What Are You Thinking?

Our minds are incredibly powerful things.  It's amazing how a simple thought has the power to bring us joy, cause us stress, make us angry, or make us cry.  If you think on something long enough, it will even begin to mold your belief system.  If you think you are unworthy or a loser or that you deserve bad things, you will begin to walk that out.  If you are constantly negative and complain about everything, you will not only drive others away because no one wants to be around a complainer, but you will also be miserable because you cannot find anything to be grateful for.  However, if you think not about what you don't have, but instead choose to think about all of your blessings, you will be able to live an abundant life regardless of your circumstances.

I love The Message translation of the Bible.  I don't always read that version, but it is such a good translation when you just want to get a good word in a more conversational, modern day way.  I was using The Message as a reference last night when I was reading, and I just loved 1 Peter 4:1-2. "Since Jesus went through everything you’re going through and more, learn to think like him. Think of your sufferings as a weaning from that old sinful habit of always expecting to get your own way. Then you’ll be able to live out your days free to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what you want." I love that.  We must learn to think like Him.  We need to cast out those thoughts that don't line up with scripture.  We aren't going through anything tougher that going to the cross.  We have got to get away from expecting to always get our way.  I still struggle with that.  I want comfort and ease.

I grew up on a cattle ranch, so the first thing I think about when I see that term "weaning" is when we would wean calves from their mothers every fall.  I remember that for several days after separating those calves from their moms they would bawl and carry on.  However, it was time for them to move from milk to solid food.  After they finished their fits for a couple of days and got a taste of good grain and hay, they never wanted to go back.  They would actually nearly knock us over when we would feed them each day trying to get that good grain.  

We go through the same thing as Christians.  We whine and carry on wanting our way.  If we always get our way though, we may miss out on what God has for us.  Sure, we can keep taking in the "milk" forever and get by, but if we really want to experience God we need to "wean" ourselves from the milk only diet.  It may not be fun or easy right away, but it will be worth it.  I want to move on from milk and get a good steak dinner.  I want to stop being held back by wanting my way.  I want to desire more "to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what I want."

That is an incredibly hard thing to do, but so incredibly worth it.  I know that the times I have finally given up my desires and simply submitted to what God's will was, it wasn't easy but there has never been a time it wasn't worth it.  We had to do this a few years ago in the form of house shopping.  We kept hitting dead ends and finally realized we were trying to force something that was outside of God's will.  We had expected to just get our way, because after all we were Christians and everything should just work out, right?  We realized that we needed to set that aside until God wanted us to have it.  It was so hard setting that dream aside, however, when we finally did, we were blessed (after a time of patience, praying, and trusting) with an open door that was far better than what we were trying to force.  It wasn't easy but it was definitely worth it.  I pray today that both you and I will have the discernment and the strength to allow God to "wean" us and help us to pursue His will rather than our own.