Change Your Thoughts Heal Your Life – Reaching Hurting Women Ministries

With our busy, stressed out life it’s easy for our thoughts to turn negative or unhealthy… allowing current events to bring worry and fear; doubting your self-worth; having sexual fantasies about people… the list could go on and on.

Let’s find help for this troubling issue.

In the early days of my recovery, I struggled constantly with my thoughts. After living a destructive lifestyle of sexual addiction, using pornography and fantasy regularly, I had a lot of garbage in my mind that I wanted out. But the harder I tried not to think about them the more they came. I was trapped with my past in my brain.

Then God showed up! One day in 2005 I found a verse that literally saved my thought life.

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. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. ~ Philippians 4:8-9 NLT

I wrote the verse on a 3×5 card and kept it with me all the time. Whenever a bad thought or image resurfaced I would pull out my card and recite it out loud. This is my confession:

I will think only on things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely admirable, excellent and praiseworthy!

If my thought didn’t fit into one of these categories it wasn’t allowed! Somedays I had to recite this over and over and over and over to keep my mind free of unwanted thoughts.

We can’t erase the memories we hold in our brain. As much as we want to we can’t push the negative thoughts out. But we can put new thoughts in. We have the power and ability to create new memories, by putting positive thoughts and images in. The more good we put in, the more bad stuff gets pushed to the background. Until one day they seem to be gone. OK, sure if I want to recall a past image, it’s definitely possible. The trick is not to allow those thoughts to surface long enough to bring all their baggage.

If there’s one principle that was a turning point in my life journey, it is this:

THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT!

If you don’t like what’s in your thoughts — put in some new things. You have the power to redecorate the rooms of your brain. Why not put pretty things there?

True… Noble… Right… Pure… Lovely… Admirable… Excellent… Praiseworthy…

Do your thoughts fit in these categories?

As an exercise to ground myself further, I did a word study on each of these categories. This was a great way to build them deeper into my mind and helped me tremendously.

If you’re struggling with your thought life, I challenge you to follow my example for one week.

You won’t be sorry!

Here’s a video teaching by Joyce Meyer on this same subject. I hope you are blessed by it.
http://youtu.be/SOvh_pLOfAY

Photo courtesy of 123rf.com

WHO SWITCHED OFF MY BRAIN? Controlling Toxic Thoughts and Emotions
by @DrCarolineLeaf
Published by Inprov, Ltd.
2009
175 pp

I’ve read countless books and have never gotten more excited. Not just about the book, but the topic, the science, and the implications this information can have on emotional and physical healing.

With creative schematics and easy to understand layman’s language, Dr. Caroline Leaf explains the fascinating brain science behind why and how our thoughts effect every area of our physical bodies down to the cellular level. She has an amazing talent for teaching both the scientific and spiritual aspects of the brain with incredible clarity.

Proving with science what Scripture has been saying for thousands of years.

For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. ~ Proverbs 23:7 AMP

Who among us doesn’t struggle with our thought life?

Leading us out of distress, Dr. Leaf reveals The Dirty Dozen ~ 12 specific areas of toxic thinking in our lives:

Toxic Thoughts
Toxic Emotions
Toxic Words
Toxic Choices
Toxic Dreams
Toxic Seeds
Toxic Faith
Toxic Love
Toxic Touch
Toxic Seriousness
Toxic Health
Toxic Schedules

Having recognized our toxic thought patterns we learn how to sweep our brains, step by step detoxing each area of our thoughts. By gathering, reflecting, journaling, revisiting, and reaching, we reprogram our minds to build a secure foundation for the change, health and wholeness we desire.

“Who Switched Off My Brain?” is interesting, educational, enlightening, entertaining, spiritually relevant… a step by step process that leads to physical and emotional healing!

An honest to goodness page turner. I literally couldn’t put it down once I started!

I highly recommend Who Switched Off My Brain?” by Dr Caroline Leaf.

Here is a video of Joyce Meyer interviewing Dr. Caroline Leaf.
Click here for another part of their interview.