I awoke at four this morning, my head full of junk, sinus pressure and drainage signs that today was destined to be a long day. I drug myself out of bed a few hours later following a phone call where I assume the person on the other end was still trying to piece together what I had said. I wanted to stay there, to lay in bed, to remain motionless, but there is no time to lay around. There is forever work to be done. I began my day but the overwhelming fog of the mind rendered me nearly useless. Each year, July and August brings about a few instances where I feel rotten so, in full disclosure, I was not caught completely off-guard by awakening to such an existence.
As I drove to begin my day, I thought about how our heads get filled with all the wrong things. We absorb an abundance of the world in our minds and then, we are rendered nearly motionless. The television fills our minds with images and propaganda that is anything but what the Lord wants us to be our focus. The radio is just as bad. The internet provides us with ample poison to alter our minds for a lifetime. We become focused on the worldly and our hearts and souls begin to yearn for something more while our minds remain immersed in the world. Life becomes hopeless when our heads are full of junk.
Scripture implores us to remain focused on the Lord. Look at what the Bible says about the world. John wrote, "Do not love the world or the things that belong to the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him. Because everything that belongs to the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride in one's lifestyle - is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world with its lust is passing away, but the one who does God's will remains forever." (1 John 2:15-17 HCSB) Too often, we commit ourselves and our minds to the things of the world and become less focused on the Lord.
Paul wrote to the Colossians, "Set your minds on what is above, not on what is on the earth." (Colossians 3:2 HCSB) The mind is to be protected and to be focused. Our minds will dictate the direction of our lives. If we get something in our minds and allow it to root itself, that will manifest itself in various ways. For instance, those who look to get rich fail to look at life without seeing where wealth is to be gained. If our minds are set on the things of God, we will constantly look to be the hands and feet of Christ wherever we go.
The ultimate verse on this topic, outside of the greatest commandment where Jesus says that we are to love the Lord with all our heart, mind, and soul, is found in Romans. Paul wrote, "Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God." (Romans 12:2 HCSB) Rather than conforming to the mindset of this age, a mindset of self and worldly passion, we are called to be transformed by a renewal of the mind.
I am going to take some medicine to clear out the sinus junk in my head. For us, as believers, we need Scripture to clear out all the other junk that has accumulated in our minds over time, being refocused and transformed by the Lord and by His Word.
