A Settled Mind

July 19, 2018

“Poor fellow! Had his mind not been continually occupied with political ruminations, the strings might not have snapped.” So said William Wilberforce of a colleague who had a nervous breakdown. Wilberforce knew the pressures of political life; for forty years he maneuvered and battled to bring an end to the British slave trade. But Wilberforce was a Christian, and knew the importance of a Sabbath for keeping his perspective.

I thought of him today on the way home from two days spent with my mother, giving my brother and sister in law a bit of a break so they could spend time with some close friends from out of state. Mom can’t do much at 95, but she does listen to the news each night, which has a way of worming its way into my mind. I learned a few years ago that for my own peace of mind I needed to step away from all the political shenanigans that seem to occupy so much of public life. However, as I scroll through Facebook for the latest doings of my children and grandchildren, I’m inundated with either cutesy animal nonsense, “if you love Jesus, you’ll pass this along” drivel, or political vitriol. I usually refrain from commenting on the latter because I actually value friendships of people with whom I disagree politically, but they do have a way of working on my mind.

There is but one remedy for me: Scripture. This morning, my brother’s friend quoted at length from different Scriptural texts, asking me if I knew where they were from. I did, but sadly, I couldn’t quote them the way he did. But this afternoon as I was working on my sermon, the text was working on me, and on the way home, every time my mind wandered to thoughts political, I had to reel it back in and anchor it in the Word of God. There is little peace in politics, but as the Scripture says, “Great peace have they who love thy law, and nothing shall offend them” (Psalm 119:165), and, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee” (Isaiah 26:3). It was a mental and spiritual battle this afternoon, but I won, and forced my mind to dwell on the truth of God’s Word. Tonight, I am thankful for the peace that is mine as I lay down to sleep.