What Are You Thinking?

“Our life is what our thoughts make it.”  Catherine of Siena

It is so easy to just go about our daily lives, not really considering everything that we are seeing and hearing – no big deal, it’s just life, right?  But what we see and hear affects our thoughts – and our thoughts affect our words and our actions.  What’s inside our mind and our heart will eventually come out.  “But the bad things people say with their mouth come from the way they think. And that’s what can make people wrong. All these bad things begin in the mind: evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual sins, stealing, lying, and insulting people.”  (Matthew 15:18-19 ERV) 

I have to confess that I used to justify listening to music, reading books, watching movies and TV shows that were filled with things that I considered to be morally wrong.  I’d tell myself that it was okay because I know it’s wrong and it’s “just” a book or “just” a show.  

But, it’s important that we never forget that we are the keepers of our minds and what we allow to invade our minds is critically important.  If we tend to watch an excessive amount of news – which seems to be filled with very little good and a tremendous amount of negative, it will affect us negatively over time.  If we watch an excessive amount of violence, or immoral and corrupt behavior, we become desensitized to it and we will be less offended by it.  Over time our mind will begin to accept those kinds of things as “normal”.  

Our mind is where our enemy can attack us so easily; and, we need to guard against that.  So how can we do battle with our enemy to protect our thoughts?  This is what the Bible says about that:  “…fill your minds with beauty and truth. Meditate on whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is good, whatever is virtuous and praiseworthy.”  (Philippians 4:8 VOICE)

“When you’re swimming in water, you can’t help but get wet.  And when you’re swimming in polluted water, it can’t be healthy.”*  We would never intentionally expose our bodies to pollution by swimming in it.  So, why would we allow ourselves to pollute our minds with what we hear and see?  It’s no wonder that there is so much immorality pervading our society – so many suicides – so much anxiety and depression!

So what are you thinking?  How are your thoughts, your words and your actions influencing your life and the lives of those that you come in contact with each day?  Seriously consider the steps that need to be taken to get rid of the pollution in your life and think on the good things.  Your life will be blessed as a result.

Written by Karran Martin – June 24, 2023  

*Chris Tiegreen

[All bold emphasis is mine]