Hope Part 3 (7) - God is a God of Hope

If all the previous things about hope are true, then this new truth is kind of a given. 

Christ is our hope, and Christ is from God, with God; He is God. 

Our faith and hope are in God, because He can fulfill our hopes. 

Hope springs into being prepared and purified by God, for God, through God. 

Hope is a mindset; we focus our minds where? On God, right? 

Hope is concrete through the Spirit, Who is God. 

Our hope is for eternal things, where God abides. 

So here we are. God is a God of hope. Is it so? 

Romans 15:13 - "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope."

We've seen already that Christ is our hope, and that the Holy Spirit makes our hope concrete. What does the Father do to give us hope? Is it not He Who gives us "all joy and peace in believing"? 

Isn't it an aweing thought to think that the whole Godhead, the whole Trinity, is at work bringing you hope? I can't fathom it, because it's too rich and wonderful for me to understand.

Our tireless, ever faithful, ever gracious, ever loving God has us in His hands. Not only that, but He has us in His hands with a mind for us to know we are in His hands. He gave us His Word so that we might draw encouragement from it. He doesn't want us to blindly "believe" in Him and then continue in our worry and strife and every day madness. He is our hope; He is our rest; He is our peace. He calls us to peace. 

Psalm 42:5 - "Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation..."

Am I saying we should never be cast down? No, not one bit. I don't want to add to a legalistic list of things to do in order to be godly. I can't check off a list - "Wear proper clothes, check; speak properly, check; rest in God without worrying, check..." 

It doesn't work like that. We go through pain. We go through torment, heartache, deception and distress. We feel it. Our souls can be in turmoil. Our souls can be cast down. 

But God is a God of hope. He doesn't leave us there. 

We break, we hurt, and then we say "God, help me!" and He does. We're never ignored when we call out to God. He's never busy. Remember the story of Elijah? God was right there. 

He's right there with us, too. After all, He paid a pretty high price for us. He's our Shepherd. Our Saviour. Our Lord. He means to keep us, and that's His promise. 

Psalm 65:5 - "By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas..."

You know what's a beautiful thing? I'm not responsible for my salvation. God knows if I were, I would lose it. There wouldn't be any hope. Since God is the God of my salvation, there is hope. Because He will never lose what He means to keep. 

Jeremiah 14:22 - "Are there any among the false gods of the nations that can bring rain? Or can the heavens give showers? Are you not he, O Lord our God? We set our hope on you, for you do all these things."

So what is the response to knowing that God is a God of hope, and that we can put our trust in Him? 

1 Timothy 4:6-10 - "If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe."

Train yourself for godliness. Respond to the hope God gives. Don't just take it as head knowledge, but take it as heart application. God doesn't want us just to know; He doesn't just want "hearers of the word" (though we must necessarily hear it), He wants "doers of the word".  We're created for the glory and praise of God. We're meant to bring Him glory. We're meant to praise Him. 

Know the Word, know the hope of God; know God. There is no thing more important. 

He is your hope, and He is endless, unchanging, and always good. What an amazing God. 

Song of the Week

"Cry In My Heart' - Starfield

There's a cry in my heart

For Your glory to fall

For Your presence to fill up my senses

There's a yearning again

A thirst for discipline

A hunger for things that are deeper

Could You take me beyond?

Could You carry me through?

If I open my heart,

Could I go there with You?

(For I've been here before

But I know there's still more

Oh, Lord, I need to know You)

For what do I have 

If I don't have You, Jesus?

What in this life 

Could mean any more?

You are my rock

You are my glory

You are the lifter 

Of my head

Lifter of this head

A Quick Thought That Came Up Today...

I was searching through songs on playlist.com, trying to find some more bands that are good. Y'all know I like music. 

I came upon one that was pretty good musically, but the words were a little bit meh. HOWEVER, right at the end was what turned me off completely. The singer started speaking at the end and said something along the lines of "Jesus needs us just as much as we need Him." 

0.o What? 

I don't need to be needed; I need to be wanted. 

A needy God is no God at all. A needy being, one who requires me in order to exist or have worth, would not be a god but a shallow, fickle, finite being, snivelling in a corner and complaining that he doesn't get enough attention. Please! 

Thank God that He is self-sufficient, and that He is complete in Himself so that He can extend grace and love and mercy to me. 

Listening to that singer say such a thing, I was reminded of an AWESOME band, Casting Crowns. I'm pretty sure it's in their song "In Me" where one lyric goes,

"How refreshing to know you don't need me, how amazing to find that you want me..." 

He doesn't need me. He wants me.

I need Him. He's there by His unfathomable grace, all-sufficient sacrifice, outstanding mercy and complete love. 

Psalm 40:17 "As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God!"

Psalm 68:10 "your flock found a dwelling in it; in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy."

Matthew 6:8 "Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Matthew 6:32 "For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all."

Philippians 4:19 "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus."

Psalm 68:35 "Awesome is God from his sanctuary; the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God!"

Psalm 136:2 "Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever."

Write a blog post for me

I was thinking about something today. I may write more on it myself later, but for now the questions are in my head, and I want answers from you guys. :) Brainstorm! Get those minds a-workin'! 

Here's the deal. 

Genesis.  

God's creating things, and as He did He named them...Day and Night, Heaven, Earth and Seas, Great Lights and Stars...Man. 

And yet:

Genesis 2:19 "Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name."

Why? Why did God leave the specific naming of the animals to Adam? 

Was it God giving man the "first step" of the dominion and stewardship that He commanded in Genesis 1:28?

"And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth."" 

Was it God emphasizing man's authority over animals? 

Was it simply a joy and a gift from God to man? 

Remember, God had already called them "birds" and "beasts". So there had to be different kinds, not one common ancestral beast and one common ancestral bird. If it were just one, it was already named and so bringing it to Adam would have been pointless! 

Adam named them their specific names. He didn't point his finger at the feathered things and say "bird, bird, bird, bird, aaaaaaaand...bird". He probably thought about it greatly and took joy in it, thinking of new and creative names to call these newly created things. 

So, my question for you to ponder is, Why? 

Hope Part Two (6) Our Hope is Not For Earthly Things, But Eternal

1 Corinthians 13:13 "So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; 

but the greatest of these is love."

Hope is a very interesting thing, you know. I know that in doing this series on hope I have been blessed to have a bit more; but I also know that I'm hardly scratching the surface. God is a God of hope, and hope goes deep. 

I want to bring the previous five posts all into this one, if I can. If we look at the previous posts, we can see clearly that we hope for eternal things, not earthly things. 

Many people in the world hope for earthly things. And really, Christians do, too. We hope for financial peace; safety and health for family and friends; perhaps fickle things like hoping for a better car or a bigger house, winning the lottery, finding Mr./Mrs. Perfect (on the outside, at least)...the list goes on forever. We hope for things to go the way we want them to go. We hope that we can do what we want to do. 

But is that where it ends? Is hope limited to these earthly things? 

No! There is eternal hope! Real hope is as deep and wide and unimaginable as real love. The world gets it wrong on so many levels. 

Christians have the source for knowing a glimpse of true hope: Scripture. 

Scripture shows us what we ought to really hope for. 

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 - "So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal."

I know for a fact that our outer self is wasting away. 

I'm twenty years old, and already my knees kill me, my ankles are weak, my back hurts a lot of the time, my shoulders are in pain constantly, my neck is sore, my jaw is out of place, my toes are swollen and puffed up from the cold, my fingernails crack and split right where it hurts the most, my hair falls out, my eyes are bad, my ears are stuffed, I have a cavity, my nose is runny, my hips are aching, and the list could go on and on. 

I remember that just ten years ago I could do just about anything; I could take hard knocks, fall down, and bounce back up again. Nowadays it's more difficult. I'm looking forward to the NEXT ten years...

All this to say, the outward is wasting away. BUT, it doesn't end there!

The inner self is being renewed day by day! These afflictions that plague me are light and momentary. Beyond that, there is an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison! What hope this fills me with! 

I can suffer pain in this life and know for a fact that it will not always be so. How can I know it for a fact? 

John 6:47 - "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life."

John 10:28 - "I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand."

Jesus - our God, our Saviour, our Lord, our Hope - has promised it. What He has promised will come to pass. Jesus' promises are never a "Maybe..."; they are always, ALWAYS a "will". It's for sure. 

John 17:3 - "And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." 

Jesus has the right to make these promises, and the right to be sure about them, because of his sacrifice: 

Hebrews 9:12 - "...he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption."

1 John 2:25 - "And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life." 

1 John 5:11 - "And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son."

Life is in God's Son. My life is in You, Lord...as long as my life is in Him, it is eternally kept. What an amazing promise; what a ground for hope. 

1 Peter 5:10 - "And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you."

We will suffer. We do go through a light momentary affliction - it may seem like a long time of suffering, the pain might seem intense and unbearable, but it is nothing - NOTHING - in light of the incomparable weight of glory awaiting us in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Does it make you praise God in awe when you read that He WILL Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you? Does it not make you wonder at His grace? His promise is sure! And what a promise it is. 

Jude 1:21 - "keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life."

Our hope lies in eternal things. Earthly things can't save us; they have made no promises, and even if they did, they wouldn't be rock-sure. 

Jesus' promises are rock-sure. What He has promised, that you may look forward to with all hope and comfort. 

What is the response to such eternal hope?

2 Thessalonians 2:16 - "Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word."

Song of the Week

Since I've missed weeks before, I figured it would be good to post another song a little bit earlier than 7 days. ^.^

"In Me"

Casting Crowns

If you asked me to leap

Out of my boat on the crashing waves

If you ask me to go

Preach to a lost world that Jesus saves

I'll go, but I cannot go alone 

'Cause I know I'm nothing on my own

But the power of Christ in me makes me strong

Makes me strong

'Cause when I'm weak, You make me strong

When I'm blind you shine Your light on me

'Cause I'll never get by living on my own ability

How refreshing to know You don't need me

How amazing to find that you want me

So I'll stand on Your Truth, and I'll fight with Your Strength

Until You bring the victory, by the power of Christ in me

If you ask me to run

And carry your light into foreign land

If you ask me to fight

Deliver your people from satan's hand

I'll go, but I cannot go alone 

'Cause I know I'm nothing on my own

But the power of Christ in me makes me strong

Makes me strong

'Cause when I'm weak, You make me strong

When I'm blind you shine Your light on me

'Cause I'll never get by living on my own ability

How refreshing to know You don't need me

How amazing to find that You want me

So I'll stand on Your Truth, and I'll fight with Your Strength

Until You bring the victory, by the power of Christ in me

To reach out with Your hands

To learn through Your eyes

To love with the love of a savior

To feel with Your heart

and to think with Your mind

I'd give my last breath for Your glory

'Cause when I'm weak, You make me strong

When I'm blind you shine Your light on me

'Cause I'll never get by living on my own ability

when I'm weak, You make me strong

When I'm blind you shine Your light on me

'Cause I'll never get by living on my own ability

How refreshing to know You don't need me

How amazing to find that You want me

So I'll stand on Your Truth, and I'll fight with Your Strength

Until You bring the victory, by the power of Christ in me

The power of Christ in me

The power of Christ in me

Two Kinds of Slavery

Something I've been meaning to blog about for a while now. 

I have this "blogging notebook" where I scrawl ideas and blog titles in the hopes of getting them done, eventually. Just so you know, I have about fifty blog titles. (I think I've said this before...) Anyway, I wanted to do this one next!! :D 

Slavery. 

It's something that the world hates. It's something that the world has had plenty of. Ever since nations knew of other nations, they've conquered and enslaved one another. It's our history; it's our way. Even today, there are slaves of all kinds and types all over the world. 

When you hear the word slavery, what do you think of? 

The countless number of Africans who were shipped away from their home to spend their lives under subjection and cruelty, known only as property and in the eyes of their masters worth less than a good hunting dog?

The nations subdued by the Romans, enslaved under the rule of that great empire? 

The sex slaves being sold even today? 

Slavery is not a kind thing in this world. Men enslave one another with no second thoughts. 

Many have claimed that the Bible is evil because it endorses slavery. Others have stated that it may not endorse slavery, but it also does not speak against it. I beg to differ. 

1 Timothy 1:8-11 - "Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted." 

The Bible clearly states that enslaving others is "contrary to sound doctrine". Men who enslave other men are sinning. People are not meant to be slaves of other people. 

Aside from that kind of slavery, which is the most easily seen, there are two kinds of slavery. 

One kind is slavery to sin. 

John 8:34 - "Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin."

Jesus is pretty specific here, I think. Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. Well, who commits sin? (Ten points for the answer.) 

Without Christ, we're all slaves to sin. That's how we begin. That's how it's been since the Fall. 

Romans 6:16 - "Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?"

Sin is a terrible master. Sin destroys us, manipulates us, crushes us, and yet leaves us with the sense that we'd be lost without it. We need it in order to survive. We can't possibly escape, and even if we could, how would we make it on our own? Have you ever tried to stop sinning, only to find yourself falling back into the same bad habits you were formerly accustomed to? Sin is a terrible taskmaster. 

J. R. R. Tolkien really captured the essence of sin in the Ring and its effect on Gollum. 

Gollum hated and loved the Ring; we hate and love our sin. We are torn between its cruelty and its seduction. 

However, we're not left in this state! There is another form of slavery. There is another Master, a greater Master. 

This Master is the One Who died for us, to pay the debt of slavery to sin we sold ourselves into. 

Romans 6:6 - "We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin."

Those in Christ are no longer slaves to sin! Do you know what this means? This means that I can not sin! Not that I cannot sin - I can, and still do, often - what I mean is that when faced with a sinful situation, I can, with the help of the Holy Spirit, choose righteousness; choose life! I am no longer predisposed to choose death and sin and destruction. I have a choice now! 

This means that being a slave to Christ is true freedom. Unbelievers have no choice - they are sinning against God, all the time, without a scrap of righteousness to show even for their "good" works. They are slaves to sin, all the time. 

Believers are slaves to Christ. We are clothed in His righteousness - the price has been paid. God looks on us and sees His children, not His enemies. He views us through Christ. 

Romans 6:17 - "But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed,"

Romans 6:22 - "But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life."

We are free slaves of God. This is not a contradiction, but the solid truth. Listen to how the authors of books of the Bible class themselves:

Romans 1:1 - "Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God..."

Philippians 1:1 - "Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons..."

James 1:1 - "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings."

2 Peter 1:1 - "Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ..."

Jude 1:1 - "Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ..."

"Servant" literally means "bondservant", which is another word for slave. These great men of God classed themselves as slaves of Jesus Christ. 

So, what does it mean for us to be slaves of Jesus? What has our Master commanded? 

Mark 13:32-37 - "But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake."

Jesus commands us to be vigilant. I get so sick of hearing people claim they know the time when Jesus will return. They should stop trying to discern the day and instead prepare for the day! Are you doing all you can for Christ? Are you spreading the word as far as you can? Are you preparing yourself for the day when you will stand before your Master? 

Psalm 111:10 - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!"

Do we practice fearing the Lord? Do we respect Him as a wise and good Master? Do we obey His commands or brush them off as "things to do later"? 

There is no later. There is now. We are living now, Christ is watching now. 

Are we serving Him well? 

(I was reminded of this post I wrote so long ago. We're given commands, but we're also given everything we need in order to carry out those commands.)

Jesus is a worthy Master. Jesus builds us up, shows us the truth, restores us, and never leaves us nor forsakes us. We need Jesus in order to be reconciled to God. We can't possibly escape God's wrath otherwise. Jesus is our gracious, loving, personal Lord and Saviour. 

He is our worthy Master. He is our Lord and Saviour. He gave Himself up for us by His gracious love, that we might be redeemed and restored to God by faith in Christ! He deserves our service, and our praise. 

Deuteronomy 10:21 - "He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen."

Revelation 19:5 - "And from the throne came a voice saying, “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great.”"

Thinking For Yourself - Through the Scriptures

I was just thinking of something. (:P)

You know how society today talks about "free thought" and "making your own decisions", "being your own you", and all that kind of thing? They want you to think for yourself, control your own life, and be autonomous. 

You know, in some cases this is all well and good. For instance, there comes a time when a young adult must learn to make decisions on their own, knowing the consequences, gauging the pros and cons, whatever. There comes a time when responsibility rests on me, not on me and my parents, or me and my older siblings, or me and my pastor, or whomever. 

However.  That is not what I'm going to discuss here. 

What I want to discuss is this: when Christians tell other Christians to make decisions based on "what they think is right". 

No. We don't ever do that. We shouldn't ever look to ourselves for the answers. What we should tell others is "make decisions based on the truth God has put in Scripture". 

Are Christians supposed to think for themselves? Are we supposed to be autonomous? 

Is God only acting as our Father, our Lord, until we can make it on our own? Or is He there forever, for a reason? Let me ask you. By your own power, have you ever been able to do anything good? Certainly you've been able to do good things - but was it only you? Or was it God working in you? Is it good because you did it, or because God views it as good through the blood of Christ and His righteousnes placed upon you? 

~

So what does it mean to actually think? 

Does it mean making your own decisions, or deciding on the best decision that's out there? There are more wrong options than right ones - is thinking just "thinking" or is it "discernment"? 

These are definitions of "think" that came up when I did a Google search:

~judge or regard; look upon; judge; 

~expect, believe, or suppose; 

~use or exercise the mind or one's power of reason in order to make inferences, decisions, or arrive at a solution or judgments; 

~remember: recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection; 

~imagine or visualize; 

~focus one's attention on a certain state; 

~intend: have in mind as a purpose; 

~decide by pondering, reasoning, or reflecting; 

~ponder; reflect on, or reason about; 

~dispose the mind in a certain way;

~have or formulate in the mind; 

~be capable of conscious thought; 

~bring into a given condition by mental preoccupation; 

~an instance of deliberate thinking; 

There's more to thinking than people think. ;) We're swift creatures. Hanging back and pondering is, I think, an exception to the norm. Especially in today's age, where instant satisfaction is right at your fingertips, right? There's so little to think about, especially since we can just look it up. 

Well, look these up (don't worry, I already did. You can just read):

Proverbs 14:15 - "The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps."

Prudence is something that should be obvious in a Christian. Do you give thought to your steps? Do you believe everything you hear, or do you search the Scriptures to see whether it is so? 

Acts 17:11 - "Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so."

In searching the Scriptures, do you find where the arguments falter, where lofty opinions are false, or where your own opinions are perhaps in need of tweaking? 

2 Corinthians 10:5 - "We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,"

How do you think Paul accomplished this? He had every thought captive to obey Christ - he destroyed every argument and lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God - how? Because, he had the knowledge of God. How? Because, he knew the Scriptures and focussed his thought upon them. God taught him true knowledge. 

Psalm 94:10-11 - "He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke? He who teaches man knowledge - the Lord - knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath."

We should think thoughts of God, not of man. Thinking for ourselves is not in view here. Thinking for God, through God, in the Scriptures is.  

Psalm 139:23 - "Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!"

Sometimes this can be a scary thing to ask, but have you ever asked it? Are your thoughts going to be pleasing to God if He searches them? Are your thoughts contrary to God's, or aligned with God's? 

Hebrews 4:12 - "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

The best way we can see into our own hearts is by looking at the Scriptures. They will convict us, edify us, purify us, sanctify us, et cetera. If there is anything you must read, it is the Scriptures. Do not settle for a book about the Scriptures. Books about the Scriptures are good and have their place, but their place is second to the Word of God. 

1Corinthians 14:20 - "Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature." 

Mature your thoughts by focussing them on Scripture! Seriously. Otherwise:

1 Corinthians 10:12 - "Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall."

James 1:26 - "If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless."

Seek God. Here are some more verses to ponder. 

Deuteronomy 4:29 - "But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul."

Proverbs 2:1-15 - "My son, if you receive my words

and treasure up my commandments with you,

making your ear attentive to wisdom

and inclining your heart to understanding;

yes, if you call out for insight

and raise your voice for understanding,

if you seek it like silver

and search for it as for hidden treasures,

then you will understand the fear of the Lord

and find the knowledge of God.

For the Lord gives wisdom;

from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;

he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;

he is a shield to those who walk in integrity,

guarding the paths of justice

and watching over the way of his saints.

Then you will understand righteousness and justice

and equity, every good path;

for wisdom will come into your heart,

and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

discretion will watch over you,

understanding will guard you,

delivering you from the way of evil,

from men of perverted speech,

who forsake the paths of uprightness

to walk in the ways of darkness,

who rejoice in doing evil

and delight in the perverseness of evil,

men whose paths are crooked,

and who are devious in their ways."

2Chronicles 20:20 - "And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.”"

Psalm 119:66 - "Teach me a good judgment and knowledge, for I believe in your commandments."

John 20:31 - "but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."

Hebrews 11:6 - "And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."

1John 4:1 - "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world."

2 Timothy 3:16 - "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness..."

Matthew 22:29 - "But Jesus answered them, “You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God."

John 5:39-40 - "You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life."

Acts 18:24-28 - "Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him and explained to him the way of God more accurately. And when he wished to cross to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly helped those who through grace had believed, for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus."

Romans 15:4 - "For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."

There are many examples of men and women of God who focussed all their thought upon God. 

However, I will only write about two here. 

Think of Peter - while he was thinking for himself, he was foolish and frightened and confused. He denied Christ three times; he was broken and bullheaded. 

But with the Holy Spirit, he was on fire for Christ, boldly proclaiming the word of God to all nations in the face of great persecution. Truly he became the rock on which Christ built His church. 

Think also of Paul - while thinking for himself, he was destroying lives and ravaging the church. He was murdering and imprisoning God's people. Jesus confronts him, and after that every thought and action is captive for Christ. Paul ministers to the Christians and builds them up, and writes many powerful letters. You've read them before. :) 

So, think again of those definitions that were near the top of the post:

~judge or regard, look upon, judge the Scriptures, or judge other things in light of the Scriptures. 

~expect, believe, or suppose that what the Scriptures promise will come to pass.

~use or exercise the mind or one's power of reason in order to make inferences, decisions, or arrive at a solution or judgments, through the Scripture, to destroy "every lofty opinion" raised against the knowledge of God. 

~remember; recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection; Here I would say, memorize Scripture, so that you can recall it from memory. Have it on your mind so that it will make a difference in your life. 

~imagine or visualize the truths of Scripture, the descriptions of God in His holiness, love, perfection, glory (I see the Lord seated on the throne...the train of his robe fills the temple with glory - quite the descriptive image!)

~focus one's attention on a certain state - Godliness! :) Find the ideal of Godliness in Scripture. 

~intend: have in mind as a purpose - have Scripture in your mind with the purpose to follow it. 

~decide by pondering, reasoning, or reflecting and

~ponder; reflect on, or reason about -ponder, reason over, and reflect on the gospel, on Jesus' teachings, on His actions - become familiar with Him. 

~dispose the mind in a certain way - toward Godliness. Holiness. Christlikeness. 

~have or formulate in the mind - Truth. 

~be capable of conscious thought - Christianity is not a mindless religion. It is a thoughtful faith in a real existing Lord and Saviour. 

~bring into a given condition by mental preoccupation - the Holy Spirit works to sanctify us as we seek to do the will of God. 

~an instance of deliberate thinking - deliberately think of God; do not just think that since you're a Christian you're all good. Well, you are - the work is done, the price is paid - but you should strive to be more Christlike with each breath and every passing moment! Until He returns, devote your time and thought and energy to Christ. 

So, what do you think? :)