God makes it clear that we think quite differently from how He thinks. Isaiah 55:8-9 states: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
What does it mean for us that God’s thoughts are vastly different from ours?
Since God is God, and we are not, it means that we should take note of all He has to say in the Bible. The Bible is God’s communication to us, inspired by His Holy Spirit, penned by men who loved Him. [2 Peter 1:21: “For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”]
God made the effort to guide over 40 men over a period of 1500 years to write down His words for us. There were no computers. It was much more difficult to have written documents in those days. But God was not deterred, and instead, He enabled it to take place. Then He enabled those writings to be preserved and passed along so that we could have a version in our language.
It is significant that God took the effort to do all this for us. Therefore, we best pay attention to what He tells us, because that is how we know what He thinks. What He thinks matters more than what we think!
What should we think about? Paul writes in Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
On the days I think as outlined in the above verse, I have more peace, joy and less frustration. My relationships are healthier – first with God and then with people. If you have not yet tried focusing your thoughts on what is honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable and excellent, why not give it a try and see how your day goes?
In Romans 12:2: we are told: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” This verse makes it clear that our thinking needs to be changed, or transformed, as Paul stated.
God’s thinking never has to be transformed or changed. His thoughts are ALWAYS perfect.
It is challenging to understand that His thoughts are always perfect because we live in an imperfect world, with all of us being imperfect. But God is perfect, so we should carefully pay attention to His thoughts which are written in the Bible.
What happens in our lives when we focus our minds on God’s thoughts? Consider what Isaiah 26:3 states: “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.”
I want peace! The way to peace is through trusting God. The way to trust God is to spend time with Him, in His Word, and communicating with Him through His Holy Spirit. Do you want peace?
Spend time with God! It is always a winning proposition. His thoughts provide us with peace, because He is the Provider of our peace. John 14:27 reminds us of this: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
When our thoughts are on God, they are no longer troubled. Peace fills us!
How should we view God’s thoughts? King David states how he viewed God’s thoughts in Psalm 139:17: “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!”
Do we view God’s thoughts as precious? I want to always view them as precious. When I sin, I am rejecting His thoughts, and not considering them precious.
When we know God’s thoughts, we are able to pray according to His will, His desires. That is how we get answers to our prayers. 1 John 5:14-15 gives us this promise: “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”
Where do we get knowledge and wisdom? How do we know God’s will? We get it from God! We get it by reading the Bible. Consider Jeremiah 33:3: “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”
When we call upon God, truly seeking Him and His righteous ways, He will guide us. It may not be in our timing or in our way, because His thoughts are higher than ours!
One day, when we are with Jesus [all those who accept Christ as Lord and Savior] we will live by sight, and no longer by faith. But God requires us to live by faith on this earth. As we live by faith, God gives us sufficient understanding of His thoughts through the Bible.
Will you join me in spending more time in the Bible so that we can know God’s thoughts for living now? As we do this, what do you expect the outcome might be for us now, and for all eternity?
Please contact me at: ButGodCares@gmail.com if you want to talk about studying the Bible so you can know God better as you read His thoughts.
Living for Jesus, Donna
P.S. If this has helped you, please share it with others!
Note: If the verses for Bible references do not appear when you hover over them, go directly to the website, and they should appear for you. Also, please remember to look at the full context of the verses by reading the complete passage.
Copyright 2026 Donna Shappy All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other – without the prior permission of the author.