You may have heard it said that, when it comes to our struggle with sin, the battlefield is in the mind. And for the most part, I would agree. That is why we are taught to fill our mind with things that are true and noble; things that are pure and right. When we do, and if we do it often, we’ll be able to train our mind to focus on what is helpful to our walk and beneficial to our spirit. Because what we put in our mind will ultimately filter into our heart. And the Bible tells us that whatever our heart is full of will ultimately come out in our words and deeds. Paul exhorts the Philippians with these words in Philippians, chapter 4, verse 8:
“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things.”
Matthew 12:34 reminds us that the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. So, we know what will happen if we allow our mind to think on evil things, and allow our eyes and ears to let in what is evil. We know what happens if we surround ourselves with things that are sinful and friends that are spiritually rebellious and disobedient. It affects the way we think, which in turn affects our heart. And ultimately, our heart will reveal the evil in it through our words and deeds. If this is true, then wouldn’t it make sense that if we fill our mind with things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy, that it would filter into our hearts and would also reveal itself in our words and deeds? I would challenge you to consider how important it is for us to guard our minds and our hearts. That is why Proverbs 4:23 tells us to “guard our hearts because everything we do flows from it”. And one way to guard our heart is by constantly thinking on that which is good.
—-
What we allow into our thoughts matter, because over time, it can affect our heart which can ultimately affect our words and actions. Much like if we fill our bodies with junk food and harmful drugs we will be negatively affected physically, if we allow sinful and harmful thoughts into our minds, we will be negatively affected spiritually. That is why Paul exhorts the Philippians to think on heavenly things; things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy. And I’m sure if you give it a little thought, you’ll be able to come up with other good and holy things to add to the list. The goal is to guard our hearts by guarding our minds. If it is true that the battlefield is in the mind, we now have a plan that will help us prepare for every battle.
Links:
Free “Lord of My Life” Books: https://www.ktfproductions.com/books
Merchandise: https://teespring.com/stores/lord-of-my-life
Web Page: https://www.ktfproductions.com/loml-home
Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ktfproductions/
Subscribe to the KTF Newsletter: https://bit.ly/2n9Lprk
Contact Us:
Email: writecmv@hotmail.com