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BE A THINK
TANK
discover new horizons. It is finding the
things that challenge you the most and
facing them until you finish it with the
solution God gives.
Don’t be glued to old habits and belief
systems. Recognise that they can
hamper and hinder the fresh thoughts
that can take you out of the rut you may
have found yourself in.
Thinking is calling to mind certain
things or remembering them. It
is the capacity to concentrate
on particular matters until a
clear line of decision or indecision is
drawn. Thinking is anticipating, assuming,
comprehending, conceiving; it is drawing
a conclusion. To think is to consider a
matter, to deem it, to estimate and to
determine.
Becoming a think tank makes you see
what others overlook. It means you will
use the gifts of observation planted inside
you from the beginning. Becoming a think
tank is necessary because only those who
exercise their mind will rule the world.
Acts 17:11
The application of the mind helps to
discover the greatness of our God, the
beauty of His creation, the awesomeness
of His universe, the faithfulness of His
Word, the timeliness of His work and the
intricacies of His creation.
It is not even enough to just think,
thinking has to meet five criteria.
1. THINKING MUST BE
PROGRESSIVE
You cannot be progressive and keep
a weak mind. – Your attitude should
be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Philippians 2:5
Weak minds are like a microscope.
They magnify small things but cannot
perceive great ones.
To have a progressive mind means
having the capacity to receive new
things, to be taught new things.
Lamentations 3:22-23
2. THINKING MUST BE
CONSTRUCTIVE
Your thinking must be constructive.
That means that your thoughts are the
blocks God hands over to you to build
your world. It starts in the inner recess
of your spirit but soon crystallises
into the habits you exercise and then
your habits move on to become your
circumstance.
If you can change your thoughts to
be in agreement with the Word of
God you will build a world that is in
consonance with the mind of God.
3. THINKING MUST BE INVENTIVE
This method of thinking recognises
that life is always virgin territory and
that no one has the best or brightest
idea. The whole playing field of life
is open to those who will dare to
meditate.
Inventive thinking requires taking a
new step, altering your worldview to
4. THINKING MUST BE CREATIVE
One of the greatest privileges which
distinguishes man from all of the
creations of God is the capacity for
creativity. The Creator, God himself
created entities out of nothing and out
of something.
He then gave us the ability to imagine
and use the raw material He gave us to
create. Everything God gives is in seed
form. He therefore expects you to use
the skill of creative thinking to take the
seed and multiply it.
If you must be creative in your thoughts
you must first start with hindsight.
With that, you are able to look back at
the limitations that have hampered the
things that you desire to do, and with
foresight, look ahead to the things that
you can achieve for God.
5. THINKING MUST BE POSITIVE
To be a think tank you must approach
life with positive thinking. Those who
fear failure never succeed at all because
they never make any attempt. Thinking
is an act which you freely engage in.
However, you can become imprisoned
by engaging in negative thoughts. Your
future can be energised or paralysed by
what goes through your mind. So if your
thoughts are bad, the fruits which follow
will be the same.
The kind of thinking which is rooted
in the will of God as described by Paul
in Philippians 4:8 serves like good
medicine. It cures the heart and gives
you the energy for progress.
Improve yourself, get out of indolence,
wrath and self-deception. Remember;
godly thoughts and actions can never
produce bad results. So engage yourself
in the kind of thinking that is positive,
godly and progressive.
©Matthew Ashimolowo: Live a Better Life
TRANSFORMING YOUR LIFE WITH MATTHEW ASHIMOLOWO
WINNING WAYS MAGAZINE 15