Though-Prints of a Dangerous Mind

I love walking, but I easily get bored — so I make it a point to bring my FM radio-capable mobile phone [because I don't have a smart phone or mp3 player] whenever I would go out to exercise. It also helps keep me updated with what's new and trendy with the music industry, or to stumble across some obscure sounds that a wayward radio jock happens to appreciate.

This morning, I got audibly waylaid by Ice-T's "Lethal Weapon".



Can our minds really be that dangerous?

By the way, I am not a rap fanatic — I prefer pop, RnB, jazz, slow rock and alternative music. But while most of the lyrics of this song sounded like the usual rap lingo, my mind was hooked on one line:

"The lethal weapon is my mind."

A common phrase goes, "If looks could kill..." But what if thoughts could do so as well?

More bodies than John Gotti, the Lethal Weapon is slaying

Just open any book, that's ammo to the brain

What really matters, is how well is your weapon trained

Some would say genius, while others would say insane

The Weapon power has been witnessed upon my page

From Martin Luther's "dream", to Hitler's psycho rage

What's more powerful, the brain or a twelve gauge?

The words I speak have scared many people to this stage

But promote violence, I really have to disagree

It's entertainment, like "Terminator" on TV

But some'll never see, you're stupid ignorant and blind

The Lethal Weapon's the mind!

I am not talking about getting homicidal with our brain like some wayward telekinetic. There are a lot of things we need to start killing inside our own minds (and hearts): selfish thoughts, impatient desires, greed, lust, apathy, discontent, rage, envy, mediocrity...

But noooooo, I'm a Christian... killing is wrong... killing is a bad word...

[Factoid: Bacon is a by-product of a deliciously murdered and seasoned pig, one of God's own created creatures. And plants are living organisms, too — vegetarians massacre their species on a daily basis. So if you don't like killing, you're free to nibble on some rocks.]

I admit though: talking about 'killing off our own thoughts' is easier said than done. I myself regularly face random waves of depression; sudden attacks of melancholy; indescribable panic from memories, dreams and uncharted mental drifts. Even more difficult is the persistent barrage of temptation and sinful thoughts — from the seemingly innnocent to the outrightly horrible. This mind-wrenching tug-of-war reminds me of Paul's own admission:

In fact, I don’t understand why I act the way I do. I don’t do what I know is right. I do the things I hate. Although I don’t do what I know is right, I agree that the Law is good. So I am not the one doing these evil things. The sin that lives in me is what does them.

I know that my selfish desires won’t let me do anything that is good. Even when I want to do right, I cannot. Instead of doing what I know is right, I do wrong. And so, if I don’t do what I know is right, I am no longer the one doing these evil things. The sin that lives in me is what does them.

The Law has shown me that something in me keeps me from doing what I know is right. With my whole heart I agree with the Law of God. But in every part of me I discover something fighting against my mind, and it makes me a prisoner of sin that controls everything I do. What a miserable person I am. Who will rescue me from this body that is doomed to die? — Romans 7:15-24 CEV

It may sound psychotic to some, but for many people – it is a daily [almost normal] struggle.  Our bodies respond to our every thought. Our words, both written and vocal, resonate the state of our minds.  Yet, it is a battle that must be fought: the mind is a dangerous weapon. With the wrong thoughts, it can hurt not only our own self, but other people as well. But with the right mindset, we not only help ourselves but others as well. And I guess, with the right mindset — we should also let Christ and other people help us as well. 

Let us be a danger to the moral status quo of this world — by threatening society with God's message of unfailing love, unwavering hope and uncompromising truth. Nothing is more dangerous than becoming a weapon of mass diffraction for His light.