Choose your View

You may need to sit down for a bit to read this post.

Seriously.

It will be powerful.

Sitting down yet?

This is God's word:
Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.
Proverbs 4:23 (TEV)

Can I suggest you read it again?
Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.
Proverbs 4:23 (TEV)

Some of you may know this truth said slightly differently....
Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that's where life starts.
Proverbs 4:23 (MSG)

Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.
Proverbs 4:23 (NKJV)

Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do.
Proverbs 4:23 (NLT)

I got this email letter from Lee Colan recently. I like Lee's work. I have used his stuff before here.

Before we go to Lee, Tracy did another quality post recently called "Find the Best, Not the Worst." You can read it all here. In it she makes a very honest statement, that links with what we are saying here about our thinking.

Last night God challenged me.

Everytime I catch myself with a negative thought about someone or something, I am to respond by finding 2 positive things. For every thought that focusses on the 'Worst', I am now challenged to find 2 thoughts that focus on the 'Best'.

This is my way of "doing my best" to fill my mind on the best, not the worst.

Wow!!

Here is what Lee writes - great perspective Lee!

Our experiences are much less important than how we choose to think about them.
The way we interpret our experiences shapes our beliefs about the past.
Furthermore, our interpretations either limit or enable our future success.

For example, a mission-critical project you are leading has "promotion" written all over it, but it bombs – it's over budget, past its deadline... the works. How you choose to interpret those facts is where you can shape your future. Are you a failure, a poor leader who is maxed out and on her way out? Or, are you a great leader in the making who is learning some tough lessons that will help ensure success on the next project when your true colors will show? Facts are facts, but the view you take is your choice.

Think the best ALL the time.
What's the harm?
If you choose to protect yourself from disappointment by always thinking the worst, you have also chosen disappointment as the filter through which you view all things and people... and that's just what you will get. On the other hand, you can choose to think the best all the time. Sure, you might be disappointed occasionally but, most of the time, you will be programming your mind and others to achieve their best.

If you find yourself having a negative thought, say "STOP!" out loud, and replace it with a positive thought. Saying "STOP!" out loud is important so that you can actually hear yourself controlling your own thinking. Let's see how it works.

A friend told me about a situation that used to drive him crazy. He would drive home after a hard day through rush hour traffic and find the driveway to his garage impassable, blocked by his children's bicycles and toys. He reacted something like this: "These kids have no sense of responsibility. They never pick up after themselves and it's a hassle for me to move their junk just to get in the driveway."

Then he said, "STOP!" out loud. He decided to choose a more positive view and he responded with, "My kids are still kids. It looks like they had a great time today. Boy, how time flies... I had better seize the moment with my kids."

Sure, the driveway still looked like a yard sale after a wind storm and his children did not put their toys away. Nothing changed except his interpretation of the facts. He substituted gratitude for anger and changed his mind for good.

Remember, when you change the way you look at things, things change the way they look.

I'll let you think about this for a bit!

PS - the power of our thinking is VITAL.

So in honour of that I am going to "label" or "blog tag" this post with the label "thinking." That way you be able to search in the future all posts about "thinking."

What do you "think" about that?! Ha ha!

And remember - let God's Word be the final word....

Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.
Proverbs 4:23 (TEV)