There’s been heightened awareness of bullying and its harmful effects on children in recent years. This is good.

All children need protection from bullying whether they are the victim or the abuser.

But aside from the need to continue addressing this problem, I was thinking the other day on different forms bullies take in our everyday lives.

I remember the schoolyard bully who would zero in on a child of weaker physical stature and shove him around, trip him, flick his ears, or whatever. I’ve seen individuals go into verbal tirades aimed at another person they hated or feared. I’ve seen employees make life difficult at work for another employee because they disfavored them. And the list could go on.

But what about mental bullies? I pondered.

Bullies don’t have to take the form of a person. They can be states of thought that intimidate us, make us afraid, or cause us to agree to actions that we would never agree to in a clear state of mind.

Isn’t the ultimate bully the carnal mind? It’s not a mortal. Mortals act on thoughts and beliefs of the mortal mind they manifest. Bullying is the mental influence at work of the evil one, the carnal mind, Satan, if you will. And it often takes the form of selfishness that drives mortals to do evil selfish things.

These evil thoughts and beliefs do not need a mortal body to be transmitted in the mortal mind scheme of things. If we are not alert, they may land in our thinking without our awareness of it.

In what forms might they appear? I wondered.

Fear in general, for one. If fear is causing us to whimper and pull back from a worthy cause, we’re being bullied.

Fear of disease. If we think that we have a disease and must suffer, we’re being bullied and giving into it.

Fear of lack. If we’ve consented to financial impoverishment, permanent unemployment or inability to pay bills, we’re being bullied and consenting to a continuation of it.

Losing faith in God. If we think God has forgotten us, that we can’t pray right and find spiritual solutions to our everyday problems, we’re being bullied big time and agreeing to the bully’s arguments.

The carnal mind is all that opposes God. It preaches faith in evil, lack, sin, disease, and death. It would bully the innocent human into dropping his or her spiritual convictions that life is good and get them to consent to suffering and servitude to its dreadful ways. It acts like a terrorist. A terrorist breeds on fear.

So, stay alert! Do not let the big bully take up residence in your mental home. Slam the door shut on intimidating suggestions, fears and beliefs of lack, sin and disease. You don’t need them and you do not have to serve them.

There is one Lord, one God, one Power in control! All else fades and subsides in the presence of the Lord. Stay firm in the faith and watch the bully whimper, withdraw and dissolve before your very eyes.

God is much bigger than any bully!