Philippians 4:8

“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.”

Most of us consume information constantly throughout the day. We browse the Internet, monitor our Facebook feed, check our email, send and receive text messages, listen to talk radio, and watch cable news. Our minds are actively engaged from the moment we wake until the moment we sleep and it is there that the battle rages for control of our words and deeds.

Of special note is the current political climate. The amount of information, misinformation, and disinformation is stunning. Whether it’s Covid-19, the vaccination mandate debate, masking, or President Biden’s administration…it’s almost all politics all the time. How is that working out for your mind and spirit?

In Proverbs 23:7 Solomon wrote that “As a man thinks in his heart so he is.” Jonathan Edwards, famous for his preaching at the beginning of the First Great Awakening, put it this way: “The ideas and images in men’s minds are the invisible powers that constantly govern them.” In this passage Paul takes us to the front line in the battle that rages in our minds to remind us that the best defense is a good offense. Perhaps even more accurate is the old saying, “Garbage in; garbage out.”

The Bible has much to say about the mind and about our thought lives, so over the next eight days we will be taking a look at each of the items on Paul’s list of things that the Believer should think about. This will be a kind of “diet for the mind” as we begin to reduce the amount of garbage we take in and increase our consumption of the types of things God’s Word has placed on the menu. Bon Appetit!