Have you ever wondered how we can align our ways with God’s ways and our thoughts with His thoughts? Jesus came to reconcile us to the Father and to restore our relationship with Him. And yet we find many times that our thoughts and ways are not aligned with His.
The prophet Isaiah tells us, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. ‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ declares 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.’” (Is. 55:6-9)
The Scriptures exhort us to “choose” life by choosing to learn and keep God’s ways. So, is it possible to align our ways with our God’s ways and to think His thoughts?
Thankfully, God, our Father, is at work within us to impart the capacity to choose His thoughts and His ways (Phil. 2:12–13). As a loving Father, He is persistent in the discipline of His children, to align our thoughts and ways with His (Heb. 12:4–11).
This is not an instant or easy process. However, the Shema prayer gives us a key. It begins with recognizing God as our loving Father, as the One who has brought us out of an old way of life into a new life. It continues with our response of loving Him in a total way, with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. This devotion is further expressed through a diligent pursuit of learning His thoughts and keeping His ways (Deut. 6:4-9, Mt. 22:36-40, Mk. 12:28-31, Lk. 10:25-28).
Through the life and words of Jesus, we learn the thoughts of our Father and learn His ways. Our job is to read, study, and practice His words; to repent of past conditionings; and to allow the Holy Spirit to teach and inscribe God’s words in our heart and lead us in their application.
Knowing that our thoughts and ways are not our Father’s is not an indictment. Rather, it is an invitation into a life of learning. We can choose to have God’s thoughts and walk in His ways, and He will help us.
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