I am currently going through the book “Loving God with All Your Mind” by Elizabeth George. The greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, soul and mind and I so want to love Him fully and completely. I had gone through this book a couple years ago and remembered it being very helpful. When I decided to go through it again, Carrie suggested I do chapter reviews as I progress. Even though the book is written specifically for women, the message definitely applies to all followers of Christ.
I thought that I would post a brief synopsis of each section with a quote that particularly stood out to me…
Chapter One – Thinking on God’s Truth
Throughout the book, Mrs. George’s main focus is on Philippians 4:8, specifically the first part, “Whatsoever things are true….think on these things.” Part of love for God and showing love toward other people is in thinking, dwelling, meditating on truth. Reality. The things that we know to be correct. In chapter one, she talks about our thoughts about God, ourselves and relationships with others.
Thoughts about God
“If we are to love God with all our mind, we need to be sure our ideas about God are accurate, biblical, and true. Inaccurate and unbiblical thoughts about God can block His power in our life. Another crucial step toward loving God with all our mind is determining to place the Bible’s truths above everything we think or feel. We must guard against allowing our thoughts or feelings to override the great truths of Scripture.”
Many times it is quite tempting to listen to our thoughts and feelings, rather than what we know to be true of God. For example, after confessing a sin, thinking, “I don’t feel forgiven.” God’s Word however clearly states that He will forgive our sins when we confess them (1 John 1:9). The way we feel holds absolutely no weight. It is God Who is true and never changes.
Thoughts about Ourselves
“When we think scripturally about ourselves and our circumstances…God uses His truth to break the cycle of destructive thinking that leads to discouragement, despair, doubt, and depression. However real the pain, the hurt, and the disappointments of life we may be experiencing, God gives us comfort, healing, and hope when His Spirit calls us to remember the greater reality of God’s love, power, and redemption.
“Whenever you find yourself thinking of yourself as useless or worthless, as a failure, a hopeless case, or a loser, remember what is true about you. As a Christian woman, you are a child of God (John 1:12) and His workmanship (Ephesians 2:10). You have been bought by the precious blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 6:20, 1 Peter 1:19). And when you and I love God with all our mind by thinking these true thoughts about ourselves, we can experience the joy and hope of being in relationship to God through Jesus Christ. With that joy comes fresh energy for life as the Holy Spirit uses God’s Word to encourage us and enable us to live out His will for us.”
I have been in that boat of feeling a hopeless failure, worth nothing, someone who just drags everyone else down…and I know that in those situations I was thinking on myself and not the truth of God’s Word, that He is the One Who saved me and is sanctifying me. At the same time as Mrs. George points out the value and worth of each individual, I believe it is also so important to go further. It is all because of God. It is not enough to build ourselves up by thinking about how much God loves us. His love for us is true, but the realization of that love should always point us back to Him. It is not about us feeling better about ourselves. It is about praising, honoring and glorifying the One Who is worthy!!
Thoughts about Other Relationships
“Women who think on what is real do not spend time analyzing other people’s words and actions or second-guessing what they say and do. Such negative thoughts damage relationships. When we focus on what is real, we experience sound and sincere relationships characterized by a genuine love for others.”
How many times have I been guilty of that?? “So-and-so hasn’t talked to me in a while. S/he must not like me.” “This person always laughs at me. They must think I’m a dork.” “She said everything is fine between us, but I feel like there’s still something there.”
Mrs. George points out a well-known passage…1 Corinthians 13. The love chapter. In this passage, Paul says that love “thinketh no evil” and “believeth all things.” Whenever I read between the lines or doubt a person’s word to me…I am not loving them as I ought based on 1 Corinthians 13.
She also points out the passage in Matthew 18 where Jesus commands His people to go and privately confront someone who has sinned against you. “The primary application of this truth is to simply obey the command. We are to go to any person who sins against us. But think about what this command means for you and me when other believers obey it, too. We can hope that, when we sin against other people, they will come to us in private to talk about it.” We do not need to worry and fret about how we might have offended someone or “what if” there’s something between us. We must rest in the fact that if he or she is our brother or sister in Christ…they are commanded to come to us. We must trust that the Holy Spirit will convict them to do so or that He will open our own eyes to the situation so that we can go to the person.
She summarizes her thoughts, “A woman choosing to think on what is true and real, however, depends on others to tell her and on God’s Spirit to show her when she fails or offends someone. She refuses to second-guess or draw conclusions about people’s behavior. When we think no evil about people, trust what they say and do, and believe that either they will come to us or God will reveal to us where we have offended them, we will nurture love and confidence in relationships. Thoughts about people, which are based on what is true and real, liberate us to generously and joyously love and serve one another.”
Throughout it all, Mrs. George clearly presents how the Bible, God’s Word, is to be the basis of our truth. Are our thoughts aligned with what He says? Are we thinking on things that are true about Him? Is the way we think about Him or the things we believe about His character, in accordance with Scripture? Are we believing lies about ourselves? Are we being unloving toward others in our thoughts by our suspicions, doubts and insecurities? The most important thing is to honor God with our thoughts by filling our minds with truth. His truth.
-Bonnie
