We all face battles. Most days come with a struggle, and for many of us, the hardest fight isn’t with the world around us. It’s with the “junk” we’ve allowed to take up residence in our own hearts. In a recent video that struck a chord with many, founder Eddie Penney challenged us to look in the mirror and ask a difficult question: What are you making your god?
If you feel like your prayers are hitting a ceiling or your spiritual growth has stalled, it might be time to stop looking for external excuses and start cleaning house in order to regain your clarity and edge.
The Weapon of Prayer and the Barriers We Build
Eddie notes that prayer is one of the greatest weapons we have against an unseen enemy. Yet many men complain that their prayers aren’t being answered? Why? Because prayers can be hindered. Doubts, wrongful thinking, lack of belief and (most importantly) unaddressed sin and false idols create a barrier between us and God.
To walk in power, we must use biblical wisdom to identify what is blocking our path. We often conform to the “filth” this world promotes, medicating our stress with substances, secular media, or the pursuit of status, rather than running to the Lord for healing. This is where Unafraid Media comes into play. Ask yourself: are you consuming things that strengthen your spirit, or are you feeling the very darkness you claim you want to escape?
Identifying the Modern Idol
In our “past lives”, many of us had different gods. For some, it was booze or pills. For others, it was questionable online content. But idols can also look good to the world. A job title, a bank account balance, a certificate on the wall, or even the opinion of other men can become an idol if it starts to define your identity.
Eddie shares a powerful story about his time in the SEAL teams. He realized he had made his tier-one patches his identity. To break that idol, he went to his garage and threw them all away. It wasn’t because the patches were inherently evil, but because they had become his god. He had to clean house to find his true identity in Jesus.
Applying biblical wisdom means recognizing when you’ve become defensive about a certain habit or possession; that’s usually the first sign that you’ve elevated it to a place where it doesn’t belong.
Moving from Facade to Obedience
The world is full of “worldly” men who are, in reality, essentially little boys trying to play the part of men. They go to church on Sunday to paint a facade of righteousness, but their actions in the dark tell a different story.
True manhood isn’t about how much Scripture you can memorize, or how well you can talk. It’s more about willingness and obedience. It’s about being the same man in the dark that you claim to be in the light.
As the saying goes, boys talk. MEN go and do.
How to (Spiritually) Clean House
If you’re ready to bring your darkness into the light, here’s a tactical plan for spiritual growth rooted in biblical wisdom.
- Seek the Lord with All Your Heart
Don’t just give Him your leftovers. Make seeking Him your primary mission.
- Get into Scripture
You cannot combat the enemy effectively if you don’t know the Truth. Scripture is your manual for the battlefield.
- Identify the Junk
Be honest with yourself. What is the substance, habit, or title you feel like you “have” to have? That is likely your false idol.
- Remove the Filth
Whether it’s the music you listen to, the people you hang out with, or anything else that’s standing in your way, it’s time to cut it out.
No one expects you to have it all figured out in an instant. This is a daily process of choosing truth over comfort. But the call today is to be obedient to His guidance. When you apply biblical wisdom to spiritually clean your house, the enemy loses influence, your mind finds clarity, and blessings begin to happen.
Stop conforming to the filth. Start walking the righteous path. It’s time to clean house and live with an Unafraid mindset.