The Art of Thought
Reading: James 3:1-12
“Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Lk 2:19)
Mary did two things. First she bottled up whatever she saw and heard, in her heart and closed the lid tightly, so it won’t escape out without her permission. The second thing she did was to process those thought words that were generated in the process. She meditated on those words. Are they good or are they bad? Will God be pleased if she spoke them out? Would they hurt anyone? She took time to analyse and deal with her heart words.
She did the same in two instances (Lk 2:19,51). This shows that she developed the habit of controlling impulsive talk and giving thought to her heart words before she spoke them out. The wise man admonishes us to keep watch over our hearts, because that’s where life starts. How do we guard our hearts? (Prov 4:23).
The first safety lock is to keep the mouth shut till the right time. Once you are sure of your words, then you can unlock your mouth. Someone who speaks in haste, without taking the time to think over, is classified as someone worse than a fool (Prov 29:20).
The next soldier to protect the heart is to lay it down at God’s feet and pray like David, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts” (Psa 139:21). Our hearts are desperately wicked; even we can’t understand. But God says, “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind” (Jer 17:9,10). With the help of God and His Word we can learn to correct our heart words from bad to good, pleasing, loving and wise words.
Women should not speak out whatever they think. Talkative women are not well spoken of. “A foolish woman is clamorous” (Prov 9:13). Paul admonishes women to be quiet (1 Tim 2:12). Peter also speaks about a “gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.” He says it is an ornament for them (1 Pet
3:4,5). When the twin spiritual giants of the New Testament advocate quietness for a woman, we need to give serious thought to it.
Girls often make the mistake of sharing every thought with their friends or the opposite sex. This lands them in trouble. It becomes difficult to extricate themselves from the self-invited problem. Nowadays your talks can be recorded without your know- ledge and later on used to blackmail you. So talk with prudence.
“A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” (Prov 25:1).
Dr. Lilian Stanley
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91 9843511943
lilianstanley@gmail.com
Blessing Youth Mission
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91-416-2242943, +91-416-2248943
hq@bymonline.org
www.bymonline.org
Click here for more options
To buy books written by Dr. Lilian Stanley, kindly reach to us in the follwing address
Blessing Literature Centre
21/11 West Coovam River Road,
Chintadripet,
Chennai 600 002, India.
+91-44-28450411, 8806270699
blc@bymonline.org
The Art of Thought
Reading: James 3:1-12
“Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Lk 2:19)
Mary did two things. First she bottled up whatever she saw and heard, in her heart and closed the lid tightly, so it won’t escape out without her permission. The second thing she did was to process those thought words that were generated in the process. She meditated on those words. Are they good or are they bad? Will God be pleased if she spoke them out? Would they hurt anyone? She took time to analyse and deal with her heart words.
She did the same in two instances (Lk 2:19,51). This shows that she developed the habit of controlling impulsive talk and giving thought to her heart words before she spoke them out. The wise man admonishes us to keep watch over our hearts, because that’s where life starts. How do we guard our hearts? (Prov 4:23).
The first safety lock is to keep the mouth shut till the right time. Once you are sure of your words, then you can unlock your mouth. Someone who speaks in haste, without taking the time to think over, is classified as someone worse than a fool (Prov 29:20).
The next soldier to protect the heart is to lay it down at God’s feet and pray like David, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts” (Psa 139:21). Our hearts are desperately wicked; even we can’t understand. But God says, “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind” (Jer 17:9,10). With the help of God and His Word we can learn to correct our heart words from bad to good, pleasing, loving and wise words.
Women should not speak out whatever they think. Talkative women are not well spoken of. “A foolish woman is clamorous” (Prov 9:13). Paul admonishes women to be quiet (1 Tim 2:12). Peter also speaks about a “gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.” He says it is an ornament for them (1 Pet
3:4,5). When the twin spiritual giants of the New Testament advocate quietness for a woman, we need to give serious thought to it.
Girls often make the mistake of sharing every thought with their friends or the opposite sex. This lands them in trouble. It becomes difficult to extricate themselves from the self-invited problem. Nowadays your talks can be recorded without your know- ledge and later on used to blackmail you. So talk with prudence.
“A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” (Prov 25:1).
Dr. Lilian Stanley
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91 9843511943
lilianstanley@gmail.com
Blessing Youth Mission
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91-416-2242943, +91-416-2248943
hq@bymonline.org
www.bymonline.org
Click here for more options
To buy books written by Dr. Lilian Stanley, kindly reach to us in the follwing address
Blessing Literature Centre
21/11 West Coovam River Road,
Chintadripet,
Chennai 600 002, India.
+91-44-28450411, Mob:8806270699
blc@bymonline.org
