April 24, 2017
It’s Time To Make Up Your Mind!
Mary Southerland
Today’s Truth
You, LORD, give true peace to those who depend on You, because they trust You (Isaiah 26:3, NCV).
Friend to Friend
As I stood on the sideline of the football field where my then eighteen-year-old son was practicing for the South Florida All Star Football Game, I was not prepared for the hideous sounds and horrific sights that assaulted every protective sense I have as a mother. My baby - my six-foot, two hundred and thirty pound baby - was knocking padded giants left and right as he bulldozed his way toward the goal line.
Mixed emotions and foreign thoughts flooded my heart and mind. On one hand, I was so proud of Jered that I felt like shouting to the college scouts standing beside me, “That’s my boy!” On the other hand, I wanted to drag him off the field, lock him in his nice, safe room and never let him play the barbaric game of football again.
The curious thing is that Jered was and is a gentle young man that loves every animal he sees. Jered will do anything to help anyone in need and rarely gets angry. So what happened when he stepped on that football field? I’ll tell you what happened; he turned into a growling, intimidating predator, who would bash heads and bruise any bodies that got in his way.
On the ride home that night, I shared my thoughts with Jered, describing my astonishment at his metamorphosis from the teddy bear I knew to the bulldozing bear opponents feared. He laughed and said, “Mom, ninety per cent of football is mental. If you think tough you will be tough.” I could buy that theory, in part, but looking at Jered’s size, considerable bulk and bulging muscles, I had to believe that his physical attributes had something to do with his intimidating bruiser mentality on the football field. “Son, you are a hulk. Any player would be afraid of you!” He grinned, loving the compliment and then reminded me of a friend who had graduated two years before.
Chris was a short and lean but deadly running back known for intimidating players twice his size. I did remember Jered coming home from several practices complaining, “I’d rather get hit by anyone but Chris. He is brutal!” Jered then said something I will never forget. “Mom, Chris was a great football player because he thought he was a great football player. I have seen so many guys who are bigger, stronger and better who could not begin to play as well as Chris played. In football, success is not only in the body but also in the mind.”
What a powerful truth – on the football field – and in the game of life.
The thought processes of a child are very different from those of a mature person. A child thinks only of himself and his desires. For the sake of survival, every baby comes into this world as a narcissist, thinking only of its own needs. But with healthy growth of the mind comes a natural change in focus from inward to outward.
The thought life of a mature believer must be well trained because the greatest battlefield for the Christian is the mind. Proverbs 23:7 tells us, “For as he thinks within himself, so he is” (NASB). In other words, what we think about powerfully influences who and what we will become. Our actions, our attitudes and habits are born in the mind, an offspring of the thought life we entertain.
We can literally change our life by changing how we think – but we cannot do it alone. God’s standard and guideline for the thought life is very clear and brutally demanding. In fact, it’s downright impossible without God’s power at work in us.
Philippians 4:8 (NCV) “Think about the things that are good and worthy of praise. Think about the things that are true and honorable and right and pure and beautiful and respected.”
We choose what we watch and read, the conversations we have, and the time we spend in the Word. If the mind is not filled with good, trust me, the enemy will fill it with bad. The human mind will always set itself on something.
In this passage, Paul is challenging us to wisely choose that setting, taking charge of our thoughts by inviting the Holy Spirit to empower God’s standard for the mind.
It is time for us to allow the Holy Spirit free reign in training our mind, harnessing our thoughts and measuring them by God’s standard. If we don’t make up our mind, our unmade mind will unmake us. In order to live right we must think right. How about you? Have you made up your mind?
Let’s Pray
Lord, I confess to You that my thoughts are not pure. I have allowed the world and outside influences to pollute the mind that should be set on You. Right now, I choose against my old ways of thinking and invite the Holy Spirit to stand guard over my mind. I commit to fill my heart and mind with Your truth.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
Recognize the power of your thought life.
Read Colossians 3:2.
Choose God’s worthy standard for your thought life from this day on.
Read Romans 8:6.
More from the Girlfriends
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Originally published Monday, 24 April 2017.
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