A psychiatrist in England recently made an interesting revelation at a conference in Wales. Dr. Nick Warner revealed that a hymn penned in the mid 1800s is the most common theme heard in what he termed "musical hallucinations." We all have a tune that gets stuck in our heads, but in a musical hallucination, the song is heard as if it were really being played. About one in 10,000 people over 65 years of age report musical hallucinations. They are most common in people suffering from hearing problems.

Dr. Warner and a colleague studied 30 elderly people who experienced musical hallucinations. The tunes they heard ranged from "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina," to "Yes, We have no Bananas." Over half of the people heard some sort of religious music, either hymns or Christmas carols. Six of the thirty heard the same song, "Abide With Me." That is a statistically significant number considering the people did not have the opportunity to speak to one another about what they heard.

Dr. Warner believes the reason many people hear this song is that it brings sense of comfort and hope. He said, "The words of 'Abide With Me' are tremendously uplifting, hopeful words about heaven and God not abandoning us when we are dying." Warner says, since we are becoming increasing secular, as the population ages, more people may start hearing the Beatles, or the Rolling Stones, because musical hallucinations tend to be songs people have heard many times.

—Reuters, 'Abide With Me' is Top Musical Hallucination, March 8, 2004, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell

We need to be careful what we put into our minds today, because it may return in unexpected ways in the future.

Philippians 4:8-9 NIV "Finally, brothers whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praise worthy —think about such things. Whatever you have received or learned from me, or seen in me— put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."

Dr. Gary Small, a psychiatrist at UCLA says his research suggests that exposure to digital technologies such as the Internet and smart phones can alter how the brain works. Small asserts the neuro-connections in the brain involved in face-to face contact can become weaker when the brain spends more time on technology-related tasks and less time exposed to people.

Though Small admits they need to do more study on the issue, he says increased use of electronic gadgets may be changing the way we read, learn and interact. He is concerned that this may lead to social awkwardness and isolation and even less interest in traditional classroom learning. Small says the effect is strongest in people he terms digital natives, the people in their teens and twenties who have been “digitally hard-wired since toddlerhood.” Small thinks it is important to help the digital natives improve their social skills and older people, who he terms “digital immigrants,” improve their technology skills.

--Scientists ask is technology rewiring our brains; http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081203/ap_on_sc/sci_digital_brain; Wednesday, December 3, 2008.Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Sounds good to me. We should change the way our brains think. No, I don’t have an opinion about Small’s research, but I am convinced that believers should allow God to change their way of thinking.

Romans 12:2 CEV Don’t be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him.

In her book, Throw Out Fifty Things: Clear the Clutter, Find Your Life, Gail Blanke challenges her readers to go room by room in your house throwing out things, then go to work on your mind. Get rid of mind clutter.

Good stewardship means we keep focused on what is really important, and it is not usually the things we clutter our lives and our homes with. What things are you storing that you can do without? What thoughts are you hanging onto that you would be better off without? Bitterness? Grudges? Negative thoughts? Throw them out.

--USA Today April 15, 2009, p. d1. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell

1 Timothy 6:11 (Phillips NT) But you, the man of God, keep clear of such things. Set your heart not on riches, but on goodness, Christ-likeness, faith, love, patience and humility. Fight the worthwhile battle of the faith, keep your grip on that life eternal to which you have been called, and to which you boldly professed your loyalty before many witnesses.

All of us like to hang on to things that help us remember important moments in lie. We store pictures and letters in boxes, and might even keep a receipt form an important meeting or date. Digital technology has reduced the amount of space required to keep those memories safe. Now we use digital pictures, CDs and DVDs, and portable hard drives to keep our memories. For the past decade, Gordon Bell, a Microsoft researcher, has been moving data from his brain to computers because he knows the information will be safe there.

Bell is 75 years old, and uses scientific devices to document his life. He carries around video equipment, cameras, and audio recorders to catch every aspect of his daily existence. Bell saves everything from restaurant receipts to letters, bills and medical records. He even makes PDF files out of every webpage he views. Bell says in the next few years our entire lives will be online and searchable. Inexpensive digital memory, smart-phones, and the storage capabilities of the Internet will make the transition inevitable. Bell says no one will worry about storing the details of their life in their head, because they will use computers. He says the information revolution will “change what it means to be human.” So far, Bell has stored 350 gigabytes worth of information, not including streaming audio and video data. He says “e-memory” is better than biological memory because it never forgets. It is like having a transcript of your life.

--Microsoft researcher converts his brain into ‘e-memory.’ http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/09/25/total.recall.microsoft.bell/index.html; September 25, 2009; Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Psalm 105:4-8 (NLT) “Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him. (5) Remember the wonders he has performed, his miracles, and the rulings he has given, (6) you children of his servant Abraham, you descendants of Jacob, his chosen ones. (7) He is the Lord our God. His justice is seen throughout the land. (8) He always stands by his covenant— the commitment he made to a thousand generations.”

When the scientist Stephen Hawking was suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease at the age of 21, he was told by the doctors that he would survive only a few years. But he could celebrate his 70th birthday on 8 January, 2012.

Doctors remarked that Hawking is living today by the life sustaining power unknown to science. Hawking, who believes that science governs the universe, cannot deny the fact that he himself is benefiting from some kind of force, not beholding to science.

--http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/08/stephen-hawking-birthday_n_1192286.html Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Bawm Luk Lagwi

Proverbs 23:4 (NIV) “Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness.”

--Pastor Challenges Christians to Detoxify Their Soul, http://www.christianpost.com/news/pastor-challenges-christians-to-detoxify-their-soul-74755; May 11, 2012, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Proverbs 4:23-24 (GNB) Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts. Never say anything that isn't true. Have nothing to do with lies and misleading words.