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Volume. XXIII, No. 39 Exercising The Mind“It is all in the mind”. That’s a statement many people must have heard being said. In a way that is true. The way that we live is in many ways the way that we think, though we may not always be doing what we think. We may think badly of certain persons or things, yet we use our minds to do things, which give the impression that we are thinking well, which is basically hypocrisy. Just as it says in Proverbs 23:7, “as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.” In a way the heart and mind work together as they constitute the actual soul of a man or the real person inside the physical body. The mind is considered to function more towards the intellectual side in logical thinking, reasoning and analysis and the heart is supposed to reflect the emotional character and the actual human nature, his attitude, conduct, his desires, both spiritual and carnal. However there is a synchronism between the two. When a person hears the Gospel being preached, his mind will start analyzing what is being heard. However depending on his heart the mind will either accept or reject what is heard. The heart is deceitful above all and desperately wicked says God’s word. Because of the deceitfulness of the human heart, the thinking in the human mind gets twisted and he will try to rationalize his rejection of the Gospel; the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers so that they cannot see the truth and accept the Gospel (2 Corinthians 4:4). The minds of the unbelievers are darkened. In spite of much evidence to prove the existence of a Creator, they will still say that everything came by itself, which is absolutely illogical. The Bible tells us that both our hearts and our minds have to be renewed or changed. “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (Romans 12:2). “And be renewed in the spirit of your mind” (Ephesians 4:23). When Apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3:18 that we are being changed into his image from glory to glory, by the power of the Holy Spirit, it is the Holy Spirit who changes our hearts and our minds even as we submit our hearts and minds to Him. The mind is the battleground where spiritual warfare is carried out. The mind is constantly being attacked by Satan directly and indirectly. He acts directly by implanting negative and evil thoughts into our minds. Indirectly, it is through the evil that we see and hear from the outside world especially through movies, television, internet, newspapers etc. Jesus also said that evil thoughts come from a sinful heart. It is in a person who has not given His heart to Jesus and so his heart is under Satan’s dominion. Christians who have given their hearts to the Lord and have Jesus residing in them through the Holy Ghost will still have to undergo battles in their minds, as Satan will continuously put deceptive thoughts in their minds in order to gain control of their heart. But we have to submit ourselves to God, and resist the Devil that He may flee from us. Every one desires peace of mind, not to have any battles going on inside them and be free from all worries. Some people, in order to get their minds off all the cares of this world, turn to transcendental meditation and yoga. They sit in a trance and try to go on astral journeys. Some even take drugs in order to induce themselves to go on much higher trips! Transcendental meditation and yoga opens up the mind to even more demonic influences. People think they can just empty their minds and get lost in some fantasy world. However emptying up the mind is just making room for the principalities and powers in the spiritual realm. If the mind is empty and not focused on God or godly things, Satan takes control of it. So, take heed of any of this eastern mysticism like yogas, mantras, transcendental meditation etc. Our meditation should be on God’s Word as given in the Bible as the psalmist says, - “My meditation of Him shall be sweet” (Psalm 104:34). And blessed is the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord and upon His law, he meditates day and night. (Psalm 1:1,2) Meditating upon God’s Word will help us to withstand Satan’s attack on our minds. Because the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged Sword (Hebrews 4:12). The Word of God cleanses us, brings healing to our souls and also to our bodies in some ways and comforts us. The Word of God makes one wise. As King David says, “I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation.” (Psalm 119:99) Apostle Paul says that bodily exercises profiteth little, but exercising in godliness is of much value. Exercising in godly living can begin by exercising the mind to think in the right direction. That can be done only through the guidance obtained from the Word of God. The Word of God tells us (in Philippians 4:8) that we are to think of those things which are true, noble, lovely, pure, honest, just, virtuous, praiseworthy and of good report. Just as we need physical exercises to keep our body fit, we need mental exercises to keep our emotions under control and to think clearly, rationally and with wisdom. Reading God’s Word, meditating upon it and memorizing parts of it is the best mental exercise that one can have. It will increase our wisdom and knowledge. As King David says – “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” (Psalm 119:130) Beloved, we need to grow in wisdom by a complete renewal of our minds. Our minds are amassing a great deal of knowledge these days just as it was predicted by the Prophet Daniel about 2500 years ago – “….even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” (Daniel 12:4). Thanks to the rapid development of communications technology, we can obtain knowledge at our fingertips (literally). However not all knowledge entering our minds is beneficial. Some earthly knowledge is good to help us to live in this world, but godly knowledge is profitable for eternal Life. Proverbs 1:7 states that “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge..” and also “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” (Proverbs 9:10). Knowing God and being in godly fear of Him, will bring about a renewal in the way that we think. However the transformation comes only through the Holy Ghost. He keeps changing our minds even as we submit ourselves to His leading, until we truly have the mind of Christ. Dn. Edwin D’Mello ********************* Email from Mrs Anne Clements, 21 Mar 09, announcing the home-going of Rev Peter Clements, Cootamundra, NSW. Greetings friends and family, Peter passed away just before 3am this morning. Fortunately Joy was able to make it back from Tasmania last night and Grace drove down from Sydney yesterday afternoon, so all the children were able to see him and say goodbye. We are very thankful that Peter has gone to be with the Lord and rejoice in the knowledge that we will one day be reunited. As yet, we have made no funeral arrangements but will probably look towards holding a service at the end of this week, most likely Thursday or Friday. I will send another email when details are finalised for those who wish to attend. We greatly appreciate your thoughts and prayers at this time and are very thankful for your ongoing support during Peter\'s illness, Yours in Christ, (Mrs) Anne and the children. |
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