Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. It’s still cold and it’s windy, but with the sun shining across this farm this morning it sure doesn’t appear to be that way at all. This simple little observation lead the way for my time with the Living God today. It served as a sweet reminder to me of how we see things with the eyes, with the heart and with the mind and one can easily “play tricks” on the other if we’re not careful. Isn’t that something you think about too?

Maintaining our joy and keeping our focus isn’t so easy to do sometimes when we have the eyes, the heart and the mind to contend with. It’s easy to look at this photograph with your eyes, and you can draw your own conclusions about the weather when you do, but it’s the mind that plays the most “tricks” of all. All it would take is a blindfold and a step outside onto the front porch and reality would soon set in as the mind reasons the circumstances. The mind is the source of the memories we have and the memories can easily be recalled with just one glimpse at an old photograph. The eyes see the image and the mind plays the tape, and before you know it; the heart overflows with joy. Following the heart should be easier than it is, but when the mind interjects with thoughts of it’s own; the heart can easily be shut down and every dream we have can be snuffed-out. I’ve known a few people in my life that experienced “love at first sight” and they married very soon after they first met. They managed to follow the heart before the mind could kick in and conjure up a million reasons and red flags about their love and they’ve now been married for decades. The mind plays the most “tricks” and the mind is the biggest dream killer of all…IF we let it be. Of all of the strategies and all of the self-help options that people seek out for ways to be happy; it all begins in the mind. We can’t necessarily control what the eyes see and we can’t control what the heart feels, but we have absolute control over the mind and our happiness and joy can be found in the thoughts that we allow ourselves to have.

People don’t come to their Faith based on what they see with the eyes, and most don’t come to their Faith by doing research and contemplating the possibilities. They come to their Faith when the heart engages and it overrides all of the excuses that the mind could conjure up for why being a child of the Living God is not a good idea. Once they come to their Faith they could easily have thoughts of defeat if they face their Faith with the mind instead of the Heart. “Why does God do this and why does God do that?”…none of the things the mind whirls around matter for even a split second when the Heart is engaged in the Living God. Love can blanket the worst of circumstances and love can bring forth the Trust. It’s when we rationalize our circumstances in our own minds and we paint a picture of what God is doing based on what we think He’s doing that we get ourselves in the biggest trouble. The mind is a beautiful thing and it’s not something to waste. But it’s the mind that plays the most “tricks” on us so it’s the mind that needs the most work. When thoughts of defeat or discouragement or insecurity or failure come to mind; those thoughts need to be kicked to the curb so that the heart can be the force to heal and to love and to succeed.

My mind tries to go into overdrive and my thoughts can be inclined to discourage me IF I let them. But when those thoughts whirl around in this old brain-of-mine I recognize those dream killers and I KNOW that these thoughts are not the thoughts that a Child of the Living God should have at all. So, I choose to think good things. I choose to think positive things. I choose to think victorious things. I choose to think loving things I choose to think successful things. More than anything else, I choose to be happy. Happiness IS a choice that all begins in the mind.

How about you?