My brother and me often work with my dad at his woodworking shop. Sometimes, the work requires little mental attentiveness, like sanding 379,256 pieces of wood. (I'm not whining, I promise.)
Well, anyways, because of the relatively thoughtless actions, the mind tends to wander. You go from thinking about the song you woke up with stuck inside your head, to what you were doing last weekend, to what you might eat when you're done working. Referring to this phenomenon, my brother likes to say something along the lines of:
"I let my mind wander, and now I can't find it."
Now, we naturally think about the things we care about, right? If I don't enjoy thinking about sports statistics, (which I don't) then I won't bother to focus my mind's precious energy on it. Well, the Scriptures say in Romans 8, "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit."
In other words, if we're living the way we're supposed to, our minds should naturally gravitate towards thinking about the things of God. Just like the Psalmist, of whom it is said, "his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night." (Psalms 1)
So, what's the deal?
Cuz I would love to say that my mind is filled with God and His glory and His majesty. But I can't. Why? I believe that our minds aren't focused on Christ because we do not have a clear picture of who He is. If we were to completely understand how glorious and majestic God was, we would be fueled to think upon Him. Just like when you can't stop thinking about that beautiful guy/girl that you met last weekend.
So how do we view God in the right way then?
Honestly, the only answer I can give to that is that we spend a substantial amount of time alone and quiet in His Presence. And I'm not talking about just praying here and there throughout the day. I'm referring to setting aside specific parts of your day to getting to know your Maker through prayer and reading the Scriptures. It takes hard work. It takes discipline. It takes the ability to say, "I'm gonna get away from everything and spend time with God, even though everything inside of me wants to be somewhere else."
Because once we have a better picture of who our Creator is, thinking about Him and talking to Him will become as natural as breathing air or digesting food.
In other words: you won't have to try. It'll just come.
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