The Mind of our Heart

     Have you ever given your mind to God? I have. Some may say that since He gave it to us, then we should use it. Dangerous thought, if that mind is carnal. Scripture says things from our carnal mind are evil, devilish and sensual. So, I gave mine away. In fact, one time I was at a charismatic church, when they had a woman there, which they said had the gift of prophecy. She was praying for a women who had gone up front. When she came to one woman, she said, "I see a big sword, and in the spirit, I see it cutting off your head." Although, the word wasn't for me, I claimed it for myself, thinking, "God, I want that to be me." I was, in effect, saying that I put my carnal mind on the altar, and was offering it to Him to "burn out all the dross."
     He says that we have the mind of Christ, and I don't know how all that works, and I don't need to know, but I do know that some of the thoughts that I have, I don't want, and I know they don't honor Him. Again He says that out of our mouth, the heart speaks, so the giving of my mind as an offering, brings us back to the heart again, and the process of Him giving me a heart of flesh, instead of my old heart of stone.
    Now, I believe that when He says He makes all things new in me when I received Him, that it is so. I also believe, however, that we go through the process of what already is in our being. That kind of reality can only happen in the spiritual realm; something being finished, and then it being in the process. Take for example the fact that Jesus conquered the devil and all demons and darkness when He died on the cross, and yet all enemies' have not been put under His feet yet. They have, but they haven't. Same is true inside of us: We have been made new, but it is not yet seen in us, but we can be assured that He is doing it, if we have submitted to this process.
     Back to the mind-When He says to think on things that are pure, lovely, a good report, etc. I don't think we can do that in our own will-power. Some might say, "well, He wouldn't have said that, if we couldn't do it." I agree on the point that He does not try and set us up to fail. I believe He is showing us what our minds will think on, as they are progressively redeemed in the process. Only His light in us, can think on those things. In light of that reality, I did not really have to wish my head get cut off, but I know God got my point, and that was that I wanted to think His thoughts, and not my own. It was a way of inviting Him into my whole being, even my mind for His redemptive process to have it's way. (BTW-this process has a long sophisticated name called santification or the cleansing of God, which is part of our salvation, won for us by Jesus on the cross, and it's the part that if we want it will cause us to die daily, and live for Him more and more. It takes our unredeemed soul, and conforms it to His image, and it is a painful process as the flesh "dies hard.")
     So, I praise God for His touching my mind in this way, knowing that as He continues this work in me, my heart will become more alive to Him and His ways, and this in turn will affect my mind. It is really called the mind of our heart; it's not our brains as we may think . So, again, I'm thankful to be reminded this day once again, that He is at work in me both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Oh, that's a good thought!!!