The AMI QT Devotionals from May 8-14 are provided by Emerson Lin. Emerson, a graduate of University of California, San Diego, serves as a staff at Kairos Christian Church, while studying at Talbot School of Theology. He is married to Annie.
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS FOR TODAY
2 Corinthian 10:4-5
The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 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.
Tennis has always been a large part of my life. I started learning how to play when I was 7 years old and spent majority of my time training for tournaments. I became obsessed with the game and would spend hours watching professionals play. One thing I noticed is that professionals in the top 30 are equal in skill: they all can hit serves at amazing speeds, have great footwork, and their forehand and backhand are fluid. However, what separates the top 5 from the rest is—their mental game. The reason why Roger Federer was able to hold his no. 1 position for years was because he had a strong mental game. Yes, he would get frustrated, but losing a game wouldn’t hinder him from finding a solution to beat his opponent. At the core of it, tennis is a mental game.
Similarly, our Christian life is not just a battle in our spirit, but it is also battle in our minds. Paul mentions in verse 5 that “we must take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” An important aspect of winning the spiritual battle is redeeming our thoughts. In fact, the Bible is filled with passages that emphasize the importance of guarding our minds. For example, Romans 12:2 says: “Do not conform to the pattern of this word, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…”; and Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
The reason we need to make our thoughts obedient to Christ is because our minds lean towards disobedience. Paul captures this in Romans 7:19: “I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing….” Our minds naturally wander towards sinful thoughts and easily become distracted.
I believe there are two practical ways to make our thoughts obedient to Christ: First, we can guard our mind from “garbage.” There is so much garbage on our computers, phones, and televisions. If you are struggling with taking every thought captive, try limiting what you see on your screen. Second, we can pursue the knowledge of God. Christ calls us to be disciples, which means learner. As we learn more about Jesus, we start ignoring the garbage that can flood our minds.
Do you struggle with making your thoughts obedient to Christ? Take some time to think about which areas your mind wanders off to. Once you’ve done that, pray through these issues. Ask God to renew your mind so that you are one step closer to winning this spiritual battle.
Prayer: Dear Lord, I know I am sinner. My mind is so quick to disobey You, my mind wandering toward thoughts that are opposite of what You desire. Please give me the strength to slowly renew my mind by limiting the amount of garbage I see. As Your disciple, I want to become more and more like You. Amen!
Bible Reading for Today: Deuteronomy 4
LUNCH BREAK STUDY
Read Psalm 119:65-72: Do good to your servant according to your word, Lord. 66 Teach me knowledge and good judgment, for I trust your commands. 67 Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word. 68 You are good, and what you do is good; teach me your decrees. 69 Though the arrogant have smeared me with lies, I keep your precepts with all my heart. 70 Their hearts are callous and unfeeling, but I delight in your law. 71 It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. 72 The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.
Questions to Consider
- According to the psalmist, what are two reasons why it is important to be disciplined by the Lord (vv. 67 and 71)?
- In verse 69, how does God’s law protect the psalmist?
- How should we view God’s law (v. 72)?
Notes
- First, so that we do not go astray, and second, so that we can learn how to walk on the path of righteousness again.
- God’s law guards the psalmist’s heart from the lies of the arrogant enemies.
- God’s law is worth more than the material blessings He has given us.
EVENING REFLECTION
In light of today’s devotion regarding the battle of your mind, what steps can you take to guard your mind more? Do you need to focus more on limiting your media intake, or do you need to focus on reading God’s word more? Continue to pray that He will renew your mind more each day.
In my family, gifts have always been an essential part of a celebration; whether it be Christmas, birthdays, or anniversaries, my wife and I make sure to put lots of thought into what kind of gifts we get each other. However, between the two of us, my wife is much better at choosing gifts; she can figure out what I like and do not like, without making it very obvious that she is asking. Since we have been dating, I’ve never been disappointed in the gifts she has given me—I can’t say the same for her.
The AMI QT Devotionals from May 8-14 are provided by Emerson Lin. Emerson, a graduate of University of California, San Diego, serves as a staff at Kairos Christian Church, while studying at Talbot School of Theology. He is married to Annie.
In the 1984, my father immigrated to the United States from Taiwan with my mother, to study Computer Engineering at San Jose States University—he wanted a better life for his wife and his future children. So when my father became a United States citizen in 1985, he had to give up his Taiwanese citizenship. He explained to me that while becoming a citizen had its benefits, it was also very complicated: he had to learn everything that came with becoming a citizen such as jury duty, taxes, and different business policies. Additionally, he had to adhere to the laws and rules that came with becoming a new citizen.
Last week, a deacon and I went to East Asia to serve at a retreat. Since we arrived a few days earlier, we were able to spend time with the local church leaders. During lunch time, we met with a group of leaders to hear how God was working in the church—it was a time of laughter and encouragement. But once the bill arrived at our table, we started to bicker back and forth over the bill, and each time, the church leaders would tell me, “Just accept love.” While I was frustrated with not “winning,” I was incredibly encouraged to see how eagerly they wanted to bless us with their finances.
In science, there is a process called a positive feedback loop in which a change from the normal range of function elicits a response that amplifies or enhances that change. An example is a cattle stampede. Once panic causes some cattle to start running, other cattle will find this frightening and start to run, until the general level of panic and the number of cattle running reaches its peak.
A young man wrote a love letter that included these words: “I would cross the widest ocean for you; swim the deepest river for you; scale the highest mountain for you; and crawl across the burning sands of the desert –nothing is too much for you!” Then he added this postscript: “If it doesn’t rain, I’ll be over to see you on Tuesday night.”
When meeting new people, every now and then, I hear people say to me, “Your reputation precedes you.” My usual reply—which I assume is the same for many— is something in the same vein as, “I hope it’s not alI bad,” or, “Don’t believe everything people say.” I know that the speaker basically means that he or she has previously heard about me from other people, who have made a judgment about me and passed it along to others. Whether fair or not, what others have said about you has essentially defined you—at least up to that very moment.
As a father of three children, I am no stranger to my kids arguing and fighting over fairness. In fact, with the older two, there is no greater injustice than a smaller piece of cake, one less scoop of ice cream, or one of them going to sleep ten minutes later. It must be exactly the same— always even steven.
Many of us want to serve the Lord, but we don’t always know how. We want to do the work of God’s mission or be involved with our church in ministry, but we don’t always have the time. We are torn because we find it hard to extract ourselves from the responsibility of work and family duties. Fortunately, God is greater than our limitations and He has given us multiple platforms for us to help build his Kingdom.
The AMI QT Devotionals from May 1-6 are provided by Pastor Charles Choe of Tapestry Church, Los Angeles. Charles, a graduate of UC Riverside and Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div.), is married to Grace, and they have three children: Chloe, Noah, and Camden.
As a pastor who loves his church, I find that the most unpleasant thing about my job is having to rebuke a congregant who is in sin. I don’t like to do it, and trust me, no one likes to receive it. But as I have gotten more mature in my faith, I’ve come to realize that rebuking someone in sin—with the right motive and the right approach— is one of the most loving things anyone can do. It’s often our cowardice or fear that keeps us from pointing out the erroneous way of our brother or sister.