Monday, September 20, 2010

Taking Every Thought Captive

This is a repost of something I wrote last fall. I really need to read it myself right now, and I will refer back to this in a different post later this week.
*************

2 Corinthians 10:5 (New International Version)

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.


Though I've read it many times, this verse really struck me last week.

Take every thought captive.

I have been striving to put this into practice over the past week, and have found that it is transforming my marriage.

It's so easy to slip into "oh poor me" thoughts when my husband is harsh with me right when he comes in the door, forgets something that was important to me, or just doesn't seem to pay any attention to me.

Normally any of those things would result in me treating him poorly as well. That has not been very effective. It usually ends in a bigger argument.

It really is a sin. God has provided me with a wonderful husband, and when I choose to look for faults, I find them. When I choose to be a victim, I am one.

But when I choose to love and serve my husband even when he is gruff, I honor God. When I take the "poor me" thought captive, I see it as a sin. It is a failure to be thankful for the husband that God has provided for me, and it is a failure to respect my husband (Eph 5:33). When I respond lovingly to him, I am sharing the love of God with him. He is blessed by it, and things have been so much more peaceful at home. What a blessing!

“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.

Watch your words, for they become actions.

Watch your actions, for they become habits.

Watch your habits, for they become character.

Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

Training myself to take each thought captive is hard but possible... by grace alone.

3 comments:

  1. I so needed to read this tonight. If it doesn't help anyone else, please know that it helped me!! Hugs...

    ReplyDelete
  2. WOW! What an amazingly powerful post! I saw this in action yesterday, when I responded, by God's grace alone, in quite unusual calm, gentle tones, when my hubby was really stressed out and more "sharp" and impatient with me than usual, and my calm voice and tone affected the tone of everyone in our home in ways--good ways--I would not have believed. (Obviously, this is a rare event:) I need to hear this every day! I really like that "poem" in your post--I will copy it and put it in a prominent place in my home, or maybe many places:)
    Haven't read anything but just this post so far--how are you and baby Josef doing?? Good, I hope! I have been busy, busy, busy with many things, so blogworld friends are probably wondering about me--sorry I haven't been by! I would have (in the real world) brought you a meal, visited and cooed and oohed and aahed over your baby (of course your baby is the most beautiful ever born!) and I would have loved to hold him. Consider that in my heart that's what I've done.
    Thanks again for a much-needed-to-hear post.
    Blessings,
    Wendy

    ReplyDelete

Your comments are such a blessing to me.

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. " Hebrews 10:23-25