THOUGHTS
“For
I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace,
and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
Jeremiah 29:11
When it comes to thinking, the Lord outdoes us
all. Psalm 139 tells us that he thinks
of us more often than we can count…more than the grains of sand. Here in Jeremiah, God’s Word tells us what
God is thinking toward his people. He is
thinking good.
Sometimes we get the idea that God is a big
baddy in the sky with a club ready to thump his unruly children. We hear, “God will get you for that.” And we imagine that all-seeing eye watching
what we do and standing in judgment. I
guess a portion of that picture may be true. We will stand in judgment before
God for what we do, but we are not in judgment because God has willed us to be
punished. We are there by our own
choices.
God looks down upon us in love and desires
only the best for us. He wants us to
succeed. He wants us to know His love and acceptance. He has good plans for us and wants us to
reach the end with a fulfilled and satisfied life.
Coming to grips with the idea that God is for
us changes how we approach life and how we approach God. It gives us a positive outlook and a
confidence that comes from knowing God is on our side. Paul puts it like this: “If God be for us, who can be against
us?” (Romans 8:33)
How do you see God? Does sin in your life need to be
addressed? Sin will taint our view of
God. Better to take it to Him now! Do you see Him as loving? John 16:27 tells us, “…the Father himself
loveth you…”. Take time to meditate on
this truth – God loves you, thinks good about you and is for you. How might this change the way you approach
your day?
THOUGHTS
“I
thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies.”
Psalm
119:59
O, be careful
little feet where you go,
O, be careful
little feet where you go,
For the
Father up above is looking down in love,
So be careful
little feet where you go.”
This is one of the first children’s songs I
learned in Sunday school. I used to sing
it over and over and think about what it meant.
It teaches that making good choices is important. Our feet, our eyes, our ears, our mouths, all
are avenues which need to be considered or thought about. God cares what we are doing with our lives.
I remember times in my life where I had to
stop and take stock of where I was and what I was pursuing. Sometimes it meant changing friends. Sometimes it meant saying no to opportunities
or temptations. Sometimes it meant
waiting on God instead of forging ahead.
But those were all pivotal times - times when my path changed direction
for the better.
Self-evaluation is necessary in the Christian
life. Thinking about our direction, or
our attitude, or our motivation is imperative for spiritual growth and
consecration. The Psalmist David gives
us an example as he invited the Lord into the process. Psalm 139:23, 24 says, “Search me, O God, and
know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way
everlasting.” David opened himself for divine evaluation.
Might be a scary thought. Might cause us some real soul searching and
self-denial. But it will be well worth
it. As we turn our feet to the direction of God’s Word and instruction we are
bound to find a greater communion, fellowship with our Lord and a place of
assurance and blessing. You up to it?
THOUGHTS
“In
the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul.”
Psalm 94:19
My
mind can get into a whirl. Like on a
roller coaster, so many thoughts are screaming for attention that I just don’t
know which one to pay attention to first!
Pressures of the job, family issues, and self can get into conflict and
cause me to have to just stop and try to sort it all out.
I
have found that whirling is not of God.
God is ordered and systematic. He
doesn’t get into a flap. He doesn’t get
too much on his plate. He has it all
under control.
Oswald
Chambers wrote, “I will never think of anything my Father will forget, so why
should I worry?” This amazing me. I will never think of anything God will
forget. Oh, but I can do a powerful lot
of thinking! And worrying! But when I
come back to this thought I realize that God already has it all figured
out. I can simply relax. This brings comfort to my soul!
Comfort
also comes from rhema – God’s Word alive in my heart. Scripture brings peace and assurance. Scriptures that God has used over and over in
my life to bring me back into line.
Comfort
also comes as I see God’s Hand at work in my life. Just a spoken word from a friend, or a
kindness done will cause my thoughts to cease and bring me back into focus on
the God who loves me and delights my soul.
Whirling
is a sure sign that I am out of control or trying to be in control. I need to just stop my whirling and come back
to the centre – God - where I am sure to find the comfort and joy my soul so
desires.
Are
you whirling? Allowing your mind to just
spin and spin to no end? Why not get off
the roller coaster and take a seat with God!
THOUGHTS
“The
Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.”
Psalm
94:11
God
knows our thoughts. Poor God. He knows that the thought of man’s heart is
evil continually. (Genesis 6:5) Even
with our best intentions, our hearts wander into evil thoughts and
imaginations. Romans 3 tells us that
none of us naturally seek after God.
None of us are righteous.
“Oh”,
but you say, “I am a Christian. I do
seek God. I don’t think evil.” Really?
Oswald Chambers wrote, “Beware of the piety that denies the natural
life, it is a fraud.” Self-righteousness
is not God honouring. Man, even redeemed
man, can imagine and desire evil. The
difference is that with Christ, we do not have to yield to our sinful
thoughts. We have His resurrection power
to give us strength to overcome and to control our thoughts.
Vanity
means empty or void. Sometimes we
confuse it with meaning only focus on makeup, fashion, or things like
that. But the vanity of man’s thoughts
goes much deeper than the simple outward appearance.
Let’s
paraphrase the verse. “God knows our thoughts.
Our thoughts are of no value.
They are empty and void compared to God’s thoughts.” So, with all our great thinking ability,
better than the animals or anything God created, we are still simple creatures.
There
is no room for pride here. No room for exaltation of man. No room for “smartness” or super
intellect. Oh, we might be able to
figure out some things in science and mathematics, but we will never attain to
God’s wisdom.
When
I think about this, with my small mind.
I am humbled. It brings me to a
place of submission to an all-wise God.
Where does it bring you?
THOUGHTS
“The
thought of foolishness is sin…” Proverbs
24:9
Because
the sin nature lusteth to envy and dwells in desire to live opposed to God, man
has a natural bent toward foolishness.
Foolishness is not only an outward action, but also a case of the inward
thought processes. Proverbs 22:15 says,
“Foolishness is bound in the heart of a
child…”
First
there needs to be a determination between foolishness, which is sin, and
foolishness, which is innocent. The
writer of Proverbs was referring to foolishness in the form of devising evil
against another, not innocent joyful play.
Foolishness
starts with an inward thought and leads to outward actions and
consequences. We experience foolish
thoughts toward other drivers, people who hurt us, or those we find
difficult. Before we realize it, we say
things about what we’d like to do to retaliate.
Rarely do we take it further, but sin is already at the door and we need
to take it to God in repentance.
II
Cor 10:5 instructs us to cast the thought away and bring it unto
obedience. We are responsible for our
thoughts. Every thought is to be
obedient. Every thought needs to be
weighed by Scripture. Mind control is a
life-long exercise in obedience.
Is
it possible? Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy
thoughts shall be established.” So,
according to this verse, “yes!” God
knows our thoughts before we think them, so surely by the power of the Spirit
and the Word working within us He would be able to direct our thoughts as we
yield control to Him. The question is,
“Are we too foolish to yield?”
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