Think on These Things, Philippians 4:8
"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."
Many of us struggle with an unproductive thought life. In fact, I would venture to say that most of us struggle in this area. On any given day, our thoughts might range from the mundane to the unusual, from the routine to the unordinary. We think about what we are going to wear, what we're going to eat, where we're going to go, and what we're going to do. We may drift off in a daydream about our future spouse, the day when we have a new car, or when we'll be able to afford a nice house. We may contemplate deep, philosophical questions, or while away the hours contemplating the simplicity of life. Our minds are a roller coaster, rolling up and down the tracks, swerving in loops and going upside-down and inside out. Is there any hope for our restless minds? Is there any relief to the triviality of our thoughts?
The Bible commands us what we are to think about, and what our minds should focus on. Paul wrote to the Philippians, telling them that they should concentrate on those things which are good, true, admirable, and praiseworthy. And the Lord inspired Paul to pen those famous words, and it is immortalized in the cannon of scripture for us all to read. God wants us to focus our minds and our thoughts on such things as well!
This statement is also one of the final exhortations Paul made to the church in Philippi. He saw it as something important, something necessary to get in before he ended the epistle. And truly, it is something incredibly necessary! Especially in the fast-paced culture we live in, we are prone to a listless and unproductive thought life.
So what should we do about it? I believe a good start is to commit this verse to memory. By doing this we are not only obeying the commandment it gives, but also giving ourselves a standard by which to measure our thoughts. When we have planted this word in our minds and our hearts, we will be able to hold every thought against it and so determine if we should even let such a thought take up the time it so desires.
Gaining control of our thought life will in no means be an easy task; it involves taking conscious inventory of everything that is entering our minds. The Bible teaches that we ought to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). It�s as if we are cowboys, roping a bucking bronco, and our thoughts are that bronco!
To do so involves some effort, and definitely a desire to do so, on our part. We have to want our thought lives to be pleasing to Christ! In Psalm 104, the psalmist prays, �may my meditation be pleasing to Him�. With this desire to have a thought life that pleases the Lord, and with our praying to Him and making our desire known, we can be assured that He will answer our prayer. What God has commanded of us, He will certainly give us the ability to do!
By submitting our thoughts and our minds to Christ, by thinking only on things that are pleasing to Him, not only are we freed from sin in this area, but we will also become much happier, much more positive people. By not flooding our minds with the corrupt ideas and things of this world and our flesh, by focusing only on that which is good in God�s sight, the bitter seeds of malice, greed, evil desire, covetousness, jealousy, envy, and strife will not take root in our hearts. Our hearts will become fertile soil for the fruit of the Spirit!
Because of this, our hearts and minds will become more devoted to the Christ, His purposes, and His plans for our lives. We will start to see sin for what it really and truly is�- an abomination to the Lord. Desiring a pure and spiritually-edifying thought life and holding ourselves accountable for everything going through our minds is a huge step in becoming more Christ-like.
We cannot do this on our own, however. We must seek God�s help! But as mentioned beforehand, we can be sure that if this is our heart�s desire�to have that purified thought life, one that pleases our Lord� that when we pray in all sincerity and make our request known to the Lord, He will answer our prayer! We don�t have to wonder if this is what God wants for our lives, we know it is! He told us in His word!