by Terry Wetzsteon
I used to feel so guilty and ashamed of the thoughts
That came into my mind.
How could a Godly man have such vain, jealous, unclean thoughts?
How could a spirit-filled Christian think so many un-Christ-like things?
Was I really born again?
I asked God "How could this be?"
And the answer to my ashamed prayers came in the
Form of an article written by Nancy Missler,
Who wrote that, in our soul:
Our thoughts trigger our emotions.
Our emotions stir up our desires.
Our desires produce our actions.
Our actions determine if we sinned.
But.
We are not responsible for original thoughts!
Sometimes I wonder if the human brain was God's greatest
Achievement or His greatest mistake.
But it seems God's mistakes, if there ever were any,
Would be few and far between,
And that the brain must work according to God's plan.
At the interface between our spirit and our unconscious mind
Lays a maelstrom of swirling words and mind's-eye pictures.
And in that mysterious place there must be an access point for
Spiritual reality to connect with worldly reality.
The Bible holds many stories of God
Communicating to people in a dream.
The dreamscape quiet of the night filters away the
Noise that clutters the day's conscious mind,
And lets the message register with precise clarity.
People who are spiritually clean and attuned to the will of God
May often "hear" the voice of God with such clarity
By the light of day as well.
In an emergency, using the Designer's prerogative,
God will speak with such clarity that even a person lost in sin
Will recognize the Voice and be called to respond.
But, in the same way that God gives us free will as to
Our response to His calling,
He also gives free access to the devil to dial the phone
That rings only in our brain.
God gave the devil our number
So that we may be tested.
We say "Hello", and the devil's thought
Is registered before we can hang up.
That's OK.
Taking the call is not a sin.
God needs the line open too.
And who are we to know who's calling
Until we answer?
The devil makes a call and sends a thought which triggers our emotions.
Our emotions awaken our desires.
And what we do next reveals our heart to God,
And to ourselves.
But what is of God, and what is of the devil?
In a season of spiritual strength,
The answer is easy to discern.
In a season of spiritual weakness,
Pray that "God's will be done".
When in doubt, wait patiently and pray before you act.
Remember that God's voice is usually
Calm and quiet because His time
And His grace are infinite.
Satan can be sly and subtle but is often
Loud and pushy because his time is short.
Satan bombards us with original thoughts
All meant to promote sin, and
To tempt,
To weaken,
To deceive,
To disorient,
To distract.
Ultimately to destroy.
God may ask or instruct you to do something
Unfamiliar,
Or difficult,
Or against your will.
And you may feel unclear as to His call.
But the nature of the call, if from God,
Will not ask you to violate your sense
Of right and wrong.
Will not require you to rationalize
Your response.
Will not leave you feeling guilty
If you say yes.
*
So, fear not the original thought.
To have had it is not to have sinned.
But carefully discern the source of each thought,
Search for God's voice in the din.
When a thought awakens emotion
And the emotion stirs your desire,
Don't act on the thought before measuring the cost
Of acting before you inquire
Who authored this thought? And who will I please
If I bring this thought to life?
When the thought becomes act and I can't take it back
Am I closer to the Dark or the Light? |
