think about your thoughts

The “Reticular Activating System”  and Philippians 4:8

The reticular activating system (RAS) is a net-like network of nerves in the brainstem that acts as the brain's control tower for wakefulness, alertness, and sensory filtering. 

What It Does

• Waking and Sleeping: The RAS manages your sleep-wake cycle. It turns down its activity when you sleep and ramps it up to help you wake up. 

• The Brain's Bouncer: Your senses take in millions of bits of data every second. The RAS acts as a subconscious gatekeeper, blocking out unimportant background noise and letting only vital information reach your conscious mind. 

• Focus and Attention: It helps you focus on what matters. For example, it lets you hear your name across a loud, crowded room, or makes you suddenly notice a specific car model on the road after you decide to buy one.

• Danger Alert: When you face a sudden threat, the RAS immediately triggers your fight-or-flight response, making you fully alert.

The connection between the Reticular Activating System (RAS) and Philippians 4:8 is a perfect example of modern neuroscience validating ancient biblical wisdom.

Philippians 4:8 instructs: "...whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

When you actively practice this verse, you are physically training your RAS to change your Decernment.

WHY? The RAS helps maintain alertness and contributes to our attention. More broadly, our RAS system prioritizes some information while allowing other information to recede into the background.

That means what we already believe, fear, desire, or expect can affect what we notice:

• A fearful mind becomes unusually alert to possible threats.

• A suspicious mind readily notices apparent evidence of betrayal.

• A condemned mind notices everything that seems to prove personal failure.

• A self-reliant mind notices resources it can control while overlooking God’s provision.

• A truth-renewed mind becomes increasingly attentive to God’s character, promises, activity, and direction.

This helps explain the neurological dimension of the battle, but Scripture identifies its deeper spiritual and moral dimension. The battle is not merely over what sensory information reaches consciousness. It is over which thoughts receive authority and shape belief.

Philippians 4:8 is a discernment filter

Paul gives believers criteria by which thoughts should be evaluated:

• Is it true, or is it deception?

• Is it honorable, or does it degrade?

• Is it just, or does it distort?

• Is it pure, or does it corrupt?

• Is it lovely, or does it cultivate hatred?

• Is it commendable, or does it advance accusation?

• Does it reflect excellence and praise, or the character of the enemy?

🧠 The Biological and Biblical Alignment

1. Intentional Filtering (The Gatekeeper)

• The RAS: It needs instructions on what to look for, otherwise it defaults to scanning for threats or negative patterns.

• The Bible: Philippians 4:8 provides a highly specific, eight-part instruction manual for programming that filter.

• The Synergy:  By consciously choosing to focus on "whatever is lovely," you command your RAS to highlight those exact qualities in your environment, making them appear more frequent.

2. Overcoming Negativity Bias

• The RAS: Naturally flags negative information to keep you safe from perceived danger.

• The Bible: Commands a deliberate shift toward the "excellent" and "praiseworthy."

• The Synergy: Practicing the verse forces the RAS to build new neural pathways, overriding the default survival mode with a growth-oriented mindset.

3. Creating Your Reality

• The RAS: Does not judge if your focus is good or bad; it simply brings you more of what you dwell on.

• The Bible: Implies that your thought life dictates your peace (Philippians 4:9 promises "the God of peace will be with you").

• The Synergy: When you look for things that are "true" and "right," your RAS filters out the noise of anxiety, directly lowering your stress levels and bringing the biblical promise of peace to fruition.

🛠️ How to "Program" Your RAS Using Philippians 4:8

• Daily Audits: Ask yourself throughout the day if your current thoughts fit the Philippians 4:8 criteria.

• Gratitude Journaling: Write down three things that are "admirable" or "pure" every morning to prime your RAS for the day.

• Media Boundaries: Guard what you watch and listen to, as negative media trains your RAS to look for more chaos.

In the original Koine Greek text of Philippians 4:8, the words Paul selects are not just passive suggestions for "positive thinking". They are precise, active commands.

Here is the exact breakdown of the Greek words from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance and how they function to program your mental filter. [1]

🔍 The Eight Filters of Philippians 4:8

English Word	Koine Greek	Strong's #	Literal Greek Meaning & Nuance
True	Alēthē (ἀληθῆ)	G227	Unconcealed, reality, fact. It refers to things that match actual reality as God defines it, rather than illusions, exaggerations, or anxiety-driven falsehoods.
Noble / Honorable	Semna (σεμνά)	G4586	Venerable, dignified, inspiring respect. It describes something with a "noble seriousness" that elevates your character rather than degrading it.
Right / Just	Dikaia (δίκαια)	G1342	In alignment with God’s standard. It means conforming to what is right, fair, and just, ensuring your thoughts are balanced and honest.
Pure	Hagna (ἁγνά)	G53	Chaste, clean, unpolluted. It implies freedom from hidden motives or corrupting influences. It is clean down to the core.
Lovely	Prosphilē (προσφιλῆ)	G4375	That which calls forth love. Composed of pros ("toward") and phileo ("love"). It means thoughts that promote harmony, kindness, and sweetness rather than division.
Admirable / Good Repute	Euphēma (εὔφημα)	G2163	Praiseworthy speech, sounding good. The root of our modern word euphemism. It means focusing on information that builds up and is worthy of being spoken out loud.
Excellent / Virtue	Aretē (ἀρετή)	G703	Moral excellence or valor. Used by classical Greeks to describe an instrument or person fulfilling its highest purpose perfectly.
Praiseworthy	Epainos (ἔπαινος)	G1868	Approbation, commendable. Thoughts that are universally recognized as intrinsically good and pleasing to God.

⚙️ The Command: "Think on These Things"

The final verb of the verse changes everything when looking at it through the lens of neuroscience:

Logizomai (λογίζεσθε) — Strong's G3049 / G3049 [1, 2]

• The Accounting Meaning: In the ancient world, logizomai was a mathematical and accounting term. It meant to calculate, reckon, take inventory, or deliberately log entries into a ledger. [1, 2, 3]

• The Grammar Tense: It is written in the present imperative tense, which indicates an ongoing, habitual command. It literally translates to: "Keep on calculating/reckoning these things continually." [1]

🧠 The Neuroscience Hook

Paul is telling you to audit your brain's ledger. You cannot stop random or intrusive data from floating past your conscious awareness. However, logizomai means you choose which thoughts you "log" as valuable assets in your mind. By continually auditing your thoughts against these eight strict criteria, you force your Reticular Activating System (RAS) to hunt for those specific inputs in your daily life.

🔍 Let’s add 2 Corinthians 10:5, it completes the process because Philippians 4:8 tells us what should occupy our minds, while 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us what to do with thoughts that oppose God’s truth.

—Philippians 4:8 “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable…think about these things”     

 —2 Corinthians 10:5 “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.”  

The relationship

The RAS helps explain the brain’s selective attention. We are surrounded by more information than we can consciously process, so the brain gives greater prominence to what appears important, threatening, desirable, or relevant.

But the RAS does not know what is true. It can make a lie prominent just as easily as a truth—especially when the lie has been reinforced by fear, repetition, desire, trauma, or cultural pressure.

That is where the two passages work together:

• Philippians 4:8 establishes the filter: Is this true and consistent with God’s character?

• 2 Corinthians 10:5 establishes the authority: Will this thought be permitted to govern me, or must it be brought under Christ’s lordship?

• Philippians 4:9 establishes the action: “Practice these things.”

The progression becomes:   

Thought enters awareness → thought is tested by truth → falsehood is taken captive → truth receives sustained attention → truth is practiced through obedience.

What “taking every thought captive” means

Paul’s immediate context is spiritual warfare against “arguments” and proud claims that oppose the knowledge of God. Therefore, taking thoughts captive is more than trying to suppress unpleasant thoughts.

It means confronting every belief, interpretation, accusation, imagination, or argument that claims authority contrary to Christ.

The decisive questions are:

1. Is this thought true?

2. Does it agree with Scripture and the character of Christ?

3. Where is it directing my attention?

4. What will happen if I continue dwelling upon it?

5. Will believing it lead me toward trust and obedience—or away from them?

A thought may enter the mind without our permission. That does not mean it is true, that it represents our identity, or that we have sinned by becoming aware of it. The spiritual issue is whether we welcome it, agree with it, dwell upon it, and allow it to direct us.

Deception, distraction, and occupation

These passages answer the enemy’s three tactics directly:

Enemy’s tactic	Biblical response
Deception introduces what  contradicts God	Destroy arguments raised against the knowledge of God
Distraction redirects attention away from truth	Think deliberately about what is true and worthy
Occupation keeps the mind and  time filled	Take the thought captive and redirect attention toward Christ
Desired result is belief expressed in disobedience	Bring the thought into obedience to Christ and practice the truth

This reveals something important: the enemy seeks not merely to place a thought in our minds, but to get us to give that thought attention, agreement, and eventually expression.

The battlefield progression is:

Suggestion → attention → consideration → agreement → belief → choice → action → consequence

The biblical counteroffensive is:

Recognition → examination → rejection of the lie → replacement with truth → trust → obedience

The role of the Holy Spirit

This is not a self-powered attempt to control every mental event. It is Spirit-led discernment.

The believer does not merely say, “I will think better thoughts.” The believer says:

“Holy Spirit, reveal what is true. Show me where my thinking contradicts Christ. Help me reject the lie, receive the truth, and obey what You are showing me.”

That places the entire process within God’s Strategic Will:

• God’s initiative: He provides Scripture, our identity in Christ, the mind of Christ, and the indwelling Holy Spirit.

• Our response: We recognize, test, reject, redirect, trust, and obey.

• The result: Our minds are renewed and our actions increasingly express who we already are in Christ.

ARE → BE → DO

ARE — Identity:
I am in Christ. A deceptive or intrusive thought does not define who I am.

BE — Renewed mind:
I test the thought, take captive what opposes Christ, and dwell upon what is true.

DO — Obedient action:
I practice the truth through Spirit-led trust and obedience.

So the complete conclusion:

The RAS helps explain why certain thoughts capture our attention, but it cannot determine whether those thoughts are true. Philippians 4:8 gives us God’s standard for what should occupy the mind, and 2 Corinthians 10:5 commands us to confront every argument that contradicts God, taking it captive under the lordship of Christ. We do not merely reject the lie; we redirect our attention to truth and put that truth into practice through trust and obedience.

Even more concisely:

Philippians 4:8 tells us what to dwell upon. Second Corinthians 10:5 tells us what must not be allowed to rule. Together they teach us to test every thought by God’s truth, take deception captive, redirect our attention, and obey Christ.

THINK ABOUT YOUR THOUGHTS!

Fully Actualized Kingdom Saint?: Distraction and Excellence. Connecting to Reality.

2011...  Click the link - Distraction and Excellence. Connecting to Reality.

Distraction.

Most of the times I'm being distracted I become a distraction.

The battle for our Attention?

WIKIPEDIA: Attention is the behavioral and cognitive process of selectively concentrating on a discrete aspect of information, whether considered subjective or objective, while ignoring other perceivable information. William James (1890) wrote that "Attention is the taking possession by the mind, in clear and vivid form, of one out of what seem several simultaneously possible objects or trains of thought. Focalization, concentration, of consciousness are of its essence."^[1] Attention has also been described as the allocation of limited cognitive processing resources.^[2] 

Attention is manifested by an attentional bottleneck, in terms of the amount of data the brain can process each second

The weapon of spiritual warfare against attention is "distraction"...

Do you ever think about your thoughts? Have you ever wondered why you argue with yourself?

2 Cor. 10:3-5 MEV 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, 5 casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

IDEA - noun.  any conception existing in the mind as a result of mental understanding, awareness, or activity.      a thought, conception, or notion:

The "Here and Now" and the Presence of God

The "Here and Now" is where we pay attention. To pay attention means to consciously focus on one aspect of that which we are aware.

We can be aware of many things in the here and now and still not pay attention to them.

Definition: the process whereby a person concentrates on some features of the environment to the (relative) exclusion of others.

"Attention is the behavioral and cognitive process of selectively concentrating on a discrete aspect of information, whether considered subjective or objective, while ignoring other perceivable information"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attention

"Attention is the cognitive process that makes it possible to position ourselves towards relevant stimuli and consequently respond to it. This cognitive ability is very important and is an essential function in our daily lives."

https://www.cognifit.com/attention

"Attention is a complex cognitive function which is essential for human behavior. Attention is a selection process for an external (sound, image, smell...) or internal (thoughts) event which has to be maintained at a certain level of awareness. It is not a stable but rather, fluctuating skill."

http://www.happy-neuron.com/brain-and-training/attention

From all this information we begin to understand that paying attention takes conscious effort.

Two Bible verses come to mind…

Romans 8:14 All that are led by the Spirit of God, they are the children of God.

John 10:27  My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

And this one…

Matthew 10:19 When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.

These verses speak of the present-tense indicative verb of paying attention to the Holy Spirit in the here and now. Not just acknowledging God's presence but recognizing Him and "choosing" to pay attention and to engage in your relationship with Him.

The enemy does not want you to do that. He will use distraction by trying to get you to focus, not on the present situation I call the "Here and Now" but on the past using condemnation/hopelessness or the future using speculation/fear... Or both.

Reality does not exist in the future or in the past.

We exist and have our being in the "Here and Now". It is where we make our choices and decisions that will shape our future. Do you trust in your limited perspective and understanding in your situation, or will you choose to pay attention to the Lover of your Soul and trust in His Guidance and Counsel? "Now" is the time, and "here" is the place we create the future God wants us to have.

Philippians 3:12 (NLT) I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.

Proverbs 3:5 (CEV) With all your heart you must trust the LORD and not your own judgment. 6 Always let him lead you, and he will clear the road for you to follow.

Distraction.

I've come to realize that worry is a distraction. You may think your worry is justified. That the time you spend worrying about it is required because your love for the one on your heart needs help.

Have you done what God asked you to do? Then give it to him.

Pay attention to your present situation. Don't be distracted by what you have no control over. The tomorrow you think will happen, you have no idea. Proverbs 3:5-6

Spend Time vs Pay Attention?

The world is full of distraction. It takes up our time, it occupies our attention.

It seems we have a lot to spare. In fact sometimes I prefer distraction when it comes to my current situation. Why? Because nothing seems to be happening...

At least from my perspective.

So I'm learning about the Bible verse that says... "Those that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength".

Distraction?

Back to that I go.

Distraction. Occupy your time. Use it up.

If the enemy can't deceive you he will try to distract you. Not just with worthless entertainment but with causes that we perceive as worthy.

These "causes" satisfy our need to feel justified, but fall short of explicit obedience and trust of God's will for our lives.

Distraction, Occupation and Opportunity?

It seems that this is the battlefield. The Lover of our soul orchestrates opportunity. The enemy tries to distract us and take up our time so we won't take advantage of His plan.

Distraction & Occupation

God says "occupy" until I come.

Reconcile distraction.

Why do I prefer distraction in the moment? A moment that is unique, unrepeatable and when past, is unchangeable and therefore without a price?

It is because in the moment the waiting needs to be occupied. Duration is the "experienced" observation of change. And in the "cycle" I wait for "opportunity". That is the word I need to plumb.

Some random thoughts...?

What is the number of thoughts I can comprehend in any given moment?

The rate of change can vary in a given inertial frame. Does the rate of change affect the number of thoughts I can comprehend? I think... No, the rate of change is a constant of the inertial frame and therefore the number of thoughts that can be processed is also constant.

If the number of thoughts that can be processed (understood) in my inertial frame is limited then distraction can occupy my attention and I can miss the thoughts the Lover of my Soul has for me.

Are you occupied by distraction?

Connect to Reality in an Excellent way

How do we navigate through the flood of distraction and find our way to the reality of our existence?

The Excellent Way has two witnesses.

God's Initiative has provided us with #1 the Holy Scriptures, passed down through time to us. AND #2 The Holy Spirit...

John 14:26 Amplified Bible

26 But the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will help you remember everything that I have told you.

Distraction sought after.

I look for distraction to occupy my time. Time I have, to afford thoughts of my situation in reality. When distraction seems preferable to facing up to the facts on the ground. Distraction seems attractive.

Distraction and Excellence. Connecting to Reality.

Connecting to reality, how is my pursuit of excellence confused by distraction that warps my sense of reality?

There is any number of means to have contact with those I have a connection with. Contact is the operative verb.

I am distracted by the many "goings on" that I am afforded a connection to, because of the latest communications technology. Information overload... you only overload a system when you expose it to more then it was designed to handle.

When you understand the system is designed for distraction you also realize the system is not built for excellence. I mean when you want to connect to reality.

Reality is not "our" perception. It never can be. It is His and He is the author of His plan for us. Who will you trust.

Distraction meant to occupy.

Distract and occupy. Decieve and destroy.

The creature is not independent of the Creator.

Identity, Self-conception, interpretation, unique perspective.

Patterns of behavior are a result of who we perceive ourselves to be, our identity. Our conception of self is derived from how we interpret our unique perspective that exists in the now but...

A natural man, yes I am, that broke free from the "cycle" of deception. Ill-equipped to face the challenge of condemnation or exaltation, how do I train up a son in the way that he should go.

The truth shall set you free!

Deception is the norm. Make-believe is entertainment's offering of "distraction" to all our perspectives. How can I discern the truth in what I perceive?

Conception: an abstract or general idea inferred or derived from specific instances.

Self-conception: who you think you are derived from past instances that formed an identity.

What is a "fact"? Is it a statement of action or observance of state? The statement, "The earth is the third rock from the sun" is true for now. So is a "fact" something that is an observed truth at a given moment? Or is "Observed State" a recognition of the fact of determinism?

• Is our interpretation of our unique perspective a reliable foundation to base all our choices and decisions on?
• Do we have a clear understanding of how, what we decide, will propagate forward?
• Do we have it in our capacity to comprehend reality's nature and the influence our free will has on the circumstance made available to others that experience that influence? 

The answer to these questions makes me think, "Oh crap!".

But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day.

One day exists in the "Now" of God's presence. What is "Now"?

It is the dynamic interaction of all that exists. Reality? Incomprehensible!

We see a fraction and can only comprehend an infinitesimal and in our pride we proclaim understanding.

The question is, "Do we understand how lost we are?"

Fecundity?

Each of us live in the now. The Now is where we make our choices. Choices have ramifications.

Choices. The distraction is pride.

Memory and reason are the foundation of an observer's ability to choose. It presupposses a comprehension of tensed facts created by previous choices. The truth condemns and choice proves to be my down fall. Why? I was not designed to rely only on my memory.

Two things make it more complicated. The accuser,  and the tense facts that "I" created. The result is condemnation.

It seems my choice alone is unable to foresee and comprehend the ramification of its effect on the continuum. Thus the destructive result.

Fecundity has its foundation in the Now. As I trust in the Lord and not my own understanding, He directs my path to fruitfulness.

Synchronization is not planned, it is choreographed. A symphony.

The now synchronized, is a symphony created on the fly, by what He is provided with.  Our choices give Him the basis of His arrangement which He takes to reflect His personality and His composition stays true.   A  Symphony of hope meant to set us free from the lies and distraction of the enemy of our souls. Who are you? Listen to the Conductor. Discover your voice that was created to express harmony and dissonance in an ever expanding choreography of creation.

Free will.

Free will has no meaning if we don't understand the consequence of our choices.

Satan is a liar. That is the truth I knew as I began my quest to discover what time was.

Truth is simple once discovered. But the quest for truth is nothing but complicated. The father of lies doesn't want us to know the truth.

The simple truth is found in Christ. He reveals creation as it was intended. Complication is the work of the enemy of our soul.

Our choices create tensed facts that build up or destroy. Distraction is meant to blind us to the truth of our choices. Pride keeps us in the fantasy.