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The human mind is a wonderful creation that is capable of worshipping the Lord. “Love the Lord your God with all your mind,” Jesus said.

The problem is when we overthink. When we put too much emphasis on our own head (our own thinking) and not the head of the Lord (His thinking), we will find ourselves struggling in our faith. That is what happened with Eve: 

But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness [trickery], your minds [overthinking] will be led astray from the simplicity [freedom from being false] and purity [cleanliness] of devotion to Christ. (2 Cor. 11:3 NASB) 

Overthinking is not a virtue! Aided by Satan’s suggestions, Eve’s overthinking led her into deception. It ushered her into unbelief and sin, which ended up separating her from the sweetness of God’s close presence. Overthinking can twist what God made simple into something complex and confusing.

Is there an area in your life where you might be overthinking?

I don’t mean any areas where you are still praying about God’s will or don’t yet know how He’s leading you. Nor do I mean to imply that using your ability to reason is somehow ungodly. I’m talking about overthinking—where the beauty of God found in simple things becomes lost in the maze of human deduction. Overthinking pushes us out of childlikeness, which we know God loves (Matt. 19:14).

What can we do instead of overthink?

We can choose to simply trust the Lord and not rely on our own understanding. Dear ones, I want to remind you of this Scripture:

It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him. (Heb. 11:6 MSG) 

This year, let’s return to the simplicity and purity of Abraham. He simply believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness (Jas. 2:23). He was even called God’s friend. There is something about simple faith that results in close friendship with the Creator.