18th Sunday after Pentecost - The Lilies of the Stream
"Why do you think evil in your hearts?"
We are going to learn this morning what to do about bad thoughts. The devil knows very well that if he can control our thoughts he can control our actions. We never sin without thinking about it first,
A father once wished to teach his son a lesson about the control of thoughts. Past the house where they lived ran a stream.
One day the father said to the boy, "Take this pail of garbage and go up to where the stream begins and dump the pail into the water."
The boy did, and the next day garbage was spread all along the stream. It would float on the surface for a while and then would disappear only to pop up again.
Then the father said to his son, "Take this basket of lilies and go up to where the stream begins and throw them on the water." The boy did, and the next day all along the course of the stream there were lilies floating on the surface. They would disappear for a while and then pop up again.
The father then began to explain to the boy: "The stream is like your mind. Whatever you put into it will float along it for the rest of your life. If will disappear for a while but will come to the surface again. If you fill your mind with evil thoughts they will be there all your life and will pop up to the surface and annoy you when you least expect or want them. If you fill your mind with good thoughts they will be there all the time and will comfort you when you need them most. You are careful about what you throw into a stream at its source so be careful about what you put into your mind."
We can learn a lesson from that father's story. If we guard our thoughts we will never have to worry about our actions.
Sometimes bad thoughts just seem to force themselves into our minds. We don't want them. We fight against them but they are still there. Here is a simple cure which you should try in times like that. When a bad thought comes to mind, fighting it directly only makes it worse. It is better to change the subject, and you can do it very easily in this way. Imagine that someone gives you a hundred dollars with instructions to spend it all in three hours. Where will you spend it? Will you buy ice skates, a football helmet, a new dress or a hat? Before you have spent all the money, the bad thoughts will be gone.
"Why do you think evil in your hearts?" There is no need for it. There are so many beautiful things to think about. Why dump garbage into the stream of your mind to flow along its course when you can cast lilies upon the waters and keep them sweet and beautiful?
~ Sunday Morning Storyland, Imprimatur 1945 ~
We are going to learn this morning what to do about bad thoughts. The devil knows very well that if he can control our thoughts he can control our actions. We never sin without thinking about it first,
A father once wished to teach his son a lesson about the control of thoughts. Past the house where they lived ran a stream.
One day the father said to the boy, "Take this pail of garbage and go up to where the stream begins and dump the pail into the water."
The boy did, and the next day garbage was spread all along the stream. It would float on the surface for a while and then would disappear only to pop up again.
Then the father said to his son, "Take this basket of lilies and go up to where the stream begins and throw them on the water." The boy did, and the next day all along the course of the stream there were lilies floating on the surface. They would disappear for a while and then pop up again.
The father then began to explain to the boy: "The stream is like your mind. Whatever you put into it will float along it for the rest of your life. If will disappear for a while but will come to the surface again. If you fill your mind with evil thoughts they will be there all your life and will pop up to the surface and annoy you when you least expect or want them. If you fill your mind with good thoughts they will be there all the time and will comfort you when you need them most. You are careful about what you throw into a stream at its source so be careful about what you put into your mind."
We can learn a lesson from that father's story. If we guard our thoughts we will never have to worry about our actions.
Sometimes bad thoughts just seem to force themselves into our minds. We don't want them. We fight against them but they are still there. Here is a simple cure which you should try in times like that. When a bad thought comes to mind, fighting it directly only makes it worse. It is better to change the subject, and you can do it very easily in this way. Imagine that someone gives you a hundred dollars with instructions to spend it all in three hours. Where will you spend it? Will you buy ice skates, a football helmet, a new dress or a hat? Before you have spent all the money, the bad thoughts will be gone.
"Why do you think evil in your hearts?" There is no need for it. There are so many beautiful things to think about. Why dump garbage into the stream of your mind to flow along its course when you can cast lilies upon the waters and keep them sweet and beautiful?
~ Sunday Morning Storyland, Imprimatur 1945 ~