KEY SCRIPTURES: Philippians 4:8
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
RELEVANCE
Our minds were made for a purpose. They explore subjects like deep sea divers, seeking answers to the various questions swimming around.
Most of all, our minds seek peace. Yet some of the topics we think about bring us little but turmoil or misery.
God designed the mind to figure stuff out. But above all, He wants it to contemplate the pathway of higher things—of gold, silver and precious stones—not the fool's gold of aggression, anger and depressive thoughts leading us nowhere.
There is a threefold purpose for Paul's suggestions.
1. To keep our right mind in peace. These topics lead us to be found in our right or righteous minds—minds of sobriety, self-control and peace with our Saviour.
2. In troubling times such as now, when the world seems set on self-designed destruction, focussing on these matters brings our thoughts back to steadiness and stability, knowing that God is in control.
3. Thirdly, we more easily sense the enemy’s fiery darts because they are the exact opposite of what is in our minds. Like dark objects entering an all-white room, we can't miss them. Fiery darts not only come in the form of various lusts but also in the pride of arguments and small disruptions within families and other relationships. As 2 Corinthians 10:5 states, if we're aware, we then cast down the imaginations and disobedient thoughts before they can go deeper and do damage.
When I conducted incident investigations and redesigned poor traffic management routes and manufacturing processes, I needed to discover what the habits were that led to trouble and why they existed. Likewise, our bad habits emerge from somewhere—our thoughts and intents.
Thinking on those good things helps our progress in the Kingdom.
PRAYER
Dear Lord, my mind is yours. It was created by you, and you know what feeds it for the best results. Thank you again.
Photo by Juan Rumimpuni
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