Thinking on the Truth

Dear Reader,

I want to talk about thought life again.  Back in May, I wrote to you about how the enemy encourages the spirit of fear.  Now I want to draw your attention to another powerful tool used against us that starts in our minds, but untamed, can damage our relationships with others.  It may begin as the simple question, "I wonder what she thinks of me?"  With continued thought and a few days without talking, it might become, "She obviously doesn't agree with me."  That opens the door to, "Well, I don't need an unsupportive friend anyway."  And there, a friendship dies without any words except in the mind of the thinker!

This may seem far-fetched, but it reminds me of a friendship of my own.  One day, I revealed a political opinion that hushed my friend quickly.  I didn't hear from her for awhile after that.  I kept thinking about the conversation, growing angry that she dared judge me.  But instead of immediately addressing my concern (that she looked down on me) by talking to her, I let my anger fester, assuming the worst.  Thinking she judged me, I started judging her.  By the end of each conversation I had with myself, our friendship seemed to make less sense.

I finally asked her what was wrong, to which she replied, "Nothing." 

Oh, that made me so mad!  Of course something was wrong!  She wasn't acting herself.  She must have been really upset with me!  So I tried to pry her open to see the truth.  She met me with stronger resistance, and I stumbled backwards and landed on my crobar.  That hurt.  So I finally decided to give her some room, and we stopped speaking. 

Later, she revealed that my opinion greatly upset her.  I held fast to what I believed, angry that she had lied to me.  She held fast to what she believed...and I don't quite know what she felt.  But our friendship never picked up after that. 

Let me break down what we did wrong, according to the Bible:

I did not take my thoughts captive (2 Corinthians 10:5).  According to the Word, all of my thoughts need to be obedient.  As soon as I started thinking harsh thoughts about my sister in the Lord, I disobeyed 1 Corinthians 13:4,5, which says, "Love...thinks no evil." 

I did not think on what is true (Philippians 4:8).  Even sooner than I started judging my friend, I forgot to think on what is true.  The Bible says that if a sister is sinned against, she is to go to the sinner and reveal the fault.  Until my sister came to me, I could not assume she had anything against me. 

I claimed omniscience only attributed to God (Isaiah 55:9).  When I decided what my friend thought, I presumed I had the highest knowledge. 

My friend let the sun set on her anger (Ephesians 4:26).  Though she eventually told me that I offended her (as prescribed in Matthew 18:15), she stewed in her frustration first.

We couldn't get over the pride of our opinions (Proverbs 16:18).  Because of this, I didn't speak to my friend for a year.  Though the Lord led me to reconcile, my friend did not wish to pursue our once active friendship.  What had started in our minds manifested itself in our lives, and now each of us has one less companion.    

With the boom in technology, we hear about what a powerful tool the mind is.  Yes, absolutely!  But too many people underestimate how the enemy can use it to distract or destroy God's people.  What happened between my friend and I did not build up the Body.  I regret my immature thought life, and though we "split" years ago, I wonder how much I've grown in controlling my mind since then.  Recently, I realized how heavy my thoughts felt.  The pressure of impressing people with my words and actions began taking a toll.  It seemed like I relayed to my husband concerns about others' thoughts, perceptions and presumed opinions every week.  I had been focusing on another Bible study, so I put away Elizabeth George's Loving God With All Your Mind.  But the Lord reminded me of the importance of thinking on the truth.  So I picked it up again a couple of weeks ago, and it will be my focus until I finish it (or until the Lord leads me elsewhere, whichever comes first!).   

I want to encourage you to train your brain with me.  Our human nature dictates our thought lives unless we teach ourselves to think on the truths of the Word.  Each lesson in my workbook for Loving God With All Your Mind asks the same question: "What can you do this week, in obedience to Christ, to think on the truth?"  And each time, I remember the importance of knowing the truth in order to think on the truth.  We need to read God's Word!  If we don't know what is true, how can we expect to think anything but lies?  So be diligent to read the treasures of the Bible this week and every week, and together we'll learn to think on what is true. 

Blessings,
adguglielmo