Whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things [fix your minds on them]. ~Philippians 4:8b (AMP)
People are not what will determine our happiness today, our thoughts are. When others do things that hurt or disappoint us it’s not what they do that steals our joy, it’s our reaction to what they have done. We need to think more about what we are thinking about because getting a new perspective from God can change your life. Are you more concerned about how others are living their lives or how they are treating you or the people that you love than you are about doing the will of God? If so, you need a refresher of Romans 14:4 where God tells us "who are you to judge someone else's servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand." (NIV) Does your thinking center on yourself and your desires? If so, you can be sure you are going to be disappointed a lot because other people’s thoughts are most often not centered on you and your desires. But God is. He is thinking about you every minute of every day!
Paul provides a list of what we need to focus our mind on in Philippians 4:8. It sounds reasonable, but it takes a whole lot of discipline to implement that kind of thinking into your life, especially if you are used to thinking negatively or what some people like to call "gutter thinking". If we concentrate our thoughts on good things we will be built up. We will grow spiritually and become strong in the Lord. But if we are full of wrong thoughts, we will become more and more miserable. It wears us out meditating on situations that only God can change and if that wasn't bad enough, it will also cause us to step out of God’s will and take situations into our own hands that we have already prayed about and put into the Lords hands. Get a fresh start today by meditating on the good things in your life and let go of the rest. Let God bring about the answer to your prayers in His time while you focus on what He tells you to be focusing on. The good things He has brought into your life. The good things others are doing and are capable of. Look for the good in people and think about that. Good thoughts will always change your attitude and when your attitude changes, so will your altitude. It's time to come up to a new way of thinking!
That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in Him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. ~Ephesians 4:20-23 (NIV)
What have you put in the Lords hands that you struggle with to leave there?
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