"For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he..." (Proverbs 23:7, KJV).
"Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life" (Prov. 4:23, KJV).
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things" (Phil. 4:8, ESV).
"Therefore gird up the loins of your mind [muster all your intellectual resources]..." (1 Pet. 1:13, NKJV).
"Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established" (Prov. 16:3, KJV).
"A man is what he thinks about all day long." (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
"The most important things in life are the thoughts you choose to think." --(Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor and Stoic writer)
The most important aspect of our personality is the thoughts we allow and choose to occupy our time and mind; we can't always control what enters our minds, but we don't have to entertain and meditate on the wrong ideas. The computer principle of GIGO applies garbage in equals garbage out! Mark 7:21, ESV, says, "For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts...." The Word is a judge of thoughts and the intents of our hearts (cf. Heb. 4:12).
David prayed in Psalm 19:14 that the words of his mouth and meditations of his heart would be acceptable to God. They say that we aren't what we think we are, but we are what we think! When we fill our minds with holy thoughts, the feedback is holy and we reap what we sow! Our mouths betray what's on our minds and in our hearts! Our own thoughts either excuse us or blame us by virtue of our conscience (cf. Rom. 2:15).
We make the decision not to offend with our tongue--to use expletives or take God's name in vain--no matter how commonplace. New Agers fill their minds with mantras (a name of a Hindu deity), yoga (union with God), or TM (transcendental meditation), and these seem to work for them, as their nomenclature for meditation is not what God instituted, and biblical meditation or thought digestion (on the Word) is the lost art of Christians. New Agers say that it relaxes them and puts them in a good mood, to empty their minds, but real meditation is focused thinking with a purpose on something, not just letting random thoughts preoccupy our minds.
We don't fool God with our veneer, for He sees through the facade and demands an ingenious, sincere, humble, reverent, and honest prayer life. We are to pray without ceasing, which means we can be in a quasi-meditation all day long, as we enjoy fellowship with the Godhead, walking in the Spirit.
Our minds are like gardens that are either well-cultivated and conducive to good fruit or run wild and full of weeds, bearing only foliage. The presence of fruit indicates the presence of a fruit tree, bush, or vine, and God is constantly pruning us, that we would produce more. The branches that are unproductive, or fruitless, are cut down and thrown into the fire, so to speak. Cf. Jeremiah 17:9 which says, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, who can know it?" Yes, we shall know them by their fruits (cf. Matt. 7:14), and Jesus was right on when he said that evil thoughts proceed from the heart of man (Matt. 12:34, KJV, says, "...for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh")--nevertheless, think no evil (cf. 1 Cor. 13:5).
"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" (Gen. 6:5, KJV). Cf. Proverbs 4:23, which says, "Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it flow the issues of life." Paul exhorts us to "let the word of Christ dwell" in us richly--part of the process of learning to think godly thoughts, and most importantly to "take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ," as Paul commands in 2 Cor. 10:5. Being spiritually mature implies thinking with a divine attitude, worldview, and viewpoint--thinking godly thoughts per 2 Cor. 10:5, ESV, which says, "We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ."
We are to be "transformed by the renewing of our minds" (cf. Rom. 12:2) and to "be renewed in the spirit of [our] mind" (Eph. 4:23, NKJV). Paul tells us what sort of things to entertain our minds within Phil. 4:9, basically to "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 2:5, NKJV). We also need to constantly gird up the loins of our minds, or get into gear and stay focused and the result will be a sound mind per 2 Tim. 1:7. and set our minds on things above (cf.. Col. 3:2), not of the worldly realm or domain of Satan.
"Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life" (Prov. 4:23, KJV).
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things" (Phil. 4:8, ESV).
"Therefore gird up the loins of your mind [muster all your intellectual resources]..." (1 Pet. 1:13, NKJV).
"Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established" (Prov. 16:3, KJV).
"A man is what he thinks about all day long." (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
"The most important things in life are the thoughts you choose to think." --(Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor and Stoic writer)
The most important aspect of our personality is the thoughts we allow and choose to occupy our time and mind; we can't always control what enters our minds, but we don't have to entertain and meditate on the wrong ideas. The computer principle of GIGO applies garbage in equals garbage out! Mark 7:21, ESV, says, "For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts...." The Word is a judge of thoughts and the intents of our hearts (cf. Heb. 4:12).
David prayed in Psalm 19:14 that the words of his mouth and meditations of his heart would be acceptable to God. They say that we aren't what we think we are, but we are what we think! When we fill our minds with holy thoughts, the feedback is holy and we reap what we sow! Our mouths betray what's on our minds and in our hearts! Our own thoughts either excuse us or blame us by virtue of our conscience (cf. Rom. 2:15).
We make the decision not to offend with our tongue--to use expletives or take God's name in vain--no matter how commonplace. New Agers fill their minds with mantras (a name of a Hindu deity), yoga (union with God), or TM (transcendental meditation), and these seem to work for them, as their nomenclature for meditation is not what God instituted, and biblical meditation or thought digestion (on the Word) is the lost art of Christians. New Agers say that it relaxes them and puts them in a good mood, to empty their minds, but real meditation is focused thinking with a purpose on something, not just letting random thoughts preoccupy our minds.
We don't fool God with our veneer, for He sees through the facade and demands an ingenious, sincere, humble, reverent, and honest prayer life. We are to pray without ceasing, which means we can be in a quasi-meditation all day long, as we enjoy fellowship with the Godhead, walking in the Spirit.
Our minds are like gardens that are either well-cultivated and conducive to good fruit or run wild and full of weeds, bearing only foliage. The presence of fruit indicates the presence of a fruit tree, bush, or vine, and God is constantly pruning us, that we would produce more. The branches that are unproductive, or fruitless, are cut down and thrown into the fire, so to speak. Cf. Jeremiah 17:9 which says, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, who can know it?" Yes, we shall know them by their fruits (cf. Matt. 7:14), and Jesus was right on when he said that evil thoughts proceed from the heart of man (Matt. 12:34, KJV, says, "...for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh")--nevertheless, think no evil (cf. 1 Cor. 13:5).
"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" (Gen. 6:5, KJV). Cf. Proverbs 4:23, which says, "Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it flow the issues of life." Paul exhorts us to "let the word of Christ dwell" in us richly--part of the process of learning to think godly thoughts, and most importantly to "take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ," as Paul commands in 2 Cor. 10:5. Being spiritually mature implies thinking with a divine attitude, worldview, and viewpoint--thinking godly thoughts per 2 Cor. 10:5, ESV, which says, "We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ."
We are to be "transformed by the renewing of our minds" (cf. Rom. 12:2) and to "be renewed in the spirit of [our] mind" (Eph. 4:23, NKJV). Paul tells us what sort of things to entertain our minds within Phil. 4:9, basically to "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 2:5, NKJV). We also need to constantly gird up the loins of our minds, or get into gear and stay focused and the result will be a sound mind per 2 Tim. 1:7. and set our minds on things above (cf.. Col. 3:2), not of the worldly realm or domain of Satan.
God gives us a new mind, as well as spirit, emotions, and will upon salvation--the flesh profits nothing though, and it will be redeemed in heaven into glory! I am a firm believer in positive thinking and trying to see the bright side or the light side of a crisis and that we can rejoice in all circumstances, because of our filling in the Spirit and we are never alone.
Rene Descartes said, "I think, therefore I am!" He should've started with God in the picture, not himself--he's being introspective and making himself the center of his world. He is really saying that we have the innate ability to arrive at knowledge apart from God, whereas we wouldn't know anything apart from the revelation of God and that He chose to reveal. Thinking requires a thinker, ergo entities!
It makes more sense to use the biblical concept: "In the beginning God...." The only system of thought that Christ will fit into, according to church father Athanasius, is the one where Christ is its beginning premise or the beginning presupposition! When you rule God out of the equation, you enter the sphere of chaos, for, without logos, there can be no cosmos or orderly universe with a purpose, and science wouldn't be possible with the laws of the universe and make any sense (cf. Job 38:33).
Rene Descartes said, "I think, therefore I am!" He should've started with God in the picture, not himself--he's being introspective and making himself the center of his world. He is really saying that we have the innate ability to arrive at knowledge apart from God, whereas we wouldn't know anything apart from the revelation of God and that He chose to reveal. Thinking requires a thinker, ergo entities!
It makes more sense to use the biblical concept: "In the beginning God...." The only system of thought that Christ will fit into, according to church father Athanasius, is the one where Christ is its beginning premise or the beginning presupposition! When you rule God out of the equation, you enter the sphere of chaos, for, without logos, there can be no cosmos or orderly universe with a purpose, and science wouldn't be possible with the laws of the universe and make any sense (cf. Job 38:33).
This is why Secularists deny the supernatural: a Creator-god, a Lawgiver, and a Judge--they don't want accountability or to let a Divine Foot in the door, trying to desperately explain everything without God in the picture, no matter how bleak an outlook it is. Communists go so far as to declare: God does not, cannot, and must not exist! Indeed, it's atheism that's the primary handicap and problem of Marxism.
In summation, it is vital to get our thinking straightened out and to learn how to think with a divine viewpoint the way God would--i.e., biblically sound thinking! Christianity applies to all of academia and to every discipline and the problem is that Christians are losing the war of ideas and isms by default--they succumb to pressure and don't realize their position is defensible. All in all, in the final analysis, "[Be] careful how [we] think; [our] life is shaped by [our] thoughts" (Prov. 4:23, GNT).
Soli Deo Gloria!
In summation, it is vital to get our thinking straightened out and to learn how to think with a divine viewpoint the way God would--i.e., biblically sound thinking! Christianity applies to all of academia and to every discipline and the problem is that Christians are losing the war of ideas and isms by default--they succumb to pressure and don't realize their position is defensible. All in all, in the final analysis, "[Be] careful how [we] think; [our] life is shaped by [our] thoughts" (Prov. 4:23, GNT).
Soli Deo Gloria!