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| Selah! (Pause and calmly think of that) |
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| A Monthly Newsletter by Patti Hedgepath Lusk | ||
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Two Minds |
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When I had an eye exam, the doctor gave me
a prescription for bifocals, but he told me I could keep wearing the
glasses I had if I was comfortable looking out from under them to see up
close.
I opted to forego the bifocals and keep
doing what I had been doing.
(I was actually opting to forego the task
of getting used to something new.)
I was completely comfortable having help
with part of my vision, but doing the rest on my own.
Are we willing to look at things God’s way
and turn over all the control to Him, or do we feel a need to hold on to
part of it?
If we think we can hold partial control and
still advance in our spiritual growth, we are wrong.
Looking at our circumstances through His
viewpoint part of the time and our own the rest of the time will bring
confusion.
It’s like having two minds that see things
differently.
When you opt to turn it all over to Him,
you will find your vision is much clearer, and confusion goes away.
There will be peace in your heart.
James 1:8 tells us, “A double minded man is
unstable in all his ways.”
The phrase “double minded” means “two
souled”.
Our soul is made up of our mind (the seat
of our ability to reason things out and understand), our will (our
desires and determinations), and our emotions (our feelings).
Human reasoning, a strong, stubborn will
and emotions that lead the way are components for disaster in a life.
We fluctuate when we depend on our emotions
because they are ever changing.
They will take us for a long destructive
ride.
A stubborn will keeps us from agreeing with God’s
will.
Our reasoning is very limited because it is based
on a shallow knowledge of the past and present, and no knowledge of the
future.
God says when we are pulled in two directions – our way and His way – we
will be unstable in the whole course of our life.
Being unstable is just the opposite of
having your life set in order.
An unstable person is disorderly and
unsettled.
They are trying to go in more than one
direction, and it causes confusion, not only for them, but for all those
around them.
We have all known people who can bring
confusion to the simplest situation.
Then, there are those who can bring peace
and simplicity to the most difficult, confusing situation.
Why is that?
It is because it is either the fruit of an
unstable mind or a settled, orderly mind with its focus in Christ and
His Word.
If we are experiencing confusion in our
minds, the course of our lives will reflect that, because our actions,
decisions and words are products of our mind.
When that happens, we need to stop and
reconnect with God.
“For God is not the author of confusion,
but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.”
(1 Corinthians 14:33)
The word “confusion” here means to be in a
state of disorder, disturbance, and instability.
That is the condition of the double minded
man, but not the condition of one who is consistently connected with the
Lord.
God is the author of peace, or a bringing into one
– not two, not three, but one!
Remember how Jesus prayed that we would be
one with Him as He was one with the Father?
He wants us to be in harmony with God in
our thoughts, our motives, our purpose, our actions, and our
conversation.
When we come into that kind of relationship
with Christ, we will experience a peace that exceeds our human
understanding.
It is a peace that will hold us steady even
in the midst of storms.
If we want to understand further the Spirit
of God with Whom we are to become one, we can look at 2 Timothy 1:7.
“For God has not given us the spirit of
fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”
He is NOT the author of confusion
(disorder) or fear (cowardice, timidity).
He IS the author of power, love and a sound
mind.
God is all-powerful and He gives His children
power by the Holy Spirit within us.
This power inside us is a power that is
capable of transforming us and then reproducing through us.
We can have His love (His compassion and
benevolence) revealed through us.
We can have a sound mind.
If our mind is sound, it is disciplined, it
has been made whole.
It is made up of one piece, not broken up
in many pieces scattered here and there.
We have become one with God.
We don’t allow ourselves to become
entangled with the mindset of the world.
Our thought process is different because we
are born into a new spiritual dimension and our thoughts are now
filtered through the Spirit and the Word of God.
We see things differently because we have
become one with the Word.
How can we develop this whole, complete
mind?
God will keep our minds if we follow what He says
in Isaiah 26:3.
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace
(oneness, wholeness – not pieces), whose mind is stayed on thee (leaning
on Jesus, not our own understanding – yielding to God and not the
flesh): because he trusteth in thee (runs for refuge and is confident
and sure in God).”
(Parentheses added)
We have to make Jesus the reason we live,
the reason we worship, the reason we reach out to others, the reason we
choose the right way.
If we do the right things with the wrong
motive, we are not single-minded.
Our
mind must be in harmony
with the Lord.
Whatever He says, we need to do.
If He tells us to change something in our
lives, we need to be quick to obey.
We obey because we love Him and are one
heart with Him.
If we are to be in harmony with Him, we
must be close to Him.
We must pull ourselves aside in His
presence and listen to what He has to say.
When we read His Word, we should realize
that is His Word to us.
The Spirit of God will never tell you to do
something that is against the Word of God.
That would be double minded, and God
certainly is not double minded.
We must take the initiative to draw close
to Him if we want to have a sound, whole mind.
He has promised to draw close to us when we
do.
“So be subject to God.
Resist the devil [stand firm against him],
and he will flee from you.
Come close to God and He will come close to
you.
[Recognize that you are] sinners, get your soiled
hands clean; [realize that you have been disloyal] wavering individuals
with divided interests, and purify your hearts [of your spiritual
adultery].”
The King James Version says, “and purify
your hearts, ye double minded.”
We cannot have two minds and please God.
Adultery is when you have another interest
besides the one you are married to.
If you are to be one with God, you cannot
have divided interests.
That is spiritual adultery.
You cannot be a true Christian if you are
only faithful to God and His Word on a part time basis, just like you
cannot have a true marriage if you are only faithful to your mate on a
part time basis.
If you have interests that displease God,
you are not one with Him.
If reading His Word and praying is a chore
to you, you are not one with God.
When you become one with Him, your desires
change and your aspirations change.
There is a revolutionary transformation in
the heart of a person who has been born again.
That change of heart produces a change of
behavior and conversation.
It produces a coming together of that mind
with the mind of God.
When we realize our sin and forsake it, we
are on our way to being one with God.
When it is our heart’s desire to spend time
in His Word and His presence, we are on our way to becoming one with
Him; because we are filling our minds with the things of God and leaving
no room for the things of the world.
Romans 12:2 sheds more light on having our
minds casting off the baggage of the world and becoming one with Christ.
“And be not conformed to this world: but be
ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is
that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
If we are conformed to this world, we fall
into the mold they take on in our reasoning, thoughts and actions.
We can be transformed if we choose to be.
We can change into another form by renewing
our minds.
Rather than having double vision, we can
have single vision – a clear, simple understanding with a depth that
transcends the natural.
The renewing of our mind comes when we
allow the power of God to enlighten us, or “turn on the light” in our
darkened mind.
This process will change, not only what we
do and say, but who we are.
Make the decision to surrender yourself
completely to Jesus Christ.
Allow Him to bring your mind into one with
Him and the Father.
How blessed it is to have confusion fall
away, and to have peace of heart and mind to reign in its place! |
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| CounterFlo Ministries - PO Box 736 Belton, SC 29627 - counterfloministries@hotmail.com | ||