2021-09-04
Philippians 4:8 NLT
Positive self-talk isn’t a new concept; it’s a Scriptural one. Paul writes, “Fix your thoughts on what is true…honourable…right…pure…lovely, and admirable…things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
Here are three ways you can do that: (1) Avoid comparisons. Each of us has a different skill set. You’re unique. The way you do things may differ from the techniques of others, but that doesn’t make it wrong. As the old saying goes, “There’s more than one way to skin a cat.” (Try not to imagine how that adage originated!) Comparison is unwise, unfair, and fosters negativity. Unless you’re the reigning world champion, there’ll always be somebody better than you at a specific skill. So what? You don’t need another tiara!
(2) Tack on hope. The Bible says, “Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept on…believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, ‘That’s how many descendants you will have!'” (Romans 4:18 NLT). And the Psalmist said, “I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God” (Psalm 42:5 NIV). There’s power in the word “yet.” It can miraculously transform your “I can’t” perspective, into “I can with a little more time.” The difference is subtle but profound.
(3) Act positively to actually become positive. In Winning the Stress Challenge Dr. Nick Hall cites a study confirming that signals transmitted to a person’s brain when they’re behaving a certain way, provoke similar physical and mental changes to those elicited by real emotional responses. In other words, putting on a happy face can truly make you feel happier. Try it!
Soul food: Eze 24:1-27:24; Luke 20:1-8; Ps 20; Prov 19:24-29
2021-09-03
Job 9:27 NLT
Let’s start by acknowledging that sometimes life is hard. And at different times it’s harder for some of us than others. That’s why the Bible is realistic about it, and says there’s ‘a time to cry and a time to laugh’ (Ecclesiastes 3:4 NLT). But what if we only seem able to ‘cry’ about life? How can we reduce the strain of thinking and speaking negative words about ourselves?
Here are three ways: 1) Cut and paste. We need to train ourselves to recognise negative inner talk the minute it starts and delete it immediately. If it helps, we can even make a ‘time out’ signal with our hands as a physical reminder to halt the negative words. But we shouldn’t stop there. We then need to replace those negative thoughts with scriptural words. ‘Those who are careful about what they say keep themselves out of trouble’ (Proverbs 21:23 NCV).
2) Change the tone. Sometimes the words we use can exaggerate a problem and make it seem beyond our capabilities. We need to try and recognise when we’re doing this and replace those intimidating words with something that’s more accurate. We might replace ‘impossible’ with ‘challenging’, or we could choose to say ‘let’s tackle it one step at a time’ rather than ‘it’ll take forever’.
3) Speak like a best friend. We should speak to ourselves like we would speak to our very best friend, with love, care and kindness. The Bible says, ‘David encouraged himself in the LORD his God’ (1 Samuel 30:6 KJV). There’s power in God’s Word, so, whatever He says about us, we should trust His opinion and start saying the same things about ourselves.
Eze 22-23; Luke 19:41-48; Ps 142; Prov 19:21-23
Job 9:27 NLV
Kom ons begin deur te erken dat die lewe soms moeilik is. Sommige van ons het dit moeiliker as ander. Dis hoekom die Bybel sê dat daar: “‘n Tyd om te huil en ‘n tyd om te lag…” (Prediker 3:4 NLV), is. Wat as jy egter net aanhou om oor die lewe te huil? Hoe kan jy die spanning en dreinering wat deur negatiewe self-praatjies veroorsaak word, verminder?
Hier is drie maniere: 1) Vervang dit. Leer jouself om die negatiewe innerlike praatjies die oomblik wat dit begin, te herken en wis dit onmiddellik uit. Jy kan selfs ‘n T-vorm met jou hand maak as ‘n fisiese gebaar om jouself te herinner om tyd te neem en dit te staak. Dit stop egter nie daar nie. Jy moet daardie negatiewe gedagtes met Skriftuurlike self-praatjies vervang. ‘Wie ‘n wag voor sy mond het, bly uit die moeilikheid’ (Spreuke 21:23 NLV).
2) Pas jou stemtoon aan. Jy weet hoe die dokter sê: ‘Jy mag dalk ‘n klein prikkie voel,’ wanneer hy die naald in jou arm steek? Gebruik sy tegniek en verminder groot negatiewe woorde tot klein woordjies wat nie so intimiderend is nie. ‘Onmoontlik’ is ‘n baksteenmuur teenoor ‘Hierdie mag dalk werk nodig hê.’ Sal jy nie eerder ‘n projek aanpak wat ‘uitdagend’ eerder as ‘onhanteerbaar’ is nie?
3) Wees jou eie beste vriend. Gebruik jou vriendelike stem om die negatiewe stem binne-in jou uit te doof. Praat met jouself soos jy met jou beste vriend sou praat. Die Bybel sê: ‘…Maar Dawid het by die Here sy God krag ontvang’ (1 Samuel 30:6 NLV). Herlaai jou gedagtes. Herprogrammeer jou denke. Daar is krag in God se Woord. Begin dus om diesefde dinge te sê as wat Hy oor jou sê en kyk hoe jou lewe ten goede verander.
Sielskos: Eseg 22-23; Luk 19:41-48; Ps 142; Spr 19:21-23
Job 9:27 NLT
Let’s begin by acknowledging that sometimes life is hard. And some of us have it harder than others. That’s why the Bible says there is “a time to cry and a time to laugh” (Ecclesiastes 3:4 NLT). But what if you just keep “crying” about life? How can you reduce the strain and drain produced by negative self-talk?
Here are three ways: (1) Cut and paste. Train yourself to recognize negative inner chatter the minute it starts and delete it immediately. If you have to, take a chain saw to it. If it helps, make a “time out” signal with your hands as a physical reminder to yourself. But don’t stop there. Replace those negative thoughts with Scriptural self-talk. “Whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles” (Proverbs 21:23 NKJV).
(2) Tweak your tone. You know how the doctor says, “This may pinch a little,” as he jabs a needle into your arm? Borrow his technique and reduce big ugly blackhead wordage to smaller, unintimidating blemish terms. “Impossible” is a brick wall compared to “this may take some work.” Wouldn’t you rather tackle a project that’s “challenging” rather than “unmanageable?”
(3) Be your own BFF (Blessed Friend Forever). Using your BFF voice, intentionally over-dub that negative droning voice inside you. Speak to yourself like you would to your very best friend. The Bible says, “David encouraged himself in the Lord his God” (1 Samuel 30:6 KJV). Reboot your mind. Reprogram your thoughts. There’s power in God’s Word. So, whatever He says about you, start saying the same thing and watch your life change for the better.
Soul food: Eze 22-23; Luke 19:41-48; Ps 142; Prov 19:21-23
2021-09-02
Philippians 4:13 NLT
When you can’t choose or control your circumstances, you can still decide how you’ll respond to them. Paul was in prison when he wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always” (v. 4 NKJV). We’re addressing those who have a perpetually pessimistic outlook on life and talk negatively most of the time. This is serious stuff! “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit” (Proverbs 18:21 NKJV). That means you can talk yourself to death or talk yourself to life. This is Scriptural truth!
The trouble is we don’t always recognize when we’re engaging in negative self-talk, because it’s habit forming. We unconsciously develop a compromised view of ourselves when we constantly think and say things like, “I’m such a loser,” or “This is too hard; why even try?” We settle for defeat when with a few minor attitude adjustments, we could open the door to amazing possibilities.
The worst part of negative self-talk is that we don’t just limit ourselves; we limit God (See Psalm 78:41). As His redeemed child, there resides within you the power to think better, talk better, and do better. “Does the Bible say that?” you ask. Yes, Paul says, “To Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us…be glory…forever (Ephesians 3:20-21 NKJV). It’s time to draw a line in the sand and declare, “Whatever God says about me, I will say too!” And here’s a great verse to get you started: “I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”
Soul food: Eze 20-21; Luke 19:28-40; Ps 111; Prov 19:18-20
