To live day-to-day or to be present-minded, thus to not worry about tomorrow, brings abundant peace and rest as it prohibits worry and fear from talking hold for there are no anxious thoughts of the future for these to grab a hold of.
Isaiah 26:3 You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.
Hebrews 4:12 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.
This state of mind comes from trusting God. To let go of an unknown future requires either no care (which is to cease to love and refusing to know love) or trust in an all-powerful loving God.
How do you trust God? Know Him in truth and spirit.
We have to seek to know God as we would do with anyone. We have to come to know Him as He is and not by the false images portrayed by organized religion. The constructs of His character have to be established within our minds. Romans 12:2 This is what it means to know someone and trust them because you know their character and it’s a nature you can have great confidence in, even in the unknown. Proverbs 3:26 We trust in not knowing the future, but in God and His character which is faithful, loving and all-powerful.
One of the key aspects to know about God in order to fully trust Him is His love. This sounds obvious and easy, but in a world where love has been tainted in every which way; coming to know His love to a point of a deep trust is something that is built over time. Yet, it can only be built if we consistently and diligently engage God in truth and spirit.
This world has not known the love of God. They have known false images of God that proclaim love but are infused with fear, guilt, and control because those images came out of the corrupted nature of man. It’s mankind creating his own image of God; the essence of religions. We can only know God by seeking for ourselves. It’s an individual endeavor. We can’t know Him from another person. The only way to know God and His love is to go to Him one-on-one and learn about Him personally through our circumstances as He teaches from within, because that is where God meets us and comes to us, within. Because God is an infinite spirit, there is no end to knowing Him.
The deep hunger in our soul; the part that desires to be filled, known, eternally accepted and loved, is the longing to be connected to the source of love in the deepest truest way. This is the place in us created by God for Him to fill and only He can for He created it in us for Himself. He did this because He loves us and desires a bond of love with us. True contentment comes by being filled and united with His presence, the Great Spirit who gives life to our souls.
When we come to this unity; peace rules our minds and hearts.
Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.
For the past couple of months the Holy Spirit has been teaching me various mindsets to have in order to be able to listen and follow to Him throughout the day. When we learn to listen and follow the Spirit, our lives become truly powerful as we are consciously connected to Him, operate according to His will not ours, and act in His strength not ours.
Celebrate Each Day
The first mindset the Spirit taught me is to celebrate each day because it’s the only one we have. We will never have the opportunities we have today to love, give, learn, impact someone’s life and so on. We are to enjoy, embrace, and share what we have been given. We can’t go back and repeat a day, what we make of it is what it will forever be, and what we do today affects tomorrow. When you consider the impact and finality of a day, it’s amazing most of us live like we can repeat them. Today is what’s real, which leads me to the next lesson learned.
Psalm 90:12 So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Psalm 118:24 This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Stay in the Day
In my early twenties I tried to live by the phrase, live in the moment. Back then, it meant to enjoy each day and not get caught up in the past or future. But the Spirit’s recent instruction brought a bit of a different slant and importance to this mindset. When we are in the moment or stay in the day, as a friend calls it, we are more connected to the Spirit because that is where the Spirit is, therefore that is how we have a spirit-lead life. When our mind is elsewhere we aren’t engaged with Him and not listening to His voice and instruction, which is what we need to live by. 2 Corinthians 10:5, 1 John 2:27
The past is done and the future is unknown, but many of us live in one or both of these places mentally and emotionally. The past does affect our current moments because what we experienced and choose put us where we are today, but too often we are bounded by it. And one common way is through un-forgiveness. For years I had un-forgiveness in the form of “justified anger and pain” from things that happened in the past; it plagued my days sucking true life from them. When we don’t forgive someone and harbor ill-will against them, then that affects our current decisions, mindset and health. Un-forgiveness is a thief of life, freedom and joy. But how do we forgive truly? For many years I wanted to forgive but couldn’t. We forgive by the power of God working in us. As I cried out to God, He brought forgiveness into the depths of my soul, it was a process.
Philippians 3:13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
The flip side is dwelling in the worries of an unknown future. (Blog I wrote on worry, Irrational Worry )We get caught up in worry about what might happen that we live this present moment in a future that doesn’t exist and that also is a rancid thief. There is a balance between being responsible and making good decisions that affect the future, and being consumed with worry about it. The former comes from a mindset of trust the other from fear. To overcome consuming worry requires trust in God, the One who is sovereign over everything. Trusting God is the fruit of cultivating a relationship with Him. Only by spending time getting to really know Him, can we truly trust Him. When we do the worry begins to cease and trust takes over; trust in Him, His love for us and His promises. We need to be listening to the Spirit, not worrying.
Matthew 6:24 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
When we stay in the day, then we can attune to the Spirit’s active leading. When we engage Him it changes what happens in our lives as His direction is perfect and complete for us. Take time to invite the Spirit into your thought processes.
Mindset of Praise
The third mindset is to be praise-oriented, which means to praise God throughout the day for Him, His promises, the things around us, and so on. This mindset is the ultimate worship of God, because it is real, true, heart-felt, and active.
This mindset isn’t about denial of what’s happening. It’s looking at a situation from a different perspective. For example, many are in the midst of a financial trial. This type of trial is a tremendous test and refinement of trust in God’s ways not ours, His provision, and sovereignty. We can either dwell in the mindset of being frustrated and complaining, or recognize God’s control and work, God taking care of our present needs, and seeking the Spirit’s counsel. Praise isn’t to be forced or contrived, but real. God cares about the heart. And praise without denial glorifies God. It shows we know Him, trust Him that He is faithful to do what He promises. It reveals we understand His perfect love for us and working in our lives. To gain a heart of praise comes from truly knowing Him and trusting in Him and His promises.
When God is our God there is always a reason to praise because of His love and care for us. We may not feel that in the moment, but our feelings aren’t reality. They are the sum of a whole host of things. The truth is the former.
Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Connecting the Three Mindsets
A praise mindset helps us to celebrate each day and to stay in the day (so that we can be spirit-lead) because we are aware and thankful for what is right before us. We are outward focused not self-absorbed and therefore more readily available to listen to and be used by God.
Considering these new mindsets, how do you change your thought patterns? Have you ever tried? It’s very difficult on our own. We don’t do it; God does it in us. When God instructs us, and we heed His instruction then He enables us. God rewires our brains. He has done it many times in me. Our part is to pray and keep these truths always before us. Acts 5:32
Through this instruction, I realized how much I’ve missed out on by living in the past or living in the future. I realized how ineffective I’ve been by being absorbed in those and not listening to the Spirit because my mind was busy somewhere else. Those are powerful motivators to drive me forward in what the Spirit has taught me. God is amazing in how perfectly He instructs and leads us to walking in the abundant life He came to give.
These are some powerful New Years resolutions to consider if you’re looking for some.
Worry, a child of fear, is a rancid thief to life. It robs us of the abundant life God desires to give us because we are focusing on a fearful future and missing out on all that what we have right now. Most all of us get caught in worry’s snare. But when you stop to consider it, worry is completely irrational for a child of God.
Our lives change moment to moment. What happens in this moment affects the next. This week I got a cold. Needless to say many of my plans got cancelled yet on the other hand other things like rest, which is always needed, filled my week. Before I got a cold, I was a bit concerned (nice phrasing for worry) about getting all done that I needed to. That worry was a waste of time, because my cold changed everything – and of course it all worked out and I learned some good lessons along the way. These moment to moment changes happen all day long. So how can we worry about a future that we have no idea what will be because we don’t know what each moment will bring?
Because God is in control of our lives and loves us more than we can fathom and wants the very best for us, worry is a waste of time for a child of God. When I lay out my heavy concerns before God, the answer never comes as I expect. Sometimes, it seems I am moving further from it being answered or not moving at all. However, when look back on what I have laid at His feet; He started answering that prayer the day I asked. But the string of events to the answer was not only ones I never had predicated but also they brought a complete and perfect answer. His answer was what I truly wanted and much more. We forget that God loves us and truly wants our best so we get concern, anxious, and worrisome. Yet, every time, He gives me much more than I even knew to ask for. In addition, each step that He lead me through to the answer served a significant role – like teaching me things I needed to learn and bringing me closer to Him.
Each moment puts us in a different place. Everything that happens changes the future and leads us to where God wants us to be and where we truly want to be. He may be putting challenges or issues in our lives because those are the very things take us where we truly desire.
Because what happens in the next moment changes the next and so on, worrying about the future that we in no way can predict because we aren’t in control and we don’t know what each moment will bring is irrational. We have to put our expectations aside and be in the moments listening and trusting His guidance in our lives. Not trying to predict our future, which we can’t.
But not worrying isn’t easy, because fear is one of our greatest enemies. How do we not to worry? Remember it is irrational. But more importantly, trust that God is attending to each concern. Trust God to work in the moments to lead us where we want to be, because that is what He is doing. Trust His path and not what we think it should be. Trust that He truly loves us and wants our best like He says He does. Trust Him that He won’t let us screw things up.
How do you get this ability to trust? From abiding in His Word and cultivating an intimate relationship with Him. Yes, this trust takes time. But instead of giving precious moments of our lives to worry, give those moments to Him by drawing close, to know and trust Him.
Living Light 