Our thoughts are an incredibly powerful force. Take a moment and consider the truth of this statement. Someone can say something to you early in your day, either good or bad, and it can affect your entire outlook on the day, affecting the way you see yourself, others and each circumstance. So much seems to rise and fall based on our thoughts. It is the thoughts we think that determine the decisions we make and the paths we take. Our thoughts even affect what God can and cannot do in our lives. When we are unbelieving and think in opposition to what He says in His Word, we hinder Him from moving in our lives.
Sometimes we make decisions based only on our emotions. We let emotions drive our thoughts. When you are down and discouraged, the whole world seems black, bleak and melancholy. At these times you feel you can’t go on another day. And then there are times when everything around you is great and you are happy and upbeat. You feel like you could conquer giants or put the entire Philistine army to flight. But either one of these extremes is not a good thing. Don’t be guided by your emotions or let them influence your thought life. Don’t make decisions based on them or think as your emotions tell you to think. Let God alone guide you.
There is this one shirt hanging in my closet. By God’s grace, I have some very nice shirts and ties. But hanging among them is a shirt that I wore when I was nineteen or twenty years old, serving God in North India. I was really skinny then, so the shirt doesn’t fit me anymore. Its buttons are lost, there are holes everywhere, and the fabric is faded. Really, it is just a piece of cloth not even fit for a rag. But I keep it anyway. That old, gray, worn-out, buttonless shirt hangs there among all my nice shirts and reminds me where I came from. When I see it, I remember how the Lord called me and what He told me to do. I remember His faithfulness through many years. It is a good thing to remember the pit from which God has pulled you! Think of the extent of His grace. Remember and thank God for His blessings. Think back with thoughts of gratitude and thanks.
