Oh, the Thinks I Think

Oh, the thinks you can think! 
Do you remember this rhyme?
It's a Seuss poem that 
Celebrates the wonders of your mind!

I've thought quite a bit about thinking this week. I'm not sure whether it was the heavy amounts of rain or the change in seasons or the stage of my pregnancy, but my mind has been a whirling dervish of thoughts lately.

I can't seem to shut them off. I think about everything. A list for your amusement (and maybe even your commiseration):

• did I feed the cats?

• is the garage going to flood?

• we need to spray the yard for bugs.

• I don't read enough to my four-year-old

• I wonder if I need a better quality pre-natal vitamin?

• should I change my Facebook privacy settings?

• I need to plant a garden!

• does this mole look funny?

• my house is too cluttered...

• I must immediately rid my family of half of our possessions!

• we need to have a cook out for the twentysomethings in our church.

• how long do lemons keep?

• let's paint the house white!

• I hope so-and-so doesn't think I'm mad at them.

• I can't remember the last time I cleaned my Keurig...

• Is my Keurig slowly killing me?

You get the gist. A whirling dervish. A tornado of constant thought and activity leaving trails of debris and cluttering my mind.

Indeed, I may have the entire cast of Seussical: the Musical performing a litany of worrisome songs up in my brain:

Clean the coffee maker

You silly oomph!

Germs are slowly growing

and killing you, to boot!

I'm fairly certain this is not the freedom my Jesus wants me to live in. In fact, He has commanded me to not worry. To not ask these silly questions, but to seek after God and His Kingdom. 

"Just chill," says Jesus Christ, Savior of the World.

How do I do this? Chilling is hard for me, Lord. You have made my incredible brain. You know how it is wired. You know it so well, in fact, that you knew to tell me while you were walking on the earth  to stop worrying and to settle down.

Like I said, I've been thinking about thinking. And I think I have found a way to help us calm the storms of our mind. Lean in now, you don't want to miss this.

Colossians 3:2 says, "Set your mind on things above, not on earthy things."

Scripture is giving a clear command of what "thinks" should be taking up space in our brains, things above. Before we get into what these things are, let's focus on the second part of that verse. Earthly things. 

I bet you can help me add to this list of what is considered an earthly thing. In no particular order: wealth, power, success, fame, ALL THE THINGS I COULD BUY, impressing people, pleasing people...

I could go on. Maybe some of these things don't seem sinful...and you'd be right. For example, Disney World is my jam. I would go to Disney World twice a year if I could. It is truly the most magical place on earth. I see the gates with Mickey welcoming me and my heart starts to sing a little bit. 

But guess what? The House of Mouse is totally an earthly thing. So what do all these earthly things have in common?

They don't matter. Hear me when I say this....They. Don't. Matter. 

This is why Paul tells us in Colossians to not put our focus on these fleeting, momentary fillers that don't make one bit of difference in the Kingdom of Heaven.

So if these are the things I shouldn't be focusing on, what are these things above that should garner all my attention?

Heavenly things, darling. Eternal things. The things that actually do make bits of difference in the Kingdom of Heaven. Things like loving others, the solid rock truth of Jesus, praise and thankfulness to a living God, the spreading of the gospel of Jesus, generosity, faithfulness, perseverance, and hope. Wonder that such a great and mighty God cares about the thoughts in my head.

Heavenly things sound, well, heavenly, don't they?

Your beautiful brain was made to think about wonderful things, good things, eternal things. 

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 

Philippians 4:8

I hope you'll join me in this new way of thinking. I hope that when the tornado of worrisome activities start to circulate in your mind you'll stop and give several minutes of focused attention on the things that actually matter. 

Oh, the thinks I was made to think:

Bright things! New things!

Good things! True things!

I shall turn my worries into praise

I won't waste my thoughts,

Not for one single day!

The next time our brains are eager to clutter themselves with earthly things, will you join me in saying no? Let's make an effort to not waste time with things that just don't matter. Let's set our minds on things that do.

Girl's Got an Arm

Why is throwing stuff fun? I mean, random, but hang with me here. Launching a stone as far as you can into the pond. Corn hole at a BBQ. Expired eggs into the woods. (No? Just my family?) 

For the record I'm a terrible thrower. Very little force, short trajectory. My childhood neighbor Nathan once tried to teach me the art of throwing. Something about the position of the elbow and the timing of the object leaving your hand. He gave me this lesson as we were throwing gravel from my driveway into a nearby field. Oh, and we were in HIGH SCHOOL while doing this, if it makes this story any cooler. 

But no, I can't throw. No pebbles, no corn hole bags, no rotten eggs, no pieces of gravel. Definitely no three pointers. No no-hitters. No coach came begging me to join the softball team. No old men wearing trucker hats, chewing on pieces of straw in the bleachers watching me on the mound saying, "That girl's got an arm."

So you can see my dilemma when the Bible mandates that I should be throwing some things.  

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. I Peter 5:7

In real life, you-and-me terms this says to throw all your hard stuff to Jesus, so he can take care of it because he loves you. 

See, I've got some hard stuff in my life right now. Stuff I'm sad over, broken over, and straight up angry over. Things I've cried over, stressed over, tried to out-plan over. 

But it doesn't work. Sometimes there is so much wrong in life that we feel like we can't even make a dent into fixing it. 

And we are so right. There is nothing about the deep messes of life that we can fix. 

But there is Jesus, standing there, saying throw it to me. Let me give it a try. 

And so, this is my new practice. When the junk starts to creep up and I want to manage, worry, or cry, I whisper, Jesus fix it and literally imagine myself lugging a heavy bag of wrong and hard and yuck into his arms. I heave it at him with all the mental force I have and he catches it, gracefully.

We have been bought, beloved. Bought from being a slave to worry and sadness by Jesus' blood on the cross. He not only bore the cross but he wants to bear the weight of what holds us down. We are too weak to keep lugging it around.

So a career in pitching was never to be for me. But this junk that weighs me down? This stuff I can throw. And I will hurl it with such force and gusto that someone standing near could feel it whipping past their face. I will cast my cares into the arms of the Problem Solver, the Way Maker and all who witness this act of trust, this act of faith, this true act of worship will say, "Wow, that girl's got an arm."

Don't Worry. Be Happy.

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

Matthew 6:27

I don’t worry about when I’m going to die. I don’t sit and fret about basic needs. I get to live firmly in middle-class America: full stomach, access to medical care, warm home, and quality clothing. The water I drink is from a deliciously clean well.

So my American, Western Hemisphere brain doesn’t think this verse applies to me. Sure, I've read this passage in Matthew enough to have memorized it, but more often than not I just skim it.

God, I’m not worrying about my life span. I’m worrying about getting to work on time. I’m anxious about that phone call I have to make. I’m stressing because I have approximately 7,534 items on my To Do list and only two free hours in which to do them.

I’m not worried about the length of my life, Lord. I’m worried about ridiculously stupid (let’s be honest) things.

I’ve been thinking a lot about worry lately. I feel like it takes up too much of my time. Too much of my precious brain space. I’m a champ at going over scenarios in my head. How will this conversation play out? In what order should I carry out the tasks of the day?

Efficiency and planning are all well and good. These are gifts God has given me. But sometimes I use these gifts as idols and not the tools for which God intended them.

Philippians 4:8 says, “Finally, brothers (and sisters), whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (emphasis mine)

So many times the thoughts in my brain, my worry and anxiety, are sinful. I don’t stress for my good. I stress because I worship my control. I stress because in my striving to control any and all situations, my control has become an idol. An idol to myself; that I think my way is always the best way.

See, how I should be reading Matthew 6:27 is this:

And which of you by being anxious can fix any issue you have?

Jesus is saying worry isn't any good, no matter what you're worrying about. Food, clothing, phone calls, planning. It won't make anything better. In fact, if Jesus says not to worry and then you worry, that's sin. Your worry is telling God that He isn't powerful enough to care for you in the big and in the little issues of life.

“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, 

and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5

He has shown me how to plan without worry. How to manage without obsession.

When I have done my daily tasks, let me rest in thoughts of true, lovely, and commendable things.

Let me let go of thoughts that hold me captive.

And let my thoughts be captive to Christ.