There was a poster that used to hang in my office
that read...
Watch your thoughts, they
become words.
Watch your words, they
become actions.
Watch your actions, they
become habits.
Watch your habits, they
become your character.
Watch your character, it
becomes your destiny.
If this is true then thoughts are powerful things
because they ultimately shape our destinies. Who we become in life is largely
determined by what we think about ourselves, what we think about God, and what
we think about the world around us.
The Scripture agrees. In Proverbs 23:6-8 wisdom
tells us, "Do not eat the bread of a miser, nor desire his delicacies; for
as he thinks in his heart, so is he. 'Eat and drink!' he says to you, but his
heart is not with you. The morsel you have eaten, you will vomit up, and waste
your pleasant words (NKJV)."
See, the miser thinks he does not have enough; he is
poor by his own way of thinking. You, on the other hand, might crave his
delicacies thinking he has an abundance to share. Politely the miser would say
to you, "Eat and drink!" but in his heart he would resent you for it
and would most likely let you know about it someway or another. And you would
depart not as friends but sick to your stomach for having wasted kind words on
the miser's accomplishments.
The miser thought he was poor though he was rich.
The other thought he was in need though he was rich in character compared to
the miser. Each had a distorted view of themselves, their God, and the world
around them.
How about you? What do you think about yourself? Are
you a victim or a victor? What do you think about God? Is he a loving heavenly
Father who cares for his children or is he a harsh judge who can't wait to
punish those who break his commands? And what do you think of the world around
you? Is it a desolate wasteland or a land of opportunity?
As for me - to be honest - sometimes I think I'm a
victim even when I know that by his grace Jesus has made me a victor. Sometimes
I question God's love because of the difficult circumstances facing me and
wonder if I'm being punished for some reason I can never seem to find. And
sometimes I think the problem is with my external world and not my inner one.
The bottom line is we become what we think. Right
thinking leads to right living.
Be encouraged,
Jay
