Catch it!

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.

—2 Corinthians 10:5

I woke up this morning with “to do” lists etched on my mind. Today’s list, which included laundry, vacuuming, and grocery shopping, grew into an endless list of things to do before my out-of-town guest arrives in a few weeks. Added to that were thoughts of the new school year and its own “to do” list. So much to do and no one here to help!

That thought thrust me headlong into a downward spiral of self-pity. Lord, I need a husband. Why haven’t You seen fit to send me one? What is wrong with me? Am I not worthy? Am I not attractive enough?

Then my eyes caught glimpse of the purple soap on the night stand. “Why on earth would you keep soap on your night stand?” you might ask.

One weekend I was keeping my two-year-old granddaughter, Layla, and it was time for her bath. I realized I had no bath toys to occupy her and distract her from the task at hand—she was not particularly a fan of hair-washing. I scanned the shelf in the bathroom and discovered the wedding favor ornamental soap. I quickly removed the tulle wrapping and offered Layla the diminutive soap, which fit perfectly in the palm of her hand. Within seconds, she dropped it into the water. Created without the buoyancy of Ivory soap, the tiny soap plunged to the bottom. Layla reached for it, but the wake she generated with her hand pushed the soap farther away. She reached again, and the soap floated upward ever so slightly, but still she couldn’t grasp it.

“Catch it, Layla!” I heard myself say. “Catch it,” I repeated, dragging out my words, which echoed something I had read earlier in the week.

In her devotion on 2 Corinthians 10:5, author Sarah Young refers to the phrase “take captive every thought” as catching our thoughts. What a unique substitution! Having studied this verse in numerous bible studies, I know that every emotion, every temptation, every action begins with a thought. I am aware of the importance of taking captive our thoughts to make them obedient to Christ, to make them line up with the Word of God. But I struggle with doing it. In the midst of an emotional breakdown or at the point of temptation, Scriptures do not automatically come to mind. I have memorized Scripture, so I know they’re stored in there, but what can I do to bring them forward?

“Catch it, Layla!” I turned my thoughts back to my granddaughter.

With that encouragement, she submerged her hand and grabbed the little soap. “I catch it!” she exclaimed with a smile that lit up the room—and illuminated my thoughts.

Suddenly, I had a visual of the coveted process. Thoughts float by in our stream of consciousness. Positive thought…negative thought…positive thought…negative thought. Many things can trigger a thought—a sight, a smell, a song on the radio, or a date on the calendar. It’s up to us to decide how to handle these thoughts. Will we let them float on by or will we catch them? Will we dwell on them or will we extinguish them?

Layla repeated her game of dropping and catching the soap over and over again. When it was time to towel off, I saw that she was still clutching the heart-shaped soap. “Put the soap up,” I directed.

“No, my soap!”

What can it hurt? I thought, as I wriggled her into her pajamas. After she drifted off to sleep, I unfolded her tiny fingers from around the purple heart-shaped soap and placed it on the night stand, and there it took up permanent residence.

What thoughts are floating down your stream of consciousness? Which ones are you picking up? Are you turning them over in your hand, examining them, dwelling on them? Are you dropping the negative thoughts only to pick them up moments later? Or are you catching them to make them obedient to Christ, replacing the negative thoughts with truth from the Word of God?

Chuck Swindoll says, “Thoughts, positive or negative, grow stronger when fertilized with constant repetition.”

Which ones are you fertilizing? As for me, I’ve decided to drop the negative and fertilize the positive. Here are some of my favorites:

·         “I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13).

·         “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).

·         “When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles” (Psalm 34:17).

·         “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

·          “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine” (Song of Songs 6:3).

Like Layla held onto her heart-shaped soap as she drifted off to sleep, I want to hold onto these thoughts of God’s love all throughout the night, keeping them close to my heart, so “in peace I will lie down and sleep” (Psalms 4:8) and in peace I will arise, knowing He’s got me perfectly in the palm of His hand (John 10:28-30).

Dear Jesus, thank You for reminding me of Your limitless love and boundless grace. May I remember to “catch” my thoughts and make them obedient to You, washing out the negative and holding onto the positive. Amen.