Here, in the West, we plan a trip by considering the distance, then figuring out which form of transportation will be the cheapest, the fastest, the most comfortable, the least exhausting, will have the best scenery, or pass by our favorite haunts. But ultimately, it’s about getting from Point A to Point B. It’s about the destination. For God, the timing, the comfort, the convenience, the expense, are not priorities. It’s all about the journey. What important lessons can be learned? What ministry opportunities can be enjoyed? What fellowship can be had along the way? Yes, God’s way moves at God’s speed. Ah, the journey.
Our thoughts, the 24/7/365 thoughts, the full range of what we think: about ourselves, about others, about situations, our past, about policies and laws and regulations, not to mention what we dream about, who we dream about, etc. They are immensely in scope, ranging from adoration to anxiety to avarice to arrogance and astonishingly beyond all these. If our thoughts were airplanes, they’d likely be something like sputtering prop planes seeking to land on a rough field in a windstorm. At best, most would land just short of the runway. God’s thoughts, by contrast, would be jumbo jets effortlessly soaring at 40,000 feet, then coming in to land safely on the runway, touching down, no jolt, no bounce, and taxiing to the gate, right on time. God’s thoughts = Shalom.
Isaiah records God declaring: “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8,9, NLT.
Since God has revealed this aspect of the human condition, it seems we should engage in some Kingdom thought-sculpting exercises with the goal of refining them to more closely sync with God’s. These exercises could start with us paying attention to what we’re paying attention to. i.e. Are they on: our award-winning, gold-star self, our wretchedness, what we don’t have, what we wished we did have, the weather, politics, latest news reports, family issues, health concerns, your amazing pastor, or any number of other things? When we consciously pause to think about our thinking, it’s often quite a revelation, sometimes embarrassing, especially if we consider that God sees. While we won’t fully think God’s thoughts, we can limit our time- and energy- and morale-wasting ones, bringing them to Him in prayer. That accomplished, we’ll gain more time and energy and morale to worship and praise our lofty-thinking God. Secure investment, great rewards. PD