Capturing Our Thoughts

2 Corinthians 10:5  

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” NIV 

“We tear down arguments and every arrogant obstacle that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to make it obey Christ.” New English Translation 

“We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ.” The Message 

Recently I’ve been pondering one verse of God’s word at a time, taken in context, of course, in the hopes that my very busy mind will more easily return to this place to dwell, as I seek God’s peace and perspective. The past few weeks I’ve been focused on the idea in this verse, that we are to take our thoughts captive. Would anyone like to share their thoughts about this verse? Do you have any good or bad memories associated with it?  

I think that it's sometimes used in conversation to shut down the sharing of people’s troubles, sometimes as a justification for telling people to be more positive in their thinking. Considering Paul was defending his ministry when he wrote these words, I think it's safe to say that was not his intention. What do you think these words say to us, in reference to our mood disorder struggles? 

I’ve often stumbled on the idea of “capturing” my thoughts when the mood disorder has them charging through my brain like a freight train, running full speed, downhill, with no brakes, not seeing how I could possibly “catch” them!! After contemplating these three translations for a while, I’ve been left with the more practical idea of simply noticing if my thoughts line up with the knowledge of God, and if not, to consider the truth from his perspective of my life and circumstances. The goal seems to be making this framework a part of all my thoughts.  

There's also freedom in this verse, because it's not by our power but God's spirit in us, that helps us to reach this foundation, this level ground of his perspective. It’s much easier to redirect a runaway train of thoughts than stop them outright. As my son pointed out, telling someone not to think about something doesn’t work, like asking someone to not think about an elephant, making it the first thing that comes to mind! In this example, we could redirect our thoughts of the actual elephant to the consideration of God's character in the making of such a marvel of such strength yet still capable of such gentleness. Of course, our thoughts can be a lot more damaging to us than simply thinking of an elephant, but they can still be turned to align with God's truth. Can anyone think of an example of how God might be asking you to redirect a thought that’s been damaging to you? 

I hope each person can see the difference between the compulsions of a mood disorder, and choices we can make to minimize this illness's damage to our lives. May God capture our hearts and minds with his truth, bringing each of us comfort and hope, day by day, as we practice seeing things from his perspective.