"Whatever"
"If anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." Philippians 4:8 NIV
To instruct us about how to feed our minds, the apostle Paul writes: "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." John Ortberg writes: "The striking word in that command is whatever. Our minds are being shaped all the time, but we have great freedom to pursue minds that flourish. As a bee that can find nectar in all kinds of flowers, we are now free--even commanded--to feed our mind on noble thoughts wherever we find them. The Bible itself commands us to look beyond just the Bible to feed our minds. Let us meditate for a moment in that phrase 'whatever is lovely.' Think of something that is 'lovely' to you. A sunset. A favorite novel...The face of someone you love. Music that makes you dance. Let your mind dwell there for a moment. Give it directed mental focus. You just obeyed the Bible. That 'counts.' You just opened your mind a bit to the flow of the Holy Spirit...The Holy Spirit's goal is not to get you really good at suppressing angry behavior. It is for you to have a mind characterized by an ever-increasing flow of Spirit-guided, truth-based, life-producing thoughts and feelings. When we read about what is noble, when we see something praiseworthy, we experience what psychologist Jonathan Haidt called 'elevation.' We actually feel a slight expansion in our chest; we feel lighter in our bodies. Our emotions are inspired, and we want to become more excellent ourselves. That counts as obedience to Scripture. That is spiritual."
This message taken from: Daily Devotional - The Word For You Today
To instruct us about how to feed our minds, the apostle Paul writes: "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." John Ortberg writes: "The striking word in that command is whatever. Our minds are being shaped all the time, but we have great freedom to pursue minds that flourish. As a bee that can find nectar in all kinds of flowers, we are now free--even commanded--to feed our mind on noble thoughts wherever we find them. The Bible itself commands us to look beyond just the Bible to feed our minds. Let us meditate for a moment in that phrase 'whatever is lovely.' Think of something that is 'lovely' to you. A sunset. A favorite novel...The face of someone you love. Music that makes you dance. Let your mind dwell there for a moment. Give it directed mental focus. You just obeyed the Bible. That 'counts.' You just opened your mind a bit to the flow of the Holy Spirit...The Holy Spirit's goal is not to get you really good at suppressing angry behavior. It is for you to have a mind characterized by an ever-increasing flow of Spirit-guided, truth-based, life-producing thoughts and feelings. When we read about what is noble, when we see something praiseworthy, we experience what psychologist Jonathan Haidt called 'elevation.' We actually feel a slight expansion in our chest; we feel lighter in our bodies. Our emotions are inspired, and we want to become more excellent ourselves. That counts as obedience to Scripture. That is spiritual."
This message taken from: Daily Devotional - The Word For You Today
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