Good Intentions - Pt 2

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2 ESV).

The second thing I would encourage you to practice in your life this year is to think positive thoughts. The most current research suggests that human beings think three or four negative thoughts to every positive one. Many people I counsel admit to negative self-talk. In fact, they become so easily entangled in this destructive habit that they are debilitated with anxiety to the point of distraction and fear of the future. When things are going wrong, that’s the most difficult time to be positive. But a steady stream of hopeful or reassuring thoughts can help bring us back to the truth that we are not alone. The apostle is clear in our reading today that the path to being transformed is through the renewing of our minds. This is done from within. It is how we think that makes the difference. In fact, he models that when he says, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). It is a proven fact that thoughts like “It’s going to be OK!” are better thoughts to think than “I’ll never be able to do it!” Thinking on the true and good thing (cf. Philippians 4:8) is far better than allowing fear to overcome you. No matter how bad the situation is, remember you are loved beyond measure. I am not suggesting that this is merely an attitude in our head. There's an active positive attitude that we can do. We can wear positive, constructive thoughts. Then it becomes the attitude that compels us to move forward to keep living, the same way our hearts keep beating. That's the attitude that can make the difference. It's the difference between letting life pass us by and dancing in the rain, doing what we set out to accomplish, no matter what, however big or little of a thing that might be. What if, instead of staring out the window, feeling defeat while sitting idly by, blaming ourselves for not having a strong enough attitude, we took a different approach? What if we slid on our rain boots and stepped out into the rain? What if we actually moved? What if we let our bodies sway side to side and tapped our rain-booted toes in the splotchy puddles. What if we twirled around with our arms wide? What if we just kept going? What if we really danced in the rain? Make that a part of your practice this coming year.