IIt's All About What Ya Put Into Your Head

Finally, brothers and sisters,                                                      

whatever is true, whatever is honorable,
whatever is just, whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious,
if there is any excellence
and if there is anything worthy of praise,
think about these things.



Keep on doing what you have learned and received
and heard and seen in me.
Then the God of peace will be with you.

Poor Harold, he is so shy that he knows what is going to happen when he goes to the homecoming dance.  He will simply sit there too shy to ask a girl to dance and he will never know that the girl with the blue ribbon in her hair thinks that he is just adorable and wants to dance with him.  Instead,  Harold will sit there all evening and go home with that sad feeling that comes from being alone.  

What if Harold, instead came to the dance, knowing that he looked good in his new suit and shoes and went up to the girl with the blue ribbon in her hair and asked her to dance?  That would have changed the outcome of the evening and probably the rest of his life because now he knew that there was at least one person who liked him so there might be more out there!  So, our wallflower boy would become confident and because of this new confidence he would go out for the football team and become the quarterback of the team, throw a long pass and win the state championship for good old Turtle Creek High School.  

It is what we put in our brainbox that will determine what kind of person we will be.  In this respect, we are like a computer where if we put garbage in, well, garbage will come out.   Paul here is telling us to banish evil and trash from our mind and to fill it with good thoughts and to continue to be the Christians we were taught to be.  

Last Sunday we were told how to do this in great detail.  We were told our attitude should be like that of Christ.  This week we are told what should fill our minds and make no mistake about it, it is up to us to change our attitude.  We have freedom of will and God's Prime Directive (thank you Star Trek) is to never interfere with his children's free will.   He will use our conscience to give us hints, but the work of cleaning up what needs to be cleaned is a voluntary operation that we have to choose to do ourselves. 

So this week, when someone approaches you with the gossip of the day, politely tell them that you are not interested.  If you are tempted by unworthy thoughts, tell yourself that you are going to reach up for fresh, ripe fruit that is above and you will not stoop down to gather the wormy, rotting. fruit that has fallen to the ground.   In either case, you will get the harvest you have chosen. 

Some people do not believe in Purgatory.  I fear that this attitude affects the Poor Souls who suffer much as they long to see and be with God.  If you are one of those that doubt the reality of Purgatory, please get a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, it is free online and will show you why there is a Purgatory and why we should pray daily for the Poor Souls there who can do nothing to help themselves.