Think Again!

58 • Think Again: Transformation That Yields a Return on God’s Investment

Thinks Like Bureaucrat Preservation has a bureaucratic mentality. It is obsessed with things that are countable, that which can be quantified, measured, and objectively assessed. It believes every problem has a cause- and-effect solution. Preservation wants to analyze God, to explain him in manageable terms, to harness his power for personal gain. If God’s actions can be predicted, they can be used for individual benefit, to appropriate his blessings. So preservation values central planners who produce predicted outcomes. But no one can establish predictive models about God because he cannot be predicted. Preservation demands concrete answers, despises ambiguity, and struggles with imagination. When C. S. Lewis was unable to understand Christianity, Tolkien reportedly said: “Your inability to believe is primarily a failure of imagination.” 28 The Common Thread In all these twelve schemes, Satan’s purpose is the same: tempt you to voluntarily squander the benefits Christ gave you. The deceiver will employ anything to keep you from focus on Jesus: distrust God, take it upon yourself to obtain what you need, or practice self-destruction. Your life is full of spiritual enemies and schemes to distract you from your true identity. It is a world littered with tribulation, trials, and difficulty (an already/not-yet Kingdom). 29 But if you stop and Think Again , you can remember that not every thought in your head is true. Conclusion to Part I: The Enemy Pillages Your body cannot tell the difference between truth and lies, but only what you believe. As a result, you are constantly bombarded by confusing and devastating messages that if believed, result in When you recognize the subtle scheme of preservation you can respond with imagination instead.