Dwell on These Things: Transform Your Heart and Mind by Memorizing God’s WordSample

Thinking About Our Thoughts

I cried in the shower this morning.

I just let it all out to God—a long exhale of all the things weighing me down. I let go of everything out of my control, all of the ways I’ve failed and floundered, all of my long-term hard prayers. I sobbed before God and made my requests. After I finished, I felt His peace. I really did.

But then, I had a choice to make.

What was I going to fill my head and heart with going forward? Was I going to keep circling my thoughts on those hard things or refocus my thoughts on the good things of God? Was I going to dwell on what was false or what was true? On how things had gone wrong or how God could make it right? On what had been spoiled or the God who makes all things pure? What lens was I going to choose to see the world through today? So, I recited Philippians 4:8. I asked God to help me focus on Him and His good things instead of giving into the temptation to jump back onto the anxiety hamster wheel.

And every time my mind started to drift today, I intentionally refocused.

I’ve recited and affirmed the truth of God in Philippians 4:8 and all the verses we’ve learned so far. In so doing, I’ve wondered if God has used these particularly hard things to help me learn how to live out these verses. I've been more anxious, more pressed, and more stressed than normal, which has forced me to continuously redirect my thinking toward the true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, praiseworthy things of God minute by minute. And the peace of Christ has truly guarded my mind and kept me on the right path.

So why do our thought lives matter? What does right thinking lead to? Through his testimony in Philippians 3:1-11, Paul stated that to be right with God comes only through faith in Jesus. Righteousness can’t be earned; it’s given (3:9). This is the central concept of the Bible—the true and right message we all so desperately need. This truth serves as context for Philippians 3:15–4:1. In these verses, Paul explains that all mature believers should agree with him about the gospel message he proclaimed. Those who dwell on this truth will spend eternity with Jesus.

In light of everything Paul said in Philippians 3 about right thinking and right living, he closed with this command in Philippians 4:1, “Therefore . . . stand firm in the Lord in this way.”

Our lives should reflect what we believe about the gospel as we become more and more like Jesus in the gospel community. And the ultimate result of our belief is eternity with Him. Hallelujah!

Before we close, I want to consider what doesn’t or shouldn’t lead us to rejoice—the state and future of our unbelieving friends. Paul said those apart from Christ have their minds set on earthly things, things which can only fill their bellies for a moment but will never fill their souls. He called them enemies of the cross. That description didn’t bring him joy; it brought him to tears.

Paul explained in Philippians 2:5-11 that Jesus humbly stepped down from heaven to be a servant and die for us. And He did so when we were enemies of the cross. Yet, by His grace through faith, He has made us His friends. This is the hope for all of us, including our friends who aren’t yet following Christ. It’s a hope we can share with them as we reflect the model and mindset of Christ, humbly serving them and loving them sacrificially.

Read Philippians 4:8 and ask the Lord to train your mind to dwell on gospel realities. Then, pray that the gospel would spill out of you into the lives of unbelieving friends.