Wrangle it!

       

As I lay praying in bed tonight (at 1:00am) I had to laugh because I confused myself with so many partial thoughts. I smiled as I imagined God giving me the same look my husband gives me from time to time; the look that says, "What on earth are you talking about?" 

My mind was out of control. My prayer went something like this... As I prayed I barely finished praying for one friend, and I was thinking about things to do tomorrow. Then I wondered if I locked the door. Oh, yes, then back to the prayer. Not too long and I was thinking about the grocery list. Oh, back to praising... I know he's all powerful and all knowing, but I think my scattered mind gave him a run for his money trying to keep up with my wanderings! I laid in bed and thought, "I can't do it. I can't keep focused to save my life."

I thought of the verse in 2 Corinthians 10:5b that says, "and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." Instantly I realized that Paul is telling me that in Christ I have the power to focus; I can stop the wandering of my mind. This madness in my mind has to be wrangled and put down! I envisioned the rodeo and the way calves are roped. Click and watch this short video if you can...        Roping Video

This calf is chased down, lassoed, and yanked to the ground. The rider then dismounts his horse only to again throw the calf to the ground, straddles him to tie up his now wildly kicking legs, and finally raises his hands in a motion of success! It was less than 7 seconds and the calf was wrangled. It took lots of practice to get this good at stopping a wild running calf in his tracks.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit we can and must stop our thoughts from running wildly. It takes a very intentional decision to say, "no" to a thought, slam it to the ground, tie it up and refocus on the Lord. But it can be done! Today, I encourage you to think about what you are thinking about. Keep scripture handy. Rebuke the wanderings, the hurtful replays, the projected outcomes, and replace them with God's word. 

Lord,

 Our minds tend to run freely. Help us to wrangle our thoughts and refocus on you. Keep our minds in perfect peace as we run to you and away from the wandering thoughts in our heads. Amen

"You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast,
because they trust in you."
Isaiah 26:3