The Second Mind

Is it just me or are there times when you are praying that your minds begin to wander? “What am I going to wear today?” “I need to send so-n-so an email.” “What time is that meeting this evening?” Thoughts like these invade my mind even as I am talking to God.

The thoughts that try to intrude in our prayers are referred to as the second mind. People who meditate often focus on something or repeat a mantra to keep their mind from being distracted. For me, before I pray, I keep repeating, “You are getting ready to talk to the most high God.” I am trying to set the tone for my audience with the Supreme Creator. In essence, I am trying to subdue the restlessness of my second mind.

As singles, how many times have we started off with the best of intentions, but we have allowed ourselves to be sidetracked? We said things we should not have said, gone to places we should have visited, had sex at spiritually inappropriate times, etc. Very rarely do we wake up in the morning and we say “I am going to blatantly go outside of God’s will today.” In fact, we usually ask for His guidance. But something happens along the way.

That is the working of our second minds!

Let’s hope that our “first” minds are in the right place. If not, we are in a bad starting place and things will only get worse. We know our first minds are messed up when the wrong things we do are done with little resistance. Let’s have sex. Sure! Let me spread this rumor about someone. Sure! Cuss that person out who just did you wrong. Sure! If our first minds are set on God’s will, then when these opportunities to do wrong appear, we will try to resist them.

With our first minds straight, let’s get to our second minds. To subdue this less apparent part of our consciousness requires a lot of spiritual focus. We don’t start out doing wrong, but because we are not being vigilant, our resistance to temptation is weak. Activities like reading the Bible, going to church and to Bible study, praying consistently, adopting the principles of Godly love and putting the needs of others above our own will help us to keep our second minds in check.

Don’t get discouraged when your second minds get the best of you. Get up, brush yourself off and resolve to do better next time. Turn each moment of defeat learning into opportunities. Allow the Holy Spirit to turn your “lemons” into “lemonade”. As long as the first mind is on the right path, you are positioned to eventually overcome the traps of the second mind. The more you can get both minds in line; the more you can transform your singleness into blessedness.