"The Nothing Box"

“The Nothing Box”

(The title is from a humorous talk by Mark Gungor entitled “A Tale of Two Brains” on YouTube)

Picture this: A man has a box in his garage marked “The Nothing Box”. It’s sealed with packing tape and appears to be empty. But is it really? When someone picks it up and shakes it nothing happens. But there is something inside: air. This serves as a reminder to us of the scientific principle (generally credited to Aristotle) that nature abhors a vacuum—that is, every space must be filled with something, even if it’s air that can’t be seen. So in actuality there’s no such thing as a nothing box.

Let’s apply this axiom to our mind. It’s not a nothing box—something will always occupy it. The question is what will that be? What I allow to rent space in my head will largely determine my course of action in a specific situation, maybe even my life’s total direction.

The Apostle Paul cautions us that our mind can go in either a good or bad direction when he writes, “The mind of the sinful (person) is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace….” (Romans 8:6). He later challenges us to “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus….” (Philippians 2:5, NKJV) and assures us that “…we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:16). But how do we live this out in daily practice?

Some forms of meditation advise us to “empty our minds”. (In other words, make them a nothing box.) But even if this could be done, would it be wise? If we leave our mind open in this way something will fill it—and the results may not be pretty! How much better to heed the words of Philippians 4:8: “…Whatever is true…noble…right…pure…lovely…admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Emphasis added). Dr. Jay Adams suggests we use this passage to form a “think list” to combat the unhealthy thoughts vying for entrance into our minds and fill them with positive qualities for which we can praise God.

In itself, my mind is neutral (as is yours). Like time or money, how I use it determines if it’s good or bad. To avail its becoming close to a nothing box I’ve devised my “think list” and kept it handy. It’s one of the best things I’ve done to keep my life in focus. Try it—it works!

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan (with helpful input from Karen)