How do I control my mind from my past and other negative thinking?

Sincerely,
Fresh Start

Dear Fresh Start,

Rom 12:1-2 says that we renew our minds when we begin to mold our lives to imitate our Lord.  The more we change our behavior to match the Bible, the more our mind begins to match our new lifestyle.  There is an old saying: "fake it to make it".  When we begin to act the way we ought, our minds and characters begin to match our new behavior.  Positive thinking begins with positive life choices.

I had a dream where I witnessed the heavens opening up and the sound of a trumpet blowing.  Does this have any spiritual meaning, or was it just a dream?

Sincerely,
Heavenly Visions

Dear Heavenly Visions,

The days of prophetic dreams and visions have passed.  In the past, God spoke to various people through dreams, visions, and prophecy, but today He speaks to us through His Son, Jesus Christ (Heb 1:1-2).  Now that we have the complete and perfect Bible – there is no need for God to give people individual dreams or visions (1 Cor 13:9-10).  It is through the Word of God that we learn how to live faithfully (Rom 10:17).   You don’t need to worry about interpreting your dream as some spiritual sign; it was just a dream.

Is getting plastic surgery wrong? My friend wants to get breast implants; is it wrong biblically to have things like that done to our bodies?

Sincerely,
Afraid Of Knives

Dear Afraid Of Knives,

It isn’t inherently wrong for a christian to change their appearance for beauty’s sake, but we do need to be careful. See the post “The 411 On The Bling Bling” for more details on the subject of wearing jewelry. Plastic surgery is a more extreme version of makeup or jewelry. It is precisely its extreme nature that should make christians wary of using it. Makeup and jewelry are intended to enhance someone’s natural appearance, while surgery is intended to permanently alter it.

Vanity is a sin. We are not supposed to glory in appearances (2 Cor 5:12). The most vivid Biblical example of the folly of vanity is Absalom who died because of his love of his beautiful hair (2 Sam 14:25-26, 2 Sam 18:9-14). Furthermore, we are supposed to be content with what God provides us with (Php 4:11), and that includes the body He has given us. Plastic surgery (if done for purely cosmetic reasons and not medical ones) smacks of being discontent with what God has designed. The more superficial our world becomes, the more christians need to remember what is truly important… not the outward flesh, but the inward man (2 Cor 4:16).

One of our "brothers" has been pushing this issue.  After discussing the sin of suicide, he brought up the denial of the Holy Spirit (as in Matthew’s account of Jesus ridding demons) as the only thing that cannot be forgiven.  Maybe you can bring up some good points that I may have overlooked about this passage.

Sincerely,
Doctrinally Debating

Dear Doctrinally Debating,

John says that there is a sin that leads to death – that sin is the sin against the Holy Spirit (Mk 3:29).  Any sin can be repented of and forgiven (1 Jn 1:9)… except for the sin against the Holy Spirit.  Now, let’s explain what that sin is, and then we will connect it to the suicide issue.

When Jesus says that any sin will be forgiven except for someone blaspheming the Holy Spirit (Mk 3:28-30), He said it to the crowd that accused Him of casting out demons by the power of Satan (Mk 3:23).  That crowd could have been forgiven of any sin, but instead they rejected the miracles that testified that Jesus was from God.  Contrast that crowd’s attitude with Nicodemus’ attitude.  Nicodemus understood that the only way that someone could perform a miracle was if God was with him (Jhn 3:2).  When that crowd rejected the evidence that the Holy Spirit provided (in this case, the miracles), they rejected any chance to receive the forgiveness found in Jesus’ teachings.  When we reject the truth of God (the Bible), we reject the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit’s primary job is to bring the truth of the gospel to mankind (see the post “What the Holy Spirit Does” for more details).  Someone blasphemes the Holy Spirit by rejecting the truth that the Holy Spirit sent us in the Bible.  Any sin can be forgiven if we will turn to God’s Word and obey it (Rom 10:17, Heb 5:9), but there is absolutely no hope for someone if he or she will not accept the Holy Spirit’s Bible.

Which brings us to the suicide issue – suicide is murder, self-murder, and is therefore very clearly a sin (Rev 21:8).  It is a willful act of disobedience against God without opportunity for repentance.  The Holy Spirit teaches against murder, and when someone commits suicide they are rejecting God’s teachings on the subject of life – without opportunity to repent. The final judgment belongs to God (Heb 12:23), but we certainly wouldn’t want to face that judgment with our own blood on our hands.

Hi, I like to workout and build muscle, but I also know that God should be first in our lives.  I sometimes feel that I'm wrong in working out to gain muscle and size, but I don't let it get in the way of going to church and praying and everything else that God wants us to do.  I always put Him first.  Well, my question is: is it wrong to spend money and time on this if it's not right in God’s eyes, and also, the other part to this is that I eat many small meals a day to keep my metabolism up, and I eat healthy, but I'm not sure if that's right to do either.  I'm not sure if that is gluttony or not.  My main thing is I like to look good because I feel better, and I enjoy working out.  I don't do it because it's cool, or I'll look hot.  I guess you can say it's my hobby; I just enjoy it.

Sincerely,
Ripped

Dear Ripped,

There is nothing wrong with working out and exercising as long as you keep it in proper perspective – which it sounds like you are doing.  The apostle Paul even mentions that there is a benefit to physical exercise.  In 1 Tim 4:8, Paul makes it clear that bodily exercise does have its benefits but that those benefits pale in comparison to spiritual things.  There is nothing wrong with working out as a hobby and as part of a healthy lifestyle.

As far as your eating habits, they aren’t gluttonous.  Gluttony is the act of excessive eating.  You are doing the opposite!  You are controlling your portions for the purpose of controlled living.  It sounds like you are making good choices and keeping your priorities in order.