negative thinking

Pick up your sword and start winning the battle over your toxic thoughts.

The Negative Voice 

Does the little voice in your head tell you:

You’ll never succeed. You’re worthless. Your life is a mess. You can’t get yourself together. You’re a failure. You can’t do anything right. You’ll never do anything great or meaningful. There’s something wrong with you. You’re weak. No one really cares about you. You’re all alone. Your life doesn’t matter. What you’re doing doesn’t matter. Nothing ever works out for you. You’ll never reach your dream or be happy. No one cares about what you think, what you do, what you say or how you feel. You’re not making a difference in any ones life.  Just give up. Just quit. You’re not making any progress. It’s too late for you. You’ve missed your greatest opportunities. Just admit your life is just one big struggle. You’ll always be on the struggle bus…..

Do any of these thoughts sound familiar? Does your inner critic nag you like mine nags me? If we’re honest, most of us have thoughts like this running through our minds every day. And a negative thought life is one of the primary reasons why so many people are struggling with anxiety, depression, and addiction. For many people, the voice never goes away. It taunts and tortures them day and night. 

 

Mental Health Stats

According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, 16 million Americas live with major depression and 42 million live with anxiety disorders. And approximately 10.2 million adults have co-occurring mental health and addiction disorders. The battle millions are engaged in every day is not just a mental battle, it’s a spiritual battle. And spiritual battles have to be fought with spiritual weapons. 

 

Psychologists and researchers have identified various types of negative thinking patterns (or cognitive distortions—you can view the types here). But regardless of the type (s) you may be struggling with, the true battle is fought in the spiritual realm. 

 

Now, please hear me correctly. I don’t believe there is anything wrong with seeking professional help or taking medication for your mental health. God can and does use these human interventions to help us regain health. But let’s not forget the root of all this which is the enemy of our souls who comes only to steal, kill and destroy our health and peace of mind.

 

Your Enemy

Satan wants you to walk in anxiety and depression so he can destroy your purpose and impact. He wants you to walk in a spirit of fear, anxiety, hopelessness, depression, despair, discouragement, defeat and doubt. He hates you and wants to destroy your very existence. He doesn’t want you to know how anointed, gifted, powerful, impactful, successful, courageous, confident and strong you are in Christ. He hates the very image of you because you bear the image of his number one enemy—God.

 

So I’m here to remind you how you’re supposed to be fighting this battle in your mind. Know that you’ll never be able to stop the attacks that come against your mind but you are able to take every negative thoughts captive and make it cease in the name of Jesus. It’s time for you to stand in the power and authority God has given you as His child. You bear his name. You are marked by His blood. You have His power living in you. And He has given you supernatural authority to bind every negative thought in the name of Jesus. 

 

Demolishing Toxic Thoughts

2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to take captive and demolish every false allegation, lie, assumption, and negative belief that sets itself up against the knowledge of God. Any thought that is contrary to what God reveals in His Word about your identity, purpose, power, spiritual authority, position and significance in Him must be struck down and destroyed. Do not allow them to penetrate into your spirit. You can take control of your thoughts through the help of God’s Spirit and you can have your mind renewed as you think and meditate on the truth and goodness of God’s word daily.

 

As you wash your mind with the Word of God, you will be able to confront and capture those negative thoughts and make them obedient to Christ. And when you can disciple your mind, you’ll be able to see things from God’s reality. You’ll be able to see things from His perspective. And you’ll be able to take on the mind of Christ—where fear, doubt, worry, anxiety, shame, despair, depression, and hopelessness can NOT exist. 

 

When you are able to think and dwell on things that are “true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable and praiseworthy” (Phil. 4:8) your heart and mind will be guarded from negativity and you dwell in peace—the supernatural peace of God that transcends all human understanding (Phil. 4:7).  

 

Resolve to have the mind of Christ

I don’t know about you, but I want my heart and mind to experience THIS kind of peace. It is not God’s will for you or me to have our minds flooded with the noise of negativity. For God did not give us a fearful, anxiety-ridden, confused or negative mind. Rather He’s given us a sound mind—a self-controlled mind that is calm and at peace (2 Tim.1:7 AMP).

 

So ask God to make you more aware of the negative automatic thoughts that are flooding your inner world. And ask Him to help you take them captive so they don’t lead your life. He has given you the power to tread on those mental serpents and scorpions, and over all the power and mental daggers the enemy throws at you for nothing by any means shall hurt you. Please receive it. Believe it. And now go in the power and authority of Christ —commanding those negative thoughts to line up with the word of God. Because PEACE OF MIND IS YOURS TODAY!

 

Grab the mindet reset guide that accompanies this post. Click the button below.

Mindset Reset Guide 03

 

Talk to Me

What thoughts and mindsets are you currently struggling with? Or, if you have overcome toxic thoughts and negative mindsets in your life, what strategies did you use to confront and resist them? Drop me your comments, story, or questions below.

 

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Mental Health Worksheets

 https://www.therapistaid.com/worksheets/automatic-thoughts.pdf

https://www.iwanttochangemylife.org/tools/cbt-worksheet-thought-record.pdf

https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/challenging-automatic-thoughts-positive-thoughts-worksheets/

Faith-Based Resources

Battlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyer

Crash the Chatterbox by Steven Furtick

Detoxing Your Mind by Dr. Caroline Leaf -YouTube

Guide to Getting Unstuck

Guide for Living Unapologetically

 

 

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