Dealing With Dark Thoughts

I. Our thoughts are to be brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. 2CO 10:5. A. The government of our thoughts is what determines our actions and character, good or bad. PRO 23:6-7; ROM 12:3. B. The thought of foolishness is sin. PRO 24:9; MAT 5:28. C. It behooves us to guard against allowing temptation to take root in our thoughts. JAM 1:14-15. D. Mind that evil thoughts proceed from the heart, not the brain. There is a moral dimension to thought beyond the cognitive, analytical aspect. MAT 15...

V. Gird up the loins of your mind (1PE 1:13) against the toxin of futility. MAL 3:14. A. It may seem that conformity to God’s righteousness and expectations is futile when you are only looking at the immediate picture. PSA 73:13-18. B. It may seem that your dedication to principle and promise is not yielding the results you expected in the time and manner you expected. But faith in principle and promise must be partnered with patience. HEB 6:12. 1. This was where Abraham drifted. GEN 16:1-4. 2. This is w...

Editor's note: The beginning of the message is missing from the audio recording.

VIII. Beware of placing too much value on men’s opinion of yourself (or of others). 1CO 4:3. A. It is this very error that is causing such spiritual, emotional and psychological trouble among social mediaholics, particularly younger people. Dark thoughts overtake them. B. It is one of the ironies of life that the person who is striving to do well and doesn’t worry much about his own popularity ...