persuade Prince Caspian for a drop of his blood to resurrect her. 

When Edmund and Peter run into this scene, Peter is almost tempted as well. But this is the cool bit; because Edmund knows what the White Witch can do, he takes his sword and stabs it through the ice, breaking it to pieces and destroying the White Witch once again.

I like this because in the description of the armour of God, the sword of the Spirit represents the Word of God. Just like Edmund, we are to use this sword, praying in the Spirit with the Word of God, and with this, strongholds and the enemy are defeated. But just doing it once is not enough, we must do it daily. 

“...And take the mighty razor-sharp Spirit-sword of the spoken word of God. Pray passionately in the Spirit, as you constantly intercede with every form of prayer at all times.” Ephesians 6:17b-18a TPT. 

Breaking the chains of strongholds is certainly not easy but with God, it is more than possible! 

Were these five ways helpful for you? Have you put them into practice in your own life and seen the amazing work of God breaking your strongholds? Share your thoughts in the comments below!