His Thoughts are Greater than Our Thoughts
His Thoughts are Greater than Our Thoughts
He > I Series Part 2 of 5
(Video at bottom of post.)
His thoughts > My thoughts
“For as the Heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9
God’s thoughts exceed our highest imagination. We cannot even fathom the depths of His wisdom. So, let’s ask ourselves this question…
When a hard situation arises in our life, do we seek God and His thoughts or do we value our opinion and our thoughts on the matter? What can we do to be sure we seek Him first?
Here is a list of 5 Exchanges to Choose His Thoughts over Our Own.
1. Exchange opinions for the truth of God’s word. Stop giving your opinion and the opinion of others power. We all have limited knowledge and are just making educated (and sometimes not so educated) decisions. Instead of allowing the world, friends, experiences and the news media to shape our opinions, we can instead study and rest in the truth of God’s word. When we are asking questions - like What should I do? How do I move forward? How should I treat others? - don’t ask Google, Mama or our BFF. Let’s ask our Creator, “What should my response be in this situation? Or Who are you calling me to be?” Seek the truth in the written word (Bible) and in the Living Word (Jesus). In John 17:17 Jesus prays, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”
2. Exchange our rights for our responsibilities as children of the King. We tend to focus on our rights, losing sight of the responsibilities God has given to us. For instance, we focus on our right to be treated fairly, to get the best parking space, and to obtain what we desire. But God’s word tells us that we have a responsibility to love unconditionally, offer grace freely, and to “esteem others better than” ourselves. Let someone go first today or have the best parking spot, give someone grace, and see the value in others. (Philippians 2:3)
3. Exchange condemnation for God-confidence. “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1) YAY! This is good news. Once we have accepted Jesus as our Savior the old has passed away and we are now empowered by the Spirit to live for Christ. God is not beating us up over our past, so neither should we. Once we repent, it is forgiven. We will experience conviction, which is God’s revelation of the sin within us and the need to turn from those ways. As we surrender more of us, we receive more of Him. We can have confidence in God and know that as we seek Him, He will continue to do a good work in us – transforming us to look more and more like Him until we are face to face. (Philippians 1:6)
4. Exchange your identity crisis for identity in Christ. God tells us that we are loved with an everlasting love, that we are His masterpiece, His beloved, His child. He says we are redeemed, forgiven and chosen. We are complete in Him. Our identity is not based on who we are and what we have done, but on who Jesus is and what He has done for us. Now that is worth some rejoicing! Choose to believe you are who He says you are. (Identity Printable).
5. Exchange stinkin’ thinkin’ for a mind surrendered to Jesus. Our thoughts determine our actions. If our thoughts are self-centered and sinful, our actions will surely follow. Our thoughts can spin out of control, spinning and spinning until we believe things that simply are not true. This reckless thinking can cause us to take actions we will regret and lean us to a place of despair. But, when we “take every thought captive” and make sure they line up with the truth of God’s word, we find peace and rest. In Philippians 4:6 we read that we are to “be anxious for nothing,” pray about everything and “with thanksgiving let our requests be made known to God”. Verse 7 says, “and the peace of God, which surpasses understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Then there is verse 8… “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” Philippians 4:8
His thoughts > My thoughts!
That is why we should “trust in the Lord with all our heart, and lean not on our own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5) We should “set our mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” (Colossians 3:2) In Matthew 22:37 Jesus told us that the greatest commandment was to “love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind.” When we choose to surrender our thoughts to Him, and learn to love His thoughts more than our own, our life will change.
How can you focus on making these 5 exchanges?
Jot them down and talk to God about them.
Write out the scriptures and meditate on them over and over again.
Decide these exchanges matter. What you decide, you will do.
He must increase, but I must decrease. John 3:30
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Note from Pam:
Hi friends! Let’s stop worrying about all the things that don’t matter and instead, focus on what matters most - Jesus! I have created some resources to help you do just that and there are some new things on the way! So if you haven’t signed up for our Blog/Newsletter, be sure to do so at the bottom of this page.
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We keep nudging each other to look up and keep moving forward in our relationship with Jesus. If you are looking for a resource to help you grow more intimate with Him, check out my book, Saved by Grace, Now What? It is available on the MWM Marketplace along with some pretty cute faith based tees.
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I love you and am thankful you are here.
P