Over the weekend, I enlisted the help of the Hobbs children while preparing the clothes for washing. I had them assist me in separating the light and dark garments.
Yep, I still do it the old school way. Big piles on the floor.
And while I'm on the topic, moms (and do-it-all dads) get help.
You know how we can be. We’ll get in a zone and clean the house from top to bottom unaided. If you’re anything like me, you probably feel like you can get it done faster (and better) all alone, right?
But I try (though sometimes I still fail and go all Lone Ranger) to include the Hobbs clan in domestic duties so they’ll know how to cook, clean, wash laundry, sew and possess other needful basic skills. Though society places certain expectations upon women in particular, our young men should have some knowledge of how to hold it down in the kitchen and the washroom as well.
Amen?
Amen.
So I don’t discriminate in our house. Girls and boys are expected to pitch in and make themselves useful.
Period [Strikes down gavel].
Well, the Hobbs ladies were fine with sorting, but the boys—po’ thangs—were not exactly clicking their heels together about the assignment.
You should have seen those long faces and droopy shoulders as I explained the importance of the process. “If we don’t do this, the dye from the dark clothing can bleed onto the whites and ruin the whole load,” I said to our unimpressed sons.
Joyfully or not, they got it done.
We all have to get it done too—sorting of our thoughts, that is.
Before we accept the ideas and random things that pop into our brains, we need to vet them. Do those thoughts come from “the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17 NIV), or from the “rulers of the darkness of this world” (Ephesians 6:12 KJV)?
You see, modes of thinking can come from both light and dark places. Whether we are acutely aware of it or not, there is a constant war going on inside our minds. But we have to fight back through prayer, seeking God and submitting our thought life to Him, in order to win that warfare daily.
The battle is constant, my friend. Satan is a deceiver and our mind is his preferred battleground. Oh, he just loves, loves, loves to plant seeds of doubt, fear, contradiction and confusion into our consciousness, hoping we will buy into his lies and deceptions, thereby forfeiting our destiny.
But don’t let Satan deceive you.
Sort things out in your mind.
Separate out the lights and darks.
How do you do this?
Obey 2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV, which is what I’m stirring into your cup of inspiration today. It says, “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.”
When you drink down the contents of your cup, my hope is that you will become more aware of the enemy’s mental assaults, and be even more diligent about measuring every single thought against the word of God.
Before accepting a mental position as good and acceptable, ask: does this line up with the Word? Is my thinking rooted in doubt and fear? Would God speak negativity and defeat to me? Are these thoughts in keeping with my biblical values, divine principles and God-given goals for my life?
Again, sort out your thoughts so you won’t be headed down a path Satan has set up to derail your purpose.
God wants the best for you. Ultimately, His thoughts are uplifting, reaffirming, corrective, and constructive.
So then, exactly what kind of thoughts does God think?
Jeremiah 29:11 NKV tells us, “‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,’ says the Lord, ‘thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.’”
See that?
God’s thoughts about you and me are good, and the ones He plants in us are the same.
Right now, get rid of any evil, discouraging, self-defeating ideas. They are not from the Lord.
Now let’s pray.
As always, thanks for reading and until next time... may today's cup of inspiration uplift, encourage, and empower you!
Lord, I thank You for challenging me to examine my thought life and see if I am being deceived by a crafty enemy who wants to kill, steal from, and destroy me. Today, I renew my commitment to submit my thought life to You and cast down every idea, argument and perspective that goes against the good thoughts You think toward me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
If you need prayer, don't hesitate to request it. I would be honored to stand in faith with you. I know that prayer works. CLICK HERE to learn how to submit your prayer request.