In wrote this for the church blog – thought I would share it
I made a discovery – I feel my thinking, not my circumstances.
If we sit on a roof together, you may think, “What a great view”. I may think, “I’m going to fall off”.
Who is right? The circumstance is the same, but we simply have our own thoughts, in turn creating our own unique experience.
So where does a thought come from? Romans 12 tells us how we can be transformed by the renewing of our mind.
Isn’t it great that that freedom is on offer to us today?
Will we accept God’s gift?
Random stuff comes into my head. I replay history. I dwell on unhelpful thoughts, which in turn I then experience in my feelings.
So many of us are trapped by guilt, yet we are just one thought away from freedom. We are not broken. We have all that is necessary for “success”. I don’t mean money or status (the measure of the world) but a deep contentment and the peace of God. Today we can have a fresh insight.
I wonder what video recorder is playing in your mind today? Is it possible to have an alternative thought?
A friend of mine bought a new car. The following morning he came outside and found someone had dented it. For a moment shock, anger and revenge filled his thoughts and he noticed crossness well up within him. Then he wondered, “How will I feel about this in a year’s time?” Answer, “It won’t bother me. Great. So why not fast forward and think that way now?” Immediately he settled down, became much calmer and was able to make better judgments.
The circumstance was the same but the thoughts and feelings were radically different.
I wonder if there are simply three sources of thought: God, Satan and our self. In simple terms James 4:7 says, “Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee”. If we die to self (as
called on through scripture) then the remaining voice is God. Which voice are you tuning in to today?
I hear people feeling offended about the idea that “we make it up and from that thought is the feeling”
To take offence is our choice. We may get angry. We “make it up” and dwell on the self-righteous actions so that others know our disapproval. Yet we are just one thought away from freedom. Whilst this pattern can work on a secular level, what power there is to know that there is freedom in Christ today.
Whatever circumstance you face today, know that it cannot affect you without your express permission. It is purely how you think about it. No two people will necessarily think the same.
Let’s realise that life is from the inside out, know Jesus and that freedom is one thought away.
Nigel Hyde