Philippians 4:8

Are you a sourpuss? You know, grumpy, negative, never satisfied? If so, take your thoughts captive to Christ. Pay attention to what you’re thinking. Why? Our thoughts make us who we are. An example: After God opened a way for the Israelites to miraculously cross the Red Sea on dry land to escape the Egyptian army, Moses could have said, “Boy, that was close! I don’t know why God let that happen! He about got us killed.” Yes, Moses could have complained. Instead, he chose to sing praises to God. Listen to his words: 

Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power, Your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy,” Exodus 15:6. Who is like You among the gods, O Lord? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, Awesome in praises, working wonders? Exodus 15:11

So, yes, we can look at our day and circumstances and complain. Or, we can choose as Moses did to see the deliverances God has brought us through and how He’s empowered us when we’ve been weak. If we’re a sourpuss and tend to focus on the negative, we’re not doing ourselves or anyone a favor, including God. As a matter of fact, we’re being a bad showcase of our Majestic Lord. Isn’t it time we change? If you want to take your thoughts captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5), do it now. Go to God’s throne room and examine your thoughts in the light of His glory. Remember, Moses isn’t the only one who has a God who is majestic in power and holiness. We do, too. Isn’t it time we align our thinking to Philippians 4:8? 

You, O LORD, are MAJESTIC in holiness and power! We sing Your praises for all the things You’ve done, are doing, and will do. Help us showcase You by examining our thoughts and being people of praise. 

Knowing the Word and being able to discern God’s voice are essential for taking our thoughts captive to Christ. To learn how to discern the voice of God, listen to Debbie’s teaching on the subject HERE. 

Are you a sourpuss? You know, grumpy, negative, never satisfied? If so, take your thoughts CAPTIVE to Christ. Pay attention to what you’re thinking. Why? Our thoughts make us who we are. An example: After God opened a way for the Israelites to miracuously cross the Red Sea on dry land to escape the Egyptian army, Moses could have said, “Boy, that was close! I don’t know why God let that happen! He about got us killed.” Yes, Moses could have complained. Instead, he chose to sing praises to God. Listen to his words:

Your right hand, O LORD, is MAJESTIC in power, Your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy,” Exodus 15:6. Who is like You among the gods, O Lord? Who is like You, MAJESTIC in holiness, Awesome in praises, working wonders?  Exodus 15:11

So, yes, we can look at our day and circumstances and complain. Or, we can choose as Moses did to see the deliverances God has brought us through and how He’s empowered us when we’ve been weak. If we’re a sourpuss and tend to focus on the negative, we’re not doing ourselves or anyone a favor, including God. As a matter of fact, we’re being a bad showcase of our Majestic Lord. Isn’t it time we change?  If you want to take your thoughts captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5), do it now. Go to God’s throne room and examine your thoughts in the light of His glory. Remember, Moses isn’t the only one who has a God who is MAJESTIC in power and holiness. We do, too. Isn’t it time we align our thinking to Philippians 4:8?

If you have Prayers of My Heart, join me in turning to the Meditations, Notes, and Prayers section today. Write words of praise to your Heavenly Father. Do you need prompts? He’s saved us. He forgives our bad behavior and careless words. His Word straightens our wayward thoughts. His Spirit is our downpayment and security of heaven. His grace is new every morning. Do you have family or friends, a roof over your head, clean water, food, a bed to sleep in at night? Write words of thanks to Him now. Practice gratefulness.

You, O LORD, are MAJESTIC in HOLINESS and POWER! We sing Your praises for all the things You’ve done, are doing, and will do. Help us showcase You by examining our thoughts and being people of praise .  

They pop up. Into our mind. We don’t sit around and try to drum them up. What? Negative thoughts. They sprout like the uninvited weeds in my garden. Among all the beautiful lettuce, spinach, and kale, those pesky weeds poke through the rich soil. I can ignore them, which I’m prone to do. But the fact is, they don’t belong in my garden. I didn’t plant them. I don’t want them. And if I want them out, I’m going to have do something to remove them. It requires time, focus, and energy. The same is true with the negative thoughts that sprout in our minds. We can be going our merry way, rejoicing in the day God has given us, and then up sprouts a negative thought. It doesn’t matter where it came from…the devil, another person, or the deep recesses of our mind.  The fact is, the negative thought is there. Whose responsibility is it to tend to the garden of our mind? Ours. God charged Adam and Eve with the instruction to “Keep the garden” He had given them. He instructs us to set our mind on the things above (Colossians 3:2) and to keep our minds on Him. (Isaiah 26:3) “Keep” means to guard and watch over. So, tip one for ditching negative thoughts is to pay attention to our thoughts. Examine them as I examine my garden. Second, when we have a negative thought, uproot it. Take it to God. Is it true? Is it an honorable thought? Is it even right or have we embellished or imagined it? Is it a pure thought? Is it a lovely thought? Is it a thought of good repute? If not, ditch it. Till thoughts that are excellent. Cultivate thoughts that are worthy of praise. (Philippians 4:8) So, after examining our thoughts, ditch or dwell. Ditch the negative. They make us ugly. (“As a man thinks in his heart, so is he,” Proverbs 23:7) Dwell on the lovely. They make us reflective of Christ.

Lord Jesus, You are beautiful and we want to reflect Your beauty. Help us examine our thoughts and ditch the negative and dwell on the lovely.  

Are you a sourpuss? You know, grumpy, negative, never satisfied? If so, take your thoughts CAPTIVE to Christ. Pay attention to what you’re thinking. Why? Your thoughts make us who we are. An example: After God opened a way for the Israelites to cross the Red Sea on dry land to escape the Egyptian army, Moses could have said, “Boy, that was close! I don’t know why God let that happen! He about got us killed.” Yes, he could have complained but He chose to instead sing praises to God. “Your right hand, O LORD, is MAJESTIC in power, Your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy,” Exodus 15:6. “Who is like You among the gods, O Lord? Who is like You, MAJESTIC in holiness, Awesome in praises, working wonders?”  Exodus 15:11

If we’re a sourpuss and tend to focus on the negative, we’re not doing ourselves or anyone else a favor, including God. As a matter of fact, we’re being a bad showcase of our Majestic Lord. Isn’t it time we change?  If you’d like to take your thoughts captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5), go right up to the throne room and examine them. Moses isn’t the only one who has a God MAJESTIC in power and holiness. We do, too! Isn’t it time we change our thinking (Philippians 4:8) and talk/act like it?

If you have Prayers of My Heart, turn to the Meditations, Notes, and Prayers section and write words of praise to our Heavenly Father. Do you need prompts? He’s saved you. He forgives your bad behavior. His Word straightens out your wayward thoughts. His Spirit is your downpayment and security of heaven. His grace is new every morning. Do you have a family or friends, a roof over your head, clean water, food, a bed to sleep in at night? Write words of thanks to Him now.

You, O LORD, are MAJESTIC in HOLINESS and POWER! We sing Your praises for all the things You’ve done, are doing, and will do. Help us showcase You by examining our thoughts and praising You for all we have in You. 

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