What’s on your mind?
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. – Colossians 3:1-2
His eyes were fixed on some spot out in the distance. It was clear that he was lost in thought and he had been stuck there for some time. His wife noticed his trance and tried to snap him out of gently, “What’s on your mind?” she said. The question was just what he needed, he looked up, smiled, and replied. “Just a lot to think about, right now, I guess.”
Recently, there has been plenty going on for us to think about. Whether it is politics or pandemic, family or finances, work or school, our minds can be weighed down with all sorts of things to wonder, or worry, or be anxious about. Daily we might find ourselves stuck in this flood of thought and information, and instead of taking a step back we seem to fall in deeper. We get wrapped up in this issue or that topic and before we know it, we are trapped under an avalanche of emotion. Some mix of fear and anger, angst and anxiety, frustration or despair quickly piles up around us. As we get lost in thought, it may happen that someone is kind enough to gently snap us out of our trance with this question. What’s on your mind?
The above bible passage serves as a welcome invitation to stop and think about something else. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. Consider for a time today and tomorrow and for the rest of your life how Christ Jesus died for you and was raised again. Start your day by reading the Bible instead of the news. Spend some time in prayer and Bible study before you head to bed instead of scrolling through the latest headlines or numbing your mind with entertainment. Consider how God so loved this broken world that Jesus came to give us forgiveness and peace and joy. Start each day in His name and consider how He claimed you as his own through Baptism and how He poured out his blessings on you through his gift of faith. You have been buried with Christ and have been raised to new life. Through His perfect life, innocent death, and glorious resurrection Jesus Christ has won for you a place in heaven, where believers will dwell with God in uninterrupted peace and joy. And that same Jesus who has promised to one day to deliver us to our home in heaven has promised that He will be with you always to the very end of the age.
So, what’s on your mind? May the Lord bless you through His gracious invitation to set your mind on things above. Amen.