A family for the lonely ∙

A family for the lonely ∙

I hold you by your right hand – I, the LORD your God. And I say to you, Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you. – Isaiah 41:13

Psalms 68:4-6

 4 Sing praises to God and to his name! Sing loud praises to him who rides the clouds. His name is the LORD – rejoice in his presence!

 5 Father to the fatherless, defender of widows – this is God, whose dwelling is holy.

 6 God places the lonely in families, sets the prisoners free, and gives them joy. But he makes the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.

There is an epidemic of loneliness sweeping across America. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly 30% of older Americans lived alone. Approximately 40% reported that their social relationships were sometimes or always unfulfilling, and 20% felt lonely or socially isolated.

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the situation. Researchers from Harvard University found that 36% of Americans are experiencing “serious loneliness,” with specific groups, such as young adults and mothers with small children, feeling particularly isolated (Harvard GSE Report, February 2021).

What is loneliness?

Loneliness relates to the quality of one’s relationships. Social science researchers define it as the emotional state arising when individuals have fewer social contacts and meaningful relationships than they desire – relationships that make them feel known and understood. Essentially, if you feel lonely, you are lonely (The Week, January 6, 2019).

“Loneliness is the state of distress or discomfort that results when one perceives a gap between one’s desires for social connection and actual experiences of it. Even some people who are surrounded by others throughout the day – or are in a long-lasting marriage – still experience deep and pervasive loneliness” (Psychology Today).

Feelings of isolation, emptiness, and a lack of meaningful connections characterize loneliness. It can occur regardless of the number of people around and affects individuals of all ages and backgrounds. Loneliness can have both short-term and long-term impacts on mental and physical well-being.

For many, a lack of social connectedness is excruciating. As beings made in the image of God, people have an innate desire to establish connections.

The Father delights in tenderly taking care of the children of the King. The Father crafted abundant provisions to address the challenges of solitude and seclusion. “God’s majesty never implies his remoteness from those who look to him; it implies instead his exhaustive attention to detail and his inexhaustible ability to care for his faithful” (ESV notes).

REFLECT & PRAY

“Two possibilities exist: either we are alone in the Universe or we are not. Both are equally terrifying” (Arthur C. Clarke).

Father, thank You for preparing a family and a home for each lonely child of the King. You know exactly who and what we need.

INSIGHT

The Father protects the weakest. He is a father to the fatherless (orphans), an advocate for widows, and a defender of the unfortunate and dispossessed. Orphans and widows are defenseless, having no one to protect them. Therefore, the Father personally assumes the role of their protector and guardian.

Deuteronomy 10:18 He ensures that orphans and widows receive justice.

Psalms 68:5 He is a father to the fatherless and an advocate for widows.

But the Father is more than a protector; He takes on the role of a formidable warrior who champions the plight of the underprivileged and oppressed. In the days of the old West, He might have been likened to a lawman, staunchly upholding justice. He defends those who are the most marginalized, the least of the least in society.

As children of the King consider the mighty works of their warrior King, the psalmist invites them to sing, praise, and make music to His name.

Psalms 68:4 Sing to God! Sing praises to his name! Exalt the one who rides on the clouds! For the LORD is his name! Rejoice before him!

He is depicted as one who “rides on the sky” or “rides in the clouds.” It is intended as “a poetic description of God’s exalted majesty” (Ross).

This word picture borrows an epitaph of the culture of the day. The mythological storm god Baal was called “the one who rides on the clouds.” This expresses a common intercultural theme of the time. Much like in 21st-century Western culture, almost everyone knows what the Super Bowl is or who Mr. Spock was. And we have common expressions we use, “yada, yada, yada,” “have a nice day,” or “be safe.” “This theme of the Divine Warrior is always closely associated with God’s justice and support for the least of society” (NICOT).

The Father does something delightful and marvelous for those who are alone or desolate. He finds and provides a place for them, a home, a family.  The Hebrew word translated as “home”or “family”is bayit. Bayit is literally a house, dwelling, building, and thus family or household.

Psalms 68:6 God makes a home for the lonely (he places the lonely in families).

There is a place for each child of the King – a family, a home on earth, and in heaven for all eternity. How marvelous and beautiful.

John 14:2 There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, I would have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you.

Children of the King will be with the Father for all eternity. The Father is with each child of the King now and forever.

Matthew 28:20 I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

The Lord Jesus Christ made an awe-inspiring promise that He would remain with His followers throughout all their days until the conclusion of the age. His words aren’t merely a promise of future presence; they emphatically declare, “I am with you,” a resounding affirmation of His unwavering presence. This promise carries the certainty of assurance and a timeless perspective, transcending the confines of here and now. When did this begin? His companionship started when we accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord. It extends indefinitely, reaching even to the end of existence itself.

Are you feeling lonely?

Isaiah 61:1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, for the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed.

Somewhere (Barbra Streisand)

There’s a place for us Somewhere a place for us

Peace and quiet and open air Wait for us somewhere

There’s a time for us Someday a time for us

Time together with time to spare

Time to learn And time to care

Someday Somewhere

We’ll find a new way of living. We’ll find there’s a way of forgiving

Somewhere There’s a place for us (a place for us) Somewhere there is a place for us

Hold my hand, and we’re halfway there Hold my hand, and I’ll take you there

Someday, someday, somewhere, somewhere

We’ll find a new way of living We’ll find there’s a way of forgiving

Somewhere There’s a place for us A time and a place for us

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© Dr. H 2024

When I am weak ∙∙

When I am weak ∙∙

For when I am weak, then I am strong. – 2 Corinthians 12:10

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

 7 Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

 8 Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.

 9 Each time, he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses so that the power of Christ can work through me.

 10 That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Mark was a ten-year-old boy who wanted to study judo, even though he had lost his left arm in an automobile accident.

He began taking lessons with a seasoned Japanese judo master known for his years of experience. Mark was doing well and made commendable progress. However, after three months, he had been taught only one move. Curious and mustering the courage, he questioned his sensei. The venerable master replied, “This is the only move you’ll ever need to know.”

Perplexed but trusting, Mark continued to train with unwavering determination to hone his skills. Several months later, he entered his first tournament. To his astonishment, Mark won the first two matches. The third match was more difficult, but soon, his opponent became impatient and charged. Drawing upon his well-practiced solo technique, Mark deftly executed his move, securing another win.

He advanced to the finals, where his opponent was much larger, stronger, and far more experienced. Mark was nervous, which visibly affected his performance. Concerned for Mark’s well-being, the referee called a timeout and was about to stop the seemingly imbalanced match when Mark’s master interjected, “Let him continue.”

The match resumed, and Mark’s opponent made a critical mistake. Instantly, Mark used his move to pin him, winning both the match and the tournament. On the way home, Mark reviewed all his matches and moves with his master, finally summoning the courage to ask, “How did I win the tournament with only one move?”

“You won for two reasons,” the judo master answered. First, you’ve almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in judo. Second, the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm.”

Mark’s weakness had become his greatest strength (Harvey Mackay).

Each child of the King possesses a range of weaknesses, spanning physical, emotional, or cognitive limitations. Coupled with the challenges and vicissitudes of everyday life, we often feel overwhelmed, defeated, and powerless. It’s easy to become ashamed, embarrassed, frightened, angry, or even depressed.

However, the Father uses adversity and weakness in almost unimaginable ways. Our lack of power and our weaknesses provide opportunities to experience the Father’s limitless strength.

REFLECT & PRAY

The word of God is full of seeming paradoxes and incongruities. It often defies conventional wisdom, common sense, and logic. For instance, if you want to be first, you must be last. If you want to save your life, you must be willing to lose it. And if you want to be strong, you must find strength in your weaknesses (Stanley).

Father, thank You for being intimately involved in all the circumstances of my life. Please encourage me to develop the right attitudes and responses that you desire for me.

INSIGHT

William Wilberforce, who led the fight to abolish slavery in the British Empire, was physically weak and frail, but he had deep faith in God. Boswell said of him, “I saw what seemed to me a shrimp become a whale” (MacDonald).

If our natural human instincts and reactions are inadequate, what should replace them? What should be our new paradigm for living?

The Father is working to bring balance to our lives. He slowly but surely, inexorably, molds us, shaping us into the image of His Son. The Father is working to liberate us from our dependence on our limited natural resources. He wants us to depend upon Him and realize His power in our daily experiences.

Consider what we know of Paul. He experienced remarkable face-to-face encounters with the living God. He was given unimaginable revelations, ability, and comprehension. He was invited and taken into heaven itself. The natural negative consequence of such remarkable privileges would be arrogant pride and boastfulness. To prevent Paul from becoming pompous and haughty, two very grievous and overwhelming conditions became a part of his everyday life.

He was given a thorn in the flesh. The Greek word for “thorn,” skolops, appears only once in the New Testament. It signifies something that causes severe pain or constant irritation. It can refer to “a sharp stake used for torturing or impaling” (Wiersbe).

Figuratively, it represents a sharply painful affliction or disability; idiomatically, it means serious difficulty, painful trouble, or possibly a recurring physical illness.

We do not know precisely what troubled Paul, but it likely involved some physical condition that caused pain and distress.

However, beyond the physical ailment was a far darker reality. Paul realized that a messenger of Satan was at work. The Father permitted the enemy to torment Paul. The Greek word for “torment” or “buffet,”kolaphizo, which means to strike with a closed fist, to beat, to mistreat, to treat roughly, or to cause difficulty. It can legitimately be translated as “abuse” or “torment.”  

This translation captures Paul’s reflections: “That is why he gave me a very difficult problem to deal with. It was as if a person with a message from Satan intended to beat me and keep me from being too proud” (UBS).

Paul’s thorn in the flesh was given not to make him a lesser man but a greater man.

His greatness was found in his weakness.

His perspective transformation is the model for us all. No matter what our personal difficulties, sufferings, hardships, or traumas may be, we can apply the same lessons that Paul learned and be encouraged.

“As a young man, Paul trained under one of the greatest Jewish scholars of his time. He understood the elements of the law and practiced them with great zeal. Yet when he came face-to-face with Jesus Christ, his life changed forever. He no longer viewed the world through merely human eyes. God gave him spiritual insight that far surpassed anything he had known.”

“Still, he had to be broken further so that he could be used in an even greater way . . .. Through this time of weakness, Paul learned a new and unexpected principle: Weakness is strength” (Stanley).

2 Corinthians 12:9-10

 9 My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness. Therefore, I will gladly boast about my weaknesses so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

 10 Therefore, I am well content with weaknesses, insults, distresses, persecutions, and difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.

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© Dr. H 2024

Bibliophilia ∙

Bibliophilia ∙

Those who love Your law have great peace, and nothing shall offend them. – Psalms 119:165

Psalms 119:159-165

 159 See how I love your commandments, LORD. Give back my life because of your unfailing love.

 160 The very essence of your words is truth; all your just regulations will stand forever.

 161 Powerful people harass me without cause, but my heart trembles only at your word.

 165 Those who love your instructions have great peace and do not stumble.

On December 7, 2010, Reuters reported that a privately owned copy of John James Audubon’s richly illustrated “Birds of America” sold for a record $11.5 million, smashing all previous records for a printed book.

The book was purchased by London book dealer Michael Tollemache, who described the work as “priceless” after the sale.

The term “bibliophilia” denotes a love for books, originating from the Greek words phila (love, lover) and biblio (book). A bibliophile is someone who loves books and is fascinated by them and the stories they tell.

“Bibliophile” is an ideal term for someone who is in love with the Book of Books, the Bible, and the Word of God. David, king of Israel, was such a man, a true bibliophile.

Psalms 119:47 How I delight in your commands! How I love them!

What biblical materials did David have available to contemplate, cherish, and hide in his heart?

David lived around 1000 BC. The parts of the Bible that were written at his time included the Torah, which consists of the Five Books of Moses, as well as Joshua, Judges, and Job. David spent most of his time reading and contemplating the Torah, which contained the Law of God, including commandments, statutes, and ordinances. While some people find the content of these books, especially Leviticus and Numbers, to be tedious and seemingly irrelevant to everyday life, David found them fascinating. To him, they were sweet, delightful, precious, and highly desirable.

Ideally, when you fall in love with God, loving His Word is a natural outcome. Anyone can do it.

Psalms 19:10 They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb.

They brought David great delight and joy. The serious student of the Bible already knows this. When you get beneath the surface, the Father often discloses great treasures unnoticed by the casual reader. David was a unique individual with a special heart for the Father and His Word.

We live in the 21st century with access to a complete Bible. We discover the profound beauty, knowledge, and wisdom in the Gospel of John, the Psalms, and Proverbs. There are thought-provoking, extremely cerebral books such as Romans, Ephesians, and Hebrews. We also have challenging and almost titillating books regarding the end times, such as Daniel and Revelation.

We have so much more than David could ever imagine. Yet do we ravenously feast upon it, never seeming to get enough?

Winston Churchill said regarding the Battle of Britain, “Never was so much owed by so many to so few. Sadly, with apologies to Churchill, we can paraphrase his thoughts, “Never have so many done so little, with so much.”

REFLECT & PRAY

Psalms 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Father, may I experience a profound and enduring love for Your Word. May I regularly meditate on it, allowing it to guide and inspire me in all aspects of my life.

INSIGHT

Focusing on the Father and loving His Word has two delightful benefits: peace and stability.

Remarkable things happen when we worship the Father and partake from His Word. “Focusing on the Lord, asking for nothing, and totally lost in our praise of Him has a way of making the problems look much smaller and the future much brighter. But praise also helps us to have poise in our Christian walk and not to stumble (Jude 24) or cause others to stumble (1 Corinthians 8:13; Romans 14:13). The singing saint is a stable saint, walking on a level path even when the enemy digs pits and sets up obstacles” (Wiersbe).

Psalms 119:165 Those who love Your law have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble.

The Hebrew word translated as peace is shalom. Shalom means far more than the absence of conflict. It implies well-being, wholeness, health, completeness, prosperity, and having nothing essential lacking (UBS).5352844

The Scriptures characterize life as a walk, a journey.

The Hebrew term translated as stumble or offend is mikshol. Mikshol conveys the image of a hindrance or obstacle (HAL). Consider an individual traversing a challenging path through rough terrain. When such an individual loves the Father’s Word, they are less likely to stumble or fall due to offenses. Although stumbling blocks exist, they do not get tripped up by them.

When we fall in love with the Word of God, we become less responsive to offenses, insults, and hardships that are inherent in our fallen world. We can confront the upheavals and challenges of life with calmness, tranquility, and steadfastness. This inner peace and stability are not derived from an absence of difficulties but from the ability to maintain composure during adversity. The children of the King are not exempt from grief or hardship, but they possess the freedom not to be trapped by them.

In Psalm 23:4, the term traditionally translated as the shadow of death elsewhere simply means darkness. Here, it has the sense of “the valley of deep darkness,” “the dark valley,” “the darkest of all valleys,” and “a valley dark as death.” It connotes a dangerous and foreboding place (UBS).

Psalms 23:4 Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.

The rod and staff provide reassurance and protection from the perils of everyday life. “The rod (a cudgel worn at the belt) and staff (to walk with, and to round up the flock) were the shepherd’s weapon and implement: the former for defense (cf. 1 Samuel. 17:35), the latter for control – since discipline is security” (Kidner).

Previously, the Father was portrayed as a compassionate shepherd leading David (Psalm 23:2) and guiding him on his journey. However, now, the Father is described as walking beside David, acting as a companion and providing not only guidance but also protection.

King David was a man after God’s own heart. He had fallen deeply in love with the Father and His word. He shows us how to face dark and foreboding circumstances confidently and fearlessly.

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© Dr. H 2024

Recalculating ∙∙

Recalculating ∙∙

We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps. – Proverbs 16:9

Proverbs 16:1-3

 1 We can make our own plans, but the LORD gives the right answer.

 2 People may be pure in their own eyes, but the LORD examines their motives.

 3 Commit your actions to the LORD, and your plans will succeed.

Do you remember those times when you were driving and missed a turn? The GPS voice switches to a somewhat passive-aggressive monotone and says, “recalculating,” serving as a subtle reminder that you’re not following its directions. It’s as if the GPS is gently chiding you for your navigational misstep. Whether it’s due to a momentary distraction, an unexpected road closure, or just a wrong turn, we’ve all experienced that slightly exasperated tone from our GPS. It’s a universal moment of mild frustration mixed with humor, reminding us that even in the age of advanced technology, we’re still prone to human error.

Perhaps a bit of GPS humor might help set the tone.

My GPS asked me how much I loved it. I replied, “Well, I’d be lost without you.”

My Dad kept using this GPS in his car, directing him to cliff edges. I think that is what led him to his downfall.

I tagged Waldo with a GPS device. Problem solved.

I recently gave my soulmate a new GPS for her car. I am not saying she is a bad driver, but after driving a bit with her new GPS, it blurted out, “After 400 feet, stop and let me out!”

One helpful tip is to avoid setting your “Home” address on your GPS to your actual home address. In the event that your car is stolen, the thief might discover that you are not at home and could take advantage of the situation to burglarize your property. Instead, consider setting the “Home” address to the location of your local police station. This will hopefully deter potential thieves and protect your home. It might even teach them a lesson (gpstracklog.com/2015/03/funny-gps-jokes-for-your-sunday-afternoon.html).

How do we commit our work to the Lord? We do so not just by asking Him to bless our efforts but by dedicating ourselves and our plans to Him before, during, and after completing our work (Stanley).

How often do we bring unwarranted expectations to our experiences and aspirations? We create our plans and timelines, hoping everything will go smoothly and turn out exactly as desired. Yet, so often, our expectations are unmet. Eventually, we come to realize that life doesn’t work that way. This truth is even more evident in the Kingdom of God.

The Father frequently introduces totally unexpected and unanticipated events as He mysteriously works in our lives and circumstances. Consider these examples from Scripture: the burning bush, a night spent unharmed in the lion’s den, horses and chariots of fire, cryptic handwriting on a wall, prison doors and chains suddenly unlocked, and the parting of the Red Sea.

We cannot predict the unexpected, and the same goes for our spiritual journey. The Father has a way of redirecting our lives, either accelerating or decelerating our progress. Unlike a GPS, He does not “recalculate.” He brings His predetermined plan and dreams for our lives to fruition.

Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, understood the concept of “recalculating” long before GPS technology existed. Recalculating becomes necessary when we make our plans without considering the Father’s direction and guidance. While Solomon didn’t have a GPS, he was well-acquainted with the need to realign one’s path. He contrasted the futility of making plans apart from the Father’s input with the wisdom of planning as directed by the Father.

We might paraphrase Solomon’s insights from Proverbs 16 as follows: We often devise our own plans, but the Father has the final say; true success comes when we align our plans with the Father’s; we propose and aspire, but ultimately, the Father’s will prevails.

The best and wisest course of action is to ask the Father what He wishes to accomplish and what His plans are. When we receive divine guidance, we have a choice to make. We can choose to follow His direction and pray that it will be done as He desires.

Often, we get this process backward. We make our plans first and then ask the Father to bless them. This approach, as they say in parts of the southern United States, “that dog won’t hunt.” And we become very disappointed when He does not come through as we expected and hoped. This often leads to discouragement and disillusionment. Anger usually follows along with bitterness, resentment, and separation.

REFLECT & PRAY

Trade trust for frustration and disappointment, and The Father will guide your way.

Father, I acknowledge that I often make plans without involving You, leading to great disappointment and discouragement when things don’t go my own way. Help me to trust in You and rely on Your guidance every step of the way.

INSIGHT

The Father is always at work around you. He has been actively involved in human affairs throughout history. In fact, He is orchestrating history. The Father invites you to become involved with Him in His work.

The Father is the sovereign ruler of the universe. He has been working throughout history to accomplish His purposes. He does not ask us to dream our dreams for Him. He does not invite us to set magnificent goals and then pray that He will help us achieve them.

When He approaches us, He already has His own plan. He desires to get us from where we are to where He is working. He leads us from being self-centered to being God-centered. When the Father reveals to you where He is working, that becomes His invitation to join Him in His activity. When the Father reveals His work to you, that is the time to respond to Him (Blackaby).

It is deplorable but common to repeatedly lose track of this spiritual truth. We make our plans without consulting Him, and we forget to ask Him what His plans are.

Proverbs 16:9 The mind of man plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps.

A man’s mind plans his way: In this context, “a man’s mind” refers explicitly to “a man’s heart,” which is considered the center of mental activity, thoughts, and reflections. When it says “plans his way,” it encompasses all of a person’s activities.

But the Lord directs his steps: The term “directs” here is the same word translated as “established” in verse Proverbs 16:3. However, in relation to “steps,” it is best rendered as “leads,” “guides,” or “determines.”

Steps is often rendered literally in various versions, but it carries a similar meaning to “way” in the previous line; it refers to a person’s actions and the course of their life. For instance, we might say, “But the Lord decides the road we will take” (UBS).

All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes: “The ways” refers to actions, behavior, or conduct, contrasting with the plans and reflections of Proverbs 16:1. “Pure” in relation to human behavior means being morally upright, without fault or wrong. “In his own eyes” means “in his opinion” or “from his own point of view.”

But the Lord weighs the spirit: “The spirit” literally translates to “spirits,” referring to human nature and its motives. To “weigh spirits” is to test or judge the aims, purposes, or motives of a person.

We might rephrase this to say, for example, “A person may think he is right in everything he does, but the Lord examines the heart” or “. . . but the Lord looks inside people” (UBS).

In place of feeling disappointed and angry, we can choose to follow Solomon’s advice. It’s a matter of trusting the Father and allowing Him to reveal His plans to us. As we choose to follow Him, He will guide our ways. We need to be flexible and expect to “recalculate” and “redirect” as required.

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© Dr. H 2024

Straight thinking ∙∙

Straight thinking ∙∙

Commit your works to the LORD, and your plans will be established. – Proverbs 16:3

James 1:6-8

 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.

 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.

Straight and Crooked Thinking, by Robert H. Thouless, was first published in 1930 and revised in 1953. The author reviews and critically evaluates common flaws in reasoning and argumentation, discussing thirty-eight fallacies of wrong thinking. Among them are:

Proof by example (also known as inappropriate generalization) is a logical fallacy in which the validity of a statement is illustrated through one or more examples or cases rather than through full-fledged proof.

Cherry-picking, or the fallacy of incomplete evidence, involves pointing to individual cases or data that seem to confirm a particular position while ignoring a significant portion of related and similar cases or data that may contradict that position. Such evidence is suppressed. Bias can blind a person and prevent honest evaluation, judgment, or decision-making.

What does it mean to think straight?

To think straight means to think rationally, calmly, clearly, or logically. For example, the phrase “I’m so tired I can’t think straight” is often used to convey the opposite condition, indicating mental exhaustion or confusion.

Romans 1:28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind.

Something tragic happened when people chose not to acknowledge the existence and reality of the living God. There is a play on words in the original Greek that does not come across in English.

The Greek verb translated as not see fit is dokimazo. Dokimazo has the basic sense of testing something to approve it. The people in mind did not regard God as even worth considering. They are basically theophobic.

The Greek word translated as debased or corrupted is adokimos. Adokimoscomes froma – without and dokimos – acceptable, tested,and approved. Hence, it means failing to meet the test; therefore, it is worthless, unqualified, unapproved, unworthy, spurious, or reprobate. In the present context, corrupted refers to a mind that no longer functions as it should . . . [it lacks the] ability to make moral and spiritual distinctions. Phillips renders this phrase as “degenerate minds” and the NEB as “depraved reason” (USB).

Humans’ thinking is often limited and flawed. In some cases, it’s not capable of making sound moral judgments. The human mind is powerful but can be slightly distorted. It has been compared to a giant buzz saw used in sawmills to cut tree trunks into boards. Just like a saw blade that is slightly out of alignment and skewed, when you run a tree trunk through it, the result is less than ideal. Unfortunately, many people are unaware that their thinking is not accurate.

On the other hand, the Father’s thinking is perfectly straight, unwavering, and trustworthy. His thoughts have always been consistent and will continue to be so.

REFLECT & PRAY

Can you imagine the Father saying, “Whoops, I made a mistake?”

Father, I recognize that my thinking is limited and often bent and biased. Enable me to think Your thoughts after You and gain stability and consistency.

INSIGHT

He created us in His own image and granted us the remarkable gift of critical thinking and reasoning. Nevertheless, our capacity for knowledge is exceedingly limited. When compared to His infinite wisdom, even the most astute and intellectually gifted individuals throughout history have barely scratched the surface of understanding.

Isaiah 55:8-9

 8 “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.”

 9 “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.”

Right thinking stems from a proper understanding of the Father’s character and attributes. The apostle recognized that the Father is all-knowing, all-powerful, and sovereign in all things. Paul’s understanding enabled him to think clearly and remain calm in challenging circumstances.

Psalms 46:1-2

 1 God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.

 2 So we will not fear when earthquakes come, and the mountains crumble into the sea.

Wrong thinking results in instability (Chuck Swindoll).

James 1:6-8

 8 A person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.

 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.

The Greek word translated as “double-minded” or “Their loyalty is divided” is dipsuchos. Dipsuchos literally means having two minds. It originates from the Greek words dis(meaning “two”) and psyche (meaning “mind”). This term epitomizes the internal conflict and opposition within the human psyche, reflecting the duality of thoughts, emotions, and motivations. It connotes being uncertain about the truth of something or someone, characterized by doubt or hesitation. It describes a person with divided loyalties.

The Greek word for “unstable” is akatastatos. Akatastatosis derived from a (meaning “not”) and kathístemi (meaning “to settle”). Akatastatosdenotes ceaseless motion that lacks stability, fixedness, or firmness. It conveys a sense of being unsettled, unsteady, restless, fickle, unruly, or not subject to control.

The children of the King should be single-minded and stable in their thinking and actions as we learn to place our complete confidence in Him. We should exchange our thoughts for His thoughts and our ways for His ways. We begin by acknowledging that the Father is the ultimate decision-maker. What He says is not just an opinion but the absolute truth.

Psalms 55:22 Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.

The psalmist encourages us to give our burdens to the Lord and let Him carry the load. We should give Him our anxious thoughts, worries, and troubles, allowing the Father to bear them for us.

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© Dr. H 2024