Soaring the heights in search of the unclouded mind of the Master.“But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure;
then peace loving, considerate, submissive,
full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”
James 3: 17 NIV
I am sad to say that many times my attitudes and responses do not reflect the way that Jesus thinks. I must admit that I often lust for the things of life that have no spiritual value at all. They may not be wrong but they can often put me in a state of discontentment that allows Satan to have a foot hold in my life and that hinders my fellowship with Jesus. But the wisdom that comes from heaven is pure. Jesus modeled this pure wisdom while he walked on this earth.
Jesus was peace loving. Knowing the way Jesus thinks allows me to think peace loving thoughts as well. I can learn to choose to set aside unhealthy thoughts that lead me far away from peace. The Bible teaches that it is possible for believers to reject the thoughts that cause us to become fearful and the thoughts that add stress to our lives. We are commanded to reject sinful thinking and be holy. “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy,” I Peter 1:15-16 NIV If this was an unachievable task we would not be commanded to do so by our Lord. The Holy Spirit will endow us with the strength that we are lacking. We only need to ask.
Gentleness is pretty easy to grasp until I start multi tasking, running out of time, or feeling stress from having too much to do. Harsh words come out when I am not at peace. Jesus was considerate and acted in gentleness. I don’t recall Jesus being rushed, hurried, out of time, or stressed. Hmmmmm, where is the message in this?
There are some days that those around me “walk on eggs” trying not to stir up a storm! Not so with Jesus. Jesus was available and approachable. In fact Jesus calmed the storm.
I have experienced people speaking hard words to me. I have felt them push me away and falsely accuse me. I have suffered the pain of relationships changing and some ending. I have longed to be vindicated to no avail. I have hardened my heart and built walls of protection around myself so that no one could ever hurt me again. My thoughts and attitudes have been anything but merciful. But Jesus was merciful!
I have had times in my life that I shut down. I have deliberately shut out love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness and self control. Circumstances in life have made me angry and darkness has settled in. But Jesus never caved in to that type of behavior. Because Jesus possesses all of the fruits of the spirit, his thoughts are always full of love, joy and peace. He is patient, gentle, good, faithful, and meek and when he walked on this earth he had all his emotions under control at all times.
Many times I have been wishy-washy! I was trying to live a lukewarm lifestyle and live in the gray areas of life. I approached sin by placing my big toe on the line but not crossing the line. I have in the past tried to live a Christian life with one foot in the world and one foot in heaven. I might ask myself, Paula, how did that work out for you? The answer is not well! Jesus set the example of being steadfast, faithful, never wavering. It is in those attributes that he modeled that we will find our spiritual strength.
I have experienced dishonesty and lying. I have been insincere. I have picked favorites and sided with what was popular. Jesus on the other hand was always truthful, impartial, and always sincere.
I have experienced, and at times I still do experience hate, pain, fear, impatience, hardness, bad attitudes, faithlessness, unbelief, arrogance. I imagine that if you my readers are honest, you have all been exactly where I have been and at times revisit those same haunts. That is why we all need the mind of the Master! All of the things that he was when he walked this earth he still is today! He is our model for this life. He is the wisdom that is straight from heaven. His thoughts are holy. He calls us to be holy because he is holy. All of his virtues are worthy of our pursuit. I may never get it perfect in this life but I pray that I will die trying to walk in the shadow of his love and grace. With the help of God all things are possible. Maybe not all at once or forever and always, but most certainly inch by inch, trial by trial, and temptation by temptation. God’s heart is moved toward us when he sees us walking toward him.
Questions:
Do you see yourself in need of different thinking?
Do you believe that it is possible to take your negative thoughts captive and allow Jesus to change your thoughts to be like his thoughts?
Choose one negative thought and begin to talk to Jesus about it today.
Prayer:
Dear Lord,
I am in desperate need of your help. There are so many thoughts that I need to give to you. Help me to allow you to guide me in this process. Give me understanding as to how you think. Free me from the bondage of sinful, self-centered thinking. I need the power of your Holy Spirit to help me successfully surrender my will to your will. I desire that my mind will be ordered by you. You have promised that you would keep me in perfect peace if I will keep my mind on you.
In Your Name I Pray. Amen
Jesus was peace loving. Knowing the way Jesus thinks allows me to think peace loving thoughts as well. I can learn to choose to set aside unhealthy thoughts that lead me far away from peace. The Bible teaches that it is possible for believers to reject the thoughts that cause us to become fearful and the thoughts that add stress to our lives. We are commanded to reject sinful thinking and be holy. “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy,” I Peter 1:15-16 NIV If this was an unachievable task we would not be commanded to do so by our Lord. The Holy Spirit will endow us with the strength that we are lacking. We only need to ask.
Gentleness is pretty easy to grasp until I start multi tasking, running out of time, or feeling stress from having too much to do. Harsh words come out when I am not at peace. Jesus was considerate and acted in gentleness. I don’t recall Jesus being rushed, hurried, out of time, or stressed. Hmmmmm, where is the message in this?
There are some days that those around me “walk on eggs” trying not to stir up a storm! Not so with Jesus. Jesus was available and approachable. In fact Jesus calmed the storm.
I have experienced people speaking hard words to me. I have felt them push me away and falsely accuse me. I have suffered the pain of relationships changing and some ending. I have longed to be vindicated to no avail. I have hardened my heart and built walls of protection around myself so that no one could ever hurt me again. My thoughts and attitudes have been anything but merciful. But Jesus was merciful!
I have had times in my life that I shut down. I have deliberately shut out love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness and self control. Circumstances in life have made me angry and darkness has settled in. But Jesus never caved in to that type of behavior. Because Jesus possesses all of the fruits of the spirit, his thoughts are always full of love, joy and peace. He is patient, gentle, good, faithful, and meek and when he walked on this earth he had all his emotions under control at all times.
Many times I have been wishy-washy! I was trying to live a lukewarm lifestyle and live in the gray areas of life. I approached sin by placing my big toe on the line but not crossing the line. I have in the past tried to live a Christian life with one foot in the world and one foot in heaven. I might ask myself, Paula, how did that work out for you? The answer is not well! Jesus set the example of being steadfast, faithful, never wavering. It is in those attributes that he modeled that we will find our spiritual strength.
I have experienced dishonesty and lying. I have been insincere. I have picked favorites and sided with what was popular. Jesus on the other hand was always truthful, impartial, and always sincere.
I have experienced, and at times I still do experience hate, pain, fear, impatience, hardness, bad attitudes, faithlessness, unbelief, arrogance. I imagine that if you my readers are honest, you have all been exactly where I have been and at times revisit those same haunts. That is why we all need the mind of the Master! All of the things that he was when he walked this earth he still is today! He is our model for this life. He is the wisdom that is straight from heaven. His thoughts are holy. He calls us to be holy because he is holy. All of his virtues are worthy of our pursuit. I may never get it perfect in this life but I pray that I will die trying to walk in the shadow of his love and grace. With the help of God all things are possible. Maybe not all at once or forever and always, but most certainly inch by inch, trial by trial, and temptation by temptation. God’s heart is moved toward us when he sees us walking toward him.
Questions:
Do you see yourself in need of different thinking?
Do you believe that it is possible to take your negative thoughts captive and allow Jesus to change your thoughts to be like his thoughts?
Choose one negative thought and begin to talk to Jesus about it today.
Prayer:
Dear Lord,
I am in desperate need of your help. There are so many thoughts that I need to give to you. Help me to allow you to guide me in this process. Give me understanding as to how you think. Free me from the bondage of sinful, self-centered thinking. I need the power of your Holy Spirit to help me successfully surrender my will to your will. I desire that my mind will be ordered by you. You have promised that you would keep me in perfect peace if I will keep my mind on you.
In Your Name I Pray. Amen
