His Heart, My Home

The average person has about 6,200 thoughts per day. Our seemingly endless stream of thoughts is generated, considered, analyzed, and either filed as a memory, or forgotten as a “throw-away”. And all this with astonishing speed: 275 mph (443 kph)! Wow!

I’m having some lightning-fast thoughts right now. Like, how did neuro-scientists count all those thoughts, and measure their speed? I’m not sure, but it probably wasn’t by counting them on their fingers, or by using a radar gun to clock them.

I’m impressed! There’s a lot going on up there in our noggins, even for those of us who are “well-seasoned”.

It’s Thanksgiving Day in the USA! So why are we focusing on our thought-lives on a day in which we generally are encouraged to “count our blessings, rather than our thoughts?

I believe it’s because God is trying to get our attention. He wants us to slow down a bit, to think about things we normally rush past, and to appreciate this special time of the year that He created for our enjoyment and blessing.

Let’s start here:

God’s love for us is limitless, and the motivation for everything He does. He thinks about us constantly, looking for new ways to bless us, and show us His goodness.

¹⁷ “How precious and wonderful to consider that you cherish me constantly in your EVERY THOUGHT! ¹⁸ O God, your desires toward me are more than the grains of sand on every shore! When I awake each morning, you’re still with me.”
(Psalm 139:17-18, Passion Translation)

Obviously, God has a lot of thoughts… way more than ours… and ALL of His thoughts are centered on us! And of course, ALL His thoughts and plans for us are good!

“For I know the plans and THOUGHTS that I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and well-being, and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11, Amplified Translation)

So, without any finger-pointing or guilt-tripping, how many of our thoughts are God-focused?
Yikes! I should have seen that one coming! Could we change the subject of this post? Too late for that? OK… my answer is “I’m sorry, Lord, please help me clear my cluttered mind, and please draw my heart closer to you.”

Now… be honest with yourself, and either say, “amen” or “oh, me…”

The reality is that we all need some realignment of our priorities, especially during this season of reflection, and gratitude for His gifts to us.

So let’s do some realigning right now with these two scriptures:

(Job 33:4, Knox Translation) “God’s Spirit made me, the breath of omnipotence woke me to life.”

(Psalm 36:9, Knox Translation) “In you is the source of all life. Your brightness breaks on our eyes like dawn.”

God woke us from sleep this morning. He turned on the light of our consciousness. He filled our lungs with his breath, and our day with His blessings.

This is the day that the Lord has made, but how we live it is up to us.

We can jump right into our hyper-busy schedule, “pedal to the metal”, racing right past the blessing of His presence. We can chase the thousands of lightning-fast thoughts through our minds without ever thinking of Him and fall wearily into bed tonight, tossing and turning, minds still racing, till the dawn of the new day… and then… do it all over again!

But there’s a better way! Let’s call it the THINK, THANK, and THRIVE TRAIL!

As we wake in the morning we give the Lord our first thoughts, just a simple heart-felt greeting…
“Good morning, Lord. Thank you for this new day. Thank you that I am alive, awake, alert, and enthusiastic!” (* Note: The “enthusiastic” part is usually easier to say after the first cup of coffee)

Follow your “Good Morning” greeting with a short prayer thanking Him for your salvation, the presence of Holy Spirit throughout your day, and for His blessing on you and your family in the new day.

Notice this: When you THINK of Him, your THANKS to Him will just naturally begin to flow!

While studying for this post, I was amazed to find that the word “think” and the word “thank”
originated from the same ancestral root word many centuries ago. These two words are siblings!

Think means: “to remember; to consider; to meditate on”.

Thank means: to express gratitude to another”.
Before we thank someone, we first reflect upon, consider, and think about what they have done for us.

THANKING SPRINGS FROM THINKING.

“Every gift God freely gives us is good and perfect, streaming down from the Father of lights…” (James 1:17a, Passion Translation)

The more we think about God, the more we will thank Him for His love, His mercy, His grace,
His goodness, His gifts, and His countless blessings.

And the more we give Him thanks, the more our “attitude of gratitude” will change our thinking.

We will see that His blessings are constantly flowing to us from His generous heart.

And this is where we begin to THRIVE in our fellowship and communion with Him. We will become more aware of His presence and His blessing, day-by-day, and moment-by- moment.

Remember this: Thanksgiving is exactly that… a time to give thanks to the Giver of every good and perfect gift in our lives.

And Christmas is the time to remember the greatest gift that God could ever give… His Son to be our Savior and our Lord.

THINK about it. Then THANK Him for the wonders of His love! Your fellowship with Him will THRIVE as never before!

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Again this week, we ask that you would prayerfully consider a donation to the Student Life Organization, Inc. as they show Jesus’ love to the hungry, hurting people of  Cebu.

Just $13.60 (USD) provides food and water for a family of five for three days, or for a family of five for three days.

What an awesome opportunity we have been given, to help meet the physical and spiritual needs of these precious people. Would you please give generously today?

For donations please use this link:

paypal.me/anaferuiz

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

And many blessings to you!