By Patty LaRoche

Dave and I thought we had thought this “moving thing” through. We would pack most of our belongings into storage for a few weeks, but some items we would need until we could move into the house we were renovating. The plan was to live in the basement of the house we bought until the upstairs was ready to be inhabited, so great thought went into what we would need temporarily. We made mistakes. Clearly, “great thought” was not enough.

For example, we kept back the portable vacuum cleaner…but not its battery charger. Same with the leaf blower. They both lost their power within the first week we were here. We failed to keep the coffee pot and toaster and so breakfasted on frozen Jimmy Dean sandwiches. (The house came with a microwave.)

And yes, I know, these are not big problems. There is, however, one area in which thinking things through can have eternal implications. This is fresh in my mind because I focused my Bible reading this morning on Matthew 7 where Jesus speaks to his disciples about who will make it to Heaven and who won’t. One of the most convicting, disturbing, thought-provoking passages of scripture is found in Jesus’ words: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, cast out demons in your name, and done many wonders in your name?” And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.”

Think about it. God will judge what’s going on inside us. If that doesn’t shake you up, you’re pretty unshakeable.

I don’t know about you, but I can’t brag about prophesying or casting out demons or doing “wonders” in Jesus’ name. I haven’t led hundreds to the Lord. I haven’t even prayed faithfully or read my Bible every day. I’ve spent weeks trying to memorize Psalm 91 (a prayer for my family members) and still stumble at verse nine.

The fact that I go to church, write this article, speak to Christian audiences, am in a Bible study and don’t cuss will not be enough. My thought life needs to be melded to God’s heart. I need to know His will and do His will…and that requires thoughts that lead me to love the unlovely and not judge, to mourn over my sins and be a peacemaker, to do nothing for others’ approval and not let the sun go down on my anger. Thoughts that cause me to do good works will be the evidence of a relationship with Christ, not the basis for it. No matter what my circumstances are, I need to trust that God is in charge and I’m not. In secret, I need to honor Him, yield to Him, obey Him, and “think these things through.”

Giving God his rightful due is a critical “thought” that demands I do just that.