Be wary of your thought life

Proverbs 23:7 alludes to the fact that as a man thinks in his heart, so he is.  Jesus cemented this point with his sermon that said if a man thinks lustfully towards a woman, he already commits adultery.  Also if a man is angry with his brother, he already commits murder.

There was a site I came across discussing this point (http://bit.ly/8XH8Hq) and some of the reader comments unpacked the argument nicely.

One comment says that the difference between dwelling on an action and doing it is opportunity.  Opportunity without desire is harmless.  Desire without opportunity, however, is trouble waiting to happen.  This supports what Jesus was saying (above).

Another commentator said that "you don't have to murder to be a murderer, but you have to be a murderer to murder".  Again this speaks to the attitude of the heart.

The argument can be captured by the saying: "You are a product of your thoughts".  What this means is that all I am now is a result of my thinking.  If what I am currently is not who I want to be (including character, status, what I own), the good news is that what I aspire to be is solved by my thinking.  There is a certain thought life that will take me to a desired end (vision), thus if I align my thinking with the required thinking, I will get there.