Whatever is Excellent or Praiseworthy

The connection between our thoughts and our state of mind is real. If our thoughts are filled with negative emotions such as anger, fear, sadness, loneliness, shame, and guilt, then our body and emotional state will be dragged down by these powerful emotions. We experience the full effect of each emotion, which takes its toll on our bodies and leaves us fatigued and unmotivated. The body and mind track our thoughts and accumulate the negative impact. What we think about affects us in so many different ways. The Apostle Paul encouraged the Philippians to be joyful. He exhorted them not to let anxiety take control of their thoughts. He told them that instead of being anxious, they should present their needs to God with a thankful spirit. He assured them that, by choosing to let God have their anxiety, God would give them an extraordinary peace that would guard their hearts and minds (Philippians 4:4-7).

What follows in Paul’s extraordinary letter to the Philippians is a wonderful prescription for elevating our thinking. As a result, our thoughts produce positive emotions such as joy, gratitude, desire, hope, and love. Here is Paul’s advice: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8). By thinking on excellent things, our minds have the opportunity to contemplate these things and give us peace and fulfillment.

Whatever is true, we have to sort out the false from the true; whatever is noble. Here is a wonderful word that asks us to look for what has high moral character. Whatever is right. We need to focus on what is right, especially in a culture that turns right upside down and exalts wrong. Whatever is pure—unadulterated. We are bombarded with filth, and we forget that pure things exist—and God wants us to dwell on them. Whatever is lovely, we forget to look around and see the lovely in God’s creation. Whatever is admirable. When we see what is admirable, we are inspired. Paul says, “think about such things.” This is how we change our lives by thinking thoughts that bring inspiration, peace, joy, and courage.   Reading and memorizing Scripture is an excellent way to fulfill Paul’s prescription.

                                                                                              

Author of Crianza Responsiva:

https://www.amazon.com/Crianza-Responsiva-Principios-conectados-saludables-ebook/dp/B08FW8Q7D5/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=crianza+responsiva&qid=1610663595&sr=8-1

Acquiring a Long Perspective

One of the greatest blessings for a young person is gaining a long-term perspective on life. Eugene Peterson defined faithfulness as “A long obedience in the right direction.” The problem with our culture, and often with youth, is that we want things now. We want instant gratification, and we are not willing to wait. This unwillingness to wait robs us of so much in nearly every area of our lives.  Take money, for instance: if a young person develops a long-term perspective and is willing to work hard, save, invest, and wait, that perspective will bring rich dividends over time. This is what Solomon tells us: “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7).

First, remember that you are God’s steward and that everything you have and receive is God’s—you are the manager. Second, managing money always starts with a grateful heart—grateful to God and to others who have contributed to your life. Gratitude reflects how you feel about what God has done for you. Third, start small, but start: start saving, start investing, start giving. Never wait until you have more. Tithe what you have now—not doing so robs God. Fourth, plan to give. Plan to give each week from what you earn. Plan to give to missions and other worthy causes. Fifth, trust God to meet your needs. Trust God to bless you as you give to his work. Sixth, set priorities for what you want to accomplish with the money that comes through your hands. Reflect on these words: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).   

As you save and invest, time will be on your side, and the money and assets will grow. Being generous with what you have and being a good steward will keep you from becoming selfish and greedy. If you use your money wisely, you can be the lender instead of the borrower. Your money will pay you interest instead of you paying interest to someone else. This is what God promised Israel if they were faithful to follow Him: “The Lord will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the Lord your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom” (Deuteronomy 28:13).

You must be willing to start small and resist the temptation to get rich overnight because you will not. Take what God gives you and make it grow. Money is only part of your life—your life is so much more. It is your relationship with God, your family, and all the ways you can bless others. If, however, you use the money that comes to you in the right way with the right perspective, you will be a blessing to others in ways you could not have even imagined.    

                                                

Author of Crianza Responsiva:

https://www.amazon.com/Crianza-Responsiva-Principios-conectados-saludables-ebook/dp/B08FW8Q7D5/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=crianza+responsiva&qid=1610663595&sr=8-1

Making The Best Of Every Situation

 

“I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want” (Philippians 4:11-12). These are the words of the Apostle Paul written from prison. This didn’t come naturally; it had to be learned. The Apostle says he makes the best of those times when he is in need. When he doesn’t have enough to eat or a warm bed to sleep in, he says he has done this even now when he is in prison. He is grateful for the times when there is plenty, but equally grateful for those times when he doesn’t have enough.

What is this secret that Paul has learned—that has changed his life? The secret that enables him to be content in any and every situation. I think he states it in these words: “I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13). That is an amazing statement which translates to “I can manage with less food, uncomfortable living conditions, because I can do this through Christ who gives me the strength I need. Equally important is that he accepts those times when he has more than enough. These times don’t seem to spoil the Apostle or make him think he deserves to live this way all the time.

Isn’t this a secret we all need? We often think, “If I just had more money, more opportunity, more success, more influence, how different my life would be.” This secret teaches us to believe that God is in control and that He gives us the plenty and the want, the feast and the famine. If this is true, we can, like Paul says, “I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.” This is a life-changing mentality. We don’t need anyone else in life; we don’t need anything else to make us fulfilled because we have Christ. He gives us the strength to face each situation.

What situation is robbing you of your joy? What need is causing you to envy your neighbor and think I would be happy if I had what he has? No, if you have Christ, you have all you need to experience real, authentic joy.

Paul exhorts us to work on our thinking: “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8). There is a serious connection between what we think about and how we feel. This is also part of the secret.

 

Author of Crianza Responsiva:

https://www.amazon.com/Crianza-Responsiva-Principios-conectados-saludables-ebook/dp/B08FW8Q7D5/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=crianza+responsiva&qid=1610663595&sr=8-1

When Life is on Hold

When life feels like it is on hold, we are most apt to feel discouraged.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn writes in The Gulag Archipelago the benefits of his prison experience:

…In the intoxication of youthful successes I had felt myself to be infallible, and I was therefore cruel. In the surfeit of power I was a murderer, and an oppressor. In my most evil moments I was convinced that I was doing good, and I was well supplied with systematic arguments. And it was only when I lay there on rotting prison straw that I sensed within myself the first stirrings of good. Gradually, it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, not between classes, not between political parties either—but right through every human heart—and through all human hearts…So, bless you, prison, for having been in my life.

When the Biblical Joseph wound up in prison both times, he found his way out and up because he committed his life to the sovereignty of God. It wasn’t fair of his brothers to sell him into slavery, nor was it fair that Potiphar’s wife unfairly accused him of sexual assault, but he trusted God to deliver him. He was in prison, and his life was on hold. When the Apostle Paul was in prison in Rome, he modeled this attitude: “Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,  for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance.” (Philippians 1:15-19)

It is hard to remain faithful when life seems to be on hold, especially if we put our confidence in man, because human beings will fail us. But we remember that God is with us. As Jeremiah told us in one of his worst moments: “I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail” (Lamentations 3:19:24).  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”

We must learn to trust God’s timing, and if we do, God will bless us in the moment of our prison, when life is on hold. We feel we are limited, but God is not. Our best moments can come from those times when life is on hold, and it seems that nothing is happening. Only trust God, and he will deliver you!

 

Author of Crianza Responsiva:

https://www.amazon.com/Crianza-Responsiva-Principios-conectados-saludables-ebook/dp/B08FW8Q7D5/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=crianza+responsiva&qid=1610663595&sr=8-1