Colossians 2:9-10 says, “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.” 

When the title came into my mind, I started singing the chorus of an old hymn from my childhood, “Complete in Thee” ~ Yea, justified! O blessed thought! And sanctified! Salvation wrought! Thy blood hath pardon bought for me, and glorified, I too, shall be!

Where is your focus? Is it on your lack or on your completeness? What we focus on is what or who we become. When we focus on anything rather than the Lord, then we enter into a self-dependence or a self-effort mode. That never works. All “Self” is impotent. 

John 15:5, “…apart from Me you can do nothing.” Nothing means not one thing. However, when we follow the Holy Spirit, He will lead us in the way that He desires. 

Years ago that was the title of my message at a women’s retreat. When the butterfly comes out of the cocoon, it is all wet and its body is swollen with fluid. It has to struggle to distribute all the fluid into its wings so it can fly.

We may have thoughts about others, ourselves, or our circumstances that do not please the Lord. It is only when we entertain those thoughts that we disobey His command to bring every thought captive.

I have learned that when an unacceptable thought enters my mind, I do not give it another thought. I capture it and strangle the life out of it through thanksgiving. I make my next thought focused on a way of thanking the Lord. 

That fulfills His will of 1 Thessalonians 5:18. It says, “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Philippians 2:5 says, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Jesus never even sinned in His thoughts. David’s words in Psalm 19:14 should challenge our hearts. Here is the word ‘let’ again. It says, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in  Your sight…”

When a negative thought comes into our mind, 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us what to do. It says to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Remember that not every thought you have is of your origin. 

Romans 12:2 helps us understand how to discipline our minds. It says, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” That word transformed is illustrated by the caterpillar melting in the cocoon. From that liquid God forms a butterfly.

Ephesians 4:24 says, “…put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” Romans 6 is a great chapter that explains what happens when we accept Jesus as our Savior.

Verse 4 says that we were buried with Him in baptism into death. Then just as Jesus was raised from the dead, “…even so we also should walk in newness of life.” Verse 6 says, “…our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.”  

We were set free from satan’s slave block of sin. Yet at the moment of salvation our mind was not instantly renewed. Ephesians 4:23 Amplified says, “And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind (having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude).” Renewing our mind is a moment by moment discipline.

As I was memorizing Ephesians 4:22-24 I thought about this. We do not put on our day clothes over our night clothes. We put off one to put on the other. It is the same way in the spirit. 

We had an old way of thinking before salvation. Ephesians 2:3 says, “…we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind…” Ephesians 4:18 says that we were alienated from the life of God.

Ephesians 4:22-23 says, “…put off, concerning your former conduct…and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” Think of the caterpillar. Its mind is set on eating leaves. Then it goes into the cocoon and melts. 

Through metamorphosis, God creates something new. The butterfly has a new mind set that is focused on gathering nectar from flowers. Eating leaves doesn’t enter its mind.

Proverbs 14:30 Amplified says, “A calm and undisturbed mind and heart are the life and health of the body, but envy, jealousy, and wrath are like rottenness of the bones.”

The other day I picked up a bag of apples. I checked them over. There was a rotten one. I know that one bad apple will destroy the whole. I took it to the clerk. Hebrews 12:15 says “Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.”

Corrupt words come from a heart that has bitter root judgments growing in it. The antidote is to engraft God’s word in our heart. James 1:21 says the implanted word is able to say our soul.

Colossians 3:16 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” Grace is a gift to a humble heart.

What is in our heart bubbles up. It unconsciously seeps into our thoughts. I love the illustration from Elihu. Job 32:17-20 says, “I also will answer my part, I too will declare my opinion. For I am full of words; the spirit within compels me. Indeed my belly is like wine that has no vent; it is ready to burst like new wineskins.I will speak, that I may find relief; I must open my lips and answer.”

Elihu was so full of words he couldn’t contain them. I want to take this now into unresolved issues. Proverbs 4:23 says that we are to guard our heart with all diligence because, “…out of it spring the issues of life.”

Emotional pains that we have buried, may not be in our conscious mind, but they are very active and alive. They influence our thoughts unknowingly. They affect our behavior towards others.