“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Philippians 4:8 What were you thinking about before you started reading this post? Perhaps you are preoccupied with some worrisome anxiety, or maybe you are rather content with how you feel today, or you could be thinking about that argument you had the other day. Whatever it is you are thinking, most likely you are running on autopilot. I’m going to guess you are not deeply concentrating on each thought that pops in your head, but that you are instead allowing each thought to flow in and out of your mind, like watching leaves float down a river. Some leaves pass by slowly, others speed by, still others get stuck on a branch of sorts and remain in sight for much longer than necessary, and others are dead. Do you stop to pull out the dead leaves? “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’" Matthew 22:36-37 Have you ever thought about what it means to love the Lord your God with all your mind? Heart is easy—to love God as He loves us. Soul is also easy—to submit ourselves to God as living sacrifices. But what about your mind? How can you love with your mind? “We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 1 Corinthians 10:5b Your thought-space is important to God. In fact, your thought-space is often a defining factor of the love that is in your heart. If all you think about is money — worrying about if you have enough, wishing you had more, etc. — do you love God or do you love money? I’ll give a clearer example. If you are married, but you constantly think romantic thoughts about a person who is not your spouse, do you really love your spouse? Perhaps these thoughts really are just thoughts, and they would never turn into action, but just because the sin stays in your head doesn’t make it any less of a sin. Be careful, Reader. Many people will try to tell you that sin is in your words and actions alone. It is so much easier to say and do the right thing than it is to think the right thing. But here’s a simple truth: Battling sin is never going to be easy. Perhaps you, in your mind, have been slandering a friend of yours with all the utmost hate and detest, but to his face you are kind. Have you sinned? Or say, rather, that you speak and act quite righteously, and in your head you are well aware of this. You think yourself to be a good person. You believe you have earned your own salvation. You look down on those who cannot be as moral as you. Have you sinned? Or perhaps you, in your mind, have had many sexual relationships with many different people, but outwardly you are abstinent. Have you sinned? “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24 Here is a truth we need to accept: we are all sinners. I am not here to pat you on the back and say, “So long as you speak and act righteously, you’re saved.” That’s not biblical. Jesus's sacrifice is the only reason you can stand before God, who is aware of all your sins, and still be saved. It is a harsh reality to look at ourselves in the mirror and realize we are not good people, but it is absolutely necessary. Whether or not you have fooled your friends to think you are a good person because you speak and act righteously, you can never fool God. And in the end, God's opinion of you is the only one that matters. "Do I think well of myself, think myself a nice chap? Well, I am afraid I sometimes do (and those are, no doubt, my worst moments).” - C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity But I digress. Be careful what you think, reader, for your thoughts are just as precious to God as are your words and deeds. Just as you should test your words and deeds against the Scriptures and examine where they do not line up, so should you do with your thoughts. Don’t just run on autopilot all the time. To run on autopilot is to allow yourself to float downstream. Perhaps you are not swimming with the stream, but if you are not fighting against it, you are headed to the same place. “Watch your thoughts, they become your words. Watch your words, they become your actions. Watch your actions, they become your habits. Watch your habits, they become your character. Watch your character, it becomes your destiny.”
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AuthorFighting complacency and advocating change in myself for the world around me. Posts by Date
February 2019
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