I was thinking...

I overthink things. That has caused both the prevention and the allowance of a pitfall. In my opinion, overthinking is one of those treasures that, if abusers of the tool (like myself) knew how to harness it, it could be the strongest weapon in our battle for Truth. However, because of its supernatural potential, the enemy likes to distort the way we approach it, and instead of understanding our minds as weapons that pierce, like 'light pierces the darkness,' it becomes a pierce like 'pierced to death.'

What am I getting at: it is part of the Great Command to 'Love God with all your mind.' There is such a power when the Holy Spirit imparts a word of knowledge, a word of wisdom, or the spirit of discernment. Even the spirit of understanding may come upon us, and all the above are processed in the mind, perhaps deeply processed, and the fruit of the harvest is a clearer perception of the Most High God.

But there are also gray lines - those thoughts that start out innocently, and what I mean by that is, our thoughts initially are safely termed: visionary. Futuristic. Reflection. Fantasy. Introspection. Analytic. But even those words, based on the dictionaries of our heads, could be good or bad things.

There are times we imagine potential outcomes of an interaction between you and another person (we like to say that we're preparing responses). But we eventually cultivate emotions out of conversations and interactions that never happened. Or perhaps our thought starts off as 'what if this happened in my life,' and in planning for the future, we start moving away from faith. Sometimes, we use the term 'learning from past mistakes,' but instead of our reflection being opportunities to resolve ways to move forward, we end up re-living those moments, and they often turn into regret. Maybe self-inflicted condemnation.

And if you are definitely an over-thinker, you've come to a point where you're drilling yourself, asking, 'where did I go wrong?'

Well, we let garbage clog up the proper drainage pipes, and when it rains, it overflows into sewage lines. Yes. We don't put thoughts in their proper place, and henceforth, all that comes out is crap. I'm not making a cheap illustration, I'm really driven by the recent floods, and the subsequent health advisories.

In practical terms, we need both filters and clear channels. Not that we'll never have another bad thought or temptation again, but the strength of the Spirit to dictate to you which thoughts are His, how does He want you to approach it, is there something He intends for you to do about it (thoughts produce no fruit if there is no action involved - you can think of a million comebacks in a fake conversation, but if you never say it, it remains a piece of fleeting imagination).

After all, as it says in I Corinthians, We have the mind of Christ.

And the mind of Christ allows us to discern the seasons, and know what is to be done in the proper seasons. It gains understanding of every angle of a situation, and pierce like Truth and Light. It is creative, innovative, and insightful. It receives unprecedented revelations. The mind of Christ that overthinks is able to prove the will of God.

What a powerful weapon! If only we could truly grasp this and give our minds in full surrender to God. Today, right now - yes, this exact moment - He has something He wants me to know, something He wants you to be aware of. But are we listening? And even if we heard it, would we think of it the way He does?


xo