“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.” (Prov. 23:7)
Passing thoughts, ones we could call fleeting thoughts, are not a concern of our Lord, in many regards they are not even accounted to us, they float through our minds as wisps of smoke, here and then gone. But those that we attempt to hold on to, and even go beyond following in an attempt to manipulate, are another thing altogether.
These are not thoughts of logic, of deductive reasoning, but those of an emotional context, and they can become not only dangerous to us, but a sin.
“If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?” (1st John 4:20)
This hatred does not even need to be acted upon outside of the mind, no foul words need to be spoken, simply the continuation of that thought will result in a heart that is no longer set upon Christ.
We are told to keep every thought captive for Christ, but our Father in heaven realizes that this is not possible, yet it is to be strived diligently for.
“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” (Psalm 139:14)
Free will allows us the option of choice, the wicked continuously choose poorly, we who have been born-again have the mind of Christ, yet we still can succumb to what could be called those “bunny trails.” Each of us knows how difficult it is to keep those stray thoughts, images even, from entering into our minds when we are praying, we rebuke them, we attempt to stay on track, but even when they continue, we continue in prayer.
What we are concerned with here in this short letter to you is your “free time” thoughts, those when you are at your place of employment, when traveling from one place to another, at home, at rest. At these times is when you need to pay strict attention to where your thoughts are leading you, for as we think, thus we are.
It does little good for one who is trapped in the bondage of pornography to stop viewing those images with their eyes if the eyes of their mind are not controlled. When we are wronged, the natural, emotional response in an outward form may be to forgive, but if the mind travels the path of imagined vengeance, then true forgiveness has not been offered.
And my friends, no matter what topic you wish to place here that comes to your mind, you know for a fact that we are all guilty of thoughts that are not aligned with the will of God.
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Phil. 4:8)
It used to be called “Nipping it in the bud,” before thoughts of lust, before the imaginations of revenge, hatred, envy, jealousy have an opportunity to blossom in your mind, nip them in the bud.
Bad thoughts about others hurts no one but yourself, lust will drive you to the breaking point, desiring that next drink, any pull of this world on your flesh, if you allow those thoughts to grow, will fester inside of you, and a sickness of the soul will soon follow.
The Word of God calls it sin.
“Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” (James 1:15)
It is the most difficult part of us to control, our thoughts, our imaginations of the mind, and I have bad news for you, it cannot be completely controlled. But it does not need to control you continuously.
Let that thought pass, if it returns, it is you who is chasing it, and then you must ask yourself why, why do I want to follow this path?
I am going to presuppose something here I have no Scriptural proof of, but I believe that when Adam’s eyes were opened the moment after he bit into that fruit, he was enthralled, excited, amazed.
Try to make every thought that is not captive to Christ a fleeting one.
