What is the best weapon against bad thoughts?

The number one weapon of all spiritual warfare is the Jesus prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me. Our minds have a certain energy. It's like a car: put it in drive, take your foot off the pedal, and it will always start to propel itself forward. Your mind wants to be doing something all the time, like a restless four year old running around your house nonstop.

So pull out your prayer rope and begin saying the Jesus prayer. You're exercising your mind, giving it something to do and focus on, so it isn't fixated on things that are out of your control or are causing you to be upset. What if your mind feels tired and exhausted? Spiritual books, audiobooks, hymns, anything to keep you focused away from entertaining the thoughts.

Ask yourself: am I using my mind, or is my mind using me? Am I going where I want to go, or where the thoughts are leading me? If I'm going where the thoughts are taking me, I've got to get off the trail and head back to base. And last but not least, sit silently. If you can't, do something that will turn off your mind. Go for a hike; it's hard to focus on the thoughts when you're struggling with the hike.

Lift weights, do something physical that demands your attention. Leave your house and go help somebody else; then you can't think about yourself. In my own life, if I'm struggling with a thought, I'll think about somebody else who's struggling and give them a call. When I'm listening to their problems, I'm not listening to my own. Constantly mold and shape your mind around the good things: the Jesus prayer, books, hymns, the things in the present, the tangible realities in front of you.

Stay away from the fantasies, the future, the past, the unreality, and never let yourself be handcuffed by these thoughts and dragged away into places full of anxiety, fear, and depression.