"Your thoughts control your words,
Your words control your actions,
Your actions control your conduct,
And your conduct controls your destiny;
the destiny of your soul."[1]
We, as Christians, need to learn to rejoice by choice. The
Bible tells us that "all things work together for good, to them who trust
in Him"[2]. Even
the most devout Christians are sometimes subject to forms of anxiety,
depression, and fear. We know that these are all attacks, on our mind, by the
destroyer. At times, even Jesus was subject to emotion: He was angry enough to
purge the temple twice; He wept; He was distressed in the Garden of Gethsemane
It rains on the just and the unjust. Rain can be a metaphor
for bad times, but at the same time can be good for our crops. "Falling
down is not the problem; staying down is. You were created to be
victorious!"[3]
You, having the availability of the mind of Christ, have to
make a choice of what path to follow. Do you depend on the Lord and rejoice in Him,
or do you succumb to the attacks of Satan. We need to repent for those times
when we let the cares of this world, and Satan's attacks, cause us to deviate
from our faith in God's ability to see us through. Yes, we are all subject to
mans weaknesses, but we all have the Lords strength, if we
will seek it. It takes practice,
and learning to listen, to enable the
"Holy Spirit", who in dwells us, to guide us into all righteousness.
Life in Christ is a daily growing process. We have to 'exercise' our mind in
letting the Spirit guide us. God has given us the guidelines for overcoming
whatever is affecting our minds: it is the Bible and we must immerse ourselves
in it daily. All decisions, right or wrong, are ultimately up to us. "Lead
me, O Lord, in the path of righteousness."[4]
It has been said that depression is the number one emotional
problem today. I believe that the number one problem is the lack of trust (faith)
in the Lords ability to sustain us. Only through submersion in His Word, and
diligent prayer can we become the 'over comers' He desires us to be. This does
not come about instantly. It comes by practice, exercise of our
minds and by testing every
spirit.
Anger is a form of frustration brought about by what we see
happening around us. We should not give in to anger, but rather guide those
feelings into being guided by righteous indignation. Righteous indignation
guides us to seek out God's answers.
Philippians 4:6-7
"Be careful for nothing;
but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your
requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all
understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
Matthew 6:33
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God
1 Peter 5:7
"Casting all your care
upon him; for he cares for you."
Philippians 1:6
"Being confident of this
very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until
the day of Jesus Christ:"
Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the thoughts
that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of
evil, to give you an expected end."
Psalm 43:5
"Why art thou cast down,
O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in God: for I shall yet
praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God."
"Let the words of my mouth, and the
meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight,
O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer."
Psalm 39:23-24
"Search me, O God, and
know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if there be any
wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
Philippians 2-4
"If there be therefore
any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the
Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, Fulfill ye my joy, that ye be likeminded,
having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but
in lowliness of mind let each esteem
other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but
every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:"
Isaiah 26:3
"Thou wilt keep him in
perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on
thee: because he trusts in thee."
2 Timothy 1:7
"For God hath not given
us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
Romans 5:3-5
"And not only so, but we
glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation works patience; And
patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed;
because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is
given unto us."
Political correctness is poison to common sense. In today's
world, we Christians are looked down on for following what the Bible says. We are often called self righteous, bigots,
intolerant and haters. It is that we are living by antiquated ideas. Following
the Lord has always come at a price. Jesus told us that if they didn't respect
Him, they wouldn't respect us. If we truly have this in our minds, we will be
able to overlook these slurs. We should respect their right to believe, or not
believe, as they please. The Lord has never forced anyone to follow Him. This
is just another reason why we need the mind of Christ, by the Holy Spirit
living in us.
"In Psalm 73 Asaph divulges that he had struggled with
a problem that is, most likely, common to us all. Asaph looked out at the world
and saw that the wicked prosper! Psalm 73:3 'For I was envious of the
arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.' Not only do the wicked prosper,
'they increase in riches' (Psalm 73:12). God seems to blesses the wicked even
though they are wicked. I labor for the Lord everyday and yet I do not have
what this wicked man has. Modern vernacular would phrase Asaph’s quandary as: 'Why
does God allow bad things happen to good people?' or 'Why does God allow bad
people to prosper?' "[5]
Who, or what, is affecting your mind? The Bible tells us
that we are to love God with all our body, mind, soul and spirit. If you submit
your will to the mind of Christ, there will be no room for the Devil. If you
are filled with the Spirit of God, there will be no empty spot for Satan to
enter.
Even the apple of God's eye had his problems. Nathan let
King David know that God was not unaware of his sins of adultery and murder,
but in his mind he must have thought God didn't know.
Would you recognize Jesus if He was standing in front of
you? When Jesus came walking on the water the apostles didn't recognize Him. On
the road to Emmaus, the two men He was talking to didn't recognize Him. The
Pharisee's and Sadducee's and the Romans didn't recognize Him, as God. He made His
way through the crowd, who wanted to kill him, probably because most people
didn't recognize Him. How can we expect people to respect our Christianity if
they can't see Him in us? We don't exude Jesus juice you know. People have to
recognize us as Christians by our words and actions.
Jesus is not a respecter of persons. John 10:16 tells us: "other
sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they
shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd." Some
day, "at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and
things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father"[6].
It is our job to share the Good News (Gospel) to our relatives, friends and acquaintances
about the Love and Salvation available through Jesus, But we must do it His
way: present the facts and let the choice be up to them. Jesus didn't twist
anyone's arm and neither should we.
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