Do you find any foods particularly bothersome?
Spicy foods cause some people heartburn. Others can’t drink caffeine at night without experiencing insomnia. A few get headaches after ingesting sweets. These foods enter our mouths but affect other parts of our bodies.
Similarly, what we allow to linger in our minds, “chewing” and “digesting” those thoughts, affects our hearts, the very core of who we are.
Imagine two people raised entirely differently when it came to getting sick. One’s father tended toward hypochondria, always complaining of aches and pains and frequently popping pills. The second person’s parents rarely fell ill, powering through any symptoms, seldom even mentioning how they felt.
Those two grew to adulthood and what do you think happened? The first suffered from aches and pains, facing a succession of ailments over time. The second rarely got sick and took medication much less frequently than the first. They’d each been taught how to think about symptoms. One fell victim to them and the other shrugged them off.
How we handle the fiery darts the devil shoots at us makes a huge difference in our experience. And the devil constantly suggests ideas to think about: the uncertainty of world politics, whether our coworkers respect us, or apocalyptic scenarios about the spread of a virus.
God advises us to guard our hearts (Proverbs 4:23). He also warns us to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5). These two instructions are connected. The way we guard our hearts is by taking every thought captive, filtering out the bad, because what we allow to fester in our minds will settle into our hearts. Thoughts morph into beliefs.
So how do we know which thoughts to reject? It depends on what we consider “normal” because we rarely question thought patterns to which we’re accustomed.
Jesus learned Scripture so well from a young age that thinking like His Father was His norm. And we see multiple instances where his way of thinking side-stepped fear and anger.
When the devil questioned His deity, Jesus countered with Scripture. When challenged by religious legalists, He used wisdom rather than defensive arguments to silence them. When accused, He exposed his opponents’ hidden motives. And rather than avoiding shunned lepers, He healed them.
Jesus handled every negative thought wisely, not in fear or anger. We also know (Hebrews 1:9) that Jesus was the most joyful man around! We can follow suit, handling thoughts wisely, because God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of … a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7).
So think of a food you avoid or simply find loathsome. Then recall your most pressing worry. You now have an opportunity to push that worry away just like you’d push away a plate of repulsive food. As you cast your cares on our loving Father, embracing His way of thinking and peace instead, you protect your heart.
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27
Very timely and helpful, Carrie – thanks!