Toss the negative thinking

"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

Did you know that 40 million adults in the U.S. suffer from some sort of anxiety disorder? Including many Christians? And if chronic negative thinking is to blame for a majority of it, why are so many people stuck in this hurtful pattern? Could it be that it requires a lot of intentional work to change? RP Jess, a runner, said this, "Negative thinking can determine the outcome of your race–no matter how fit you are. To change my thought process, I had to intentionally work on training my brain in the same way I intentionally executed my running workouts. Change didn’t happen overnight; in fact, years later I continue to work on changing my thoughts when I find myself spiraling into a whirlwind of negativity."

And you know, negative thinking can do more than just ruin a race, it can ruin your life. Negative thinking has the power to cause anxiety, depression, unbelief and dread. Paul knew that more than anyone having gone through imprisonment, shipwrecks, persecution and numerous trials. And yet he managed to remain joyful through it all. His secret? To take any negative thoughts he had and immediately replace them with ones that were "excellent and worthy of praise." In fact, he specifically tells us to do that very thing as well by directing our minds unwaveringly to thoughts that are "true, honorable and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable."

So you see, as Paul knew, we might not be able to change our circumstances but we can always change the way we view them by the way we think. And while you and I will have to intentionally work on training our minds to get in the habit of positive thinking, it will most certainly be worth the effort. Don't you agree?

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us the power to recognize harmful thoughts and to replace them with those that will empower, motivate and bring us peace. Help us to intentionally train our minds in the same way we do our bodies that we might be healthy both spiritually, mentally and physically knowing it will allow us to serve you better. Its' in your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen. 

Happy Running!!!

I am yours - Lauren Daigle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9B-81mZV5E

http://womensrunning.competitor.com/2017/10/race-pace-jess/negative-thought-patterns-training-5-tips_81921?utm_source=competitor.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pubexchange_module
https://adaa.org/about-adaa/press-room/facts-statistics