Choosing Our Mental Direction

I love to read a devotional by Jerry Bridges each morning as part of my "quite time".   If you have not read any of his material, I would highly encourage you to do so.  I have a couple of his books listed in my "favorite books" tab here on my blog that you should check out!   He is truly a wise man of God who enjoys nothing less than preaching and teaching the Word of God.

So, this morning I read a devotional by him and it really convicted and challenged me.  I want to share it with you.

~Choosing Our Mental Direction~ 

If we want to live under the influence of God's Word, our minds must be steeped in the Scriptures.  We must constantly turn our minds to His Word, continually pondering the meaning and application of its truth in our lives.  This may seem unrealistic and unattainable in our busy age when our minds need to be occupied with the various responsibilities we all have.  How can we meditate on Scripture when we have to think about our work all day long? 

We should not think of the concept of continually as meaning every moment, but rather as consistently and habitually.   When you can think about anything you want, what do you think about?  Is it your problems or a mental argument with someone else?  Do you allow your mind to drift into the wasteland of impure thoughts?  Or do you begin to meditate on Scripture?  

Thinking is our most constant activity.  Our thoughts are our constant occupation.  We're never without them.  But we can choose the direction and content of those thoughts. 

Mediation on Scripture is a discipline.  We must commit ourselves to be proactive.  We must memorize key passages  (or carry them on cards) so we can think about them.  We must be alert for those times during the day when we can turn our minds to the Word of God, and then we must do it.  Event he practice of daily Bible reading is insufficient if we go the rest of the day without meditating on some truths of Scripture.  We must choose to mediate instead of thinking about other things or listening to the radio watching television.  We simply have to decide what we want our minds to be influenced by, and take steps accordingly. 

                  -Jerry Bridges

Did you feel a twinge of conviction after reading that?!  I sure did.  It really forced me to examine what I think upon the majority of the time.   Am I thinking upon the Truths of scripture or are my thoughts selfish, worldly, or even just "empty"?!  It's really good to examine our own hearts and thoughts.  We need to meditate on Scripture as Christians and let that be what our minds drift to because when we train ourselves to think rightly and upon Truth, we then will be equipped to fight those "mental battles" and focus on what is good, right, and pure verses giving way to what is wrong and unhealthy in our thinking.   

So, I challenge you today, dear friends, to meditate on Scripture, memorize certain passages of God's Word, and choose the mental direction that would honor and please our Savior!  

Have a good start to your week! 

~Grow in Grace~ 

2 Peter 3:18