Play it by ear?

To play it by ear is to act according to the situation. Playing it by ear means you work with what you get.

The original meaning of this term was to play music without sheet music, meaning you improvised from what you heard and did your best to bring everything into harmony with a melody that everyone would appreciate.   Hmm?

Jesus said "I don't do anything except what I "see" (Present tense) my father doing.

I believe this is what it means when Paul said "All that are led by the spirit of God, they are the children of God"

Matthew 10:9 (Luke 12:12)When they bring you to trial, do not worry about what you are going to say or how you will say it; when the time comes, you will be given what you will say.

The natural state of our spirituality?

John 14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to know the Father except through me.

Romans 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God they are children of God.

John 14:16. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever. 17. the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you.…

Colossians 3:15  "The peace that Christ gives is to guide you in the decisions you make;"

Compared to...

Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Matthew 24:5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.

1 Peter 5:8-9 “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world."

ADDICTIONS

Ad·dic·tion - noun: the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity.

We are all addicts of something...

• Alcoholic: addicted to alcohol.
• Workaholic: addicted to work.
• Chocaholic: addicted chocolate.
• Spendaholic : addicted to spending money.
• Sportsaholic : lives to watch or play sport.
• Talkaholic : Incessant talking.
• Tweetaholic : Addicted to tweeting.

The one addiction that trumps them all is the “addiction to self-will”.

"I'm going to do what I want to do!"

It began in the garden of Eden and continues to this day. We are aware of Good and evil and seem to instinctively know when someone has trespassed against us. We don't pay heed to God's guidance and counsel and instead we "trust in our own understanding" as we respond/react to those who have done us wrong. Thus the cycle of self-will reaps ill-will in our hearts and our relationships. And we find all sorts of ways (other addictions) to ease our unhappiness for a moment!

All this happens because we listen to, and believe the lies the enemy of our Soul tells us. He speaks these lies in our thoughts and tries to convince us of "who" we are.

The enemy uses Pride or Condemnation.

1 Peter 5:8 Stay alert! Watch out for your enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.

Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

This spiritual battle manifests itself in our thought life. The enemy of your Soul can use your self-will addiction to make you believe you have it within yourself to be "happy" and encourage thoughts of self-confidence/righteousness. The enemy of your Soul would be content to leave you there. But…

This addiction to self-will manifests itself in an infinite number of ways. In our pride, most of us never come to realize the destructive consequences that self-will has in our lives. We "manage" the turmoil in our relationships by practicing "self-actualization" and make ourselves feel better by blaming others for our situation. But…

If you trust in your own understanding, sooner or later you will make mistakes. Then the enemy of your Soul changes his tactics. From thoughts of pride to thoughts of condemnation. These thoughts of pride or of condemnation, the enemy uses them with one goal in mind, your destruction.

Luke 5:31 Jesus answered them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. 32. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sick and need to change the way they think.

Stop believing lies about who you are and embrace the "Lover of your Soul" He created you and He has a better plan for your life.

Seek Him out with all your heart!

Proverbs 3:5 & 6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart don't lean on your own understanding, recognize God in all of your ways and he will direct your paths.

Read this...

https://www.gotquestions.org/seeking-God.html

"Mindfulness" the latest buzzword for self-actualization.

Usually attributed to Buddhist practice but the Bible calls every believer to be aware of and submit every thought to the Lordship of Christ

https://activechristianity.org/how-do-i-take-every-thought-captive

Remember "truth separated from God becomes deception."

2 Corinthians 10: 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

Proverbs 23:7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.

https://activechristianity.org/is-it-even-possible-to-keep-my-thoughts-pure

Think about your thoughts

Do you ever think about your thoughts? Have you ever realized that you were arguing with yourself? I'm not talking about a debate on what movie you should go see. I'm talking about putting forth excuses as to why you should do something that you know you shouldn't do. Or trying to convince yourself you should not do something you know you should do. What's up with that?

Paul said it well when he explained "the things I want to do I don't do and the things I don't want to do that I do."

Realizing this is the first step in understanding the " Battle for your Mind".

The enemy is present in your thoughts. When you find yourself arguing with yourself realize you are under attack. The battlefield is your mind.

There are several verses that you need to understand.

Take every thought captive to the Lordship of Christ.  We do not wrestle against flesh and blood. Pray without ceasing.

THOSE WHO WAIT UPON THE LORD!...

Shall renew their strength!

The operative word here is "strength". It presupposes a strength already attained, that needs to be renewed, bolstered, made greater.

I am reminded of the scripture... "Be transformed by the renewal of your mind". Google it for now, It's speaks of a process of transformation by where your thinking is conformed by truth. This experiential truth, backed up by Biblical witness and refined in the Fire, has every answer to the accusations of condemnation and the perversion of truth that the "enemy" uses to lead us down the path of destruction.

Discernment.

Discernment begins with thinking about your thoughts.

Understand that your thoughts have 3 origins*

• A Thought can originate from a man’s spirit (Self)
• A Thought can originate from God’s Spirit (Good)
• A Thought can originate from another spirit, either angel (good) or demon (Evil)

And then it continues with "taking every thought captive to the Lordship of Christ."

You consider a thought by, asking does it line up with the character of Jesus Christ and, is it in harmony with the full counsel of God's written word. But it is with the Lordship of Christ, as we ask Him what He thinks, that we have the opportunity to accept or reject the thought we are thinking.

Reading the Bible and praying without ceasing,  are essential activities for success in the spiritual war the enemy wages against us.

Deut. 11:18 “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 

2 Cor. 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,

The battle takes place in our thoughts and we are to..

Memory and the Holy Spirit's leading

John 14:26 (NKJV)  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

Romans 8:14 (NKJV) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons (children) of God.

Matthew 10:19 When they bring you to trial, do not worry about what you are going to say or how you will say it; when the time comes, you will be given what you will say.

Let this mind be in you?

The mind of Christ...

Let it be in you...

Think like He thought... Thinks!

How does He think?

He said to the Father "Not my will but yours be done."

Some random thoughts...?

What is the number of thoughts I can comprehend in any given moment?

The rate of change can vary in a given inertial frame. Does the rate of change affect the number of thoughts I can comprehend? I think... No, the rate of change is a constant of the inertial frame and therefore the number of thoughts that can be processed is also constant.

If the number of thoughts that can be processed (understood) in my inertial frame is limited then distraction can occupy my attention and I can miss the thoughts the Lover of my Soul has for me.

Are you occupied by distraction?

To be "present" in the Now.

Have you ever been distracted? Has your attention ever been occupied? Have you ever lost track of what you were paying attention too?

Being "Present" in the "Now" is the last thing the enemy of your Soul wants you to be aware of, understanding the reality of your existence, being aware and cognizant of your surroundings, both physical and Spiritual.

It is there you "attend" to the need. It's the last thing the enemy of your soul wants you to realize. There is no better time than "Now". There are no other considerations as important, no other distractions that beg procrastination. Time and effort proclaim "do it now" there is no better opportunity for the doing,  and the promise "Be at Peace" is fulfilled when done. There is no greater Joy than to obey "Now".

"for the Kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." ROMANS 14:17

Lies and Distraction

Satan is a liar and he uses distraction.

Wikipedia defines Distraction as the process of diverting the attention of an individual from a desired area of focus and thereby blocking or diminishing the reception of desired information (TRUTH).

The world is full of distraction. It is designed to take up your time. To occupy your attention and to bring your focus on the temporal instead of the eternal.

The enemy’s basic attack is to make you doubt what God has said is true about who you are in Christ. Your identity. He does that by trying to get you to focus on the flesh and what your 5 senses tell you. What you can see as opposed to the unseen. The work of the enemy is to destroy relationship with God and those around you. The battleground is your mind and the weapons are truth and lies. (in your thoughts)

II Cor. 10: 3-5 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh. 4. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. 5. Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience (Lordship) of Jesus Christ