We're all guilty of the same thing...

I'm reading through the Beth Moore study Jesus the One and Only today on Luke 7:36-50 about "A Sinful Woman Forgiven" and came across this sobering statement:

     "I am learning that my heart and mind are of greater importance to Him than my words and deeds.  Our innermost places desperately need daily purification.  Part of the process is recognizing and confessing the judgmental, impure, or critical thoughts before they can make their way to our mouths and our actions.  God really can change our negative thought processes, attitudes, and motives.  The process takes time and cooperation, however, because these thought patterns are just as much habital sin as the transgressions of the woman of ill repute."

Wow...how completely convicting.  So convicting, in fact, that it prompted me to search the Scriptures for some additional information.  Here is what I've found so far:

God knows our thoughts:

• The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.  Genesis 6:5
• ...He who teaches man knowledge-the LORD-knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath.  Psalm 94:10-11
• Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts.  Psalm 139:23

Habital Sin:

• For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins...  Hebrews 10:26
• We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.  1 John 5:18

Secret Sin:

• You have set our iniquities before You, our secret sins in the light of Your presence.  Psalm 90:8

God almost always uses song lyrics to speak to me and I use song lyrics as my means of prayer and there is a chorus that comes to mind:

"And we're all guilty of the same thing.  We think the thoughts whether or not we see them through..."   Forgiven by Relient K (Matthew Thessien)

A huge struggle of mine that I will probably write about over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over...you get the point!