The bumper sticker “What Would Jesus Do?” should be changed to “What Would Jesus Think?” Our actions follow our thoughts. If we have higher thoughts, we live higher lives.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” — Philippians 4:8
There’s a good reason this passage is constantly quoted. It strickes a nerve, it echoes and resonates with us. We all suffer from inpure, wrong, untrue thinking. It brings us down and hurts our walk with God. So, what can we do to change that?
If you need a drastically new way of thinking you need to figure out a way stick with it for a while, you need to make it your new normal. To get there you also need people to hold you accountable.
The Austin Christian community decided we would train ourselves in “4:8 Thinking” for 40 Days. We stole this idea from the Turning Point Church in LA.
Every Sunday and every small group meeting were devoted to this. We read the book 40 Days of Joy daily for our quiet times and decided we would encourage each other daily in this “4:8 thinking.” The New York Times bestseller author Tommy Newberry even sent us a personalized video encouragement.
What happened next is truly amazing. We smiled more, we spoke more words of affirmation and love to each other. We were able to easily recognize ungodly patterns in our thinking and living. It changed us.
Here’s a little video celebrating our 40 Days of Joy. If you are interested in the series, all of our resources can be found on PlugNPreach. Remember: “What would Jesus think?” is the question we need to ask ourself when we face the inevitable challenges of life. Think 4:8 – it will change your life.
Shared from Austin Christian
