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What we allow ourselves to think will determine our attitudes and actions toward certain situations and people in our lives. When we try to change what's on the outside only (the way we dress, talk etc..) and not what's on the inside, we will inevitably return to our old way of thinking and we'll never experience real change.
If we want a long lasting change then we need to deal with our mindset. Our life will get better and better if we spend our time and energy fasting from wrong thinking. Bad thinking will keep us battling wrong thoughts. Wrong thoughts keep us in a shell that's hard to break out of.
God doesn't want us to battle or struggle with wrong thinking forever; He wants us to gain strength from the struggle and then break out of the prison of wrong thinking and experience the destiny and victory that He designed for our lives.
Most of the time, the battle is not really with individuals, or our circumstances, but the struggle that goes on between our ears. We tend to think wrongly and assume many things that really are not true or we assume the worst because of past experiences.
The quality of life we're living will be determined by the mindset that we've embraced.
Most detrimental mindsets are prejudices that are preconceived in our thinkingfor some reason or another. ie: "Lawyers are sharks"; "Preachers just want my money"; "All men think alike "; "You just can't please women"... Thinking like this forms an attitude towards a person before we really know anything about him or her individually.
Other mindsets that limit us:
1. "It's not my fault I'm the way I am"- We blame others and make excuses for how we behave - we have a victim mentality
2. "Poor me"- nobody cares about me - we don't show love to others but only think of ourselves
3. We focus on the one thing we can't have instead of on all the other ones we can- The one tree that we can't eat from becomes a stumbling block to us
4. When we're afraid that we won't have enough - we step on others to get what we want and care nothing about anyone else in the process
5. "If only I had his life"... ; "I wish I had her husband"... ; "If I had more money, then I would be happy" - We're never satisfied with what we have
6. "I could never ask for that"; "God could never do that for me, He has better things to do" - We don't know or understand the promises of God
A sound heart is life to the body, but envy is rottenness to the bones. Pr 14:30
For God did not give you a Spirit of Fear, but of Power and Love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7
Let the peace of Christ have power over your hearts. You were chosen as a part of His body. Always be thankful. Colossians 3:15
The peace of God is much greater than the human mind can understand. This peace will keep your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ. Philippians 4:7
"I do not give peace to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and afraid." John 14:27
For the Lord God is a sun and a safe-covering. The Lord gives favor and honor. He holds back nothing good from those who walk in the way that is right. O lord of all, how happy is the man who trusts in You.! Psalm 84:11-12
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding, but acknowledge Him in all your ways, and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6
I will give honor and thanks to the Lord Who has told me what to do. Yes, even at night my mind teaches me. Psalm 16:7
God's word is living and powerful. It is sharper than a two-edged sword. It cuts straight into where the soul and spirit meet and divides them. IT cuts into the joints and bones. It tells what the heart is thinking and what it wants to do. Hebrews 4:12
Your Word is the lamp unto my feet and the light unto my path. Psalm 119:105
The only way that we can have the peace that surpasses all understanding, is when we give our lives to the Lord and find His promises to us in His word, the Bible. The more we learn about God and get to know Him personally, the more we'll be willing to put our trust in Him.
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