Winning the Ongoing Battle for the Mind

“A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” That popular advertising slogan of years past still rings true today. What we think, how we think, and the things that fill our minds make a tremendous difference in how we conduct our lives and what we experience: Our successes, failures, and attitudes.

 

I’ve heard many experts make reference to a “battle for the mind,” and there’s little doubt such a mental tug-of-war exists. Consider the potential influences: We have social media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and new entries almost every week. Then we have TV – network, cable and the many streaming services that are emerging – not only the news and commentaries, but also the “entertainment” that shapes our culture and worldviews.

We have a plethora of print media, not only local and national newspapers, but also magazines designed to appeal to any interest and taste. A casual glance at any of them can reveal the values and biases they espouse. Even video games, literally at our fingertips, can have a significant impact on our minds.

 

The political scene has become so sharply divided it’s often hard to believe opposing parties are talking about the same things. It seems increasingly difficult to find common ground for civil discourse. And in many of our colleges and universities, the curricula for many disciplines are infused with political ideology. So yes, we’re engaged in a fierce battle for the mind.

 

What are we to do? Attempting to debate or reason on social media seems pointless. We can protest in different ways, but even how those are understood and reported can be distorted. I sometimes write letters to the editor, but I’ve yet to hear anyone say, “Wow, after reading what you said, I’ve changed my thinking entirely.”

 

I’ve concluded that even though I can’t control the way the world thinks, I can prevent it from controlling and molding the way I think. I like what the late Indian leader and human rights activist Mohandas Gandhi used to say: “I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” What a vivid image!

 

The Scriptures have much to say about what we allow to influence our minds. Romans 12:1-2 speaks powerfully to this: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind….” I like the wording from one paraphrase of this passage: “Don’t let the world press you into its mold.”

 

Years ago I became convicted about the types of books I was reading. Some were in the genre of horror fiction, and while I found those entertaining, I had to admit they were taking my mind into realms of the occult and evil that were not healthy. When I asked my pastor about them, he wisely replied, “Well, when you read those books, are they pointing you toward the Lord – or away from Him?”

 

Exhorting believers in the church at Philippi, the apostle Paul expressed his concern that they also needed vigilantly keep their minds focused in the right direction: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – thing about such things”(Philippians 4:8).

 

This doesn’t suggest adopting a Pollyanna attitude, ignoring negative influences around us, but making certain we don’t let them dominate our thinking. As an old friend of mind used to say, “I can’t stop the birds from flying overhead, but I can keep them from building a nest in my hair.”

 

Perhaps King David shared this concern about the “battle for the mind,” because in one of his psalms he asked and answered his own question: “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:9-11).

 

Another resource the Lord gives to ensure our thinking is clear and right is the counsel of other trusted friends and colleagues. Proverbs 19:20 says, “Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.” And if we don’t? Another verse offers this warning: “Stop listening to instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge” (Proverbs 19:27).

 

The battle for our minds is real; it will continue, whether we like it or not. But God has given us the means for remaining on the victorious side. We just need to take full advantage of them. 

If You’re Unhappy, Did You Know You Have a Choice?

Even though I’m not an expert, it seems there are a lot of unhappy people in the world around us. Maybe you’re one of them.

Whenever I feel like I’m suffering from an overdose of happiness, all I have to turn on the morning or evening news and voila, problem solved. The sky is falling! (Just as it was yesterday, and the day before that.) At least as far as we can tell by the incessant, fear-mongering news reporting. Chicken Little, along with the little boy who always cried wolf, would feel right at home in our day and age.

What happens when we succumb and start feeling overcome by fear? We start feeling unhappy. The calm, serene, predictable world we loved so much is stripped away, and we’re not pleased about it one tiny bit. 

Lest we blame the news media for pervasive unhappiness, let’s be honest. It’s not all their fault. We also have social media, where a bunch of angry, miserable people relish their daily opportunities to rant on whatever seems to be stuck in their craw. Misery loves company, they say, so if you’re miserable, why not try sharing your angst with others? It’s nice to share, right?

But even if we somehow manage to filter out the news, and social media, we can still find more than enough reasons for unhappiness. We don’t like our marriage. We don’t like our family. We don’t like our job. We don’t like our house – or our car. We don’t like the clothes in our bulging closets. Need I go on?

So, are we captives of unhappiness? Is misery destined to be our constant companion? Well, I want to let you in on a secret: You don’t have to be unhappy.

Years ago, I came across a book called Happiness Is A Choice. I don’t recall the author offhand, but just the title alone was profound. Because we can't control our circumstances, and we can’t control the world around us, but we can control our response to them. If you Google “happiness is a choice,” you’ll find that science and modern psychology confirm that indeed, we can decide to be happy. Even if the environment around us isn't happy, happy, happy.

I’ve written in the past about the commands from Romans 5 and James 1, stating we’re to rejoice or “count it all joy” when we encounter the inevitable challenges and trials of life. But the apostle Paul gave very specific instructions about how we’re to choose happiness, regardless of the situation in which we find ourselves. It’s not all that complicated, he said:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).

He wasn’t saying that everything was “peachy keen,” or whatever the saying was back then. He was writing this letter to the believers in Philippi while in prison, so Paul certainly wasn’t being idealistic or delusional. No one called him “Pollyanna Paul.” He was simply pointing out the choice we have. We can focus on the bad stuff and let it consume our thoughts, dragging them downward. Or we can concentrate on the good, positive and redeeming things we can discover even at the worst of times – if only we’re willing to look for them.

Even in the midst of severe health problems, financial struggles and workplace challenges, we can choose to be happy and shed the mantle of misery. The best way to do that is never forgetting that we’re not journeying through this life alone, that the Lord is always with us and He wants what’s best for us even more than we do.

This is why we’re told, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:2). Paul told Christ followers in ancient Rome, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2).

I remember the words from the old Tony Bennett song, “Gray skies are gonna clear up, put on a happy face.” Because they always have – and they always will. And since it doesn’t take any less energy to maintain a frown than to make a smile, why not choose the latter?

Acting Like a Masterpiece

Michelangelo's "Pieta" at St. Peter's Cathedral in the Vatican.

When you hear the word “masterpiece,” what comes to mind? You might think about a Leonardo da Vinci work, such as the “Mona Lisa” or “The Last Supper.” Or you might consider creations from many other celebrated “old masters” like Renoir, Monet, van Gogh, or even “Whistler’s Mother” by James McNeill Whistler. There are too many to mention.

If your preference is sculpture, the term masterpiece might conjure images of the “Venus de Milo,” or Michelangelo’s “David.” Last year in Rome, we viewed firsthand Michelangelo’s famed sculpture, “Pieta,” along with glorious paintings and tapestries throughout the Vatican, especially in the Sistine Chapel.

Towering rocks jutting up at
Italy's island of Capri.

For me, some of the greatest masterpieces are what we can observe in nature: a sparkling sunrise; an oceanside view of a fiery sunset; the wondrous expanse of the Grand Canyon; amazing mountain peaks and rock formations; beautiful flowers in full bloom at springtime; towering redwoods and sequoias at our national parks.

However, when the Bible talks about masterpieces, it often refers to you and me. Several translations of Ephesians 2:10 tell us, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” The New International Version translates it, “we are God’s handiwork….” But in the New Living Translation we’re told, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

You and me – God’s masterpiece. Wow! At least one other translation uses that term, while another version states we are “God’s handiwork.” The Greek word used is poiema, from which we get the word, “poem.” In the Lord’s sight, we each are like a epic poem. Meditate on that for a moment.

For many of us, an initial reaction to that thought might be, “No way! Do you have any idea what a mess I am? I’m anything but a masterpiece!” We might all feel that way at times, but that’s what God calls us in the Scriptures. In fact, earlier in the same New Testament book we’re told, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight” (Ephesians 1:4). Putting these passages together, it says we’re God’s masterpieces, holy and blameless in His sight. Can I say it again? Wow!

If we’re honest, that doesn’t sound true as we consider our many human flaws. But it all comes down to who we’re going to believe – God, or fragile, fickle feelings?

It’s not as if the Lord is ignoring our sins and shortcomings. It’s that He’s expert at taking broken people and not just restoring us, but literally recreating us spiritually. One of my favorite verses is 2 Corinthians 5:17 which declares, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away; behold, the new has come!”

Another passage says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). If that’s true, if the Spirit of Jesus lives in each of us who has been born again into a new life spiritually, we indeed are masterpieces, works of art that God is still in the process of finishing.

But what if it doesn’t seem that’s true – as is sometimes the case for me? The key is not to trust feelings, which can mislead, even deceive. Our trust must be in God and His view of us. As Romans 12:2 instructs, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind….” Which includes rejecting our limited perspectives and accepting His promises and assurances. 

God has declared us to be His masterpieces. So we should start acting like masterpieces, recognizing we are not our own, but totally submitted to the will and purposes of the Master. After all, as Psalm 139:14 declares, we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” He wants us to faithfully pursue Him and discover what He has created us to be.

You Are What You Decide

Have you ever heard the saying, “You are what you eat”? With obesity now at what some experts term epidemic proportions, we see many walking, talking examples of that. What about, “You are what you read”? What we choose to put into our minds, as with what we put into our bodies, can make a huge difference in how we view the world around us. I’d suggest another one: “You are what you decide.”

There are many aspects of this. I recall as a young adult how excited I was to receive my first credit card. I could buy whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted it! Sadly, I failed to consider the downsides of my spending decisions – high interest rates and growing balances each month that I couldn’t pay off. As a consequence, I joined the hordes of people encumbered with credit card debt. 

I didn’t realize it at the time, but deciding to acquire things I wanted but really couldn’t afford fit me for the biblical warning, “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7). Thankfully, years later I learned what the Bible teaches about money management. I and my wife (who inherited my debt when we married) received financial counseling based on those principles. We decided to begin the process of slowly getting rid of that debt, and over the years have saved thousands of dollars in interest that would have accrued.

Other decisions over the course of my life also have made an incredible difference in who I am today. I started college in Houston, Texas, where my English instructor encouraged me in the direction of professional writing. Following up on that, I transferred to (the) Ohio State University, where I majored in journalism. Upon graduation, my career in writing and editing was launched at a small newspaper in central Ohio. It wasn’t my dream job, but it turned out to be a critical career decision.

Looking at my vocational path after that, I’m not certain it was guided so much by my own decisions as it was decisions God made for me. As the passage I later adopted as my life verse instructs, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him – and He will direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). That has certainly proved true for me.

While at that first newspaper, I met a young woman with two children and we started dating. Within a year we decided to marry. Although we’ve endured our share of bumps along the way, we’ve enjoyed more than 44 years of marriage. She’s been every bit the “completer” or “helpmate” that God promised when He said in Genesis 2:18, “It is not good for man to be alone.”

Without a doubt, the greatest, most profound decision I have ever made – or will make – in my life has been to receive Jesus Christ into my life as Savior and Lord. As it says in John 1:12, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” After many years of passive, intellectual belief, making a decision based on faith to follow Jesus has changed my life in ways I could never have imagined or even hoped.

These are some of the radical, life-changing decisions I’ve made in my life, ones that have shaped who I have become. But every day we make smaller, yet very significant decisions that influence our attitudes as well as our actions. 

A friend of mine used to say, “You can’t stop birds from flying over your head – but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.” We’re bombarded daily with negativity, when it’s the news – as my pastor recently called it, “Bad Morning America”; poisonous messages on social media; inconsiderate texts and emails; or just hostile people in the supermarket checkout line. Unexpected problems threaten to ruin our day.

We can decide to let these diverse messages manipulate our minds, making us just as miserable as many of the folks we encounter. Or we can decide instead to do as the apostle Paul exhorted. For instance, in Romans 12:2 he wrote, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” One paraphrase puts it this way: “Don’t let the world shape you into its mold.”

Elsewhere the apostle instructed his followers, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about these things” (Philippians 4:8). Some of us are “glass half full” thinkers: others are more inclined toward “glass half empty.” But even the most positive thinker, if not careful, can become sucked into the darkening gloom that seeks to envelop us. 

Ultimately, we’re the deciders of what we let affect our thinking. As Proverbs 23:7 tells us, "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he." The decision, big or small, is ours. And to large measure, what we will be is determined by what we decide.