WORRY VS. MEDITATION

Scripture talks about meditating on God’s Word. The psalmist says that godly persons meditate on the Word “day and night” (Psalm 1:2). How much is that?

You may feel that meditation is something only monks and mystics can do. So let me ask you, do you know how to worry? If you can worry, you can meditate. To meditate merely means to think about something over and over. Let it simmer in your mind. Reflect on it from different angles until it becomes part of you…

A friend recently sent me a card that read, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13 NIV)

When I think about that single statement, I am reminded that…

• GOD is the source of all hope.
• He is even now seeking to fill my body with not just joy and peace, but ALL joy and peace.
• His desire is that I should not just contain hope, but OVERFLOW with hope.
• This process is dependent not on my power, but the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT at work in me.

My mind is having different thoughts than it would be if I were [doomscrolling social media.] With my mind fixed on God, I am ready [for whatever lies ahead today.]  

-- Adapted from John Ortberg in “If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat”

#6319

SETTING THE THERMOSTAT

“Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:2)

John Milton wrote in his epic poem “Paradise Lost” that “The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.”

Setting your mind is like setting a thermostat.  It is creating a target for the climate.  Once you set a thermostat, the heating and air-conditioning will have to adjust in relation to the weather.  It is a constant process, but the goal is for the system to create a life-giving climate.  So too it is with our minds.  Many people try to tell themselves to stop thinking negative thoughts -- which immediately brings to mind the very thoughts they are supposed to stop thinking.

“Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.” (Romans 8:5)

“Finally, brothers and sisters, 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)

-- John Ortberg in “The Me I Want To Be” 

#6301

INTERIOR SILENCE

“Be still, and know that I am God!”  (Psalm 46:10a)

God is our true Friend, who always gives us the counsel and comfort we need. Our danger lies in resisting Him; so it is essential that we acquire the habit of hearkening to His voice, or keeping silence within, and listening so as to lose nothing of what He says to us.  We know well enough how to keep outward silence, and to hush our spoken words, but we know little of interior silence.  It consists in hushing our idle, restless, wandering imagination, in quieting the promptings of our worldly minds, and in suppressing the crowd of unprofitable thoughts which excite and disturb the soul. 

-- François Fénelon (1651-1715) 

#5302

FILLING OUR MINDS

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is -- His good, pleasing and perfect will.”  (Romans 12:2 NIV)

How we act will be determined by how we think. If God is to change our lives, He must first change our minds. The human mind cannot be a vacuum. It will be filled either with good or evil. It will be filled either with Christ or with carnality. What will make the difference? It depends on us, and on what we allow to enter our minds. Negatively, our minds must be turned away from evil. We must be careful what kind of [things we watch on the screen], what kind of books we read, the things that occupy our thoughts. But it isn’t enough to put bad thoughts out of our minds. Positively, they must be replaced with good thoughts -- thoughts that are shaped by God and His word, by prayer. 

-- Billy Graham in “Hope for Each Day: Words of Wisdom and Faith”

#5146

THE WORDS WE SPEAK

"Let my words and my thoughts be pleasing to you, LORD, because you are my mighty rock and my protector.”  (Psalm 19:14 CEV)

When Abraham Lincoln got angry with someone, he would fire off what he called a “hot letter.” He would set aside the letter until his emotions cooled off. Then, he would read the letter with a cool head. He left many letters unsigned and unsent.

While Abraham Lincoln wrote letters instead of posts on social media, his practice provides a worthy example for us today. If your post deals with a particularly sensitive topic, can it wait until tomorrow? If it can wait a day, save it as a draft and revisit it tomorrow. You may find that you read it with fresh eyes and see that you shouldn’t post it. Or you may see that it would be helpful to people and click “post.” Either way, the longer you can wait before inserting yourself into a conversation, the better.

Christians, we need to remember that we are Christians first. We represent King Jesus and His church. When we speak, it should reflect the priorities and character of our King and His Kingdom. This concern means that we need to take extra care to consider the words we speak online. 

-- Scott Slayton, from his blog “One Degree to Another”

#5058

THE VOICE OF OUR GUIDE

“Your Word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”  (Psalm 119:105 NLT)

My friend Danny went spelunking in the caves of Iowa.  The man guiding took him deep underground, then said he would lead Danny through a passageway into a spectacular chamber.  The passageway was small enough that Danny had to stoop at first.  Then as it grew still smaller, he had to get on his hands and knees.  Eventually the only way to go forward was to lay on his back and push his body forward with his feet.  Then the ceiling was so low that when he inhaled he could not move at all!  He had to stop, inhale, and exhale, and only then was his chest low enough to allow him to move.  By this point it was physically impossible to back out.  If the passageway had gotten any smaller they would have lain there and died in that cave.

Danny is a sky-diving, mountain-climbing, hang-gliding thrill-seeker, but there in that cave he felt sheer panic.  He was terrified.  He tried fighting his fear, but he kept picturing his dead body moldering in the cave.  Finally, he told his guide he was about to lose it, and the guide said, “Danny, close your eyes and listen to my voice.  I will keep talking, calmly, and guide you through this.  We will be okay.  I have been here before.  I will get you to the other side.  But you must listen to my voice.  It will not work for you to let your thoughts run wild.  Just focus on my voice.”

Danny did so.  What freed him from panic and fear was not trying hard to quit thinking fearful thoughts.  It was listening to another voice.

What voice do you listen to when you’re in the cave and it’s dark, when the ceiling is low and you can’t back out?  The Spirit longs to flow in our minds all the time.  One reason why people have found memorizing Scripture helpful is that it helps us listen to the voice of our guide when we are in the cave.  We set our minds on those thoughts that equip us for life.

-- John Ortberg in “The Me I Want To Be”


#4653

MEDITATING ON GOD’S WORD

“Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on His law day and night.”  (Psalm 1:1-2 NIV)

When you let your thoughts wander, what do you think about? If you will cultivate the habit of thinking about God and His Word and prayerfully expressing your thoughts to Him, you will find that the most ordinary activities of your life are permeated by the presence of God. You will discover how His Word is relevant to your actions, your decisions, your problems. 

-- Jerry Bridges, from an article entitled “Staying Faithful Through the Years: How Can You Keep Walking with God Throughout Your Life?” in “Discipleship Journal," No. 58


#4444

FILLING YOUR MIND

“Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way.”  (Proverbs 4:14-15)

“It’s hard to stop a freight train once it’s left the station,” an old saying goes. In other words, once you yield to temptation, it’s hard to stop and retrace your steps. The best way to avoid the pitfalls of life is through knowledge and understanding. If you know what quicksand looks like, you’re not likely to step in it. Fill your mind with good thoughts, and stay on the path of victory.

“Finally, brothers and sisters, 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)

-- from “God’s Little Book of Proverbs: Timeless Wisdom for Daily Living”

#4390

ALIVE AND ACTIVE

“For the Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”  (Hebrews 4:12 NIV)

We must allow the Word of God to confront us, to disturb our security, to undermine our complacency and to overthrow our patterns of thought and behavior.

-- John Stott in “Authentic Christianity”

#4388

AN EFFORT OF THE WILL

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”  (Colossians 4:2 NIV)

Prayer is an effort of the will. After we have entered our secret place and have shut the door, the most difficult thing to do is to pray; we cannot get our minds into working order, and the first thing that conflicts is wandering thoughts… We must have a settled place for prayer, and when we get there, the plague of flies begins -- this must be done, that must be done.

-- Oswald Chambers in “My Utmost for His Highest”


#4248

THINKING ABOUT WHAT WE’RE THINKING ABOUT

“We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”  (2 Corinthians 10:5b NIV)

One of the greatest revelations of my life is: I can choose my thoughts and think things on purpose. In other words, I don’t have to just think about whatever falls into my mind. This was a life-changing revelation for me because as Proverbs 23:7 (AMP) says, “As [a person] thinks in his heart, so is he.” I like to say it like this: Where the mind goes, the [person] follows.

Now God is concerned about the hidden [person] of the heart, which is our inner life. Our inner life is what we think about. And like the scripture above says, the way we think determines how we live and who we are. That’s why we need to think about what we’re thinking about.

It’s so important for us to understand this because if we don’t learn how to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (see 2 Corinthians 10:4-5), we won’t live the life Jesus died to give us – a life of peace with God, peace with ourselves, great relationships, real joy and the ability to become all God has created us to be. It comes down to choosing to believe what God says (the truth) more than we believe our feelings, what other people say or our circumstances.

-- Joyce Meyer, from her Everyday Answers blog


#4223

SETTING YOUR MIND

John Milton wrote in his epic poem Paradise Lost, “The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.”

Setting your mind is like setting a thermostat.  It is creating a target for the climate.  Once you set a thermostat, the heating and air-conditioning will have to adjust in relation to the weather.  It is a constant process, but the goal is for the system to create a life-giving climate.  So too it is with our minds.  Many people try to tell themselves to stop thinking negative thoughts -- which immediately brings to mind the very thoughts they are supposed to stop thinking.

“Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:2)

“Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.” (Romans 8:5)

-- John Ortberg in The Me I Want To Be

#3926

IDEAS PUT INTO ACTION

"Wisdom is proved right by her actions." (Matthew 11:19b NIV)

Ideas are funny things... they do not work unless you do. The fact is, that to do anything in the world worth doing, we must not stand back shivering and thinking of the cold and danger, but jump in and scramble through as well as we can.

-- Robert Cushing


#2359