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What do you think?

January

“Miss Nevada USA was stripped of her title recently after her racy photos appeared
on the Internet.”
“Police in Santa Fe, N.M., didn’t have to wait very long to bust Mark Mendoza for
stealing a laptop computer. They followed footprints in the snow to Mendoza, who was
out of breath, sweeping snow off a truck.”
“Iraqi terrorist Khay Rahnajet didn’t pay enough postage on a letter bomb. It came
back with ‘return to sender’ stamped on it. Forgetting it was the bomb, he opened it and
was blown to bits.”
“A man in Johannesberg, South Africa, shot his 49-yearold friend in the face,
seriously wounding him, while the two practiced shooting beer cans off each other’s
head.”
The above stories made the newspapers, but I hear of stupid stories just like these
about local people who do things without seeming to think about the repercussions of
their actions. Do people think anymore?
“I think, therefore I am” is a philosophical statement by Rene Descartes, which
became a foundational element of Western philosophy. So, if you do not think, does that
zero you out? In many ways, I guess it does; because “not thinking things through” can
put your life in a different lane such as: bringing a new life into the world for which you
have made no provisions, drinking while driving — causing an accident for which you
cannot reverse the fatal consequenses, or driving without a license — placing you into the
penal system’s fast lane.
The author Marie Russell puts a positive spin on Descartes’ above statement. She
suggests inserting positive words of what you want to happen: “I think this a possible
situation, therefore it has possibilities.”
In the news stories above of having racy photos on Internet, stealing a lap top,
sending a letter bomb or shooting beer cans on a live target, I want to ask, “What were
they thinking?” Surely none of them had “a positive picture” of themselves or their
future. Were their life visions too shortsighted? Were they living only for the moment?
In the New Testament, Jesus asks these questions: “Do you think … ? What do you
think … ?” In Matthew 9:4, Jesus perceived their thoughts and asked them, “Why do you
think evil in your hearts?” 1 Corinthians 3:8 states: “Do not deceive yourselves … .”
From these verses, it is obvious that God expects us to use our brains to think and to
glorify him in all we say and do.
Focus on the Family has introduced a program called the Truth Project. They claim
that our culture is not only filled with lies but is actually heading in the direction of social
insanity. What do you think? The first lesson ends with the question: “Do you really
believe that what you believe is really real?”
Jesus identified Himself as “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” (John 14:6). Is what
Jesus said the truth? Are you thinking about the plans God has for you in 2007?