Proverbs 23:7a For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.
Where the mind goes the man goes. Our words and actions are a result of our meditation. “Your life today is a result of your thinking yesterday. Your life tomorrow will be determined by what you think today” – John Maxwell. Thoughts become words and words are seeds that we sow into our tomorrow. Our thoughts and our tongue shape the future of our lives.
Your “mind” is the real You. Your mind is your personality, character and your innate nature. The environment, culture and belief system play a very important role in shaping our character but our response to the challenges and crises control our mind. We cannot control what happens to us but we can take control of our attitude and response to it. Catastrophe can make us bitter or better. Choose to become better by meditating on the promises of God rather than worrying about the problems. ‘Ruminating on the promises’ and ‘agonizing over the problem’ are both ‘meditation’. Choose your thoughts carefully. Those who contemplate defeat, failure and loss have failed already even before they face the predicament. Think about what you are thinking about.
Our thoughts are very powerful and forceful. They are a source of energy to our body. Dr. Ralph Lewis in an article in Psychology Today says “Thoughts are physical representations or maps. They have shape and weight. Thoughts are energy signals that have mass.” So, our thoughts we dwell-on form our behaviour patterns and character. Those who feed on lousy thoughts and entertain junk turn into jerks! Those who nourish their mind with God’s Word transform into godly men and women.
Think about what you are thinking about:
1. Mind: “Mind, the Mind”. Watch over your thoughts. 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). Any thoughts outside the parameters of these eight guidelines are destructive. Choose constructive thoughts.
2. Memorize: Memorization of God’s Word does not end with Sunday school; it should be part of our everyday life. What is stored in our memory comes out as words.
3. Meditate: Memorizing God’s Word increases knowledge but for the knowledge to become wisdom and our second nature, we must meditate on the Word. In traditional Jewish education, students by the age 6 would attend synagogue schools. By around 10 years of age, they would have learned and memorized the first 5 books of the Bible, called the Torah. Yet, the Jewish Teachers of Law did not recognize the Messiah, Jesus, because they did not meditate until the Word was woven into the fiber of their thoughts. Their memorization was monotonic. Chew the cud. Meditate on the promises until God’s Word becomes your inborn nature.
Thoughts are energy signals that direct our words and actions.
Proverbs 6:21-22 Bind them on your heart always; tie them around your neck. When you walk, they will lead you.
Prayer: Holy Father, help me to understand the power of my thoughts that I may watch over my mind, memorize and meditate only on your promises and not mull over my problems. Amen.
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