by David Brenneman
"So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." Colossians 3:12-17.
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." Galatians 5:22-25.
"Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:8-9.
"Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test? But I trust that you will realize that we ourselves do not fail the test. Now we pray to God that you do no wrong; not that we ourselves may appear approved, but that you may do what is right, even though we may appear unapproved. For we can do nothing against the truth, but only for the truth." 2 Corinthians 13:5-8.
In this time we have to spend upon the Earth...we can read here that it's not to be wasted.
There's a timetable that the Spirit is on. Jesus showed in His life as well that His priorities began and ended with whatever His Father wanted of Him.
What we dwell on will either help us or harm us. Our thoughts, some day, will either confirm us or betray us with regards to how we spent life living for Jesus.
We are often taught to look into worldly offerings to find peace and contentment.
While it is possible to find temporary, even fleeting, ways to find peace and comfort it never lasts.
We have all done something, gone somewhere, and bought a souvenir. This morning I am drinking coffee from a Christmas themed mug that I found at a thrift store that at some point in time someone bought to commemorate their visit someplace. Evidently their desire to be rid of it surpassed their desire to keep it. The memories surrounding it either waned or were too powerful to allow it to remain in their possession.
In either case this mug is possibly going to pass from the memories of the original purchaser.
A thriving industry is antiquities. A plethora of channels on YouTube, an endless number of Facebook pages and groups exist, to draw attention to reclaiming things that spur on reliving memories. To get people to dwell on those things to the point of making a purchase.
Then comes the inevitable. At some point people always pass on from this world. Then those who are left behind are figuring out what to do with what these people owned. Some just donate everything some sift through for valuables to keep or sell.
But you know what? What you own will never really define you in the eyes of mankind more that what you did with what God gave you.
The best obituaries are those who speak to what people did in service to God and others.
Some think that their best legacy is their children or what they did for themselves or others. My Dear Reader your best legacy is how you lived for Jesus.
You can find countless places in the Old Testament where Jesus is taking the children of Israel through things to show them that He is Lord. So that they know His Name. In the New Testament we read of living a life that points people to Jesus as Lord and Savior and living life in such a way that people see our good works and glorify our Father in Heaven.
What you dwell on showcases what's going on in your heart.
When all that comes out of your mouth is to do with cars, sports, fantasy things, what is that saying about the state of your heart?
Does it show anyone, especially yourself, that you're walking with Jesus?
People, millions of people, use rivalries as a means of justified hatred for someone else.
How can a heart that dwells on Christ, that loves God with their everything and loves people, rage at others over something as a rivalry and say it's acceptable?
This is but one example. The Spirit, through the Bible, teaches others.
How often do you dwell on those things we read earlier? How much effort do you put into listening to the Spirit?
How much effort do you put into keeping the whole armor of God on you?
How much effort do you put into setting your mind on the things that are above and not on the things that are of this world?
Here's the game changer: Would you in all honesty think that Jesus would approve of your efforts if He were physically with you and you were His Disciple as the 12 were?
What are you dwelling on?
All NASB 1995 and NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. (C) Lockman Foundation.
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