Day 9 of False Choices: You must choose between being a deep thinker or being led by the Spirit.

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

You see somebody doing something ridiculous and often the question will come to mind: “What were they thinking?” Maybe you’ve even asked the same question about some of your own actions. The fact is, thoughts rarely stay internal; at some point, thoughts become behavior.

The ability to think at a high level is one of the things that sets us apart from other creatures on the Earth. We can contemplate our own existence as well as the meaning of our lives. We can plan far ahead and reflect on things far behind. Tragically, many times our wonderfully created, God-given ability for deep thought, is used for that which is not good.

“What sorrow awaits you who lie awake at night, thinking up evil plans. You rise at dawn and hurry to carry them out, simply because you have the power to do so.”

‭‭Micah‬ ‭2‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT

In the account of the destruction of all mankind except for Noah and his family, we find the reason given for it as the fact that even their thoughts had become totally corrupted.

“The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart.”

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭6‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In the word of God we consistently see the Lord giving instruction for us to take control over our thought processes. We are instructed to fuel (inform) our thoughts by the word of the Lord.

“Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.”

‭‭Joshua‬ ‭1‬:‭8‬ ‭NLT

In the above scripture we see the Lord’s instruction to Joshua as he was taking over for Moses. He would be able to succeed if he would occupy (fill) his mind with what Moses had occupied his mind: the instruction of the Lord.

The New Testament gives further instruction concerning the need to take control over our thoughts by placing them on the things associated with the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.

“Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.”

‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭8‬ ‭NLT

In fact, the New Testament is full of instruction concerning the importance of the content of our thoughts.

In our opening scripture we see one of my favorite passages concerning our thoughts. We must allow our minds to be renewed according to the word of God. Through Christ, this task is now easier; we have access to the Holy Spirit so that He can inform and transform our thinking.

I have said all of this to make the point that there is no choice to be made between being a deep thinker and being led by the spirit of God. Our mind is a “dual fuel” entity. We can fuel it with the things of this world (evil) or we can fuel it with the things of God (righteousness). What comes out of it will depend on which “pump” you pull up to for a fill-up.

Again, there is absolutely no conflict between being a deep thinker and being led by the Spirit. The choice is to what we attach our minds. If we attach our minds to what the Lord has said—and continues to say by way of His Holy Spirit—we will be transformed into His image. If we set our minds in the direction of evil by pulling from the things of the world, we will end up being conformed to that which is marked for destruction.

Today we lay to rest the false choice between being a deep thinker or being led by the Spirit.

#10daysoffalsechoices