1 Corinthians 14:13-17

“The expression ‘my mind is unfruitful’ means that the mind does not intelligently share in the blessing of the man’s spirit. The mind (the nous) is that faculty involved in conscious, meaningful reasoning and understanding of thinking, reasoning person.”

“There is a proper place for the intellect in Christianity. In praying and singing, both the mind and the spirit are to be fully engaged. When we sing, we should also think about the meaning of the words. When we pour out our feelings to God in prayer, we should not turn off our capacity to think. True Christianity is neither barren intellectualism nor thoughtless emotionalism. See also Ephes. 1:17-18; Phil. 1:9-11; Col. 1:9.”

• Give examples of the mind being “unfruitful” in the midst of spiritual activities.  What is the danger of this?  Is there evidence of this kind of mindless involvement in spiritual activities in my life?
• Are there some steps I need to take to more actively engage the mind in my prayer and in my praise?
• What aspects of contemporary Christian pop-culture does this passage warn against?