God's Word gives us a very important instruction that we must all take to heart and obey. That instruction is to speak life-giving words to others every chance we get.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
Ephesians 4:29 NIV
https://ephesians.bible/ephesians-4-29
For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
1 Timothy 4:8 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/1ti.4.8.NIV
There are four common categories of toxic thoughts. These are negative, fearful, discontented, and critical.
replace those thoughts with God's truth. The best place to find God's truth is in His Word.
Strive to block out and remove all of the toxic things polluting your life and instead fix your thoughts on Jesus. Fixing your thoughts on Him is critical in filtering out all of the toxins in your life.
Like these creators before us, we need regular communion with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to renew our minds and refresh the lenses through which we view the world as we create.
If our work is to feel like a vocation—a true calling on our lives—we must be willing to follow the example of C. S. Lewis and reimagine our work as service to God and others. When we do, we will find the lordship of the True Aslan, Jesus Christ, changing our motivations for creating, the products we choose to create, and how we go about creating them, in community with others following the call to create.
Like Lewis, our product ideas will likely not come from brainstorming sessions where we focus intensely on how we can create a product that reveals God’s character. But as we begin to create, and we “let the Word of Christ dwell in [us] richly,” (Colossians 3:16) we will undoubtedly see how we can use our creations to reveal the character of our Creator. If our work is to feel like a calling, we, like Lewis, must be willing to allow the True Aslan to come “bounding into” every aspect of our lives, including our work.
Essentially, we use our work as a means of saving ourselves.
But as Christians, we know that the work of salvation is complete and that brings an entirely different motivation to our work! Because Jesus said, “It is finished,” we no longer have to use our work as a means of saving ourselves.
Like Lewis, the gospel frees us to create for the pure joy of creating, not seeking fortune or fame, but the fame of the One who has called us to create.
With Jesus, we can experience peace that surpasses our rational capacity and settles deep within (Phil. 4:7). We are to seek and find this peace as we await the Lord’s return.
When the Lord comes, will He find you among those who love Him and call Him Savior and Lord? Will He find you doing what He’s commanded of you, eager to see Him and ready for His appearing? You have it within your grasp to positively answer these questions. So how will you choose to respond to the Lord’s call upon your life?
The fact is, He is coming again!
