What does your stream of consciousness sound like?
Words are floating through my mind all the time. some are good and purposeful, and others are not. It’s sometimes difficult to keep my mind focused on the good things instead of the defeating babble that goes on in my head.
Sometimes I hear my mental monologue say, “What a stupid thing to say!” Or “Did she just ignore me?” which is a fearful feeling that I’m easily forgotten. It gets exhausting when it goes on and on, I have to remind myself of who I answer to. I have to refresh my mind.
I need to ask the Lord to guard and direct my mind. And remember my place of intellect, reasoning, and intentions. Romans 12:2 tells us our behavior begins in our mind, and our mind is where our spiritual transformation happens. The object of my regular thinking determines how our days years, and ultimately our life plays out. Everything starts in the mind.
Last week we had a cancer scare in our family. I was so upset I let my mind wander off the path of God for a few days. I immediately started having flashbacks of the emotions I had when I was diagnosed with cancer. But then I heard in my spirit, “Don’t we weary.” and “Lean not on your own understanding. I realized we had not even heard any results yet, so why was I fretting? The tests came back negative. I let my mind control my emotions for no good reason. It’s a constant battle with my mind.
Too often we simply don’t bother to ask for the Lord’s protection, direction, and oversight of my mind. I start my days with a simple prayer, “Father, by your Holy Spirit, keep my mind firmly set where you want me focused today.”
It’s important to recognize the source of self-focused and self-defeating thoughts, it’s easy to let the devil mess with our minds. It’s one of his favorite tactics to distract and disarm us, and it usually works.
If you’ve ever experienced mental oppression that seems almost a physical issue you know what I mean. It’s a feeling of heaviness that accompanies self-defeating thoughts. Most of the time I realize that I’m engaged in a spiritual battle of some sort, sometimes I can not free myself of it. I have to pray, confess, and read God’s Word. And eventually, my mind is not burdened but it is not because I thought positively enough or talked myself out of it. It was because of the only One that can defeat the enemy.
It’s important that we recognize when it’s the enemy and fight him with God’s power and Spiritual truth. I should have been praying with my family members instead of being self-focused on myself during this time.
We need to replace our self-focus thinking with a God-focused mindset. After we pray for the Lord to protect our minds and recognize the enemy. We have a choice. Will we try and train our brains to concentrate on the things of God or will we let it consume us by the things of the world?
To focus our minds on God requires work. If we don’t take purposeful action to set our minds on Jesus we allow our minds to go wherever it wants to go. And usually it goes no where good.
We have to know ourselves and be fully confident of God’s love and care. We. Just decide what we will and will not think about. We have the power to change our thoughts.
Colossians 3:1-2 says,
“If then you were raised together with Messiah, seek the things that are above, where Messiah is, seated on the right side of God. Set your mind on the things that are above, not of the things that are on the earth.“
Romans 8:5,
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.”
Philippians 4:8 tells us to focus on whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
We are to rest in the truth that we are accepted by Jesus. It’s important to pray for the Lord to protect our minds and help us recognize the enemy, And to work on keeping our minds focused on God. Sometimes we will be successful and other times we won’t but if we keep working at it we will become better and better.
These are the days when all we can do is rest on the truth that we are at peace with God. That we are free from any accusation and are God’s children.
From Pity to Praise 