Changing Our Thinking

What do you do when your mind is going in a direction you don't want it to go?

What do you do when your caught up in patterns of anxiety in your mind and you're not sure how to stop them?

Is there any way we can change our thinking?

The answer is that, yes, we can change our thinking.

But, if we're looking for an easy fix, then we're going to have a problem. There's no promise of an easy fix.

Scripture does make it clear that our minds can be renewed - that we can change the way we think.

Romans 12:2 tells us that we can "be transformed by the renewing of our mind." 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 talks about our ability to take thoughts captive to make them obedient to Christ. In Philippians 4:8, Paul tells us to think on things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy.

These Scriptures would indicate that we do have the ability to change the way we think. We can choose to think on something different. We have that ability.

But, how do we do that? What does it look like?

What about when it seems like we can't change our thought patterns, not matter how hard we try?

I think the key to this is returning to Scripture. We need to take the time to find the truth of what Scripture says, and then we need to fill our minds with it.

This isn't an instant process. We may have to continually remind ourselves of the truth of Scripture. It's something we have to be intentional about, until it becomes our habit.

As I've learned this process in my own life, I've seen how it can and has changed my thinking over time. I've had to be intentional about it - especially in the moments when it's easiest for my thinking to go back to those old ways.

One of the things, I've learned is of the importance of having the truths from God's Word ready when I'm in the midst of a struggle. Those are the times when I need to be able to remind myself of God's truth clearly. Sometimes, this means going back to Scripture I've memorized.

Other times, it's actually having those Scriptures in a list that I can easily pull up an read - often out loud. This is especially true when it's a bigger challenge in my thinking. For me, one of those times is when my anxiety starts to take over my thinking. Then, the only way I might be able to stop it is to start declaring the truth of God's Word out loud and I need to have it where I can easily read it and access it. For me, that means it's actually in a note on my phone. Since my phone is pretty much always within reach of me, this is a helpful place for me to have this list of Scriptures.

Just because we find the Scripture and the truth doesn't mean it's going to instantly change. We have to commit to the process and be willing to dig in with it every time the issue arises again. Some days, it seems to have more impact on changing my thought life, than others. But, over time, it is slowly changing things.

The important thing is that we continue to go back to the truth of Scripture to change the way we think. No matter how many times we have to go back.