Mary Magdalene

Last week in my bible class I started a short series on Mary Magdalene.
When I first started studying her she was just someone I had read about and learned about in church. Sure she was there at the crucifixion, tomb, saw Jesus alive after His death, but I never really thought there was anything special about her (other than the fact that she interacted with the Son of God).
To prepare my lessons I ran all the references in the bible to her and in one fell swoop she's become one of my favourite women in the bible.

And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout

every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad

tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with

him,

And certain women, which had been healed of evil

spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of

whom went seven devils,

And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward, and

Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of

their substance.

Luke 8:1-3

This passage and Mark 16:9 mentions how Mary came in contact with Christ. It's not unique in that He healed many of devil possession but what makes it special is what it did to Mary.

In verse three above it says that she, among others, were with Christ as he went throughout every city and village, and that she ministered to Him out of her substance.

Not only did she literally follow Christ around after her healing but what she had she gave to Christ.

There were also women looking on afar off: among

whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of

James the less and of Joses, and Salome;

(who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and

ministered unto him;) and many other women which 

came up with him unto Jerusalem.

Mark 15:40&41

I haven't been able to figure it out but possibly it was both the Mary's who followed Jesus from Galilee. Either way, she clearly followed Jesus to Jerusalem from somewhere else.

So we know that once Jesus entered her life she followed Him. Then we know:

She stood near the cross:

Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and

his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary

Magdalene.

John 19:25

She sat near His grave:

And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it

in a clean linen cloth,

and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn

out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door

of the sepulchre, and departed.

And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other

Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre.

Matthew 27:59-61

(also see Mark 15:47)

She continued to minister to Him even when (she thought) He was in the grave:

And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene,

and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had

bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint

him.

And very early in the morning the first day of the

week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the

sun. 

Mark 16:1&2

(also see Matthew 28:1, Luke 24:1, John 20:1)

Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the

week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of

whom he had cast seven devils.

Mark 16:9

She was so close to Him, He appeared to her first. 

You can read the full account of how Christ appeared to her in John 20.

What I love about her story is that she stayed close to Christ in everything.

She followed him from place to place, stood by Him in death, followed Him to where they laid Him, and got up early to tend His body.

As I studied all the references to Mary it struck me how much she wanted to be close to Christ. It wasn't simply being near Him but ministering to Him the way He had ministered to her.

Our testimony as Christians should be what hers is: follow Christ in every situation and minister to Him.

To My Son About His Father

I haven't been feeling well today- I went for a drive while hungry which makes me nauseated. I then got a headache at home and now my throat is hurting along with the back of my head.
I've been wanting to write, about Father's Day in particular, but I didn't know what to write about.
A few minutes ago I was reading my son some bedtime stories and as I put him to bed it occurred to me that I should write about his father.
This post is inspired by a woman who wrote a letter like this to her son.

Boaz, Let Me Tell You About Your Dad,

I remember the night we picked out your name. We were lying in bed and joking around about names like Jehoshaphat, Nebuchadnezzar and things like that. In the spirit of the moment I laughingly suggested Boaz and we both paused. In my mind it sounded funny but out loud it sounded... dope.
Your dad said, 'I kind of like that,'
I said, 'me too,'
and he said, 'what about a middle name?'
We picked a middle name out and your whole name was perfect. That was it.
You didn't even exist yet. I wouldn't be pregnant with you for at least another year.
When I finally was pregnant, we knew we wouldn't find out the gender, but we called you 'little Boaz' anyway.
When you were finally born and we got a good look at you there was no question that you have your father's face and that perfect middle name changed to your father's first name, Michael.
I love your name, not just because it sounds cool but because of what it means: By strength, and then Michael: who is like God?

The first thing you should know is that your father prays. He prays all the time. Prayer is a very personal thing to him. He never prayed out loud until he and I got married. My prayer life changed when I met him. He was the one who taught me to pray way down to the nitty gritty. In every situation we've been in, his reaction has always been to pray first. Mine is usually to freak out then read a Psalm to calm down. Your father always prays. It's not something you see, but it's there.

One of the things I love about your father is he is grounded. He knows who he is and what he believes.
He cannot be manipulated but he is readily able to learn from his mistakes and grow into the man he needs to be for you. His mind is strong in what's right and that's what dictates the choices he makes.
He is not fooled by false doctrine and he is not fooled by false teachers. He stands steadily on what the bible says.
He is not swayed by peer pressure. He knows what he likes, what he wants, and how he wants it.

He likes the simple things. Right now he is playing a video game while I sit here typing. The TV he is playing on was a birthday gift to me from some family members. He always says it's, 'the greatest TV ever'. It makes me laugh because it's not the biggest TV, it's not super technical HD or anything, but it's the nicest TV we'll probably ever have and your father is grateful for it.
He never needs a lot- he likes his steak with just salt and pepper on it. He likes his burger meat with just salt and pepper in it. He never has to have brand name things because he just doesn't care. The only time he ever talks about new clothes is when his current ones are worn down. Nothing needs to be fancy as long as it works right. That goes for everything. Recently someone was talking to him about aspiring to be rich, he responded that he doesn't want to be rich, he just wants to be able to provide for his family.

For as long as I've known him he's always just been thankful- thankful for whatever he's had in whatever situation. He always appreciates things and he always expresses it. I know I am blessed here because I'm sure there are women out there who's husbands don't tell them they love them throughout the day or compliment them on things or even notice how hard they work.
You won't know this until you're older but he is always telling you the things he loves about you, 'you're a cute little boy, Bo' he says. You bring a lot of delight to him and he likes to bring delight to you.

He is self sacrificing. He does what it takes to get the job done. He works hard. Not many people realize the pain he is in sometimes. His job now- and the one before- have taken their toll on him. Still, he works hard, he does things right, he is diligent.

Your father is logical to a fault. While most of us look at things from a mixture of logic and emotion, he looks at everything with plain logic. He takes everything said to their logical conclusion and throws it out if its unreasonable. It can be frustrating sometimes but then you finally realize that this way of handling things takes you right to the heart of every matter. You are able to weigh your thoughts and actions objectively. You're able to see through yourself right to your motivation. This kills %99 of the 'fluff' that's in you. This is likely why your father is so grounded: he doesn't mess with things that aren't logical or biblically founded.

All that being said, don't get into an argument with him. Just don't. Don't even think about it. You'll lose and lose miserably.

He is a gentle giant. One thing he does not know is how intimidating he is. He is very tall and has serious eyes but he does not realize how this comes across to those of us who are shorter.
He has never used his size aggressively. He is gentle. Very gentle. More gentle than I am.
He doesn't hurt people. At least not on purpose. His honestly and straightforwardness can sting sometimes but it does not come from maliciousness. When he is straightforward with you, it means he trusts that you will take it right. He doesn't take the sword out on just anyone. He does not talk about something with someone if he can't be transparent with them about it.

He is forgiving. I don't think he's capable of holding a grudge. Someone said something downright rude to him not long ago. He told me about it and it made me angry. Your father simply said, 'I'm dropping it' and that was all. It took me longer to let it go and I wasn't even there to witness it.
He doesn't bring up the past. He doesn't say 'you always...' unless it's a serious problem. He lets things go and moves forward.

He loves to drive. I think all men do and your father is no exception. He likes going on little road trips and often takes the 'scenic route'. He likes the word 'bucolic' and I think he sets out to find bucolic drives. We have an epic family road trip planned, Lord willing, for when you get older.

He loves juice, cereal, sourdough, coffee, barbecuing, pizza, nectarines, blueberries, spartan and macintosh apples (but he's picky about them, mind you), and ice cream. He loves reading and will read all day if you let him. He is very silly. He is a good writer- something not many people know about him. He wants to keep bees. He love love loves golfing. He's peaceful, he doesn't like things disrupting the peace of our home.

He often talks about things that will make him a good father. He wants to instruct you in the ways that are right. He wants you to be saved and in the will of God. It means the most to him to encourage you in your relationship with God; he doesn't want to hinder it by hypocrisy.

There you are, Bo, just some things about your dad. There is a lot more to him then this but these are the things that stick out to me after close to six years of marriage.
God blessed you with a good daddy, Bo.

Never Say Never

I've taught the young ones in my Bible Class for probably eight months now and we've gotten to know each other. During our first few months of lessons I would ask if they had questions or comments and I'd get silly comments and insincere questions.
Lately, though, the kids have been on a roll giving me perfect examples of the lessons from their own lives. I'm not sure what it is but it gives me joy.
Two Sundays ago I was teaching on Mary who poured spikenard on Jesus' head. I noted the disciples' indignation at her and told the children that other people will try to tell you what to do with what God has given you. I told them that we all have different convictions and that we can't judge other people for their convictions because God deals with us all differently.
I tried to use one example about clothes that didn't work so then I moved to a more obvious example: alcohol.
They all understood this right away and one said, "I will never drink alcohol!"
I smiled at her while all my years ran through my head and I said, "never say never," and moved on with my example.

Later on as I thought about it, God told me that my response was not edifying.
"Never say never," is a pessimistic way of looking at the matter.
I know why I said that. I said that because I know that we get put into situations we never dreamed of being in, our emotions and feelings get the better of us and suddenly we're doing something we never thought we'd do.
I missed a good time for good instruction.
Fortunately, this past Sunday we had a few things to do and I couldn't start our new character study- Mary Magdalene. As I prayed about what to teach about God pointed out my 'never say never' comment and told me to fix it.
This is one of those things that are a good reminder for all of us. I wrote this post on Saturday night but I left off publishing it to today. Thinking about it all last week has reminded me of things God has dealt with me on in the past and things I must continually remember. I hope it helps.

Proverbs 27:1- Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.
James 4:13-17- Go to now, ye that say, To day or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? it is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
For that ye ought to say, if the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.
Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

We don't know where we will wind up, what we will do, and what we will be. Nothing is for certain in this life except the Bible. The bible is full of examples of people who thought their lives were going one way only to be in a completely different situation from one day to the next. We can't say we'll never do something because we really do not know.
The only thing we can do, is guard against sin that may tempt us.

Luke 22:40- And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.
This is in the garden of Gethsemane and Jesus knows what is about to happen. He is about to be taken by force, his disciples would be scattered from Him, and Peter would betray Him. He tells them to pray so they would not enter into temptation. Instead they go to sleep. I wonder if Peter would have betrayed Christ three times had he been praying there instead of sleeping.
That verse is there for us too: pray that ye enter not into temptation.
There is so much to pray about in those words since there are so many things that can lead the children, and us, into temptation.
Some things to pray about:
-staying away from ungodly influences
-staying away from ungodly people
-keeping out of situations that can lead to temptation
-staying in the Word and praying
-staying in church
-obeying their parents
-getting good counsel from godly elders
-protection from wolves in sheep's clothing
-protection in general
There are so many things that can happen to us at any given moment. It is only by God's grace that we are protected, whole, and unblemished by the world.
My mother-in-law works with young women who have been trafficked and the girls in the horrifying stories she tells (only when I ask, she doesn't volunteer them) were once just like some of the girls I teach now.
It's God's grace that protects them, that has protected me, that has protected their parents.
They need to be prayed up and ready for whatever comes their way.

After praying, they need to make the decision now. It was a good thing she said, that she will never drink alcohol, it is good that she has made up her mind in that.
One of the best things I've ever heard a preacher say is that we are to live by principle and not by feeling. Our feelings change from one day to another- sometimes from one minute to the next- we can't rely on them especially since they often go against God.
I am run a lot on emotion- this 'I don't feel like it' nonsense that gets me no where. That kind of things coddles your flesh and you wind up away from God because you'll always choose your flesh rather than what's right. In every choice it can't be whether I feel like it or not but what is right or wrong or what is good or greater.
During the lesson one child gave an example where some of her friends were talking about a show she had never seen before and her friends were commenting that the bad. She never watched it and didn't know what it was about but she agreed with them. Then they started talking about a show she really liked and they said it was dumb. Well, she agreed with them there too even though it was her favourite show. (It really encouraged me that she could look at her actions and judge them the way she did) This is just a great example of making choices by feeling rather than principle. These small things come up everyday and test our character. Will we choose to be honest because God commands it or will we justify a lie by how we feel?

When we are right with God, when we are unemotionally attached, we need to purpose in our hearts to do right.
For the children a big one will be keeping themselves pure until marriage. Other ones include keeping away from bad company, watching their language, subjecting themselves to authority, and living what they are at church at home.
They need to decide to do it now so that when the time comes, they've already made the choice and it's the right one.
I saw this once and it rang true for me:

I remember seeing this and being struck by what great advice it is. All those things- replies, promises, decisions- need reason, logic, and an even mind. Our emotions destroy all reason.

Be sober, be vigilant; because our adversary the

devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom

he may devour:

1 Peter 5:8

There are those big things- like addiction to drugs and alcohol- then the seemingly little things- like cussing when your parents aren't around. Either way, they, and we need to guard ourselves against it before we're even faced with the temptation to do it. Satan will use both small and big things to devour us is we're not careful.

My prayer for each of the children I teach is that they stay faithful to God. This won't happen, or at least I won't help it happen, if I'm not using what they give me to teach them. In other words, I need to use every opportunity to turn their minds to Christ. 

I love the way the children challenge me. They teach me so much and I don't think they'll ever know it. I can only hope and pray that God uses me, even a little bit, to encourage them spiritually.

Important Thoughts

The heart is deceitful above all things, and

desperately wicked: who can know it?

Jeremiah 17:9

I struggled a lot with my last post because I know it is incomplete. While it was about marital harmony and how our thoughts impact that, it's far more important to acknowledge that our thoughts effect our relationship with God first. All our relationships and everything in life fall into their proper place when you put God at the top and focus on pleasing Him.

The verse above from Jeremiah tells us that we are inherently wicked: our hearts are not naturally right with God. This means that we can't just let our hearts be as they are. We can't follow our hearts because they'll lead us to Hell- unless you're saved then they'll lead you away from God and a fruitless life.

Our hearts require work:

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the

issues of life.

Proverbs 4:23

The first time the word keep shows up in the bible is Genesis 2:15:

And the LORD God took the man, and put him into

the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

Keep has to do with taking care of and tending to. Not only that, it means to guard:

So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east

of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword

which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of

life.

Genesis 3:34

Keep- tend, care, guard- your heart with all diligence. That means put effort into it, put work into it, track down every rabbit down every hole and find out where it leads. In other words, if your natural reaction is wrong in certain situations or you have thoughts and feelings that are not right, look into the heart of the matter.

Take covetousness, for example, covetousness comes from ingratitude, which comes from pride, which is thinking you better than you are and deserve better than you have. I know this because it is a problem with me, God told me so, I've searched it out and am wary of it. God hates covetousness- in Exodus 18 one of his stipulations for rulers was that they hated covetousness- so letting it reign in me, even for a short while, separates me from Him. Covetousness in me in just one example and one I'm slowly getting the victory over. I'm learning there are many facets to covetousness and it can effect my motivation for everything I do if I'm not right with God.
Whatever your besetting sin is, I promise you, it comes from the heart. Chase that rabbit down that hole and it will lead you deep into your heart. I'm covetous because I am proud, vain, and I deeply care what other people think about me. It's my minutely task to correct those things. It's actually easy to humble myself: I remember my habits, stupid decisions, and how slow I actually am; but it's also very easy to forget when pride and self preservation creep in. 

So stay in the Word. The more you're in the Word the more God points things out to you. The more you surround yourself with good influences, the more in contact you are with God throughout your day, the more the Holy Spirit will guide you, point things out to you, and teach you. I wouldn't know I have a problem with covetousness if I wasn't spending time in the Word. There are things God is teaching me now that I would not know if I didn't read and study. Reading the Word helps you arm yourself against those sins our hearts are naturally inclined to. As you get to know yourself better in light of what God thinks, the Holy Spirit helps you dodge your besetting sin and make godly choices. You have to replace what is in your heart with what God thinks about it- that means staying in the Word.

The thing is, your mind is usually the first place you sin. We can get pharisee-ical about this because no one but God sees our minds.  It's ironic that the thing that's hidden from others is the thing we need to guard most vigilantly.

Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time,

Thou shalt not commit adultery:

But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a

woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with

her already in his heart.

Matthew 5:27&28

Taking into account the religious system of that day (the Pharisees and Sadducees) and the law, it looks as though the 'righteous' people were abstaining from the physical sin but allowing it free reign in their hearts and minds. This is partially why Jesus was on the Pharisees all the time (as we'll see later): they manipulated their appearance and tailored their actions to affect holiness and piety all the while their insides were rotting with unchecked pride and arrogance. They were so committed to their outward appearance, they 'ommitted the weightier matters of the law' which were 'judgment, mercy, and faith'(Matthew 23:23c).

Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye

know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

1 John 3:15

God wants inward obedience first. It's not enough to say, 'I've never killed someone'. Hatred is murder in God's Book. Your outward actions don't mean anything if your heart is not right with God.

For example:

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so

let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God

loveth a cheerful giver.

2 Corinthians 9:7

Don't give if you don't want to

Don't give because you think you have to

Give because you love God

Inward obedience. You'll worry less and less about your physical actions and how others perceive you if you focus on pleasing God from the inside.

That's not to say our physical actions do not effect our relationship with God. Keeping your heart is the first line of defence against physical sin. The things you let dwell in your heart will come up into your mind and eventually out your mouth, through your feet, your eyes, your hands.

O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak

good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the

mouth speaketh.

A good man out of the good treasure of the heart

bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the

evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

But I say unto you, That every idle word that men

shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day

of judgment.

For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy

words thou shalt be condemned.

Matthew 12:34-37

Okay, if that last verse doesn't scare you, there's something wrong with you. We are held accountable for the words we say, whatever they are, even in jest.
Those words above are Jesus' words, they shouldn't be taken lightly. Whatever is in your heart will come out your mouth. You cannot disguise the wickedness of your heart for long.

So the question is, what are you letting sit unchecked in your heart and mind?

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be

also.

Matthew 6:21

If you want to know what means most to you, what your treasure is, examine your choices and see what is the deciding factor.

The Pharisees, for example, exalted themselves in their own minds so they did things to cause other people to exalt them. They made broad their phylacteries, they loved to be called Rabbi, they made long prayers, they paid tithe of mint, anise, and cummin all to be seen of men (see Matthew 23). As Dr. Peacock says they were 'legends in their own mind; the bride at every wedding and the corpse at every funeral'.
An example closer to home is my own treasure: myself. I know I'm my treasure because everything I do from getting up early to what to wear to what to eat is decided by what will make ME happy and keep me comfortable. Now, by God's grace, I don't behave solely for myself everyday. I want to worship God so I get up early, I want to raise a healthy, God fearing child, so I spend most of my day focusing on him and his needs, I want to please my husband so I put him before myself. Certainly all those things add to my happiness and comfort but they require more work then I'd naturally like to put in. I know this because I get delirious without 'me time', my husband knows this so he takes my son to Home Depot or out for ice cream to give me a break (isn't he wonderful?).
A long time ago I was watching an interview with a retired NBA player who I believe is french Canadian and won the championship with Larry Bird. The interviewer asked why he wasn't wearing his ring and he replied, 'I don't need to. I know what I did, it doesn't matter if others know'. That struck me and I've never forgotten it. It convicts me every time I want to say 'look what I did'. I still do, don't mistake me, but I try not to. Better than we ourselves knowing, God knows, and He's the one storing our treasures in heaven.
I honestly think all of us treasure ourselves first whether we like to admit it or not. Sometimes my motives for doing good things make me very ashamed because it's 100% selfish. Sometimes people say things that I find out of place and then it occurs to me that they are protecting themselves or guarding my thoughts about them. Then I realize that I do the same.
The only thing to do about this is to continually correct our treasure.
Yesterday morning, for example, it was going on 7:45 and I was snoozing comfortably, really not wanting to get up to do my devotions when the thought occurred to me, 'God gets no glory out of this', or something like that, and I got up. My treasure should be God but it naturally is not. Me being my own treasure was ruling until I remembered that I exist to glorify and worship God.

You see, our inward thoughts effect our relationship with God more than almost anything we do physically because our physical sins are the result of what was borne and bred in our minds before that.

Just like myself and covetousness: I tend to waste a lot of money on things I don't need because I need more more more so I can look good for myself. Pride= covetousness= wasting money. That's a light example, I can think of other things borne from covetousness that I'd be too ashamed to admit to on here.

Do ye not understand, that whatsoever entereth

in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out

into the draught?

But those things which proceed out of the mouth

come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.

For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders,

adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness,

blasphemies:

These are the things which defile a man: but to eat

with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

Matthew 15:17-20

Notice how most of those things- murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, blasphemy- are physical sins but two of them, as noted before, can be done in the mind. Sin is born and bred in our hearts.

So clean your heart up:

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the

platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.

Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is

within the cup and platter, that the outside of them

may be clean also.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed

appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead

men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto

men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Matthew 23: 25-28

Jesus could not be plainer. Though you may appear clean, godly, and put together on the outside, if your inside is run over with excess, extortion, pride, arrogance, greed, and the like: your outside is just as dirty, though man cannot tell at first.
I would venture to say that a person who drinks alcohol but is completely without guile, kind, generous, and sweet has a better relationship with God than a person who avoids alcohol but inside is selfish, malicious, prideful (because they don't drink), and a respecter of persons. Obviously it's not the drinker with the problem- it's the non drinker. 

What do you do?

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after

the flesh:

(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but

mighty through God to the pulling down of strong

holds;)

Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that

exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and

bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience

of Christ;

2 Corinthians 10:3-5

I used to worry a lot and get paranoid for no reason. One day in my bible reading I came across the above passage and the bolded verse struck me. It is a very powerful verse to me.

The command is strong: bring it into captivity and cast it down.

I was going through a very difficult time with worry when I read this passage. I was pregnant, but I didn't know it yet (I found out at 11 weeks) and I had suddenly been bombarded by my imagination running rampant with frightful things I was afraid would happen.

The only way I could comfort myself was memorizing scripture and quoting it to myself whenever I began to get paranoid. It was during this time that God led me to that verse and taught me what to do.

Whenever you think something sinful, cast it down.

My worrying for example, was a lack of trust in God so I would bring my worrisome thoughts into captivity with Psalm 91. It didn't take long for my worries to abate and finally disappear.

I still become fearful, I still worry but I'm armed with the shield of faith and the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. Those things protect your mind. You just have to use them.

A bad thought come into your head? Push it out and apologize to God. Acknowledge it was wrong. Our thoughts will never be clean this side of heaven, bad things come up all the time but weeding those bad thoughts out prevent bitterness, hate, and wrath from breeding.

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and

clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with

all malice:

And be ye kind kind one to another, tenderhearted,

forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake

hath forgiven you.

Ephesians 4:31&32

Unity, peace, and kindness come much easier when we don't allow ourselves to have bitter, angry, and evil thoughts about others in our mind. Mean thoughts come into my head all the time- I throw them out and apologize to God. I don't comment mean things to my husband about people- even if he would find it funny. It's giving place to the devil and his devices. It's amazing how much angst, division, strife, we can avoid by keeping a tight reign on our thoughts. It's amazing how much closer you can walk with God by casting out things that may seem harmless at fist.


I hope this was a help to you. I don't know what thoughts you struggle with and what your besetting sins are. I hope my own examples give you an idea of where to start. I've written this post several times because I know its so important. My first post about thoughts didn't present the groundwork for maintaining one's thought life. Sometimes on this blog I just plow through thinking everyone has been saved for twenty years and knows what I know about the bible. That's just not so.

This topic is so expansive and I think I just barley nicked the surface of it. I hope at least it gives you a good idea of God's thoughts on the matter and helps you realize the importance of guarding your heart against sin.
Your whole life will benefit from it.

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the

issues of life.

Proverbs 4:23