YOUR Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste!!! Romans 8:5-8 Those who live according
to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live
in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the
Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is
hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those
who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. Click Logo to LISTEN NOW!!! Greetings! BlogFam, the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) is an
American philanthropic organization that funds scholarships for black students
and general scholarship funds for 39 private historically black colleges and
universities. In 1972, the UNCF adopted,
as its motto, the maxim, "A mind is a terrible thing to waste." This
maxim has become one of the most widely recognized slogans in advertising
history. The motto, which has been used
in numerous award-winning UNCF ad campaigns, was created by Forest Long, of the
advertising agency Young & Rubicam. Forty years after this motto was created, David Sable,
global CEO of Young and Rubicam has this to say - “’A
Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Waste’ has become emblematic of some of the best
values of America -- a belief in equal opportunity, in education, in human
dignity and hope. And some of the best values in advertising, too: the
timelessness of great emotional creative that’s rooted in insight, in emotion,
in a great story that has the power to create a legacy… Our
work for UNCF is a great reminder of what our industry does at its best -- find
the human truths, then artfully transform them into powerful, emotional ideas
that persuade and motivate.” Friends, whether or not you support the UNCF, I believe
that we can all agree with its universal motto that: a mind IS a terrible thing
to waste. However, today I invite you to
take ownership of this same maxim, personalizing it as we all look forward to
our Eighth Day. I want you to know that
YOUR Mind is A Terrible Thing to Waste!!! AND I also want you to know that long before Young
and Rubicam created this maxim for the United Negro College Fund, the Apostle
Paul coined the very essence of this maxim in his writing to the church at
Rome. And while, Paul’s words as we read
on today have not been shrunken to one precise, pre-packaged slogan for the church,
the values undergirding the UNCF motto are not original to Young and Rubicam. Furthermore, what Paul admonishes in these
words run deeper than the emotional and social impact of the UNCF’s very
popular and powerful maxim. Paul’s
language impacts the soul. Those who live according
to the flesh have their MINDS set on what the flesh desires; but those who live
in accordance with the Spirit have their MINDS set on what the Spirit desires. The MIND governed by the flesh is death, but the MIND governed by the
Spirit is life and peace. The MIND governed by the flesh is
hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those
who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. BlogFam, YOUR MIND is a terrible thing to waste! So, what’s on your mind? As you are looking forward to bigger, better,
and brighter things, what images are you playing in your mind’s eye? Have you been transformed by the renewing of
your mind so that it is set firmly, unapologetically and uncompromisingly on
what the Spirit desires? OR is there
still room in your mind for satisfying your fleshly, worldly, and selfish desires? I will not at all pretend to know what is in
your mind but I am clear that we can all give clues about what is inside. For what is IN you, WILL come out of you and
the scripture tells us – For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth
speaks. So, you are probably giving us
clues, whether you are aware of it or not.
And above what we can hear from you and beyond what we can see about
you, God knows. BlogFam, YOUR MIND is a terrible thing to waste! AND I do appreciate the distinction that Paul
makes here. Paul clearly articulates how
our actions are a result of what has been in our minds all along. IT just does not happen. I do not care how you try to fix that story,
IT never just happens! Paul uses two different words that alert us to this reality
– SET and GOVERNANCE. Among other
definitions, to SET means to determine, to fix, to direct or settle resolutely
or wishfully. To GOVERN means to rule
over by right of authority, to exercise a directing or restraining influence
over. I know that you might have glossed
over the differences, however slight, in the use of these terms in our verses
for today but let us pause for a moment and consider their depth. In verse 5, Paul warns us about what we have determined
in our minds. To set our minds on
someone or something does not necessarily mean that we have acted upon that
which we have in our minds. However,
this is why we must be “mindful” of what we settle resolutely or wishfully in
our minds. Paul is reminding us that if
we SET our minds on things of the flesh, if we fix our minds on things of the
flesh, if we settle resolutely our minds on things of the flesh, then our minds
CANNOT and WILL NOT at the same time be directed to live in accordance with
the Spirit. AND the natural progression
from a mind fixed on things of the flesh is for that mind to then govern our
actions accordingly. For we see in
verses 6-8, what is in our minds will then exercise a directing influence over
our actions. Therefore, the actions we
take as a result of our minds being ruled over by right of authority by our
flesh, will be of death and NOT life and peace.
Furthermore, The MIND governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does
not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the
realm of the flesh cannot please God. Period. Friends, YOUR MIND is a terrible thing to waste! So, what’s on your mind? As you are looking forward to bigger, better,
and brighter things, what images are you playing in your mind’s eye? Have you been transformed by the renewing of
your mind so that it is set firmly, unapologetically and uncompromisingly on
what the Spirit desires? OR is there
still room in your mind for satisfying your fleshly, worldly, and selfish desires? Will your mind govern you to act in
accordance with your flesh or with the Spirit?
There is no in between. And you
must be clear about this as you move on. Galatians 5 says: The acts of the flesh
are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry
and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition,
dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the
like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not
inherit the kingdom of God. Friends, what’s on your mind? Is your moving
on an effort to fulfill the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, or the pride
of life? What’s on YOUR MIND? OR is your moving on filled with life and peace and
marked by the Fruit of the Spirit [love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control]? [Galatians
5:22-23] What’s on YOUR MIND? My sistas and brothas, as you prepare to move on, I
pray that you would take inventory of YOUR MIND. I pray that you would ask our God to transform
you by the renewing of YOUR MIND. I pray
that YOUR MIND would be set to live in accordance with the Spirit and that the
Spirit would thereby govern your actions towards life and peace. I pray that YOUR MIND would not be hostile
toward God. I pray that YOUR MIND would be
determined, fixed, directed, and settled resolutely to submit to the Word, the
Will, and the Way of God. I pray that
the Spirit would rule over YOUR MIND by right of authority and would exercise a
directing or restraining influence over YOUR MIND. For the word is TRUE: Those who live according
to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live
in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the
Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is
hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those
who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. AND YOUR MIND is a Terrible Thing to Waste! **http://adage.com/article/goodworks/a-mind-a-terrible-thing-waste-iconic-campaign-turns-40/149182/ Delesslyn Twitter - @AudraSunshine; @SpiritedConcept Email - delesslyn@spiritedconcepts.net If you enjoyed reading this blog post, PLEASE SUBSCRIBE on the left to get email updates,SHARE it with three people, COMMENT below, and click here to GIVE a donation of $5.00 or your best gift to keep it going! P.S. - BlogFam, I NEED your prayers and support - KIDS KORNER Radio program - It is a moment to spotlight the children and youth [and youth ministers] of our community! PLEASE tune in ONLINE at http://www.wigoam.com at 5:15pm EVERY SUNDAY AND let me know you are listening!!! Also, VISIT us at www.facebook.com/kidskornerradio OR shoot us an EMAIL at kidskornerradio@gmail.com if you have any suggestions for guests, topics, or would like to be a sponsor! [sponsorships are only $25] I WRITE by Faith and NOT by Sight... |