Our Thoughts
Have you ever said, "I'm losing my mind."
Have you tossed and turned in the night with your thoughts bouncing around like a racquetball off 4 walls?
In 2000 Mel Gibson starred in a movie called "What Women Want." He played a male chauvinist who has an accident and can suddenly hear what women are thinking. In one of my "middle of the night thoughts "I was tossing and turning and my thoughts were out of control I thought...
"Wait! God knows every thought we think!"
Yikes! Right then and there I recognized the battle. Many of my thoughts were not those of a woman who trusts the Lord, some were panicky and others were outright lies from the devil.
2 Corinthians 10:5 says, We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.
That means we are to not only guard our thoughts, but examine them to see if they align with God's Word. We are in a spiritual battle and the enemy wants to control our thoughts and thus rend us useless to God. This process of controlling what we think of ourselves can come from both ends of the spectrum.
Pride can puff us up and keep us from knowing God and our desperate need for him. On the flip side negatively, confusion, worry and fear can creep in and deflate us causing us to make wrong judgements about others who are God's precious creations. These thoughts spread like wildfire and can destroy unity among family, friends and even the body of Christ. These thoughts also conjure up false beliefs that God could not only never use us, but never love us.
Timothy was so blessed to have Paul in his life as a teacher and father figure. In 2 Timothy 1 Paul is pouring out his love to this young man and reminded him to "guard the deposit entrusted to you." I encourage you to take a moment to open your Bible and read the whole chapter. But at least hear what Paul tells Timothy in verse 7.
...God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self-control.
So, let's put on the full armor of God, lift high the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17), recognize the lies of the enemy and replace those lies with the truth of God.
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15
The Song
"What Mercy Did For Me" Crystal Yates Micah Tyler Joshua Sherman
