Controlling our Thoughts….
We think its OK to just say whatever is on our mind because we are “just being honest” or “keeping it real”. “God created me this way” we say, to excuse our lack of restraint. God wants us to come up higher:
You are what you think. Your thinking defines you. (Proverbs 23:7 KJV) It determines why you do what you do. It determines how you say things and how you interpret what others say.
Let God change the way you think– Sometimes we have flaws within us that only God can fix. (Romans 12:2) We need to change the way we think by striving to think how He thinks. His thoughts are different than ours. (Isaiah 55:9) Paul wrote that we actually have the mind of Christ! (1 Corinthians 2:16)
Determine to have purposeful thinking. We have to be intentional in what we think. Our imagination can be a tool for good or a tool for bad. Practice thinking on good things. (Philippians 4:8)
Control your speaking . Jesus said we could “take thoughts” (Matt 6:25 KJV, other translations say “worry” which we know is really something that happens in our mind). If Jesus said to “take no thought” about certain things then he was implying that we could actually control our thoughts.Verse 31 of Matthew 6 (KJV) says “take no thought, saying…”, so we see one way we take thoughts is by speaking them. So you can control your thoughts by controlling what you say. Your words show what is in your heart but you can control your words and change what is in your heart.
Guard your mind’s gates. Your mind’s gates are your eyes and your ears. What we hear and see triggers thoughts. We can determine what and how we hear. (Mark 4:24) The best way to shut down wrong thinking is to never let it in.
If you want to read a good article on Wrong Thinking by my former Pastor click here.