Join Our Mailing List

Print this page

THANKFUL THOUGHTS

(Philippians 4:8)
November 23, 2008

    If you were on vacation and a call came telling you that your house had burned down and all of your possessions were lost; but, then you arrived at the scene and found out that it wasn’t your house, how would you feel?
    If a hurricane swept through and destroyed almost everything in your area, but somehow left your buildings untouched, how would you feel?
    If you received word that the plane your son was supposed to be on had crashed, and then after an hour you heard his voice on the phone telling you he had missed the flight; how would you feel?
    Well, those feelings you had were called thankfulness, gratitude and appreciation.  This is the season to understand and activate those feelings.  Feelings are affected by thoughts.  Solomon said, “For as he thinks within himself, so he is . . .” (Prov. 23:7).
    The power of thought is tremendous.  Recently, a school gave elementary pupils a new test of learning ability.  After the tests were graded, the teachers were given the names of five children in each class who were designated as “spurters,” possessing exceptional learning ability.
    The teachers didn’t know that these names had been picked before the tests were given, on a completely random basis.  Any difference between the chosen few and the others existed only in the minds of the teachers.
    Even so, tests taken at the end of the school year revealed that these “spurters” had indeed moved far ahead of the other children, gaining as many as 20 IQ points.
    Furthermore, the teachers described them as more affectionate, and potentially more successful.  Obviously, the only change was one of attitude.  Because the teachers expected more of certain students, these students began to expect more of themselves.  Your mind affects your life.
    The most important things in life are invisible.  There is nothing more real than love and hate and fear and courage.  There is nothing more real than the thoughts of the mind and the meditations of the heart.
    Yes, thoughts are real things.  In fact, Jesus equated evil thoughts with actual crimes.  He said, “Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries . . . thefts . . . These are the things which defile the man . . .” (Matt. 15:19-20).
    We wouldn’t dream of putting water in our gas tank, or sand in our watch, or broken glass in our food; but we do something even worse every time we put an evil, idle or negative thought into our minds.
    We are responsible for our thoughts.
    Furthermore, Paul said thoughts transform our lives.  “Do not change yourselves to be like the people of this world.  But be changed within by a new way of thinking.  Then you will be able to decide what God wants you for you.  And you will be able to know what is good and pleasing to God and what is perfect” (Rom. 12:2, edb).
    So, how can we choose our thoughts and thereby shape our lives?

I.  FIRST, WE MUST REJECT EVIL THOUGHTS.

    Paul said that a loving person “thinketh no evil . . .” (I Cor. 13:5, KJV).
    Thoughts are mental magnets, and like attracts like.  If we think evil, we’ll inevitably bring evil into our lives.  The only water that can sink a ship is the water that gets inside.  It’s the same with evil.  The only evil that can destroy us is the evil that gets inside; and in most cases it enters through our thoughts.
    What is an evil thought?  Well, cynicism and hostility are evil.  When the angry scribes said to themselves that he was a blasphemer, Jesus, knowing their thoughts responded, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts?” (Matt. 9:4).
    Greed and ulterior motives are evil.  When Simon the sorcerer wanted to buy the Holy Spirit in order to use the power for profit, Peter said, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!” (Acts 8:20).
    Prejudice and discrimination are evil.  James said, “You pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool’ . . . you have become judges with evil thoughts” (James 2:3-4).
    Dr. Robert Schuller said, “When my children were sulking, I would say, ‘Your mind is like a radio and here is the dial.’  Then I would playfully twist the right ear and then the left ear and say, ‘These are the tuning knobs.  Lets turn the dial and pick up a happier channel!’ ”
    We, too, should “turn the dial” immediately when we find ourselves entertaining evil thoughts, because the longer they remain, the more damage they will do and the harder they will be to remove.
    So, let’s have good thoughts rather than evil thoughts.

II.  NEXT, WE MUST REJECT IDLE THOUGHTS.

    The writer of Proverbs said, even having trivial, idle thoughts is sinful.  He said, “The thought of foolishness is sin . . .” (Prov. 24:9).
    The term “foolish” means silly or irrational.  Idle thoughts, like idle words, are a waste of time, at best, and a forerunner of unproductive behavior, at worst.
    What is an idle thought?  Well, preoccupation with material things is idle.  Jesus said, “Do not be anxious for your life, as to what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor for your body, as to what you shall put on.  Is not life more than food, and the body than clothing?” (Matt. 6:25).
    Anxiety and insecurity are idle.  Jesus said, “Do not be anxious for tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself . . .” (Matt. 6:34).
    Egotism and arrogance are idle.  Paul said, “The wisdom of the world is foolishness with God . . .” (I Cor. 3:19-20, edb).
    How, then, can we control those persistent obsessions that run through our minds?  Well, fighting such unwanted thoughts is useless.  Jesus said, “Resist not evil . . .” (Matt. 5:39, KJV).
    He knew the more we try to attack a thing, the bigger and more insidious it becomes.  If someone says, “Now, don’t think of blue monkeys;” that’s all we’ll be able to do!  Instead, we must use discipline.  Substitute another thought.  Get busy on a worthy project.  Interact with a wise mature person.  Remember, “Deep thoughts make a deep person.”  So, let’s have productive thoughts rather than idle thoughts.

III.  FINALLY, WE MUST REJECT NEGATIVE THOUGHTS.

    Paul not only advocated positive thinking, he specifically defined it when he said: “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest,  whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any praise, think on these things” (Phil. 4:8, KJV).
    Now, are we willing to evaluate all of our own thoughts by these criteria?
    We gradually become what we think about.  Very few people realize this, and consequently there is a great deal of carelessness, in regard to thoughts.  Some people who guard their words and control their actions with great care are remarkably unconcerned about their thoughts.  It’s as if we believe as long as a thing is not put into audible words or observable deeds, it is of no consequence.  We imagine that since no one hears or knows about these thoughts, they’ll do no harm.  That’s not true!  Negative thoughts include guilt about the past and pessimism about the future.
    Paul said, “One thing I do:  I forget what lies behind and reach . . . forward to what lies ahead” (Phil. 3:13).
    So, let’s have positive thoughts rather than negative thoughts.

    Remember, God knows and analyzes our thoughts.  Jesus said, “There is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known” (Luke 12:2).
    The writer of Hebrews said, “For the word of God is . . . able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12).
    What we think about changes us, and then we change everything we touch.  Our thoughts shape our character.  That’s why our inner thoughts and our outer deeds must be the same.  Jesus said, “Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree bad, and its fruit bad . . . For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart” (Matt. 12:33-34).
    Let’s express this as a simple allegory:  There’s a little room in each of us where the real self lives.  A little weaver sits there in front of a loom and moves the shuttle back and forth all day.  He is weaving the warp and woof of our character, and the material he is using is our thoughts.  He can only use what we send him.  So, our attitudes and our outlooks determine our lives.
    An important purpose of the Thanksgiving season is to remind us that gratitude is one of our best attitudes and being thankful is one of our best thoughts.  That’s what Solomon meant when he said, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”
    Once, a woman found a wallet at the post office.  She said, “It was full of credit cards, personal photos and money.  The owner’s address was nearby, so I headed to the place, thinking how happy the women would be to get her precious possession back. 
    I knocked.  The woman cracked open the door.  I explained what happened.  She reached out, snatched the wallet and closed the door.
    I was stunned.  That was it?  No thank you?  No pat on the back?  No nothing?  As I walked slowly away, thoughts raced through my head: “Wasn’t this unfair?  Why should I give my best if what I do isn’t appreciated.”
    Does God feel that way about us? 
    Let’s be appreciative and grateful for our blessings!
    Let’s have good thoughts!
    Let’s have good productive thoughts!
    Let’s have good positive thoughts!
    And above all, let’s have thankful thoughts!


   
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(WC1648)

This issue of NEW PERSPECTIVES  is from an unpublished manuscript © copyrighted 2008 by Miles and Maralene Wesner, Idabel, OK.  PLEASE FEEL FREE TO USE THEM IN ANY WAY YOU THINK IS APPROPRIATE.  The only thing we ask is that you give credit for original material in PUBLISHED works. 

NEW PERSPECTIVES is a free service from Diversity Press. 

You may find other messages and a book list on our Webpage:
                                  www.ForMinistry.com/USOKSOBCOFBC5
or                              www.diversitypress.com

Email: wdiversitypress@aol.com
Fax: 1-580-286-2650


Miles E Wesner

Previous Issues