Mental Graffiti

In his amazing book, Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell tells the story of the transformation of the New York Subway System that had been experiencing a horrible crime wave. Incidental to the crime was a severe problem with graffiti and vandalism on the subway trains. City officials began an unusual but brilliant campaign to stop crime: They began with the GRAFFITI. They had observed that the crime rate increased in direct relationship to the graffiti. So starting with just a few trains, they determined clean every ‘tagged” train every day, removing the incentive of the taggers to tag the cars. The number of “clean” cars increased on a regular basis to eventually include the entire fleet. Eventually a tipping point was reached in which the environment and atmosphere of the subway improved so drastically that it affected the clients and criminals alike and the crime rate went down.

This principle also works in the human mind. The challenges of living in a fallen world, “tags” our minds with thoughts and images that are contrary to God’s goodness and this mental graffiti can actually attract “criminal” thinking and behavior. In fact, the enemy is the father of lies and knows that if he can tag your thinking with fiery darts, he can create a target to attract demonic forces to harass and oppress God’s people. We are commanded to be “casting down strongholds and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God”, yet all too many believers remain tagged by “stinking thinking” that empowers the enemy and limits spiritual victory.


Next month we are excited to welcome Steve Backlund of Bethel Church to the Bay Area to do a mini-conference on THE VICTORIOUS MINDSET. Steve is possibly the most encouraging leader I have ever spent time with and he walks in a unique ability to impart this encouragement to others. We invite you to join us and “be transformed by the renewing of (your) minds.”