Great Value of Thinking, How To Think Wisely

 We said thinking is undervalued. Let’s look at thinking with more than just Phil. 4:8.

That shows us what to focus on to have a great walk with Jesus and a positive outlook. What is true, just, etc. gives us more pleasure because we focus on God and what He loves. But, how do we do that in this difficult, sin-stained world?

Part is having a worldview knowing Jesus is the Truth. That and working with an eternal view – focus on souls, eternal rewards, etc. – help. But, not only does God see things from an eternal point of view, He also sees every part of something.

People often don’t examine nuance (the many parts of a topic). President Franklin Roosevelt, for instance, helped a lot but didn’t cure everything in the Depression – there was another big market crash in the late ‘30s. Private citizens also helped in those times. Mayor LaGuardia was like FDR but was a Republican. He stopped corrupt Tammany Hall Democrats and their political machine, made hiring merit-based and not just based on political favors, and made life better for New Yorkers. Both parties had good and bad in them. Even today, there are good and bad people everywhere.

“Well,” you may say, “that’s the world’s system, anyway.” That’s true. It’s an illustration of how the background of a topic (the Depression) has many parts. God wants us to be able to think and defend our faith, which means we should look at things from God’s view, knowing that we are not perfect, so we can’t make a perfect system. We are all flawed in some way. This is why God shows us grace and wants us to show it, too.

Now, think about what the devil tries to do – steal, kill, destroy.(John 10:10) If we are all flawed, we need to look past what people say and look to God’s Word. This means we look at people as hurting, struggling people who need God’s love, mercy, and compassion. They need help to get through life. Yes, we must have standards. We shouldn’t stoop to their level of always tearing others down, for instance. But, we should help them see the joy of building others up, of being positive and helpful – the joy of putting others first.

Think about what this means for everyday discussions. Few people living recall the Depression, though I can share what I heard, and you can find lots of written and oral histories. That illustration shows blanket sound bites - like “ one side did everything,” or “they’re all evil,” – are wrong. I said last time Miss Hannigan in “Annie” likely got her job through Tammany Hall – but, Mr. Bundles could have, too, and he watched out for the orphans. The system was the problem. This can happen with social and mainstream media. The flaw is in not examining the nuances – whether to get ratings or just push opinions. And, that often comes down to not doing what Jesus does in seeing each person as an individual.

This is why having that Biblical foundation for right and wrong is crucial. God has each of our best interests in mind all the time - He is personal. If we didn’t have absolute truth, anyone could go around claiming anything. Sure, some things are funny, like a person painting a house orange and calling it a pumpkin. It’s another if he calls yours a pumpkin and try to bake it and eat it. Or, for a more normal example, claims to be able to run every red light.

God gives us freedom to choose Him or not. He has consequences for when we don’t, so there’s no cartoon physics in our world. And, His perfect Heaven is where all who call on Him by faith to save them will be someday. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.