Reaching Forward With A Healthy Mind

Text: Philippians 4:1-9

Introduction

It is apparent to me that many of the people who make up the population of this world has… lost their mind. Every time you watch the new or get an update from your favorite news app, there is always a situation brought about some kind of radical thinking.

The Bible actually describes different types of minds you can live with: carnal minded, spiritual mind, the mind of Christ, unstable mind, double mind, lustful mind, lowliness of mind, renewed mind, darkened mind, debased mind, etc.

There are so many things your mind can develop as a false god.

Q — How many of you have come to realize how vulnerable your mind is to drift? To think about things you shouldn’t?

Q — How many times have you said after making a mistake, “I just wasn’t thinking?”

Here is the question we are need to be asking ourselves today: Is there any hope for our minds to reach a state of peace? Is there some plan I can put in place that will safeguard my mind?

The answer… YES! As always, JESUS is the person you need!

Philippians 4:7 “7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

So, what is God’s way of healing my mind from all the instability the world throws at me?

1) Set Your Mind On Serving Others

A. People are the mission of Christianity

a) Paul called them his “joy and crown”

(v1) “beloved,” “Longed for,” “my joy and crown”

(3:14) What was that prize and high calling Paul was talking about?

Not only as close friends, but they made up part of that “mark” of God’s high calling. The people, not things, were his prize and crown.

Paul longs for nothing more than to have the mind that Christ has for people.

Paul no doubt pondered Jesus’ mission for him on the road to damascus!

b) First, make sure you are intentional to help and connect with other believers

(v3) Paul desires for them to help the two women mentioned in verse 2

“true yokefellow” = teammate ⇔ yoke-fellow n. — an associate who bears part of the burden of the activity; conceived of as someone who shares a yoke.

Those that needed help had been serving along side the Apostle Paul.

Never underestimate the impact of asking someone, “How can I pray for you this week?”

Every child of God (leader or laymen) needs the intentional connection of God’s people!

c) Second, make sure you are intentional to help and connect with those outside your faith.

(1:27) Your are saved for a purpose to live a gospel shaped life.

B. How can we materialize this?

What would be the logical steps to become helpful to one another?

There must be active communication in order for one to know someone is in need of help.

Active communication comes from one person being the initiator.

It doesn’t really require much creativity.

Coffee, lunch, dinner, phone call, evangelism, etc.

Our connection is NOT about worship style or preference, but rather coming with worship in your heart and a proactive love toward each other.

2) Set Your Mind On Rejoicing

A. Who is the Lord to you?

Quote: (A.W. Tozer) “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and man’s spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God. Worship is pure or base as the worshiper entertains high or low thoughts of God. For this reason the gravest question before the Church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like.”

a) God is good — a peaceful mind is no built on everything going good, but knowing you are in relationship with the one true living God who IS GOOD!

b) God is faithful —

c) God is truth —

d) God never changes —

e) God loves you —

f) God is all-powerful —

g) God is all-knowing —

h) God is always present —

APP — Replace your “what ifs” with God’s attributes. For example:

"What if I lose my job?" becomes "What if God is my provider in this situation?

"What if they reject me?" becomes "What if God is my acceptance in this situation?"

B. Contentment promotes rejoicing

a) Go ahead and be content that you live on a planet where there is pain, struggle, difficulties, hardships. However, you are in a relationship with the One who carries you through them all!

Paul knew exactly how to rejoice in the Lord!

They were ordinary guys.

I”m talking about rejoicing in the Lord after being physically beating.

They felt every aspect of pain that came with it.

The beatings they took could easily take someone into a stretch of self-pity.

Acts 5:41 “41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.”

Quote: (Archibald D. Hart) “Anxiety and laughter cannot coexist.”

Psalm 28:7 “7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in him, and I am helped: Therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; And with my song will I praise him.”

C. Moderation promotes rejoicing

a) (v5) “Moderation” = yieldedness; sharing a calm spirit with others

Quote: (Paul Chappell) “It is a sweet reasonableness that maintains contentment and joy regardless of circumstances.”

Most of us today are less concerned about being content with God and more concerned with the opinions of others.

You allow your own insecurities (lies from the Devil) to consume you!

Quote: (A.W. Tozer) “The heart’s fierce effort to protect itself from every slight, to shield its touchy honor from the bad opinion of friend and enemy, will never let the mind have rest.”

D. “The Lord is at hand!”

James 5:8–9 “8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. 9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.”

2 Peter 3:8–9 “8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

APPLICATION — Set yourself three daily “Rejoice in the Lord” alarms on your phone.

3) Set Your Mind On Praying

VERSES 6-7

A. A prayer life that worships God

The more you worship, the less you worry!

We should always be ready to pray.

Psalm 55:22 “22 Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”

Proverbs 16:3 “3 Commit thy works unto the Lord, And thy thoughts shall be established.”

We should not however quickly jump to our need without first adoring the Father’s greatness.

Be sure that the overwhelming circumstances will fight to prevent this!

God a times allows the potentially overwhelming circumstance to enter your life to remind you to keep trust Him.

People in the Bible dealt with this: David said in Psalm 56:3 “3 What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”

B. A prayer life that is honest with God

I have already said this once before, but allow your spouse, close friend, or whomever knows you really well help you with this.

If you don’t take time and get “real” with God in prayer, you are never going to enjoy “real” peace within your mind.

Guilt and sin will eat at you to the point it makes you sick — Psalm 38:3–5 “3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; Neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin. 4 For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: As an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. 5 My wounds stink and are corrupt Because of my foolishness.”

C. A prayer life that appreciates God

The opportunity to give thanks comes with distractions and difficulties.

Praying with gratitude means that you can pray with confidence that God is going to handle your situation in the best way (a greater purpose than you could imagine) possible.

Quote: (Randy Alcorn) “Gratitude never comes from avoiding difficulty, but from finding yourself sustained through it.”

There are Biblical examples of how THANKSGIVING brings nothing short of inner peace and even external protection.

Daniel opening his windows to pray / slept with the lions while the king could not sleep. — Daniel 6:10–11 “10 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime. 11 Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God.”

Feeding of the 5,000.

Paul knew the price that was paid on Calvary to grant him and everyone this kind of access to peace through Jesus Christ!

4) Set You Mind On Meditation

VERSE 8

Don’t forget what Isaiah said — Isaiah 26:3 “3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on thee: Because he trusteth (heart) in thee.”

Quote: “Wrong thinking leads to wrong feeling, and before long the heart and mind are pulled apart and we are strangled by worry. We must realize that thoughts are real and powerful, even though they cannot be seen, weighed, or measured.” Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 95.

2 Corinthians 10:5 “5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

APP — write down every worry on a card and put it in a jar (or) write it in a note app all week. Check later to see if they can true. Rip them up or delete them!

Paul is giving us a daily “spam filter” for our thoughts.

So, what things should we meditate on?

Whatever is true.

Quote: A 2006 study by Dr. Walter Cavert found that 40% of the things we worry about never happen, 30% of our worries concern the past, 12% is needless worries about our health, 10% are insignificant or petty, and 8% are legitimate issues. This means that 92% of our worry is over things that won’t happen or things we can’t change. Yet we continue to worry and not enjoy our lives each day.

Question — Isn’t there enough to think about regarding what is true?

Guarantee — God is the father of truth.

Guarantee — Satan is the father of lies — John 8:44 “44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.”

You want to know Satan’s agenda? — 2 Corinthians 11:3 “3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”

John 17:17 “17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”

Whatever is honest and just

Meaning, worth of respect and right.

Our minds are subjected to many things that are anything but respectable.

You can’t hide your head in the sand, but you can decide not to focus your attention to those things.

Don’t permit them to control your thoughts.

Pure, lovely, and of good report

Constantly attacked by temptations to sexual impurity.

“Lovely” = beautiful attractive (God has defined the beautiful)

“of good report” = worth talking about, appealing

You are going to have to decide whether you want your mind to be captivated by noble or corrupt thoughts.

You decide on the choice, but not the results! God has already told you what they will be!

Whatever possesses virtue and praise

Virtue — motivate you to do better

Praise — worth commending to others

Question — Do you really have enough mind power to waste on thoughts that tear you and others down?

2 Corinthians 10:5 “5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

APP — Your mind is like a house rental. The tenants are the thoughts you allow to stay there. Are they paying rent or just squatting?

Conclusion

Maybe some of you hear today have truly been wasting or overusing mind power. This wasteful thinking has negatively impacted you and others way too long!

The devil says you can’t escape it. God says, “Come to me, and I will give you rest!”

Who will you turn your mind to today?

Biblical thinking must begin at Calvary! Do you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? Real purpose for living begins when you receive new life from Jesus Christ!