Did you realize being open-minded can be very harmful if that means your thoughts are out of control and take you places you really don’t want to go. As Christians we need to learn to bring our thoughts into captivity and think within biblically prescribed limits, because what we think is what we are. I’m encouraging you to think about what you think about.

In Philippians 4:8 we are given clear boundaries—important guardrails for our thought life. The first one is true. Untrue thoughts are not allowed, and that includes the untrue speculations and imaginings that we often indulge in. For example, do you imagine the worst and worry about things that have not yet occurred? You are not thinking true thoughts when you do.

The second guardrail is noble, which means honorable, dignified, excellent. It’s possible to think something that is true, but not honorable. For instance, thinking “gossipy” thoughts about others, even if the facts are true, is not honorable thinking.

There’s a third limit set on our thinking, and that is right. All of us dislike unfair treatment. And yet how often do we allow ourselves to think unfair, unjust thoughts about others. Sometimes we have prejudiced thinking toward people, even toward other races and cultures. That kind of thinking is not right.

Then, our thoughts must also be pure. This covers immoral thoughts and sexual fantasies. No one is immune to these thoughts, and our society certainly promotes them. It is necessary to make certain our thoughts are pure.

Next comes lovely. Is your thought life full of love, inspiring love or affection? Many times, our thoughts may pass all the other tests, but they’ll fall short on this point.

In addition to true, noble, right, pure and lovely, our thoughts must be admirable or worthy of praise. If we could read what you were thinking, would we admire your thoughts?

The guardrails are clear. Now, our challenge is to bring our thoughts into captivity—to stay within these guardrails.