Week 3 in our 10 week series brought us to Philippians 4:8 where we looked at our thoughts. When we looked at the impact that our thoughts can have on our lives, we saw just how important it was to fill our minds with things that bring pleasure to God. Our thoughts greatly affect our lives and the lives of those around us in both positive and negative ways.
Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.
On Monday, we got the 'wheels turning' as we examined what the definition of true and noble meant to us. We saw that the one absolute truth in this messy world is God's Word. That no matter what, we can always rely on looking to His Word as our compass in life. Noble meant how we were living out our lives as examples of our thoughts. That our thoughts and actions were true reflections of our lives. The question was posed, what are your thoughts and are they truly pleasing to God and to others?
Tuesday, we realized that often times the 'truth hurts'. As we looked at the definition of right, we identified that God is able to see past the hollowness in our hearts and extract the truth in our lives. Through using the example of a bone marrow harvest, God extracts the lies within the hollowness of our hearts. Bringing the reality of the situation to the surface can hurt, however ridding ourselves of the bad and replacing it with the good, results in true spiritual growth.
On Wednesday we learned about the 'Japenga's, 10 second tidy'. How important it is for us to honestly look at what we are subjecting our minds to on a daily basis. Questions were asked of what type of media are we routinely exposing ourselves to and how that can affect us consciously and unconsciously.
Thursday brought us to reflect on the words lovely and admirable. This was my favorite day of the week because I was able to share deep feelings from my heart regarding my awesome husband. I asked the question regarding 'who was in your fave 5' and where those individuals reflective of admiration, love, and were they morally and spiritually attractive. Milo is truly a reflection of those traits and because of that he has a significant impact on my thoughts, actions, and life.
Finally Friday gave us permission to set the bar high, 'to shoot for the moon and land among the stars'! God is worthy of and expects our thoughts and actions to be excellent and praise worthy. Mediocrity is not allowed, for God has put us in charge of much and to much is given, much is expected. We are called to give and do our best in all walks of our lives.
Thoughts that are pleasing to God are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. By focusing our thinking on those things set forth in Philippians you will bring pleasure to God, to yourself, and to those around you! When your thoughts reflect the above traits, you begin the first step in living a life of balance, control, and harmony.
Your best means of defense from Satan, who will easily obscure your thoughts is to be grounded in God's Word DAILY! No situation will be too difficult, no temptation will be to great that Scripture can't help you through successfully!
Wishing you all a fun and safe, Memorial Day weekend! I am planting my FIRST vegetable garden tomorrow, so please pray for great weather and a GREEN thumb! ;-)
Blessings,
Jill
Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.
On Monday, we got the 'wheels turning' as we examined what the definition of true and noble meant to us. We saw that the one absolute truth in this messy world is God's Word. That no matter what, we can always rely on looking to His Word as our compass in life. Noble meant how we were living out our lives as examples of our thoughts. That our thoughts and actions were true reflections of our lives. The question was posed, what are your thoughts and are they truly pleasing to God and to others?
Tuesday, we realized that often times the 'truth hurts'. As we looked at the definition of right, we identified that God is able to see past the hollowness in our hearts and extract the truth in our lives. Through using the example of a bone marrow harvest, God extracts the lies within the hollowness of our hearts. Bringing the reality of the situation to the surface can hurt, however ridding ourselves of the bad and replacing it with the good, results in true spiritual growth.
On Wednesday we learned about the 'Japenga's, 10 second tidy'. How important it is for us to honestly look at what we are subjecting our minds to on a daily basis. Questions were asked of what type of media are we routinely exposing ourselves to and how that can affect us consciously and unconsciously.
Thursday brought us to reflect on the words lovely and admirable. This was my favorite day of the week because I was able to share deep feelings from my heart regarding my awesome husband. I asked the question regarding 'who was in your fave 5' and where those individuals reflective of admiration, love, and were they morally and spiritually attractive. Milo is truly a reflection of those traits and because of that he has a significant impact on my thoughts, actions, and life.
Finally Friday gave us permission to set the bar high, 'to shoot for the moon and land among the stars'! God is worthy of and expects our thoughts and actions to be excellent and praise worthy. Mediocrity is not allowed, for God has put us in charge of much and to much is given, much is expected. We are called to give and do our best in all walks of our lives.
Thoughts that are pleasing to God are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. By focusing our thinking on those things set forth in Philippians you will bring pleasure to God, to yourself, and to those around you! When your thoughts reflect the above traits, you begin the first step in living a life of balance, control, and harmony.
Your best means of defense from Satan, who will easily obscure your thoughts is to be grounded in God's Word DAILY! No situation will be too difficult, no temptation will be to great that Scripture can't help you through successfully!
Wishing you all a fun and safe, Memorial Day weekend! I am planting my FIRST vegetable garden tomorrow, so please pray for great weather and a GREEN thumb! ;-)
Blessings,
Jill
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