Great souls are made, they don’t just happen. One of the great discoveries of this century
is that man is the master of his thought and that by changing his thoughts, can
change his circumstance.
Long ago the Bible declared this about man and his thoughts,
“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he”
(Proverbs 23:7). If you’re looking
for a new charter of freedom, this could be it.
However, this statement presupposes certain Biblical understandings.
Initially, thought control outside a basic relationship[
with Christ cannot bring newness of life, but when the living Christ invades
the human spirit, renews it and gives to it His life, the potential for newness
of life is unlimited. The shackles of
growth are removed and the individual is in a position to experience rapid and
radical inward growth because he is no longer battling himself.
The reason a person is no longer battling himself is because
inward desires and thoughts which are contrary to the spirit of Christ are
recognized as such and commanded by the individual, “In the Name of Jesus”, to
go. Additional struggle comes at the
point where the individual first tolerates and then lounges around with (and
otherwise “opens the door to”) ugly, selfish and evil thoughts.
Calling these thoughts what they are: “unclean”, and asking God’s
forgiveness for indulgence in the same, sets the individual free to continue
along a line of positive growth.
Circumstance, then, merely provides us with the opportunity to come into
our own.
Be sure, growth will prevail. As fertile soil will produce something,
weeds if nothing else, so will our minds.
So, confident of the possibilities for growth and knowing that “. . .in due season we will reap if we faint
not” (Galatians 6:9), then the challenge is to set ourselves to becoming
that kind of person with whom we can keep good company.
That’s God’s desire for us also, to make of us, by working
through our minds and spirits, those kind of people in whom all
positive-thinking people find good company.
In short, God wants to make of us great souls. He wants to make us like unto His own Son,
Jesus—the greatest-souled person who ever lived.
No comments:
Post a Comment