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Advent HOPE Sabbath School

Alistair Huong

Thoughts on Thinking

But today our message is entitled thoughts on thinking so what do you suppose we're gonna be thinking about today?

We're gonna be thinking about thinking And I want to before I get into the message just sort of explain We're gonna be dividing this message into 2 parts.

I realized as I was studying it, it could actually be developed into a number of messages.

And we're going to be talking about that in a little bit, But we're just going to be addressing 1 area which I believe is absolutely critical for us to understand in our thought processes and how we think So before we begin, what are we gonna do?

Father in heaven this morning as we gather in this place we ask that your Holy Spirit will be our teacher and our guide.

As we open your word may we see that which you want us to see and not what we want to read.

Lord I ask that you be with our minds that we will think the thoughts of heaven and that we will learn to differentiate what is right thinking.

And Lord I also pray for the offering that has been just collected may be used for your cause in your work.

Be with us now we pray in Jesus name, Amen.

In the book Ministry of Healing, page 491, paragraph 3, I read this 1 sentence, the only security for any soul is right thinking.

The only security for any soul is right thinking.

So I believe it behooves us to identify what it means to have right thinking.

Now I want to say this sentence does not say the only security for any soul is right thoughts Did you catch that is there a difference between right thinking and right thoughts Thinking is a process.

They're ideas, they're things, they're objects.

But what we're concerned about is more than just what are the thoughts that we think about.

What are the things that we put in our minds, although those things are very important.

You know there's a term in psychology, often used in education as well, I am an education major, the term is metacognition.

And what that term means basically is the process of analyzing your own thinking process.

And as students, I think it would be wise for us to understand a little bit.

If I'm doing my project, I'm reading my textbook and I'm reading, I'm reading, I'm doing my project and I just don't understand.

And I can just go through the motions of it, but I don't understand.

Metacognition means I'm going to sit back and say, wait a second, I'm not getting what I'm reading.

So maybe I should change some of my methods.

Thinking about how we process our activities, how we process the things that go on in our mind.

So the only security for any soul is for us to exercise that metacognitive ability to take inventory, stand back and say, wait a second, am I thinking rightly am I thinking properly you know why why am I making such a big deal about this because Proverbs 23 verse 7 23 verse 7.

If you're there, please say if you're there please say amen Proverbs 23 verse 7 for as he thinketh in his heart so is he And it doesn't say what a man thinks so is he, although I believe that is still a proper understanding.

As a man thinks, the way in which a person thinks determines who or what that person will become.

I read this in page 222, first paragraph, if the thoughts are wrong, the feelings will be wrong.

And the thoughts and the feelings combined make up the moral character.

Our thinking, our thoughts lead to our feelings and those things put together develop what is called our moral character.

And if we understand, if I understand my Bible correctly, character is everything.

He doesn't care about what we say, He doesn't care about what we do, He cares about our character.

And 1 of the fundamental layers of developing good character is right thinking.

So now are we beginning to get a picture why it is so crucial for us to have right thinking?

Because it impacts our character and as a result it impacts our eternal destiny.

If I can give as simple of a definition as I can find in the scriptures it would be found in Isaiah chapter 55 Isaiah chapter 55 55.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts neither are my ways neither your ways my ways sayeth the Lord for as the heavens are higher than the earth so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts God is saying that your thoughts are not high enough higher than the highest human thought can reach is God's ideal for his children.

And what we need to strive for, friends, is to not settle for what we want to think, how we want to process information, what we want to fill our minds with.

We need to learn to think God's thoughts for the only security for any soul is right thinking if I may insert that definition right thinking is God's thinking what do you say so how do we think how do we think Now this is where I could go in a number of directions.

I'm gonna give you just a little preview of a number of thoughts that I had and then we're gonna conclude with some of the bulk of what I want to discuss today.

So I believe by now we've established that thinking is crucial.

Having right thoughts and right thinking processes is absolutely essential for proper moral development, character development.

And As an educator, let me just read this passage.

This is my favorite passage in all of the Spirit of Prophecy, I believe.

It is the work of true education to develop this power to train the youth to be thinkers and not reflectors of other men's thoughts.

So Advent Hope, don't just repeat what I say, Think about it.

In my study of inspiration there are several major areas of thought and thinking that is highlighted.

The first and the absolute most essential aspect of our thinking is called the will.

In the book Steps to Christ, we read very clearly.

It says everything depends on the right action of the will and fundamentally thinking at its core is choosing Learning how to choose is how to think.

The will, but we're not going to talk about the will today.

In fact, I think I actually shared a message here some time ago on the will.

Another aspect of human thought and thinking is the conscience and These are just little tidbits, you know, I'm not gonna go in in-depth, but the conscience what is the conscience, you know, sometimes we associate the conscience with the Holy Spirit you know I was talking to myself you know often that's our conscience telling us what is right and what is wrong and consciences are good things in so far as they are guided by the right principles of God's Word.

Because the Bible says that consciences can be corrupt.

And so the conscience is another key aspect of thinking and how we think.

Do you know that inspiration speaks volumes about human imagination?

We are told that as we read the Bible, the sanctified imagination should see in vivid color and picture what is happening as Jesus was ministering to the sick and to the poor.

As we see the prophets preaching and being persecuted, We should use our sanctified imagination to understand what God is trying to say.

Now as you're turning there I just want to remind you, you remember what Jesus said, so as in the days of Noah so shall also be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man.

With that in mind, let's read Genesis chapter 6 verse 5.

And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every...

Imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Now if I can use a little bit of reasoning powers here.

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Thoughts on Thinking

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