10-29-23-ENG.

"We are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. " 

2 Corinthians 10:5 
NO LOOSE THOUGHTS 

Read It: Colossians 3:2-4 
Did you know that Jesus Christ doesn't even want you to think apart from Him and His will? Pardon the pun, but you may need to think about that statement for a minute. If I read the Apostle Paul correctly, that's exactly what the verse above means. Our thoughts are not to run loose like a bunch of animals suddenly let out of their cages at the zoo. After all, when do most of us get into trouble spiritually? Well, I don't know about you, but for many of the people I've talked with and counseled seled over the years, the problem started in the mind when they let their thoughts get out of control, and their actions followed. That's not thinking with a disciplined mind. When Paul advises you to "set your mind on the things above," he's calling you to focus your attention tion and place your affections on the things of heaven. Now this does not mean going around in a kind of hazy emotional cloud. Remember, we're talking about developing a Christian mind. We're talking about solid thinking, not tiptoeing through the tulips. This calls for a decision of the will and a determination of the heart to seek the mind of Christ. He's why we are to set our minds on heavenly things. Heaven is where He is, so if we're going to think like Christ, we had better ter be sitting at His feet, figuratively speaking, listening to Him. How do you make that practical? 

One of our church members once asked, "Suppose you are a new Christian, and you don't know what the Bible says about a subject on which you need the mind of Christ?" My answer was simply this: You track down the mind of Christ either through your own Bible study or through the teaching and guidance of others who you know look at life from a divine perspective. What I am saying is that the mind of Christ is not some elusive, cosmic force. Do you have a Bible lying near you right now? Does the Holy Spirit indwell you as your Teacher and Illuminator? Then you can know the mind of Christ! Think About It There's nothing more dangerous than a loose thought rolling around in your head like a loose cannon on the deck of a ship. Bring every thought captive to Christ.