As Anime April continues, Dallas takes a look at 2020’s Demon Slayer The Movie: Mugen Train. In this epic anime Tanjiro and the gang have to fight for their lives, but before the fight can become physical, they have to find the battle in their minds. The first step to winning the battle of your mind allowing a transformation of it, but how do we do that? Join us to find out!
Written Devotional
In 2020’s “Demon Slayer The Movie: Mugen Train,” Tanjiro and the gang find themselves on a train with Fire Hashira, Rengoku. While they thought they were on their way to a destination to fight a demon, he informs them that the very demon they were after was actually on the train they were on. Very quickly in the film, they fight not one but two demons. With the help of Rengoku, Tanjiro and the gang fight an amazing battle and defeat both demons.
But that wasn’t the end of the story…
As the action pans out, we discover that our heroes didn’t actually do anything; rather, they were all in a deep sleep, and the battle fought was only in their minds. This is where we met the actual demon they were after, Enmu. Enmu’s abilities are not as physical as other villains. The way Enmu attacks is by attacking the mind. He puts his victims to sleep and attacks their dreams. He distracts them with lies that lull his victims into a false sense of safety, not realizing that they come closer and closer to doom with every passing moment.
In life, this isn’t so far off from the actual tactic of the enemy and the world. The battle we fight is rarely physical but spiritual and mental. There are mindsets, thought patterns, and ideas that the enemy thrust upon us daily. This is why the writer of Romans says this in chapter 12:2,
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
(English Standard Version | ESV)
Some of them are obvious things we can identify as lies of the enemy. Things like “I’m not good enough” or “I’m not loved” are lies that many struggle with and fight daily that can easily be identified. But overcoming these things and more takes effort. Having our minds transformed means changing what we think and how we consider the world around us. It means to change how we understand the world. Making this change isn’t as simple as flipping a switch. It requires us to be in prayer and commune with the Father. It requires us to be in the Bible. Not just reading it, but honestly asking ourselves; what does it mean, and how do I apply this to my life. The more we do this, the easier it is to identify the enemy’s lies and conquer them.
In the film, Tanjiro discovered the secret to breaking the lies of the enemy, and it took some drastic measures. Sometimes in our life, overcoming the enemy takes drastic shifting in our mindset set. At the same time, Tanjiro almost hurt himself in a major way because he almost overdid things. Fortunately, Inosuke was there to keep him from going too far. As we work through changing our mindset. We need a community with trusted individuals to walk alongside us and help identify what the enemy’s lies are and what’s not. Sometimes in our zeal, we can take things a bit far. The key is finding balance while we search to become what God has called us to be.