I am sometimes guilty of dwelling on things. I am my own worst critic; I will replay scenarios in my head over and over, mentally kicking myself for mistakes I’ve made. Unfortunately, this also means that it’s not easy for me to forgive and move on when others wrong me. I will forgive, then take it back and dwell on it a while longer. I forgive again, then rehash the situation in my head. Round and round it goes.

Once those bitter thoughts make themselves at home in our minds, it’s hard to kick them to the curb, but we must get rid of them before they fester. Bitterness can take root and hinder us from being useful for the Lord (Hebrews 12:15). Our minds can either become dwellings for the enemy’s ideas or safe havens for the Holy Spirit to work through us. The choice is ours, and it hinges on what we decide to think. After all, Luke 6:45 says that “the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” (NIV).

When God gave Moses instructions on building the tabernacle, he said that it would become his own dwelling place (Exodus 25:8). God’s very presence accompanied the Israelites on their journeys! Later on, in the New Testament, Paul explained to the Corinthians that our bodies are now God’s temple (I Corinthians 6:19). God is not confined to a box; his Spirit makes a dwelling with us, personally. How awesome is that?!

Whenever you are tempted to dwell on problems (or problem-people) in life, remember the words of the psalmist: “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust’” (91:1-2).