In April of 2007 I realized the truthfulness of the old adage, “you are what you eat.” While I was scarfing down my second piece of coconut pie, my doctor called to tell me I had diabetes. Genetics played a major role in that development, but my diet over the years certainly didn’t help. I became the result of what I ate.

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In a comparable way, we are what we think. Our thoughts will determine our spiritual health. Solomon advised us,

Keep your heart with all vigilance,
for from it flow the springs of life. – Proverbs 4:23

What the Bible refers to as our heart encompasses our emotions, our will, and most importantly our thoughts. Just as food enters our bodies through our mouths, so also our eyes and ears feed our thoughts.

Joy is a prominent theme in Paul’s letter to the Philippians. Paul reminds the church that their thoughts go a long way in determining their level of joy. He gives a list of the kinds of things we can think about that will enhance our joy.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. – Philippians 4:8

Think “whatever is TRUE…”

Sometimes, our thinking gets unhealthy when we give space to thoughts that are not necessarily true. Let’s consider some “truth enemies” that sabotage our thinking and threaten our spiritual health. We should do all we can to avoid this kind of unhealthy thinking.

1. Speculation

Often we do not know the whole story about a particular situation. Consequently, we tend to fill in the blanks from our own imagination. We treat our constructed view of “reality” as if it is fact, when indeed it probably isn’t true at all.

2. Assumption

Similar to speculation, assumption presumes to know the unstated thoughts and intentions of another person. We form attitudes and opinions from our assumption of the situation – accurate or not.

3. Prejudice

We often accept statements from those with whom we usually agree without checking the veracity of those statements. We want to agree with them so we do not dare investigate them. Political posts on Facebook – from both sides – stands as sterling examples. We pass on so much untruth AS truth because we so want it to BE true.

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So these are a few of truth’s mortal enemies. We choose what we think. We need to choose wisely. Make sure the thoughts occupy time in your mind are true thoughts.

Avoiding these types of unhealthy thoughts is critical to our spiritual well-being. We also need to make sure that we fill our thoughts with positive, healthy thinking. In Friday’s blog we will explore that discipline a little more in depth.

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In the meantime, feel free to hit the comment button and share other “truth enemies” you have encountered.

For more about how our thoughts affect our spiritual well-being, read these articles.

Guard Your Heart by Training Your Mind

Recommended Reading: The 4:8 Principle by Tommy Newberry