WHAT ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things. Philippians 4:8

Question for you — what are the things that occupy your mind? You know what I mean — what are you thinking about throughout the day? What are those random thoughts that get stuck in your head?

The Bible makes it very clear that what we think about impacts and effects our behavior. The battle with sin begins in our thoughts, in our minds. Our thoughts define who we are. Our minds are powerful tools, so it is important to think and meditate on the RIGHT things.

Henry Blackaby in his daily devotional, EXPERIENCING GOD (Broadman and Holman) hits that nail right on the head when he writes:

What you and I think about in our unguarded moments reflects what our minds dwell upon. What you speak about when your guard is down is a good gauge of what is in your heart (Matthew 12:34). Your mind needs exercise just as your physical body does. To keep your body healthy, you must be careful what you put into it, and you must exercise regularly.

To keep your thoughts pure, you must guard what goes into your mind. To exercise your mind, you must contemplate things that are noble and truths that stretch your mind.

Some Christians allow the world to fill their minds with ungodly thinking. Some people seem drawn to concentrate on the negative, choosing to be pessimistic about everything. Some remain satisfied with thinking of the mundane. Others fail to intentionally place Scripture in their thoughts, choosing instead to adopt human reasoning. Others, however, choose to expose their minds to the truths of God — to that which is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, and good.

The things you allow your mind to dwell on will be revealed by the way you live. If you focus on negative things, you will inevitably be a negative person. If you allow unholy thoughts to fill your mind, ungodliness will become common in your life. If you fill your mind with thoughts of Christ, you will become Christlike.

What you fill your mind with is a matter of choice. Choose to concentrate on the magnificent truths of God, and they will create in you a noble character that brings glory to God.

So my brother, if I walk up to you today and said, “What are you thinking about right now?” — What would your answer be? You are what you think! Paul gives us some great things to think about. Why not commit Philippians 4:8 to memory and start thinking about the RIGHT things. — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 6; Numbers 35-36; Mark 10:1-31

Dig This Quote: I believe the Body of Christ must evaluate every resource available and think in a different way. The adult brain encodes knowledge and skills, joys and regrets, plans for the future. It makes us aware of ourselves by producing thoughts linked with our hearts’ desires and our belief system. The brain reflects our emotions by producing thoughts that will cause self-preservation after we have been hurt. The brain is constantly changing the landscape of how we see the world. – Chuck D. Pierce

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 30:5; Level 2 — Psalm 37:23-26

What Are You Thinking About?

“Oh, how I love thy law! It is my meditation all the day.” Psalm 119:97

Did you ever get a thought stuck in your brain and found yourself thinking about it all day? Isn’t amazing how so small and trivial can end up occupying your every waking thought. For some of you, you have been thinking about the Yankees winning the world series — well, some of you might be thinking it will be the Phillies!

God desires that we meditate on things that have eternal value. He desires that we meditate on HIS Word. Meditation has taken a bad rap over the years in evangelical circles because it is seen as something from Eastern religions. But meditation is something that goes back to the time of Joshua, and David devotes many verses in the Psalms to this topic.

Devotion author and pastor, the late Andrew Murray, gives us some insight about meditation that is worth considering:

Just as a person is trained to concentrate his mental powers to think clearly and accurately, a Christian needs to cultivate meditation. This power of meditation is developed, first, by presenting ourselves to God and His Word. His Word has no power of blessing apart from Him. His Word is meant to bring us into His presence and fellowship. Practice His presence and take the Word directly from Him, and be assured He will make it work in your heart.

[Meditation] is a process of letting the truth settle in and become part of us, not by striving but through a peaceful process. We plant or hide the truth in our hearts and let it germinate quietly. In meditation the personal application takes first place. This does not always happen with the intellectual study of the Bible, the object of which is to know and understand. By contrast, in meditation the chief object is to appropriate and experience. A readiness to believe every promise implicitly, to obey every command unhesistantly, to “stand perfect and complete in all the will of God” (Colossians 4:12) is the only true spirit of Bible study,

Meditation must lead to prayer. It provides material for prayer. It must lead us to ask God and to receive definitely what it has seen in the Word. The value of meditation is that it prepares us to pray for what the Word has revealed that we need or this is possible for us, That is where the rest of faith comes in, that looking upward with the assurance that the Word will be proven in us in power when we surrender to it.

In the course of time, the result of resting in meditation, after intellectual effort, will be that both the meditation of the heart and the effort of the intellect will be brought into harmony in understanding God’s Word. All of our Bible study will be made alive by the spirit of quiet waiting on God and a yielding of our heart and life to the Word.

Our fellowship with God is meant to last the whole day. If we secure the presence of God through meditation in our morning watch, we will be brought closer to the experience of David: Blessed is the man … whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and in HIS law doth he meditate day and night.

Brothers — if meditating on God’s Word was important for Joshua and David, should we not also make this a daily practice in our own lives? Let’s purpose together to meditate on God’s WORD. — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK

God’s WORD for US: Proverbs 28; Jeremiah 15-17; 2 Timothy 2

Great Quote: Like supernatural effervescence, praise will sometimes bubble up from the joy of simply knowing Christ. Praise like that is…delight. Pure pleasure! But praise can also be supernatural determination. A decisive action. Praise like that is…quiet resolve. Fixed devotion. Strength of spirit. Joni Eareckson Tada