August 14-Clutter

Happy Tuesday to you. Have you got big plans for the day? I am going to get some of my things in order...and maybe take my little ones to see a movie before school begins tomorrow. I’m 9 days away from move-in day and I have collected quite a few things here in my room. It’s rather full to say the least. Casey looked around on Saturday and said “Mom, you have a lot to move just from here.” Sometimes when you live in the middle of a “mess” you don’t notice it. And especially if it happens ever so gradually by adding one or two things at a time. So today, I’m going to try to get it organized better and ready for moving next week. 


As I looked around my cluttered temporary quarters, I thought about how my mind gets cluttered just like this room has. I woke up really early yesterday with all sorts of thoughts running through my head—like 100 ping pong balls bouncing all around. Clutter. 


“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.” Philippians‬ ‭4:8‬ ‭NLT‬‬


And if we fill our minds with things that are excellent, that takes away the space available for all the clutter and confusion. The space that is left? Well, that’s what we give straight to the Master for one hundred percent of our minds are to be committed to loving Him. Jesus said “You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.”

‭‭(Matt 22:37‬ ‭NLT‬‬)


If we love the Lord our God with all our minds, there’s not much left for all the worries and trivia of this life. But if we get consumed with the world and the things of the world, and we let that clutter take over, we have let the sinful nature get the best of us and our minds become, like my room, messy!


“So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.” Romans‬ ‭8:6‬ ‭NLT‬‬


As Paul says he has to kill his old man every day, that sinful nature because he does the things he doesn’t want to do. That’s my mind. It’s a battle for my mind everyday. So, everyday, every morning, I have to recommit my brain to God. Everyday. Or it takes me places I don’t want to go. And then, it’s a mess. Like my room. 


Dear Jesus, we pray that this day we would love you with all our hearts and our souls and our minds. We commit our thoughts and our actions to you and we pray for your leading in them. Help us to think on things that are pure and good and excellent and throw away all other things from our minds. Help us to be centered on you this day and what you’d have us to learn from it and where you’d have us to go. We love you and praise your holy name Lord. Amen and amen. 


Love you dear one, 

Pam

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