“O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me” (Psalm 43:3)
Only in God’s light do we see light. Apart from Him, we can get carried away by many a dark thought and lose many a night’s sleep. Our mind can easily go into overdrive. We marshall our plans, we come up with a course of action, but too often we order our thoughts according to our fears. Something might have to be done; but then again, nothing might have to be done. Our thoughts are not always God’s thoughts. He can guide us when we need to act, but there are many more times when our strength is to sit still.
Too often we order our thoughts according to our fears.
Yes, life in this world can be dangerous. Thieves do break in and steal. Without proper care, what we hold dear can be ruined. But our life consists in far more than the things we possess. What we shall eat and wear is a concern, but there are matters of far greater importance. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33)
The rule of God in our heart and His righteousness in all our ways should be our one good obsession. Things may be far from perfect around us, but we can have perfect peace within when our mind is stayed on Him and we are trusting Him. The abundant life is not found in an abundance of earthly goods, nor is it found in a world that is well-ordered and beautiful in our eyes. The good life is found in an abundance of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost; it is found in the beauty of a meek and quiet spirit. To have such we must let our good Shepherd order our thoughts.
God is big enough to alert us when something truly needs tending to.
Fear produces an unsound mind. Giving heed to a spirit of fear causes our heart to be overcharged with unnecessary worry. God is big enough to alert us when something truly needs tending to. Left to ourselves we make little out of much and much out of little. When anxious thoughts roam the halls of our mind we should be shouting out, “Who goes there?” Unless we take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, our thoughts will certainly carry us away into a prison of worry.
We are not to believe every spirit but try them to see if they are of God. Likewise, we are not to give full weight to every care that crosses our mind. God is the author of a perfect and just weight. He hates a weight that differs from His. Our greatest concern and the matter of continual first importance should not be the failure to gain or the fear of losing anything in this world. God knows what we have need of and will take care of all even as He does for the birds of the air and the flowers of the field. Our real vigilance needs to be toward the thief who comes to steal, kill, and destroy. His desire is to rob us of the true, internal treasures that God would have us gain and keep.
Keep the light on.