There was a time in my life when I thought I would scream if one more person said to me, “Just don’t worry about it.” “Just,” I thought. “Apparently you think refraining from worry is a simple proposition!”
Honestly, I had no idea how to stop worrying. “But what if we don’t have enough money? Or one of us is in a car crash? What if things don’t work out like we need them to work out?”
The roots of this kind of negative anticipatory thinking can be many. As for me, worry was a way of dealing with unpleasant circumstances that were outside my control.
Its twisted but here it is. Somewhere along the way I bought into the lie that analyzing the problem over and again . . . to the point of sometimes making myself ill . . . would solve the problem. That’s a big, fat, lie!
Worry is actually meditating on the negative.
Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly. Trust me. Deep breath . . .
Ready?
What will it take for you to control your thoughts?
Yes, there is personal responsibility in this matter. My job and your job is to take control of what we think.
Here are two very important strategies for controlling your thoughts, which means you will then choose the thoughts on which you will meditate. Bottom line: then you can control worry rather than allowing it to control you.
1. Study the Bible to know the Son of God and to learn the truth of God. If we truly believe (mentally accept and act on) these and other truths, we can use the truth of God as a weapon to combat the lies that Satan plants in our minds.
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2 New International Version (Emphasis mine)
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17 (NIV – Emphasis mine)
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” I John 3:1a (NIV – Emphasis mine)
“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” I John 5:13 (NIV – Emphasis mine)
2. When lies from Satan and negative thoughts (such as worry) come into our minds, we must take them captive.
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (NIV – Emphasis mine)
When the thought enters your mind, “catch it.” Be aware of what you are thinking!
Question the thought. “Is this based on the truth of God or is it a lie from Satan? Will I continue to think about this, meditate on it, and think about all possibilities?”
If the thought is not based on truth, take charge! Replace what you are thinking with another thought. Memorize this verse so you will be ready for this spiritual warfare:
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9 (NIV – Emphasis mine)
Memorize this list of good thoughts to dwell on.
- True
- Noble
- Right
- Pure
- Lovely
- Admirable
- Excellent
- Praiseworthy
This is one tool you can use to break a bad habit of dwelling on the negative and on thoughts that Satan plants in your mind.
“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one (Jesus) who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Hebrews 4:15-16 (NIV – parenthetical phrase and emphasis mine)
Sin does not occur at the moment Satan plants the thought into the mind, otherwise Jesus would be guilty of sin because he was tempted in every way. Sin occurs when we pick up the thought and act on it, which includes letting it simmer in our minds.
Jesus offers freedom from worry. We must believe him — mentally accept His truth and act on it!