August 1, 2023
Mind Games
Our family was going on vacation. Like a lot of pastors, I leave for vacation on a Sunday afternoon after preaching that morning. This particular Sunday was a little hard in that we had a lot of people out on vacation so some things didn’t run right. Several things didn’t go right in Sunday school and the whole morning seemed to be blah. I kept praying and reminding myself that in a few hours I would be on vacation.
When I happened upon a conversation in the hallway where someone was commenting to someone else about another person in Sunday school it seemed to be the final straw. As the person was talking about the other person it was like I zoned out. I could hear their voices but my mind was already at the beach. In a moment or two I snapped back into reality to hear the end of the conversation.
I thought about some of the old gospel songs about having Heaven on your mind and dreaming of Heaven. It helped me refocus to better understand that YES, I must live in this world but it is NOT my home. I am surrounded by problems, trials, and issues. Yet this is NOT the final destination for a child of God.
There IS a day coming when all of this worldly junk will pass away and there will be a far better land. Like a runner who is running a race and gets a glimpse of the finish line, we must not give up but keep on giving it our all.
The Bible reminds us in Isaiah 26:3 that. “God will keep them in perfect peace whose mind stays on him (God)” Another thought is where your heart is, your mind will follow. If my heart and purpose is on God then my mind and thoughts will follow. If it is on something else then they will follow that thing/person/etc.
What an amazing concept (For the good and the bad) that your body can be here but your mind be somewhere else thousands of miles (Or even another universe) away. The devil realizes this and tries to get our mind to be on anything EXCEPT the things of God. He doesn’t want us to think about God and thus Heaven one day being our home. He tries to tune our vision onto the things of this world. This world is not Heaven and it never will be.
As I preach, I see people who are tuned out and their mind is somewhere else. They may be looking at me and nodding their head but the thought train has left the station a while back. I recognize it and ask God to help me get them back on track – not with me – but with Him.
So as the scriptures say in Philippians 4: 8-10, “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.” In love with Jesus – Pastor Gary