What Happens When We Choose to Think on Good Things
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“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Philippians 4:8).
Sometimes it’s hard to believe, but we do actually get to choose what we think about.
However, it may be easier said than done. Don’t we often object to Philippians 4:8? We claim that we can’t help what we think on, our minds have a mind of their own! It just thinks on whatever it wants to think on!
Crazy thoughts, wrong thoughts, impure and ungodly thoughts, fearful and anxious thoughts pop into our minds, without any cause or warning. So how can we ever ensure that we think on “good” things?
You may not be able to control if or when a random thought pops into your head, but you can certainly control whether or not you think on that thought. Said another way, you can decide whether you will meditate on that thought, or mull it over in your mind until you are convinced to take action. You control whether you have a conversation in your head with an imaginary person about it, like rehearsing an argument, or whether you allow a thought to lead to an illicit fantasy that would make you ashamed if anyone could read your mind.
Thoughts may spontaneously light upon your mind, but you are in control of whether you will pay them any attention. If we didn’t actually have that control, it would be preposterous for God to instruct us to “think on these things.”
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success” (Joshua 1:8, emphasis added).
“But you shall meditate in it,” meaning… you can choose what to think on. He does not ask us to do anything that we are simply not capable of doing! And it will have a profound effect on our lives, because it affects our intellect, health and peace.
Give a Good Report
What you think on can also determine your direction and destiny.
In Numbers 13:21-33, we read that Israel had been delivered from 400 years of bondage in Egypt. They had wandered for 40 years in the wilderness, and were finally on the border of the Promised Land, a place that represented everything they wanted and everything that God wanted for them.
The Promised Land was a place of possibility, dreams, and freedom. It represented a place filled with good things: land that will be theirs, houses to live in, fields their kids can run and play in, and bumper crops to harvest. So Moses sent out a representative from each of the tribes to check it out and report back what they saw, what the cities looked like, and the people that lived there.
These twelve spies went out together saw that the land was everything God had promised. It flowed with milk and honey (meaning, it was super productive land). It was lush and green, with beautiful, healthy abundant crops.
In fact, they brought back a cluster of grapes so big that it took two of the men to carry that one cluster on a pole that rested on their shoulders (Numbers 13:23). But they also saw giants, men of extremely large stature, who resided in the land and stood in the way of the Israelites. When the spies returned to Moses, the men had a choice to make: focus on, meditate on and think on the giants or the grapes.
The spies all saw the same things, but ten chose to focus on the giants (the giants are too big, too strong… we can’t), and two chose to focus on the grapes (God has promised, let’s go!).
Joshua (tribe of Ephraim) and Caleb (tribe of Judah) were the only two spies that had faith in God to deliver what He had promised. And unsurprisingly, of these twelve men, only Joshua and Caleb eventually stepped into that promise. The other ten, as well as the entire generation of Israelites that believed the bad report, perished in the wilderness without ever seeing the promised land for themselves.
Scripture doesn’t say, but I imagine the two spies who carried the grapes on a pole resting on their shoulders were actually Caleb and Joshua. Their entire trip was spent focusing on the supernatural abundance of the land, abundance that God said He wanted for them. While it’s likely the other men walking home talked non-stop about the giants they had seen, how strongly fortified the walls of the cities were, and how crazy Moses was to think they would die for such a hopeless cause.
Everyone saw the same land, but they came away with very different perspectives. It’s a choice we all get to make in our own situations. Will we choose to give a good report of God’s ability to give us victory in our circumstance, or a bad report from our fear, lack of strength or unbelief. One thing is certain, what we dwell on greatly determines our direction and outcome.
New Seasons Require New Mindsets
On our way to the destiny God has for us, we will experience trouble, trials and fights. We must focus and press in; and our old ways of thinking must evolve. We can’t cross over into the Promised Land while maintaining an Egyptian slave mindset.
The enemy will try to block us from stepping into a new season by overwhelming us with thoughts and situations from the old season. But if we allow our mind to stay in Egypt, no matter how far we’ve come and how free we are in reality, we will not be able to go any further. We can leave a city, a job, a relationship, a habit, a house, a neighborhood, a school, whatever. But if our minds don’t get renewed, if we don’t intentionally choose forward progress, we will stay stuck.
In order for us to move forward, we must move on from the past (Philippians 3:13-14). So close that door and allow your mind to move on, because new seasons call for new mindsets.
So what “good things” should we think about?
Think the Same Good Things That God Does
“And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them” (Numbers 13:32-33, emphasis added).
Why do we ever believe that God wants us to think less of ourselves than we ought? It’s true, we should not think more of ourselves than is justified because of pride, arrogance, or ignorance (Romans 12:3). But putting ourselves down does not elevate God, nor is it Scriptural. Belittling ourselves, God’s masterpieces of creation (Ephesians 2:10), does not glorify the Creator.
Recall what God says about you in the Word. You are:
- Made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26)
- More than a conqueror (Romans 8:37)
- Forgiven (Psalm 103:12) and justified (Romans 5:1-2)
- Righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21) and beloved (Romans1:7)
- An heir and a joint heir with Jesus Christ (Romans 8:17)
- A royal priesthood, a holy nation, a unique people (1 Peter 2:9)
- Chosen (1 Peter 2:9) and blood bought (1 Peter 1:19)
- Redeemed (Colossians 3:13) and blessed (Ephesians 1:3)
The unbelieving and faithless spies said what they thought was truth: We are mere grasshoppers and they are giants.
What they should have said was the actual truth: We are children of Almighty God! He is with us, so who can stand against us?
We are not a grasshoppers destined to be squashed by the giants of life. According to God, we are overcoming, victorious giant-killers. Get the right mindset by always thinking the same good things about yourself that God says about you. And remember, to say anything else is an evil report!
Think Good Things about God
Why were Caleb and Joshua able to say, “Despite the giants in this land, we are well able to take it?” Because God was the One who promised them the land, and He is faithful. This same God led them out of Egypt with a mighty hand, parted the Red Sea for a dramatic and miraculous escape, and drowned the Egyptian army in their sight behind them.
God sustained them with supernatural manna from heaven and water springing from a desert rock. Caleb and Joshua understood that God demonstrated repeatedly to His people that He was a good and faithful God who could be trusted. We should do the same!
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” (James 1:17).
“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the LORD. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope’” (Jeremiah 29:11-12).
We should always believe the best about God! Anything else is a lie from the pit of hell to keep us bound up in our minds. The enemy’s lies keep us afraid of God, staying far from Him, and perpetually fearful of the giants that attack our lives.
But the truth is He wants good for us and not evil; in fact, He wants what’s best for us! He who has given us His very own Son, Jesus, how shall He not with him freely give us all things? (Romans 8:32).
He’s not out to punish, shame, trap or torture us. God wants to lead us out of the place of bondage, through the wilderness of wandering, and into our destiny. So when you see a giant approach, understand that your Father – who is always good, Almighty and all-knowing – is on your side. He will be with you to defeat your giants and give you grapes to eat!
Think Good Things about the Outcome
Everyone else said Giants! and thought bad things about the outcome. They said, These men are so huge, they are undefeatable, and they’re going to kill us!
Caleb and Joshua thought about the outcome differently. We are well able because God is going to give us the victory. Don’t know how or when, but it’s certain because God is with us and He has promised us this land.
Not thinking good things about the outcome is what caused a generation of Israelites to die in the wilderness, and miss out on the promise of God for them.
Always believe good things about the outcome, despite how it looks in the beginning.
It may not always look like its headed in a good direction; it may even appear to take a turn for the worse. But believe good things about the outcome of anything that God has promised.
Remember, God sees the end from the beginning. He so much sees further than our eyes can look. Our setbacks are quite often set-ups for comebacks. We may think He’s forgotten us, but we find His hand is always on us. He makes ministries from our messes, and turns our problems into promotions. When we see giants, He is showing us grapes.
Related Podcast:
Philippians 4:4 encourages believers to rejoice always in the Lord. It emphasizes the importance of maintaining a joyful attitude regardless of circumstances, suggesting that joy should be a constant state of being for those who follow Christ.
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