It is really hard to rejoice in the day that the Lord has made when I am mentally way out in the future. The Bible says that worrying does not add a single day to our lives.
I believe that loving God with our minds is committing ourselves to today.
We don’t have to be strong for tomorrow, we just have to rely on His strength today.
My mind has been my biggest battlefield in motherhood. Simply choosing a different thought can literally change my whole day.
What does it look like to love God with all of our minds? And why does it even matter?
In motherhood, we are constantly being tested, but if we can make some of these key changes that I am sharing in this blog, we can transform our motherhood and our homes.
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WHAT WE THINK ABOUT MATTERS
One of the first keys to loving God with our minds is to truly believe that God cares what we think about.
He knows what goes on in our heads and it matters to Him.
The things we think slowly change our actions.
The Bible says that what is in the heart will flow out of the mouth.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, 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.”
Philippians 4:8
It is as simple as:
- Believing the best about others in our home
- Choosing not to criticize our husbands (even though they’re not perfect)
- Not belittling our kids
- Being a coach to our kids rather than expecting perfection from them
To think on what is true, we must learn and know what is true.
I believe that the Word of God is Truth.
A while back, I did a study through the book of John that I will link here.
If you’ve never dug deeply into the Bible, the book of John is a great place to start. This book talks about who Jesus is in his earthly life.
In this Bible study, I try to apply some of the principles laid out in the book, Women of the Word.
Women of the Word has taught me so much about how to study the Bible with both my heart and my mind.
I think that this is the number one book for anyone to have in their home that will help them truly study the Bible without having to rely on somebody else to tell them what it means.
THERE IS A BETTER WAY TO READ THE BIBLE
The author, Jen Wilkin, says that the best way to study the Word is to ask yourself, “What does this say about God?” rather than, “What does this say about me?”
Our culture is fixated on getting to know ourselves. Getting to know who God made us to be isn’t a bad thing, but I don’t think it’s the right goal. Getting to know who God is and seeing ourselves in light of Him is the goal.
IT’S AN INVESTMENT
I get it. Taking the time to dig into the Word is not going to get the dishes done, the laundry folded, or the kids cleaned up.
But if doing this mental work is going to change the whole atmosphere of our home, then how can we afford to skip it?
When I am loving God with all my mind, it is going to change me and change the interactions I have with those around me.
I have another blog post with 25 different ways to get into the Word for busy moms because sometimes we really have to fight for it.
LIVE IN A DAY-TIGHT COMPARTMENT
Another way we can love God with all our minds is to stay in a day-tight compartment.
This is a principle I got from a book called “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living”.
The only thing that is real is today.
Tomorrow is not yet born.
Yesterday is dead and gone.
BEATING OURSELVES UP OVER THE PAST IS NOT HELPING
We can learn from the past but if I am dwelling on the past, I am not actively living in the moment that the Lord has me in now.
“This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.”
Psalm 118:24
WORRYING ABOUT THE FUTURE IS NOT HELPING EITHER
We can prepare for the future, but being consumed with worry over the future will not change anything except hurt the current moment.
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Matthew 6:34
So even though I have lots of things on my mind when I lay my head down at night, I know I can go to sleep because the Lord is in control and I do not have to carry the whole world in my hands.
I know that in all situations, God will give me what I need when I need it, not a moment sooner.
This doesn’t mean that there is not a temptation to worry! The enemy wants us to be mentally in the future so that we will doubt whether the provision will be there.
But worrying does not add one day to our lives.
LOVING GOD WITH ALL OF OUR MINDS IS COMMITTING OURSELVES TO TODAY
I don’t know what I will be dealing with tomorrow, but I can be faithful in the next 5 minutes.
We don’t have to be strong for tomorrow, we just have to rely on His strength for today.
Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit
Galatians 5:25
Galatians 5:25 is my husband’s favorite verse. He sees it as a father’s footsteps in the snow and a little child following after him, stepping in his father’s footsteps. The child stays right behind the father. He isn’t trying to get in front of his father or forge his own way. He is trusting that by stepping in his father’s footsteps, he will get where he needs to go.
IT MATTERS HOW WE THINK ABOUT SIN AND FORGET ABOUT SIN
Loving God with all of our mind is choosing how we intentionally think about sin and forget about sin.
SATAN IS VERY EASY ON SIN, UNTIL HE’S NOT.
Satan and God think about sin differently.
Satan will tempt us into sinning by saying things like “It’s really not a big deal” or “Nobody is going to know”.
But after the sin has been committed, Satan is a shamer. He makes us think that we are never going to recover from it because it’s such a huge deal. Then when we are disappointed or ashamed of ourselves, we are easier to tempt back into sin as an escape.
It is so important that we capture those thoughts of shame because they are from the enemy! God does not talk to us with a voice of shame.
GOD IS HARD ON SIN IN THE BEGINNING
God is a loving Father.
We may come across as harsh to our kids when we tell them not to touch a hot stove or play in the middle of the road. But we just don’t want them to get hurt because we love them.
In the same way, God is harsh on sin in the Bible because He knows it will hurt us and He loves us.
The cross did not make sin safe, it made sin forgivable.
God is serious on sin, but He is gracious and He calls us to come back to Him even after we’ve sinned.
He walks us through repentance to turn away from the sin and then lets us start again with His help.
LOVING GOD WITH ALL OF OUR MINDS IN MOTHERHOOD TAKES FORGIVENESS
In motherhood, we must ask for forgiveness and let go of what we’ve done in the past so that it doesn’t keep us from what we could be in the present.
Sometimes we are too hard on ourselves or we think we need to continually punish ourselves for our past mistakes.
Holding onto shame will only keep us from the beautiful life God invites us into.
The past is dead and gone. The future is unborn. All I have is today! So let’s commit together to living in a day-tight compartment and being faithful with where we are right now.
We are gifted with the ability to get right with the Lord today and start again with His help.
We truly can have an incredible life with the Lord when we choose to love Him with all of our mind.
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