Brain Washed by Manny Arango

About the Book

How to Be Mentally Strong in Christ

You can either take your thoughts captive or be held captive by them. The choice is yours.

Scripture declares we will be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Manny Arango describes this process as God washing our brains, and it is the surest way to overcome anxious thoughts, self-doubt, bitterness, and other mental struggles. But how can we experience this healing power?

This book is a biblical roadmap for winning the battles in your mind. Identify faulty ways of thinking and learn how to take every thought captive under the authority of Christ.

You can read an excerpt here.

My Review

Every one of us is brainwashed, Arango writes. It's a result of the Fall. We are either brainwashed by the serpent or by God. We can choose to have our brains washed by God's truth, adopting the Mind of Christ.

Arango combines personal experiences with biblical teaching to help us on the journey. Many believers are still operating with a fallen mind and we are encouraged to put effort into the life long process of renewing our minds. Arango focuses on three areas: intimacy with God, identity within self, and interdependence with others.

I appreciate Arango's teaching. I liked his ideas on blessings, that they are difficult to identify immediately. Blessings may be camouflaged as seeds within difficult situations. He gives a good personal experience in illustration. I like his emphasis on controlling thoughts. He has an insight on the woman with the issue of blood I had never seen before, “because she thought.” A surprise was Arango saying to adopt the Mind of Christ, “we have to first adopt the habits of Christ and use His life as a blueprint for the pattern and pace of our lives.” (81) That is a challenge.

The last section of Arango's book is about generating and controlling thoughts. He shares his own experience in failing to control his thoughts. (177) He emphasizes our need to control our focus, to break soul ties and other acts of cutting off unwanted influence. While we are encouraged to actively use our minds for the glory of God, I was disappointed there was no practical strategy included.

This book contains good teaching but readers might have to figure out on their own how to do what Arango encourages.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

About the Author

Manny Arango is a teaching pastor at Social Dallas and the founder of ARMA (Latin for "armor"), a ministry that offers original online courses about the Bible and theology. Manny and his wife, Tia, live in Dallas with their son Theophilus. Learn more at mannyarango.com. Photo Credit: © Jermey Moore Photography

Bethany House Publishers, 208 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)