Think On These Things

Finally, brothers, 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

It seems so simple, doesn't it?  To think on "these" things:  Things that are true....noble....right...pure...lovely....admirable....excellent....praiseworthy.  It seems like we wouldn't have any trouble at all thinking of good things.  But we do.  We all do.

We wake up each morning and some of us hit the ground running.  Others of us, it takes a few hours (coffee, hot tea, Dr. Pepper, Diet Coke, etc.) before we're ready to get going.  Hopefully we start our morning by talking to God or reading His Word, but maybe we don't.  Maybe we grab the TV remote to catch the morning news/gossip.  Maybe we grab our phone or laptop to check Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.  Maybe we're up making the kids breakfast, helping check last minuet homework, or packing lunches before sending them out the door.  Very quickly our minds can be filled with "stuff".  Maybe it's good stuff, but maybe it isn't.

From what we see, to what we read, to what we hear, our minds and hearts are filled with lots and lots of "stuff".  It's up to us to guard our minds and our hearts so that our minds only think on things that are in that great list in the scripture above.  The only way to do that is to guard our eyes and ears first.  Maybe we will need to change the radio station, delete a song off of the iPod, stop watching certain TV shows or movies.  Perhaps we will even need to change who our friends are - or at least limit our time with them if they are influencing us in a bad way.

Our minds are filled and bombarded with information and this "stuff" we're talking about.  If we take bad stuff out....we must replace it with good "stuff".  We have to change our thinking.  The phrase "power of positive thinking" is great, but the "power of Jesus' thinking" is BEST!  When we grow to be more like Jesus, we'll change the way we look at life.  We'll change the way we think.  There will be no more stinkin' thinkin'!  We'll be thinking of "such things" as Philippians 4:8 mentions.

It's never too late to start thinking like Jesus.  Maybe your morning started off bad.  It doesn't mean the rest of the day has to be downhill.  Change your thoughts - change your world.  Be more like Jesus.  Think on "these things" all day long!

"Don't Believe Everything You Think"

I came across this quote the other day. It's kind of interesting, isn't it?  What do you think about the quote? You think it's true?  False?

Let's look at ways this quote is true:

Many people believe that in order to have happiness we have to have looks, money, nicer cars, bigger homes, more "stuff".  If we believe this same way, are we believing something that is true?  Nope. True happiness can't be bought.  Things might make us happy for a while, but not for long.

Here's another one:  Suppose I think I am worthless, that I can never do anything right, or that I have to be perfect in order for someone to love me.  Is it true?  No.  Again, not true.  No one is worthless.  Each one of us is worthy.  We're all "somebody" to someone.  We are very special to God because He made us.  He loves us.  I don't have to be perfect - in fact I can't be perfect on my own, but when God looks at a Christian through the blood of Jesus, He sees a perfectly saved child.

Now let's look at it another way.  Maybe I believe that ,"I'm basically a good person.  I try to help others.  I'm a law-abiding citizen.  I'm honest.  I love my family.  But Christianity?  I don't have time for that.  I don't like that religious talk.  God will never punish a "good" person or condemn such a person to hell.  I at least know that He's known to be loving.  What kind of loving God would do that?"  Are these statements true?  Some of them.  This person may very well be "good" in all of those ways, but does God save anyone because of their goodness?  No.  He doesn't. I can never be good enough to be saved.  I can never be good enough to go to Heaven.  God prepared the way of salvation and the only way is through His Son, Jesus Christ.  It's because of what He has done, not because of what we have done.

So, what do you believe?  What do you think?  Can you believe everything you think?  Maybe yes.  Maybe no.  How can we know?  By searching for the truth in everything.  The truth is found in God's Word...the Bible.  Each of the scenarios I gave in this post....all of the untruths.....all of them in the "true" form can be found in the Word.  Every one of them!  The Bible is the only source of what is true and right. 

Only believe what you think if what you think is truth.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true.....think about such things. 

Philippians 4:8

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 

John 8:31-32

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
John 14:6

Thinking Things Through

I'm not always good at thinking things through, but this latest "non-thinking-it-through" episode may rate as one of the very worst.

You may remember that a few weeks ago the transformer near our house got struck by lightening, causing a lot of damage to several things in our house.  Our dishwasher was not working well before the storm, but after the lightening storm, it didn't work at all.  Dishwashers don't last long in Tipton anyway, because of the hard water.  I researched dishwashers for over a week, then finally decided I was ready to order a dishwasher.

Before it was ordered, I showed my husband the dishwasher I wanted.  It had a handle on the front and the controls were along the top of the door, instead of on the front, where they're typically found.  I liked the way it looked, but also liked the idea of hanging a pretty dish towel from the handle.  My reasoning was two-fold:  decorative and useful.

This past week the new dishwasher came in.  It was partially installed one night and the completely installed the next morning.  I was so excited about the dishwasher, but before it was totally installed, I realized that the handle I was so proud of would probably make it impossible for the drawer to the left of it to open.  Sure enough - I was right. It wouldn't open!  In order for it to open, the door of the dishwasher has to be opened first!  I should have thought about this before, but I didn't.  It did make me feel better when I was telling a friend about it and she said that their builder did the same thing when he built their house!  If a professional could make this mistake, it didn't make my mistake seem quite as big. (at least in my mind, it didn't!)

You know?  I put a lot of thought into purchasing this new dishwasher.  I read reviews, looked at different models and brand names, compared prices, and finally, looked at several dishwashers in the store before ordering.  I thought I had done extensive research on the product.  My husband even measured the space to make sure it would fit with the new specifications.  After all of that, I still made a mistake.  It's a mistake that we will adjust to, but it was still a mistake.  There was more to know and more I should have known.

There's a lesson here about life.  No matter how much we "think" we know - there's always more to learn.  We can learn by reading.  We can learn by hearing.  We can learn by seeing.  We can learn by sharing.  We can learn by doing. We can learn by living.  And, we can learn by our mistakes.

Have a great Memorial Day!

"Oh, Be Careful Little Minds What You Think"

In several past posts, I wrote about "Oh, Be Careful Little Eyes, and Ears, and Mouth and Feet." You can find those posts in the archives on the "Shine Like Stars" homepage.

Today let's add a verse to the little song, "Oh, Be Careful Little Minds What You Think!" Before the face of God (Remember, Coram Deo), we use our minds. When you think of our eyes, our feet, our ears, our mounths...it all goes back to what's up here (I'm pointing to my head! You point to your head!. It's all about what's in our mind.

What we think matters to God. Philippians 4:8 says, "Finally, brothers, 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." Have you ever taken the time to think about what you think about? Let me ask you again slowly: Do...you...ever...think...about...what...you...think...about? It good for us to take the time to analyze our thoughts. Take the time to think about what you think about. Make sure your thoughts line up with what God would want you to think about.

Thinking on the things God wants us to think about may not always match with what is out there in the world. We must be careful how we fill our minds. Our mind should be on things listed in the verse above, not what the world gives us to think about.

"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things," Colossians 3:1-2. It's pretty clear where God wants our mind....not on earthly things.

"Don't you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. Matthew 15:17-20a

If we are going to walk in a manner worth of God, and if we are going to walk like Jesus walked, then we must think like Jesus. That's what Paul talked about in Philippians 2, as he talked about imitating Jesus. “Have the mind of Jesus”. Our thoughts become our actions.

Before the face of God, we think with our minds.
Oh, be careful little minds what you think.