Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable…if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. – Philippians 4:8
There is an invisible part of you that is always at work—your thoughts. And they work at a high rate of speed. People generally speak around 125-175 words a minute. Thoughts have been estimated to generate around 1,000-3,000 words a minute. Curiously, a listener can comprehend roughly 400 words a minute, which is the reason so many thoughts can run through your mind as you try to pay attention to a speaker!
In 2 Corinthians 10:5, the Apostle Paul exhorts you to take every one of your thoughts captive. His words connote a military objective in your spiritual battle, with the battlefield being your thought life. It is in the present tense, meaning that the battle is an ongoing one, and it is active, so it requires effort to bring all your thoughts into alignment with Christ Jesus.
As you engage in this thought warfare, today’s verse contains a list of things that you can focus your mind on: true things, honorable things, pure, lovely, commendable, and excellent things. Having these thoughts imprinted on your mind involves surrendering to the Holy Spirit, giving Him operational control in your life. The Bible states that as a person is in his heart, so he is in his life (Proverbs 23:7).
There is an old folk saying that you may have heard, “Sow a thought, reap an action. Sow an action, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny.” How do you occupy your mind? Where have your thoughts been this past week? To renew your mind and your thinking, begin with prayer. The more you pray about a thing, the more your thoughts will go there. Turn off the news and pray for those they have talked about. Turn off the soap opera and pray for the culture around you. Practice setting your minds on things that are above, not things that are on the earth (Colossians 3:2).
You are in a spiritual war, and the battle is a daily one. Begin in God’s Word, memorize and repeat passages, pray, seek the peace of God, and dwell on godly things. It all begins there with the focus of your mind!
Today’s Verse: 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.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Recommended for further reading: Philippians 4:4-9
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
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. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
