No. 1: Just Thinking

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I have been thinking about thinking lately. Actually, I have been thinking about thinking for quite some time.

Something else I have been thinking about is how to more effectively communicate my burden for clear-headed, Biblically based thinking to a wider audience of people. And that is why I decided to create this one page, printable newsletter.

I am a thinker and a writer, and like all of us, a work still in progress. As such, I sometimes fail to make my communications concise. I know that many of my friends would like to be able to read my email newsletters, but because of their length, they elect to delete them, or move them to a folder in their email program for later reading. If they are like me, they probably never get to the reading part. So, I have created a one page, printable format for easier management. Now you can print me out, take me with you, and read me at your leisure.

Jesus commanded us to love God with all of our mind. Granted, He also commanded us to love Him with all of our heart, soul, and strength as well. But loving Him with our mind is something we 21st century American Christians are not doing very well. In fact, according to Christian researcher George Barna, only 8% of Protestant Christians and a mere 0.5% of Catholic Christians hold a Biblical Worldview (source: barna.org).

A partial definition of Biblical Worldview according to Barna is as follows: believing that absolute moral truth exists and that the source of moral truth is the Bible; that salvation cannot be earned; that Jesus lived a sinless life on earth; and that God is the all-knowing, all-powerful maker of the universe who still rules that creation today.

I believe that one of the primary causes for such a low percentage of Christians actually possessing a Biblical Worldview, is that many of our churches do not teach the Scriptures from cover to cover. Or perhaps more precisely, we are not teaching that the Bible even imparts a comprehensive worldview.

I have titled my newsletter, “at home, thinking.” I found inspiration for the title from John Adams, second President of the United States. Known for his prolific correspondence with wife Abigail, and as a life-long diarist, one of Adams’ early journal entries included only the phrase, “At home, thinking.”

I probably think too much. But often, because of God’s great mercy and kindness, my thinking, coupled with prayer, study, and dialog with others, leads to a better understanding of God and His ways.

Why is thinking about the things of God so important? Consider these Scripture references:

• The Psalmist declared that meditating upon God’s law night and day is a sign of God’s blessing (Psalm 1:2).
• The writer of Proverbs admonished us to get understanding (Proverbs 4:5).
• The Apostle Paul instructed us to think on things which are virtuous, praiseworthy, true, honest, pure, lovely, and of good report (Philippians 4:8).

I created “at home, thinking” to address these and other related issues. I am convinced that one of the reasons the Church in America of our day seems at times ineffective is because we, as a whole, still think much like the world. I will be writing again soon. I hope you will find this publication worth your while.