Tag Archives: negative thoughts

Our Source of Strength

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May [the God of peace] equip you with all you need
for doing his will.
May he produce in you,
through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
All glory to him forever and ever! Amen.
Hebrews 13:21, NLT*

The Christian life is about learning what it means to walk by faith, to let the Holy Spirit’s power in us be our source of strength.

This has become my quest in the past few weeks. I’ve realized part of the reason there’s been an invisible cloud over my head is that I’ve felt overwhelmed by the “stuff” of life. I’ve been trying to handle it on my own again.

The more I commit each day to God’s leading, including what goes or doesn’t go on the agenda, the more I pray “Lord, You direct me, strengthen and keep me focused,” the better it is.

I’ve been praying daily for protection from fearful and negative thoughts, and reminding myself in Whom I put my confidence.

Check out the credentials ascribed to God in the verse before our focus verse:

Now may the God of peace—who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood— Hebrews 13:20, NLT*

This God, we can trust.

I don’t need to be anxious or to overcompensate. If there’s potential for something to go wrong, either God will help me do it right, or He’ll work within the fallout. If someone else is angry with me about it, God will still be with me.

And I don’t need to think ahead and try to hold everything together. My times are in His hands.

I’ve seen a few changes to my default reactions—all good! And my spirit, lined up with His Spirit, has more peace.

God of peace, You are so good to us. You rescue us when we can’t help ourselves, You prepare good works for us to do and give us people to love… and You provide the power to do it because on our own we can’t do much of value. Forgive us for the times we try life in our own strength, and help us learn to rely on Yours. Because of Jesus, Amen.

∞

Here’s one of my favourite Cliff Richard songs, a worship song I remember singing many years ago to help me focus: “Be in My Heart.”

*New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Where Do We Focus?

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As an example of the Kingdom of Heaven, Jesus told the story of a shepherd who left 99 sheep and went in search of the one that was missing. It’s not that the wayward sheep was more valuable than the rest, but the man was responsible for them all and didn’t want any to be lost. At that moment, the need of the one was more urgent than the need of the many.

The shepherd made the right choice, to focus on the one.

Sometimes we don’t choose as wisely.

There can be 99 good things in our lives, and one negative, and how often do we focus on the one?

The failure. The fear. The imperfection.

One thing takes on more importance than 99 others and tips us from gratitude to despair.

It may be an area of weakness where God would like to make us stronger: a temptation we need to resist, or a responsibility we haven’t been meeting very well. Something we need to acknowledge and then prayerfully cooperate with God as He continues shaping us into the reflection of His Son.

God brings it to our attention to help us. The enemy of our souls points, mocks, accuses and demeans. We know which voice is healthy, but too often we listen to (and agree with) the poison.

Or maybe the “one thing” is something we can’t control or change: our smile, our shape, the pitch of our voice. Something we think makes us less than we long to be.

The Bible says we’re God’s handiwork and that His “workmanship is marvellous.” Our enemy says we’re defective. And fear makes us believe the liar over the Lover.

You are not defective. You’re designed by the Creator of the universe, and He loves you. (Click to tweet this.)

In the good things and in the bad, we need to keep our focus on the God who rescues and restores. Let’s remember His power and His character, and trust His plans for our lives. Let’s learn to walk in His strength and to recognize and reject the lies of our enemy.

Cloudy thoughts block the Light

Photo credit: Janet Sketchley

Piercing the Gloom

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After an evening struggling with discouragement, I woke the next morning from a dream about outnumbered soldiers in a battle where miracles were the only thing keeping them safe, where the final defenses were nearly breached but where victory may have happened at the end. And where the stakes were higher than the soldiers’ lives—where God had a higher purpose.

Lying in bed, thinking about my dream, I got a song: the Newsboys’ “Never Surrender, Never Say Die.”

Then my morning reading included this verse:

As soon as I pray, you answer me;
you encourage me by giving me strength.
Psalm 138:3, NLT*

Wow… I’d been praying for help, for focus and encouragement. I’d been doing my feeble best to keep my thoughts God-centered in the gloom.

This verse tells me God heard. And He answered as soon as I prayed. Not that I experienced the answer then, but I wonder how much easier the night would have been if I’d counted the prayer answered as soon as I prayed it—if I’d begun to thank Him for what He was in the process of doing, instead of waiting until I saw for myself.

Encouraged? Yes. Challenged? Yes. Thank You, God, and please help me be ready for next time.Prism rainbow with prayer quote

∞

*New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Review: Double Blind, by Brandilyn Collins

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Double Blind cover artDouble Blind, by Brandilyn Collins (B&H Publishing Group, 2012)

Lisa Newberry is a wreck. In recent years she’s had three miscarriages, lost her husband in a car accident, and barely survived a mugging. Depression is crushing her and she’s desperate and alone.

Her last hope is a clinical trial for a revolutionary new treatment for depression: a tiny electronic chip implanted in her brain. The chip works. But it also gives her visions—memories—of a murder.

Who is the dead woman? Has her body been found? And who killed her? Does he know Lisa has his memories through the tainted chip? Is he coming for her next?

As a suspense novel, Double Blind rates highly—no surprise for Brandilyn Collins fans. It’s a page-turning, bedtime-delaying read. The plot is fast, believable and nicely convoluted. But it’s more than just an exciting story. This is one of those potentially life-changing novels for a lot of readers.

Lisa’s recent life events have only added to self-worth pain from her childhood (raised by a single mother who found fault instead of praise). Negative thought patterns and emotions have deepened the original hurts. She doesn’t feel God anymore and believes He’s left her.

Her mother barges back into her life and learns about the visions. While the two women try to solve the mystery, they’re also repairing their relationship.

Lisa learns (and teaches us by example) to stand up for herself and to reject self-defeating behaviours. She learns to trust that God is always with her, even when her feelings disagree. Her mother learns a few parenting skills. All these are minor threads, rising naturally from the characters’ personalities and experiences. Double Blind is not a preachy novel, nor one filled with plastic-perfect examples that shame readers in our imperfect states.

It may seem odd that Lisa wasn’t under a doctor’s care for depression in the first place. I think it’s because the traumas were so recent and she’d withdrawn herself. Even her closest friend didn’t realize how bad things were.

Double Blind is the newest novel from Seatbelt Suspense® novelist Brandilyn Collins. You can learn more about the author at her website or find her Facebook page. You can also read an excerpt from Double Blind.

[Review copy provided by The DeMoss Group for a fair review.]

 

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Wise Words on Negative Thoughts

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Cloudy thoughts block the Light

Photo credit: Janet Sketchley

God’s been challenging me lately about negative thought patterns. It’s no surprise, then, that I’d start noticing other posts on the subject. Here are a few that have spoken to me this week:

Gladwell Musau points out that indulging in our own thoughts and opinions can actually quench the Holy Spirit. (Rainbow Gulf of Love: The Problem of Self)

In a post about the power of Scripture, Violet Nesdoly shows how “our own plans, ambitions, and the ways and means of achieving them (even at unspoken levels)” can keep us from God’s rest. (Other Food: daily devo’s God’s Paring Knife)

Melody Roberts gives a stiking visual illustration of the “trail of bad-attitude ooze” we can leave if we’re not submitting our thoughts to Christ’s control. (Melody Roberts’ Blog: Can I Get a Replacement for That?)

Carolyn Watts asks if we’re hurting God by the thoughts we think about ourselves. (Hearing the Heartbeat: A Surprising Way to Love God)

And Mark Shields reminds us of our weapons for this spiritual battle. (This Day With God: Weapons Against the Competition)

It Takes Two

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Teach me your ways, O Lord,
that I may live according to your truth!
Grant me purity of heart,
so that I may honour you.
Psalm 86:11, NLT*

These words remind me that it takes two—God and the individual—to grow a Christian. God is the teacher, and we need to apply what we learn. We can’t purify ourselves, but it’s our job to honour Him with our lives.

Living according to His truth includes believing Him, and that includes recognizing and rejecting negative thoughts. We choose to trust God because we’ve experienced His reality. He’s been teaching us, and we’ve been discovering His character.

Purity matters, too. Not so we can look perfect and show everybody else up, but so we can honour the God who rescues and restores us. We can be living examples of what He can do.

God our Creator and Sustainer, when we were separated from You, You brought us near. It’s only by Your goodness to us that we can stand in Your presence. Teach us Your ways, grant us purity of heart, and help us live according to Your truth and honour You.

∞

Brian Doerksen’s song, “The Jesus Way,” makes a good prayer.

*New Living Translation (NLT)Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Thoughts that Sting

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Choose…

which thoughts to

dwell on,

entertain,

agree with,

feed.

Choose life.

God has been reclaiming the garden of my heart from an infestation of negative thoughts. I had no idea how many of the enemy’s lies I’d bought, nor how deeply they’d rooted. I’m so grateful that He loves me enough to confront me with the problem, and to forgive me when I acknowledged my part in letting them take hold.

Listen to the father of lies? Believe what he says? Why in the world would a person do that?

But he makes them sound so reasonable, and they attach to our fears and masquerade as truth. Maybe that’s how to discern the difference: does the thought seem to confirm my fears, stir my anxiety? Or does it resonate with my spirit? I really need to check each thought at the mental garden gate and ask for ID. Friend, or foe? Prove it. 

Wasps in a nest

Wasps’ nest. Photo credit: Janet Sketchley

Not long ago, I was outside in a quiet spot, pondering what I’m (still) learning. A wasp flew into my space, September-stupid and slow. Instead of retreating like I’d do in with an aggressive summer wasp, I shooed it away with my hand.

It came back; I shooed it again. After a few times, it went away.

In the stillness, it seemed like God was asking, “Did you get that?”

I think I did.

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” Philippians 4:8, NLT*

*New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

“It’s All in Your Head”

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“It’s all in your head.” Doctors say this, maybe family too, and whether or not they intend it, you hear a dismissive tone. A put-down. A message that says “it’s your fault, you caused it, and it won’t go away until you decide to stop it.”

In all fairness, what a good doctor probably means is, “It’s outside my expertise to help you with something that’s generated in your mind.” The tone is probably genuine regret that s/he can’t help.

Let’s not get into the debate over whether it truly is generated in your mind. Doctors have been known to write off tangible physical responses to environmental and food sensitivities because the tests don’t show any proof. And other things actually are products of the mind.

The fact is, we’re still stuck with the problem until we get help. If a medical doctor can’t help, perhaps a naturopath or counsellor can—or a prayer warrior.

Today I’m thinking of the kind of thing that actually is all in the head: the lies or worldviews that we internalize and believe that limit and damage us. The garbage that needs taking out.

Cover of "Battlefield of the Mind: Winnin...

Cover via Amazon

For me some of that is self-pity, self-focus and just plain self. I found Joyce Meyer’s Battlefield of the Mind a very effective removal tool, and I need to read it again.

It’s important to recognize the mental crud, agree with Jesus that it doesn’t belong there, and then cooperate with Him to replace it with wholesome, holy, healthy thoughts.

If it’s all in my head… that means it’s not a tangible disease or limitation. Real, but it doesn’t need a scalpel, drugs or a prosthesis to fix. It just needs realigning my mind to God and cooperating with Him.

I find that liberating and encouraging.

God bless Peter Furler for his song, “All in Your Head,” where I first heard the encouraging tone and the assurance that “it’s all in your head” means “nothing’s really holding you back” and I could push through the blockage.

Progress!

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I’m preparing a talk for the local library, on “Writing Personal Experience Stories People Want to Read.” Last Saturday when everyone else was out, I opened the file and did my first talk-through.

It was… less than stellar.

The outline needs a bit of tweaking, but the points are sound. The illustrations of said points need major fleshing out. Did I expect to pull them out of the air in front of an audience?

Seasoned public speakers are probably nodding and saying that’s why we practice–to see what’s wonky or missing while there’s time to fix it. That’s what I say about a first draft in writing. It’s no big deal. You can’t polish what isn’t written yet.

As I umm-ed and uh-ed through this first attempt, the negative feelings clustered nearer. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, that sinking sense of hopelessness and desperation….

Before, I’d have drawn those feelings close like a comforting blanket and accepted their lies.

This time, God showed me what was  happening and reminded me I can choose what to believe. And He helped me choose to believe Him.

In the clarity of deception-free sight, I saw what my trial run really showed me: where to strengthen the material, and where I needed illustrations. It wasn’t proof of inadequacy at all, just a step in the preparation process.

I could have accepted the lies and given up. Instead, I’m relying on the truth that I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. I can do this. I can fine-tune the outline and locate good examples for each point. Several have already come to mind.

Public speaking is a stretch for me, but I’ve done it before and lived to tell. Recognizing and deflecting the lies is also stretching me, and I’m so encouraged to see progress!

 

 

Escape Route

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No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
1 Corinthians 10:13, NIV*

For some reason, I always think of this verse in terms of temptations to do things: steal, lie, cheat, whatever. When the opportunity presents itself, God will make a way that might involve a literal running away from it.

I’ve been reading Joanna Weaver’s excellent book, Having a Mary Spirit, and in one chapter she shares the example of a woman who couldn’t stop drinking too much with her friends but who believed this verse.

God promised to make a way… but she couldn’t see it. So, smart and desperate as she was, she asked Him to show her. Once she recognized it, she was ready to seize it!

I believe the promise too, and rely on it, but this idea of asking Him to show me the escape route caught my attention. (Guess that makes me less than smart and less aware of my desperation!)

As this realization hit me, so did another: this works for temptations of attitude and self-focus too!

We tend to believe the lie that what happens inside us just “is” and while we may pray for release we think it’s up to God to change us. But as He retrains our minds, we do have a part to play. We have to cooperate, or to use Paul’s words, we have to bear what we can and to stand.

And we have to be patient with ourselves, as God is, when we mess up. We need to get up and go another round… or 20… until the fight is won.

Lately I’ve noticed that when the temptation comes, often so does a verse or part of a song: something to help me keep focus. When I’ve chosen the good thoughts, the bad faded away. I just hadn’t recognized these as escape routes!

Father, this is a big deal for me, because most of my temptations are those inner ones. Thank You for the promise of a way out. You know our weakness, and You are faithful to help us. I believe You want to strengthen us as we learn to rely on You. Help me do that. Help me recognize the mental temptations that come, and help me see—and take—the way out!

“Stay Strong” from the newsboys is a great reminder to stay on track.

*New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.