Can we understand God and His ways? Some say we can’t. Others say yes.
Is there an explanation for how a black cow can eat green grass and produce white milk? No.
Every day, we do thousands of things we don’t understand. The first thing to know is that God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts.
So can we understand God? No. Not fully.
But who wants to serve a God that can be understood?
God says: “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there but water the earth and make it bring forth and bud that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:8-11).
God does not think like us. His thoughts are not our thoughts, and His ways are not our ways.
Let’s catch this. God’s thoughts are coming out as words and coming down like rain. Notice from the passage that rain and snow come down from heaven. The rain and snow both water the earth, make vegetation and produce food for our bodies.
Notice the metaphor from the words—”so is My word.” What is God saying?
Do we know the thoughts that God has toward you?
“For I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord, plans for peace and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29:11).
This is just one verse of how God thinks about us. God has plans for us. His plans include peace, hope, and a great future.
To understand His word, we must grasp and understand His thoughts. And we can.
“But as it is written, ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.’But God has revealed them to us by His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God” (1 Cor. 2:9-10).
God Reveals Himself
Eyes cannot see it and ears cannot hear it, but His Spirit will reveal it. That means we can understand His ways and learn His language, by the Spirit.
This will require a renewed mind.
Take note, your mind is not your brain. The mind is the faculty of knowing, understanding, how you reason and how you think. The brain is the organ that holds your thoughts. And your thoughts are under your control.
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12:2).
Notice that a transformed life results from a renewed mind.
Renewed: a renovated mind. God can renovate our lives as we renew our minds.
God does not renew our minds. We do.
The devil does not control our minds. We do.
God does not control our minds. We do.
We will either master our thoughts or our thoughts will master us.
We Are What We Think
We are the sum total of our best and worst thoughts. Thoughts are more powerful than we realize. Thoughts drive cars, direct robots, operate drones, turn off lights.
Thoughts have anatomy and structure. They affect our soul, our body and our spirit.
The battleground is in our minds. Negative thoughts create a negative life! We must make our mind think what we need it to think!
Our thoughts have the power to empower us or cripple us.
Right Thinking
“Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honest, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue, and if there is any praise, think on these things” (Phil. 4:8).
Think on these things.
I think we can understand that. {eoa}
Thomas McDaniels is a pastor/writer and the guy behind thomasmcdaniels.com. He has written for ChurchLeaders.com and currently is a contributing writer for Fox News. He is also the founder of LifeBridge.tv and the Longview Dream Center in Longview, Texas. Thomas can be found on social media, on Instagram and on Twitter.
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