Power Thoughts: 12 Strategies to Win the Battle of the Mind (7 page)

Write It Down

Writing things down seems to really help me learn. For example, I have found that writing a list of all the positive points about a situation or a person, along with writing down related Scriptures, helps me remain joyful and avoid seeing things out of proportion. After I make such a list, I sometimes carry it with me so I can refer to it, or I go over it each morning. This helps me when I’m tempted to give place to wrong thinking. I call it “fighting the good fight of faith.” God has used this method to renew my mind in many areas. I have learned that the more I magnify and meditate on what’s good, the smaller my problems become. The same can happen for you. Just give it a try. Doing these exercises will help you form new thinking habits that eventually become very natural for you rather than something you have to work at.

Think about It

Think about a person or situation that is difficult for you and make a list of positive elements about it. Keep it with you and read it (aloud, if possible) when you are tempted to give in to wrong thinking.

Agree with God

We need to
constantly
renew our minds with the truth of God’s Word. I am not only writing a book about thoughts right now but I am also reading one for my own study and edification. We need to be “lifetime learners.”

I used to be a very negative person, so it took daily determination for me to reprogram my thinking. It took time, but gradually, as I applied new knowledge to this challenge, I developed a new way of thinking. Even though approaching things from a positive perspective has now become my normal response I still make it a point to read and study in this area periodically to give myself “refresher courses.” I know it was a major weakness for me and I never want to assume I have learned all there is to learn and know all there is to know. The dumbest person in the world is the one who thinks they know it all and have no more need to learn.

If we can learn to agree with God in our thoughts—to think the way He wants us to think—then we can have what He wants us to have, be who He wants us to be, and do what He wants us to do.

I have said many times, “We have to think about what we’re thinking about,” and I believe it now more than ever. If you’re in a bad mood, ask yourself what you have been thinking about, and you’ll probably find the root of your mood. If you’re feeling sorry for yourself, just think about what you’re thinking about; your attitude may need adjustment. Remember, “Where the mind goes, the man follows.” Our moods are directly linked to our thoughts, so good thoughts will produce good moods.

Think Responsibly!

We need to take responsibility for our thoughts. We must stop acting as if there is nothing we can do about them. God has given us the power to resist the devil by choosing to think on things that are godly and good. It gives me tremendous hope when I realize that I can be assured of a better life by thinking good thoughts. That is exciting!

God will show us what to do to “clean up” our thinking, but He will not do it for us. He gives us His Word to teach us, and His Spirit to help us, but only we can make the decision to do what we should do.

You can learn to think properly and powerfully if you want to; it will take time but it is an investment that pays great dividends.

The Bible is a record of God’s thoughts, ways, and deeds. As we agree with it, we are agreeing with God!

Think about It

Have you taken personal responsibility for your thoughts and attitudes? If not, write down that today is the day that you begin to take responsibility for how you think, jot down the date, and sign it as if you are making a contract with God.

CHAPTER

4

On-Purpose Thinking

I
t’s amazing how quickly and completely our thoughts can change our moods. Negative thinking of any kind quickly steals my joy and causes a variety of bad moods. When we are negative and gloomy, other people don’t enjoy being with us, and when our thoughts are down, everything else goes down with them. Our moods, countenance, conversation, and even our body can begin to droop in a downward position. Hands hang down, shoulders slump, and we tend to look down instead of up. People who tend to be negative in their thoughts and conversation are usually unhappy and rarely content with anything for very long. Even if something exciting does happen, they soon find something wrong with it. As soon as they see one thing wrong, they tend to fix their minds on it; any enjoyment they might have is blocked by concentrating on the negative. They may occasionally experience momentary enthusiasm but it quickly evaporates and gloom once again fills their entire demeanor. They probably do not realize they could be happy if they would simply change the way they think. We must stop merely
waiting
for something good to happen and take action to ensure that something good will happen.

I am truly amazed when I consider the fact that we have the ability to make ourselves happy or sad by what we choose to think. The Bible says we must be satisfied with the consequences of our words, whether they are good or evil (see Proverbs 18:20). It also tells us “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it” (Proverbs 18:21). Our words begin with our thoughts, so the same principle that applies to our mouths also applies to our minds. We need to be satisfied with the consequences of our thoughts because they hold the power of life and death. I would add that they hold the power of contentment and discontent, of joy and sadness.

The longer I live, the more I’m amazed by the fact that my mind so profoundly affects my moods. I still need to fight the battle in my mind and I doubt anyone reaches the point of being entirely “battle-free.” Of course, I have learned to discipline my mind more quickly than I once did, but there are still times when my mind comes under attack.

God has given us the fruit of self-control (see Galatians 5:22, 23), which means we do not have to allow our thoughts to be out of control, but we can be intentional in our thinking. We can control what we think, and we can choose our thoughts. God has given us the ability to make choices about so many things in life, including our thoughts, and we must be responsible to make those choices carefully. In the realm of the mind, exercising self-control and making wise choices is called “on-purpose thinking.”

Think about It

What are the most obvious ways your thoughts affect your moods? Can you think of a person or situation you tend to be negative about?

Great Thinking, Great Life

One of the most life-changing revelations we can have is to find out that we can do something about our thoughts. We can practice “on-purpose thinking.” We do not have to meditate on everything that pops into our minds; we can choose what we want to think about. We can choose power-enhancing thoughts—not power-draining thoughts. We can be deliberate about what goes on in our minds. We can break up with bad habits and form good habits. In fact, learning to think great thoughts on purpose is the key to a great life.

We often allow ourselves to buy into the world’s idea of a “great life.” We may equate greatness with fame, fortune, athletic success, celebrity status, remarkable business or scientific achievements, or physical attractiveness. But none of these things constitutes a truly great life. In fact some of the most famous and wealthy people in the world are some of the most miserable ones. To really have a great life, I believe a person has to have love, peace, joy, right standing with God, good relationships, and other qualities the world does not necessarily consider “great.” Without these things, how could anyone’s life be great? Just think about it: what do we really have without peace and joy; life is full of strife and misery; and no one considers that a great way to live.

Think about It

What is your own personal definition of a great life?

Three Keys to On-Purpose Thinking

God makes it clear in His Word that thinking is directly connected to quality of life. Through many years of studying, teaching, and writing about the mind, I can honestly say that your thinking
will
be transformed and your life
will
be changed
if
you will follow God’s instructions concerning your thoughts. In this section, I want to share with you three keys to great thinking. They all work, but none of them happens accidentally or without effort. If you want them to be effective in your life, you will have to incorporate them into your thinking on purpose.

1. Set your mind and keep it set.

The apostle Paul gives us valuable instruction about our thinking in Colossians 3:2: “And set your minds and keep them set on what is above (the higher things), not on the things that are on the earth.” He clearly tells us to think about things that are important to God (“the higher things”), and doing so will always fill our minds with good thoughts.

“Setting” your mind is probably one of the greatest and most beneficial things you can learn to do. To “set” your mind means to make up your mind firmly. Wet concrete can be moved with ease and is very impressionable before it dries or “sets.” But once it does set, it is in place for good. It cannot be easily molded or changed. The same principle applies to setting your mind. To set your mind is to determine decisively what you will think, what you believe, and what you will or will not do—and to set it in such a way that you cannot be easily swayed or persuaded otherwise. Once you set your mind according to the truth of God’s principles for a good life, you need to keep it set and not allow outside forces to reshape your thinking. To set your mind does not mean to be narrow-minded and stubborn. We should always be open to learning, growing, and changing, but we must consistently resist the temptation to conform our thoughts to the world and its ideas. To set your mind on things above means to be firm in your decision to agree with God’s ways of living no matter who may try to convince you that you are wrong.

When I began to conform my way of thinking and living to God’s Word I met with a great deal of opposition and had to be firm in my decision. For example, I discovered that when I tried to be positive it was not received well by those who had a habit of being negative. They told me that I was trying to live a fairy tale and that real life just wasn’t that positive. They told me that I could not “think” my way into success. I was actually accused of trying to operate in “mind control” as if it were something evil and even demonic. But, the truth is that God does tell us to control our minds and not to do so is inviting every form of misery into our lives.

Although it is sad, I had to realize that Satan would even use my family and closest friends to try to prevent me from making progress. They loved me but just did not understand and, sadly, we usually find fault with what we don’t understand. I had to know for sure that God was leading me, and I had to be firm in my resolve to think right thoughts so I could see right results in my life. My friends were accustomed to doing the same thing I had always done, which was to think according to what we saw and felt. It seemed strange to them that we could believe and think according to what could be instead of what was.

The reason setting your mind and keeping it set is so important is that there’s really not much hope of being able to resist temptation if you don’t make up your mind ahead of time concerning what you will do when you are tempted. The Bible states that because Abraham was “fully assured” concerning the promise of God, he did not waver or doubtingly question (see Romans 4:20, 21). In other words, he had set his mind and was able to keep it set during temptation. You will be tempted; that’s just a fact of life. So, you need to think ahead of time about the situations that can pose problems for you. If you wait until you are in the midst of a situation to decide whether or not you will stand firm, then you are sure to give up.

When we go on a diet, we must apply this principle of “setting your mind and keeping it set,” in order to be successful. You can easily commit to a diet after dinner on Sunday evening, but the real test comes on Monday afternoon when you start to feel really hungry. People who have set their minds will stick with their decisions, realizing that they have to make it through the hungry times in order to eventually get the result they desire. This same principle must be applied to every area in which we need to make a change. It can be applied to exercise, getting out of debt, cleaning out the garage, or any number of other things.

Make up your mind ahead of time that you are going to go all the way through with God. Some people spend their entire life starting and quitting. They never follow through. They may set their mind but when temptation comes, when things get difficult, they don’t keep it set. I strongly encourage you to be one of the ones who finishes what you start by keeping your mind set in the right direction all the way through to victory.

But we do [strongly and earnestly] desire for each of you to show the same diligence and sincerity [all the way through] in realizing and enjoying the full assurance and development of [your] hope until the end.

(Hebrews 6:11)

Whatever challenges you the most,
decide now
that you are going to set your mind for total victory. Talking to yourself ahead of time is one of the ways to set your mind. Some examples of what you might say to yourself as you set your mind in areas that commonly cause temptation include:

• “I am not going to think bad thoughts about other people and I am not going to gossip. I will not gossip. When someone around me begins to talk to me about someone else critically, I will not let myself get involved in it. I am not going to participate in ruining someone’s reputation. I will not offend the Holy Spirit.”