What do you think about?

Finally, brothers, 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. Phil 4:8

Throughout the course of a week, a day, an hour, a minute, many many thoughts run through my head. Some I pay attention to, others I let fly by. The vast majority of them are anything but what Paul mentions in his letter to the Philippians. How will I pay the bills this month? What's for dinner? Will I be able to watch that tv show I like tonight? Who's on First? What's on Second? Let's see, there's a motion to answer. I need to draft a complaint. I gotta send a letter to this attorney or that client or make a phone call. It's my dad's birthday tomorrow, what should I get him? He says he doesn't want anything. I gotta get the oil changed in my car. We need to go grocery shopping. We need milk and bread and meat and fruit and veggies. We need cat litter and trashbags. It's gonna be spring soon. That means more outdoor work. Gotta get the lawnmower serviced. Is it the weekend yet? And on and on and on.

Rarely do I pause to focus my mind on what is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy. What things would fit these categories? God, obviously. But that's too cliche of an answer. What about God? His holiness? Certainly. But it's so far above ours, what can we hope to understand about it? His love? His justice, mercy, compassion? Same problem. What can we hope to understand about such things? Try specific examples. How did and does He manifest His love to us? In what ways is He compassionate, merciful, just, forgiving, patient? What examples from Scripture do we have of these occurrences? This is why study of Scripture is so important. It helps us focus our minds on Him.

But suppose we don't have the opportunity to study Scripture as much as we would like. What else can we do? How do we focus on what is noble, pure, lovely, admirable, etc? If we notice something in our lives that is any of these things maybe we can take a moment to pause and appreciate it. What things? A bright sun-shiney day. Enjoying the company of friends and family. An inspiring piece of literature. A movie that made us laugh, cry, think. Doing a mitzvah such as giving food to the hungry or clothing to the naked or shelter to the homeless. Such things ought to give us pause and make us reflect on our own lives. What are we doing in His service? We are called to let our light shine before men. We are meant to be leading examples of His servants. Let the light within us be bright, not dark.

What would darken the light? Things that are the opposite of what Paul mentioned. There is ugliness and sin in the world. There is depravity and brutality and cruelty. There is oppression and suffering and weeping and gnashing of teeth. We ought not to ignore it, but we also need to not let them extinguish our light for God. How do we combat this darkness? Bring the light.

Do not allow yourself to dwell on the misery and suffering in the world. Misery loves company. Unhappy thoughts breed unhappy thoughts. Focus instead on what is good, what is right, what is pure, what is holy. Yes, there is greed and ugliness in the world. There is also beauty and truth. Where are they? All around us. Amber (hope I got the name right) posted about beauty being everywhere. What about truth? "Truth is beauty and beauty truth. That is all you need to know." That which is true is beautiful. That which is beautiful is true. Simplistic? Yes. Accurate? Depends on your definition of beauty.

Some time ago I posted about seeking God's Face and gazing upon His beauty. And this was in the context of worshipping in shul. I see His beauty manifest when we greet one another with a Shabbat Shalom. When we chant the prayers to Him with uplifted hearts. When we study His Holy Word. But we can not also gaze upon His beauty outside of shul? Certainly. In nature. In people helping one another. In doing any number of mitzvot- studying the Scriptures, welcoming the stranger, making peace when there is strife, visiting the sick, rejoicing with bride and groom.

In our daily lives we don't always have these opportunities though. We don't always get invited to weddings, or have time to pay a sick call, or study the Scriptures. But we do have time to consider how our actions affect ourselves and others. In doing our school and homework, are we putting forth our best effort to show not only that we care about our work but also as a way to honor our parents and teachers? When we talk, do we consider if what we're saying is gossip and might hurt another person? When we watch a show or movie or listen to a piece of music, does it affect our walk with God? If such things cause us to stumble, perhaps we need to be more careful of what we allow our eyes to see and our ears to hear. When we eat, do we give thanks to God for the food and the good land that produced the food? When we lie down at night and get up in the morning, do we thank God for our souls, for His daily miracles, for His wonderous provenance?

I know that this is something I need to work on. Most of my thoughts are selfish. What am I doing? What is best for me? What do I need to do to make things work out best for me? When am I going to eat next? What form of entertainment will I choose tonight? A book? A movie? A tv show? A game? Time on the computer? It's a hard thing to refocus my thoughts on God.

Perhaps, one small thing at a time. Today, be conscious of what I eat and remember to thank God for the food and the earth. Tomorrow, be conscious of how I talk with others-my wife, my boss, my friends, my family. And always, hold up the standard of what is noble, pure, and praiseworthy. It's one thing to see what I'm doing. It's another to see how that compares with God's way and to attempt to change my behavior.

And the only way to compare my actions with God's standards is to know His standards. And He is all about whatever is noble, true, right, praisworthy, excellent and admirable.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable to You, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. (Ps 19)