Man is he who thinks

When God created man He bestowed him with a quiet gift, a gift given to no other creature. That gift is the mind, a treasure genuinely cultivated to honour and praise its Creator but which may well be the destruction and ultimate doom of man himself.

In Genesis 1:26 we read: "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."

This unique power therefore enables man to reason things out and to take the necessary action. Without this power man would be incapable of talking and thinking.

By thinking positively, it is possible to bring peace to those around us. It brings serenity and helps transform other people, especially if they are in desperate situations. At times it only takes a kind word, a gesture and other acts of charity to change someone else's situation.

However, nothing would be possible without Jesus' help. "Without Me you can do nothing". It is He who makes all the difference in our lives. We must be open to Jesus wholeheartedly and without any reserve and to absorb His word in the Bible, otherwise it would be difficult to live a pious life in the way He wants us to because the evil one is always lurking around, even at times when we are close to Jesus. His traps are everywhere and under different guises and we have to be constantly alert.

One may be close to 'perfect' with a clean conscience and yet the need for Jesus is always present. Our life without Jesus is meaningless so that we start thinking differently or are brainwashed with other false religions and new ideas. We start to rebel, create problems for ourselves and our families, are selfish, steal, are adulterous and take on other views and start to think that Satan does not exist.

It is true to say that we are often influenced, either positively or negatively, by the media. The problem starts when such things create a vacuum in our minds so that we are unable to focus properly on more serious matters: our well-being, our families and especially our relationship with God.

This does not mean that the media are wrong or should be avoided. On the contrary the media are useful to man and his progress. However we have to be alert all the time and to be in a position to evaluate each and every situation on its own merits. Prevention is better than cure. The way we act, talk, and think reflects our character in front of others. How does God see us? Is our relationship with Him questionable?

To act and use our minds correctly are rewarding factors and God is sure to bestow His graces to His children. It is amazing that at times God showers us with graces which we are only aware of after some time. Our good actions are never ignored in the eyes of the Lord.

It is up to us to proceed in the right direction. God has created man to be free and He does not intervene in our choices even though we neglect Him or worse. Yet He loves us with all his heart, so much so that He gave up His life for us to be saved.

Let's make up our minds before it is too late. Let's follow His commandments in whatever we do, say and think. We have to take our decision with strong determination and have faith in God because Satan is determined to intervene in our plans to destroy them. Let's not surrender to him because he only wants to destroy us.

If we think as the world does then we are bound to indulge in the world's vices. However if we think like Jesus we are sure to become very close to Him, after all He is the only way to salvation (see James 3:13-18).