What’s on Your Mind?

 

What’s on your mind? Or maybe “a penny for your thoughts.” I’ve been asked this question a lot in my life. While it is a faulty assumption that I am thinking deep thoughts when you find me staring into space, it remains a valid question.

Brain scientists who study such things tell us that we average around 6000 thoughts a day. Some of a few more, some a few less. And let’s be honest. It’s kind of hard to put some of our thoughts into words. Or if I can articulate them, I might be embarrassed to admit them.

Random thoughts on your mind

I ponder existential conundrums such as why my dog chases cats. Does he hate them, or is he trying to make friends? What if he’s just socially awkward? And do my dogs get bored eating the same stuff every day? What if they like chicken better than beef? How would they tell me?

Brains and synapses

Our brains are amazing creations, designed to allow us to function in an ever-changing world. We are constantly forming connections called synapses and destroying synapses we no longer need or use. And they are constantly at work. Even when we sleep, our brain uses dreams to process and categorize information.

Psychologists tell us that many of our most worrisome behaviors are based on unhealthy thoughts and beliefs, and that by changing the way we think, we can alter our actions. But how do we do that?

Christian, what’s on your mind?

How should a Christian think? The scripture has some clear answers to this question.  Proverbs tells us “Above all, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” In scripture, particularly the Older Testament, you can often substitute “mind” for heart, since it refers to the center of our emotions, intellect, and moral processes.

A lazy river? Just don’t

Paul tells us that we need to learn how to think. In Corinthians, he tells us to “take every thought captive.” That sounds violent, doesn’t it?  He chose that language on purpose. Instead of letting words drift lazily through the recesses of my brain, I should consider each one as I become aware of it.

How to guard what’s on your mind

1. Make God our first focus of every day. If we spend time with God before we ever check messages or email, we have a better chance of keeping Him in the forefront. Smart phones give us unprecedented access to unfiltered information. But Isaiah says that God will give perfect peace when we fix our minds on Him. Fixing our minds on Him before we look at the stock market or political news will help us have a godly perspective.
2.   Protect our input. There’s an old saying among computer programmers. “Garbage in, garbage out.” Our minds won’t be at perfect peace if we meditate on the hodgepodge of half-truths and inflammatory comments that pepper most social media feeds. While it’s impossible to be unaware of the ugliness in the world, it shouldn’t be our continual focus. I shoot clay targets for fun. The best way to hit the target is focus on the target, not anything else in my field of vision. Everything else is just a distraction. My target as a believer should be the “high calling of God”. Everything else is just a distraction.
3. Use the tools we’ve been given. Ephesians says that God gives us His armor to protect against Satan’s schemes. It’s there for our use. We should put it on, every single day. Be careful where we spend our time and resources. This includes the media we consume and the friends who influence us. Having friends who point us in the right direction and redirect us when we veer off course can make the difference in how we spend our time.
4. Keep God’s standard in mind. He spells it out in Philippians. We are to cultivate a mind like Jesus did. He focused on the cross even though He could have demanded His rights.
5. Use the filter that God provides. At the end of Philippians, Paul tells us to think on things that are “true, honest, just pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous and praise-worthy. This filter catches many of my extraneous thoughts.

The struggle is real

I admit that this is an area of ongoing struggle and growth for me, since I am easily distracted, and I love to learn for the sake of learning. But not every book I read, or every documentary I watch, passes the test of what I should be focusing on.

Bored isn’t good

And when I’m bored, my mind can take me places I don’t need to go. Here’s a recent example. I had to take my car in for service the other day. There were some strange lights on, and I needed to know why.

The service advisor predicted an easy fix, so I went prepared to wait, with a book and my laptop.  I made myself a cup of coffee and sat down in the waiting room to study. Then a gentleman sat down beside me. I thought he was one of the service technicians at first so I answered his questions about my car and the reason for my visit.

He was a salesman?

But he was a salesman. And it was close to the end of the month, and he wanted to make a sale. And he was good at his job.

Before I realized what had happened, I was sitting in the driver’s seat of a brand-new car. It had bells and whistles mine didn’t and had that new-car smell because it was new.  It didn’t have extraneous lights on the dashboard, nor did it have any dog hair on its pristine seats.

Then he took me inside and ran numbers for me. I am a little paranoid about being taken advantage of by a man with mechanical knowledge, so  I know the basics about my car. So when he handed me a sheet of paper that overvalued my car and then took multiple incentives off the price of the new one, he almost hooked me. He had the right answer to every objection.

What’s on your mind? Do you like it?

I called my brother to see his reaction. He agreed it was a good deal. If I wanted the car, I should jump on the offer. That’s when I snapped back to reality. I didn’t want that car. The color and specifications weren’t a good match for my lifestyle. And I like not having a car payment.

I snapped back to reality and told the salesman that I wasn’t ready to trade cars. I apologized for wasting his time and returned to the service department to check on my car. You know, the one I had driven there?

The poor salesman already had the commission spent, so he called me a couple of times to make sure I was serious. I was.

What WAS on my mind?

So what happened?

First, I hadn’t prayed about trading cars. God never entered the conversation.  I should never make a decision with that price tag and not pray about it.

And I didn’t protect my input. I was bored. And thinking about a new car was stimulating. I allowed greed to take the place of godly thoughts.  And I focused on a perceived deficit in what I had, instead of being thankful for what I had. That has nothing to do with having the mind of Christ. He gave up the things that were rightly His. I’m not saying it is always wrong to buy a new car. But it was wrong for me at that time.

I struggle with being impulsive and once spent months paying off credit card debt that destroyed my finances. So I know how bad a decision like that could have been.

There weren’t a lot of negative repercussions from my lapse of judgment this time. I still have my old car. The fact that they pulled my credit score is a hit on my credit. But that’s not a big deal if I don’t need credit.

However, I wasted a couple of hours that could have been spent on something productive.

What’s really on your mind?

Every day our thoughts lead to choices. I’m grateful that God has provided a way to transform my thoughts and my life.

What’s on your mind? Asking that question is a good place to start.

But what about you? What’s on your mind?