Last week I was writing a prison inmate who has a desire to start a new beginning with Jesus. I felt lead to share the following with him so that he can live a victorious life. Over the years of working with individuals with various bondages in their life I have seen certain mindsets and attitudes that have hindered them from living a victorious life.

I can't say that if you apply these principles, that life will not be hard. It may become even harder. But what I can say is that you will become known as a person who loves God because of the fruit that will come out of your life. You will become a person that God can use to touch other’s lives. You will see fruitfulness in your life and what the devil meant for evil will turn around for God. You will experience a peace that passes understanding-that means having peace when the world says there is no way you should have peace.

You will notice that we do not measure victory on the basis of how much you own, what you proclaim with your mouth, if you walk in healing, etc. Victory is not about what you have, but what you become. In the process God may bring healing to your body so that you can be more fruitful in ministry, He may bless you with finances so you can be a blessing for others, you will speak life instead of death. But those are the side effects, not the goal. The goal is to be more like Jesus-that is victorious living.

Basic Principles on Living a Victorious Life

Be honest with yourself, God, and others-be a person that God and other can trust. The more you can be trusted-the more you will receive favor from God and man.
1 Timothy 2:1-2
1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

Stay humble-pride will take you right back into the pit sooner or later. Listen to, receive, and implement godly guidance-this protects you from deception.

Proverbs 16:18
18 Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling.

Proverbs 5:13-14
13 "I have not listened to the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined my ear to my instructors!
14 "I was almost in utter ruin In the midst of the assembly and congregation."

Keep pure motives-ask God to help you be a man of pure motives. Your main motive for all that you do is to be a holy man of God

Acts 13:22
22 And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, 'I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.'

No relationships while in recovery-Do not put much energy on building relationships with others. The number one relationship that you need to focus on is you and God. As you do that, the other relationships that are important to God will come. Too many times those who have been in bondage for years want to make up for ‘lost time’. They want to correct their wrongs, etc. And almost always what happens is they make relationships with others more important than with Jesus. What ultimately happens is they end up destroying the relationships all over again. Remember, Jesus first. Focus on being a healthy individual and the fruit will be healthy relationships. Please God, not man.

Judges 16:16-18
16 It came about when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him, that his soul was annoyed to death.
17 So he told her all that was in his heart and said to her, "A razor has never come on my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother's womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will leave me and I will become weak and be like any other man."
18 When Delilah saw that he had told her all that was in his heart, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, "Come up once more, for he has told me all that is in his heart." Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands.

You are in a war, not just a battle. What this means is that you are in for the long haul. Along the way you may lose some battles, but your focus is winning the war. Don’t let loses get you down-learn from them and move forward. The war you are fighting is to become a man of God who spends eternity with Almighty God, not a battle with people.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,

Fight the good fight-choose the battles you find yourself in. There is always opportunity to be in conflict with others, so use wisdom to not get caught in battles that are not helpful. Spend your time fighting on your hands and knees in prayer and intercession.

1 Timothy 1:18-19
18 This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight,
19 keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith.

Reach out to others. Too many times those who have struggled with addictions, ongoing sickness, or other issues become very self focused. Everything is about them and not others. It is as if the world owes them something. Think about your life-do you really want what is owed to you? What every single one of us deserve is hell. As you reach out others in sincerity, you are opening yourself up to receive the favor of God and you will spend less time thinking about your problems.

Matthew 25:35, 36, 40
³⁵ 'For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in;
³⁶ naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.'
⁴⁰ "The King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'

Respond to the Holy Spirit-when the Holy Spirit brings conviction, don’t run from it, embrace it. If He is convicting you of something He wants to give you victory over it. He wants to bring you into truth.

John 16:7-13
7 "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.
8 "And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;
9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;
10 and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me;
11 and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.
12 "I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.
13 "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.

Praise the Lord-praise God and have a heart of thankfulness in the midst of the good times and the bad times. He inhabits the praises of His people. A heart of praise and thankfulness will keep you from seeking fulfillment from the wrong places and wrong people. A heart of gratitude will give you favor with God and man.

Nehemiah 8:10
10 Then he said to them, "Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."

Embrace suffering, don’t run from it. You are making a decision to experience change in your life-there is always some suffering involved with change. Don’t try to find the easy way out of change-it will only take you down a road of even more suffering. The quicker you will embrace change and the suffering that comes with it, the quicker you will see true deliverance in your life.

James 1:2-4
2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,
3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.