The mind if Christ

The Mind of Christ

Today's scripture overwhelms many people. If these were not the words of the Bible, they wouldn't believe it. As it is, most people shake their heads and ask, "How can this be?"

Paul was not saying we're perfect or that we'll never fail. He was telling us, as believers in Jesus, the Son of God, we are given the mind of Christ. That is, we can think spiritual thoughts because Christ is alive within us. We no longer think the way we once did. We begin to think as He did.

When we have the Holy Spirit living and active within us, the mind of Christ is action. The mind of Christ is given to us to direct us in the right way. If we have His mind, we will think positive thoughts. We will think about how blessed we are--how good God has been to us.

Jesus was positive, in spite of being lied about, lonely, misunderstood, and a multitude of other negative things. He was deserted by His disciples when He needed them most, yet He remained positive--always able to offer an uplifting, encouraging word. Just being in His presence would suggest that all fear, negative thoughts, and discouraging hopelessness would evaporate into thin air.

The mind of Christ in us is positive. So when we fall for the opportunity to be negative about something, we should instantly discern that we are not operating with the mind of Christ. God wants us to be lifted up. It's the enemy of our soul who wants us pressed down--depressed. We have many opportunities to think negative thoughts, but that's not the mind of Christ at work in us. We don't have to accept those thoughts. They are not ours!

Pray: Lord, I truly want to be aware of the mind of Christ in my life, and I want to be aware of it every minute of my waking day. Help me to open myself only to know Your will and to push away the old mindsets, the thinking that will lead me down the wrong path. I ask this through Jesus Christ. Amen.

Suspicious of suspicion

In today's scripture, these words about love are familiar to most of us, but I can honestly say that living them has not always been easy for me. As a child, I was not exposed to this kind of love--in fact, I was taught to be suspicious of everyone. I was told that the motives of other people were not to be trusted.

While it is wise to be aware of people's motives, we must be careful that we don't allow our suspicious nature to negatively affect our feelings about everyone. An overly suspicious nature can poison your mind and affect your ability to love and accept other people. Consider this example.

Suppose a friend approaches you after a church service, and says, "Do you know what Doris thinks about you?" Then the friend tells you every detail of the things Doris said. The first problem is that a true friend wouldn't share such information. And the second problem is that with an already suspicious mind, you now believe secondhand information.

Suppose that one day in church, Doris is sitting just a few rows in front of you, praising the Lord. Immediately you think, "She's such a hypocrite."

Then the Holy Spirit directs your thoughts to your own condition, and the fact that you were praising the Lord while harboring bad feelings toward Doris. Didn't Jesus tell us to make peace with others before we present our gifts to Him? (See Matthew 5:24.)

Convicted by these words of Jesus, you apologize to Doris for the bad feelings you have toward her...and she stares at you in absolute shock. Then you realize your mistake. You misinterpreted the information your friend shared with you about Doris, allowing the devil to turn you against a wonderful, godly woman.

This is a good example of how suspicion can cripple relationships and destroy our joy while it leads us astray.

It took me a while to overcome a lifetime of suspicions, but I finally learned that when we love God's way, we have no place for suspicions of others.

Pray: Lord, I thank You for showing me how to overcome my suspicious nature by teaching me how to love others with Your kind of love. Thank You, Jesus, for being patient with me and for being my great example. Amen