2019-02-08
Romeine 8:6 NLV
Sodra jy tot ‘stink gedagtes’ ingee, versuur jou bui, verloor jy energie, voel God ver, voel gebed nutteloos, lyk sonde aanloklik en word jou lewensuitkyk somber. Wanneer dit gebeur, word jy so gefokus op hoe jy voel, dat jy nie besef dat dit jou denke is wat veroorsaak dat jy so voel nie. Kyk na Elia die profeet. Die hoogtepunt van sy loopbaan was toe hy vuur uit die hemel laat afkom het en die profete van Baäl verslaan het. Dit was ‘n yslike oorwinning! Toe het koningin Isebel ‘n boodskap na Elia toe gestuur: ‘Jy het my profete doodgemaak. Raai wat? Ek gaan jou nou doodmaak’ (sien 1 Konings 19). Elia het toe kop eerste in vrees ingeduik. Hy het waardeloos gevoel: ‘…ek is niks beter as my voorouers nie’ (vers 4 NLV). Hopeloos: ‘Elia… het gevlug’ (vers 3 NLV). Geïsoleerd: ‘…Net ek alleen het oorgebly…’ Nie in staat om dit te hanteer nie: ‘…Ek het nou genoeg gehad…’ (vers 4 NLV). Hy wou doodgaan: ‘…Neem nou maar my lewe…’ (vers 4 NLV). Hoe het God op Elia gereageer? Op vier eenvoudige maniere: 1) Hy het hom gehelp om ordentlik te eet en genoeg rus te kry. 2) Hy het met Elia in ‘n ‘sagte fluistering’ (vers 12 NLV) gepraat om hom gerus te stel en hom moed te gee. 3) Hy het Elia verseker dat hy nie alleen is nie: ‘Nogtans sal Ek 7 000 in Israel laat oorbly, hulle wat nie voor Baäl gebuig en hom vereer het nie’ (vers 18 NLV). 4) Hy het vir hom nog ‘n opdrag gegee om te vervul. Daar sal altyd ‘n ‘Isebel’ wees wat dreig om jou beste pogings ongedaan te maak en jou af te breek. Die sleutel is om jou gedagtes te beheer!
Sielskos: Gen 24:1-25:18; Luk 9:1-17; Ps 134; Spr 4:5-13
Romans 8:6 NIV
Once you give in to “stinking thinking,” your mood dips, you lose energy, God seems distant, prayer seems pointless, sin looks tempting, and your outlook in life becomes bleak. When that happens you become so focused on how you feel, you don’t realize it’s your thinking that’s causing you to feel that way. It happens to the best of us. Look at Elijah the prophet. The high point in his career was when he called down fire from heaven and defeated the prophets of Baal. It was a Super Bowl-sized victory! Then word came from Queen Jezebel: “You killed my prophets. Well, guess what? Now I’m going to kill you” (See 1 Kings 19). As a result Elijah plunged headlong into fear. He felt worthless: “I am no better than my ancestors” (v. 4 NIV). Hopeless: “[He] ran for his life” (v. 3 NIV). Isolated: “I am the only one left” (v. 10 NIV). Unable to cope: “I have had enough” (v. 4 NIV). He wanted to die: “Take my life” (v. 4 NIV). So how did God respond to Elijah? In four simple ways: (1) He helped him to start eating right and get proper rest. (2) He spoke to him in “a still small voice” (v. 12 NKJV), reassuring him and giving him courage. (3) He assured Elijah that he was not alone: “I have…seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal” (v. 18 NKJV). (4) He gave him another mission to fulfill. There will always be a “Jezebel” threatening to undo your best efforts and bring you down. The key is learning to control your thinking!
Soul food: Gen 25:19-27:46; Luke 9:18-27;Ps 138; Prov 4:14-17
2019-02-07
Romans 12:2 NLT
If a skunk gets into the crawl space under your house, opening the windows and using air freshener won’t solve your problem! There are people who actually specialize in dealing with skunks. They’re called “skunk whisperers,” and it’s not cheap to have them come to your home. But it’s worth it to get rid of the problem. How does all this relate to your thinking? Simply this: Your feelings are the odors and your thoughts are the skunk! To change your feelings, you must go to the source and deal with the thing that produced them – how you think. Thoughts produce feelings, not the other way around. Worried people tend to think anxious thoughts, and eventually those thoughts become so automatic that, like a lingering skunk odor, you stop noticing and learn to live with it. You get used to “stinking thinking!” Your thought patterns become as habitual as brushing your teeth. You get so accustomed to thinking bitter, anxious, selfish thoughts that you stop paying attention. If you want to change the quality of your life, you must change the way you think. The psalmist prayed, “Test me and know my anxious thoughts” (Psalm 139:23 NIV). God will help you become aware of what’s going on in your mind from one moment to the next. He’ll direct you to the place where the skunk lives and help you deal with it. Not only will He show you how to remove wrong thoughts, but how to replace them with the right ones by setting your mind on “what the Spirit desires” (Romans 8:5 NIV).
Soul food: Gen 20-23; Luke 8:40-56; Ps 125; Prov 4:3-4
Romeine 12:2 NLV
Wanneer ‘n muishond per ongeluk in jou huis inkom, gaan dit nie help om die vensters oop te maak en lugverfrisser te spuit nie. Daar is mense wat daarin spesialiseer om muishonde te hanteer en dis nogal duur om hulle na jou huis te laat kom om die muishond te vang. Dis egter die moeite werd om van die probleem ontslae te raak. Hoe hou dit met jou denkwyse verband? Eenvoudig: Jou gevoelens is die reuk en jou gedagtes is die muishond! Om jou gevoelens te verander, moet jy na die bron toe gaan wat hulle geproduseer het – jou gedagtes. Gedagtes produseer gevoelens, nie andersom nie. Bekommerde mense is geneig om angstige gedagtes te dink en daardie gedagtes word later so outomaties dat jy, soos ‘n muishondreuk wat in die lug hang, ophou om dit agter te kom en leer om daarmee saam te leef. Jy raak gewoond aan ‘stink gedagtes!’ Jou denkpatrone word ‘n gewoonte, soos om jou tande te borsel. Jy raak so gewoond daaraan om bitter, angstige, selfsugtige gedagtes te dink, dat jy ophou aandag gee. As jy die kwaliteit van jou lewe wil verander, moet jy die manier wat jy dink, verander. Die psalmdigter het gebid, ‘Deursoek my, o God, en ken my hart; toets my onrustige gemoed’ (Psalm 139:23 NLV). God sal jou help om bewus te word van dit wat van oomblik tot oomblik in jou gedagtes aangaan. Hy sal jou na die plek waar die ‘muishond’ bly lei en jou help om dit te hanteer. Nie net sal Hy jou wys hoe om die verkeerde gedagtes te verwyder nie, maar hoe om hulle met die regte gedagtes te vervang deur jou gedagtes te rig op ‘…die dinge wat die Gees gelukkig maak’ (Romeine 8:5 NLV).
Sielskos: Gen 20-23; Luk 8:40-56; Ps 125; Spr 4:3-4
2019-02-06
Romans 8:5 NIV
To become the person God wants you to be, you must “set your mind” on the right things. You say, “If only my circumstances were different.” Your circumstances don’t determine the quality of your life; how you think about them does. Poet Frederick Langbridge wrote, “Two men looked out through prison bars; one saw mud, the other saw the stars.” Both men were in identical circumstances, but their perspectives were entirely different. One looked for beauty and found it; the other focused on ugliness and found it. It works like this: Your circumstances in life produce certain emotions. So how do you change your emotional response when you feel powerless over people and circumstances? By changing how you think about them! True change always begins in your mind. The Bible says, “As he thinketh in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7). The way you think inevitably reflects the way you live. So to become the best version of yourself, the person God wants you to be – think great thoughts! People who live great lives are people who habitually think great thoughts. You say, “But I can’t help thinking the way I do.” Then “let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think” (Romans 12:2 NLT). God’s Word will help you to think with faith instead of fear, assurance instead of anxiety, and joy instead of negativity. Once you “set your mind on what the Spirit desires,” your life will begin to change for the better.
Soul food: Gen 17-19; Luke 8:26-39; Ps 67; Prov 4:1-2
