The Battle of the Mind

Most conflicts, if not all, begin with a single thought. (Wow, you might be saying, she sure is brilliant... or not. :) Well, let me continue.) Ofttimes the temptations we face and the internal battles we fight are brought on by a single train of thought. If this train is allowed to continue to roll around in our brains, it becomes longer and longer and may lead to a temptation in a certain area and then to sin. Where does the thought come from? Contrary to some beliefs, thoughts themselves are not sin, but it is what we do with those thoughts that can lead to sin.

Let me explain what I mean a little more. Satan knows his first battle ground in fighting for a soul is in the person's mind. Thus he sometimes plants thoughts in our brain, perhaps by whispering them in our ear or by having someone else bring the thought to our attention. (Hint: this is why it is sooo important to watch out for what we are putting in our minds with books, magazines, radio, other audio/visual media, and what we talk about with others! Sometimes it is better to be thought "dumb" about certain things, than to know things that are going to negatively affect your walk with Christ.)

Here is an example, maybe a little far fetched, but hopefully will get the point across: You are at the bank cashing the check your grandma sent for your birthday. Some thought enters your mind, "Rob the bank and you will be rich!" You think Where did that come from? but you continue to dwell on the thought as you wait in line. Maybe you don't do it this time, but as the days pass, you continue to allow your mind to go back to that train of though. Boy, I sure could use the money right now! My cell phone bill is due next week - all those texts sure do add up! So by the next time you go to the bank, you have decided to get rich quick! You rob the bank, the surveillance cameras record you, your picture is all over the news, you are arrested that evening for theft, and you spend the next twenty years paying for your crime! And all this would have been avoided, had you not dwelt on that first single thought!

So, really, you probably aren't going to be tempted to rob a bank, right? But Satan doesn't tempt us in things that have no appeal for us. He probably keeps a card file of everyone's personalities and is sure to tempt them in something that will have a chance of causing them to fall! So how do we fight this?? By starting where it all begins... thus, the battle of the mind!

Battle Strategy
I believe that every person fights this battle of the mind in one way or another. Here is a Scripture that God gave me this verse in 2 Corinthians 10, "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;" Personally, I visualize myself binding up the thought and casting it out of my mind. And the guideline for inappropriate thoughts is does it go against God's laws? and of course it is pure, lovely, true, etc.... (Philippians 4:8) Not only do you need to bind up the thought and cast it out, but when it comes back to mind, because Satan doesn't always give up after one try, to remember that you have cast out that thought and make a conscience decision to not dwell on it and PRAY, for only with Christ can you truly win. This battle of the mind is fought over many different issues such as modesty, purity, life choices, and just fill in the blank for the battle that you are fighting! God has promised His help when we ask and also that He would never give us more than we can bear - 1 Corinthians 10:13.


**Image courtesy of www.south-africa-tourism.com

The Butterfly!

One more thought for today... I'm sure many of you love butterflies! I know I love to see them fluttering through the flowers in my yard, they are so beautiful and colorful! Did you know that their colors are not caused by pigment?? (pigment is what colors your eyes, skin and hair) The scales on a butterfly's wings don't contain this pigment, but the colors we see are a reflection of the sun light. In other words, if it were dark, we wouldn't see their color at all! Hummingbirds are the same way!

How does this apply to us? Our clothing should be a reflection of the SON Light - God's Son, Jesus! Without His light reflected in us and in our actions, we are just as dark as the rest of the world! But when we reflect Him, people see the beauty that He has created in us!

Someone is Watching!!

One of the factors that I've talked about in our modesty discussions is why do we wear certain things? to get attention? whose attention? While our main objective in clothing should not be to draw attention to ourselves, the fact remains that people notice what we wear! Maybe you've had someone stop you because of something they noticed about you? For my sister, it's her hair; for me (my hair is usually put up) it is usually my skirts and non-made-up face. Many people notice and appreciate a modest look, whether they always comment to you or not. I had on gentleman that came into where I work stop me and say "You are a beautiful lady." He was not being rude, his meaning was that he noticed that I dressed and acted like a lady and it showed. You might be surprised, as I was, at the people that notice your modest apparel and actions.

Not only are there people that notice what we look like, but what about the people that may be copying how we look? Each of us most likely has someone who looks up to us and wants to emulate (copy) our appearance or fashion sense, whether she is a sister, niece, cousin, or friend. I don't want to be one who sets a bad example for someone else, do you? You probably have those that you look up to for their fashion sense, I know I do. Maybe you have been disappointed by that person, but I hope not! And I hope and pray that we aren't a disappointment to someone else!

Very Profound

Ok, we all know that God give certain abilities to certain people, right? A lot of times we call these abilities gifts, like "she has the gift of playing the piano." or "he is gifted in public speaking." But does God always give us these gifts fully developed? Some people are born with a genius mind. We especially think of music like the six year old that can play Beethoven's Ninth for example. (I don't know if there is one, but probably somewhere, right?) :) I wasn't born with genius-type talents. Most people aren't... but God has given each one of us certain gifts.
Sometimes the best way to discover God's will for you life, is to look at the things that you do best. (Let's say you have a gift for singing... I don't think God would want you to spend your life in underwater basketweaving!) But you may not yet be the best you can be at the things you do best! Follow me? Let me put it this way, God gives us talents, but it is up to us to use those talents, learn how to use them more effectively (like going to school/college), and put those talents into practice. Your talents are God's investment in you, like money in the bank. It is up to you to invest those talents wisely, so when you have to give an account to God, you will be able to show what you have done for Him with what He gave you. (To read Jesus's parable of the talents see Matthew 25:14-30.)

Which Way?

As a young person, I know you have many decisions that you are facing - decisions with lifelong effects. To go to college or not, which college, what to major in, what kind of job to look for, what friends to hang out with, and what to do with the rest of your life! All these decisions can be overwhelming! The most important question to ask along with all these is "What is God's will for my life?" Sometimes finding God's will seems a little allusive. So how do you know?

I'm not going to tell you what God's will is for you life... other than to say that God's will for you is to honor and serve Him in all you do! (How is that for being general?? :) But it is the answer!!) As long as you desire to please God in all areas of your life and allow Him to take control, He will guide you in the right way. Does He tell us everything for our future now? You know the answer, of course not... if we knew everything we were to face in life, it would probably scare us to death! No, the answer to finding God's will is to keep looking for it, every day seeking how God would have you spend your time.

God will lead you in each of your choices. Some of the choices you are making may not seem to be that big to you right now, but when you look back a few years later, you will see God's leadership in using these choices for the big picture.

Isaiah 30:21 says "And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left." God is saying through this verse, that He is going to lead us in each step we take. God won't give you His entire plan for you life, but He will lead you in the right direction each day.

This has been a little different line of thought from what I've been commenting on in regard to modesty, but it is something I read about in one of my devos this morning and one of my friends has been making some life choices... I guess both combined has got me thinking. Anyone have any comments on how God has been leading you recently? I would love to hear about it!