FEEL AGAIN

Day 12

Thursday, January 13

Read:

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Philippians 4:8

Devote:

We all have different journeys we take in life, through bad times and good, but one thing is sure – if the Lord Jesus Christ is with us through the journey, we will make it through. I want to share with you my journey through depression. For many years, I suffered with what is known today as clinical depression. Throughout this, I struggled to understand what was going on and why this had happened to me. When I analyzed each of my steps, cause and effect, throughout this journey, what the Lord highlighted for me was the area of my thought life. I had much to learn about the power of thoughts, and how thoughts can transform your life. Like it says in the foundational Bible verse for this series, Proverbs 23:7, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” The Bible makes this concept of the power of our thoughts plain and simple: as a person thinks on the inside, this is who they will become on the outside. Our character becomes the complete sum of all of our thoughts. As the plant springs from and could not exist without the seed, so every act of a person springs from the hidden seeds of thought. A thought is a seed; this seed grows not only into an action but also into an emotion. In fact, if you are in emotional turmoil this can be a great thermometer to indicate that your predominant way of thinking is off center and that negative, harmful thoughts are influencing your life. The soul attracts those desires which it secretly harbors, those things which it loves, and that which it fears. We do not attract the life that we want, but rather that which we are. The soul attracts that which it secretly harbors. We think that our thoughts can be kept in the secret cave of our mind, but they cannot. We believe, “These are just thoughts, how can they affect my life?” The thoughts of our lives become the habitual patterns of our lives. I encourage you to decide today to do as Paul encourages us in Philippians 4:8, when he tells the Philippians to “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.” Decide today to live free from negative and harmful thoughts and to replace them with God thoughts.

Journal:

Jot down some of the thoughts you have tried to keep in the secret cave of your mind that have been harmful to you.

Reflect:

When you think of excellent and worthy of praise, what do you think of?

Pray:

God, give me the resolve and clarity of mind today to think on those things that build me up, bring me joy, and draw me closer to you. Amen.

Author:

The Mind: Mental and Emotional Health by Dr. Rob Carmen