The highway of thoughts

In certain situations, even after I reached adulthood, I often felt like a little girl in the adult world. Other people seemed influential, mature and had important things to say, but in my eyes I was insignificant and thought nobody cared what I thought. With my intellect I knew that this was not the case. And yet there was this feeling. I had a set of beliefs deep inside of me from my childhood, which I definitely wanted to get rid of.
I asked myself a few questions:
– Where does this come from, how do I get this idea?
– What effect does this belief have on my behavior?
– How can I change this way of thinking?

The first and second questions are important because I get to know myself better when I answer them. But I don’t want to deal with these in this post. In dealing with the third question, I came to a verse in the Book of Romans:

Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind.
Romans 12:2a GNT

This verse challenges me to change my way of thinking, so I suppose it is possible. This is also confirmed by Dr.Caroline Leaf, a Christian scientist who researches the brain. It has been proven that negative thoughts are toxic to our body. Conversely, positive thoughts are beneficial for us. (Dr. Caroline Leaf “Who turned off my brain”)

She has found that every thought is strengthened when we think it over and over again. But we can also change it if we dismiss it and decide to think something else instead.
The mechanism of thinking in our brain can be compared to streets. If I keep thinking that I am not important, then this much-trodden way of thinking turns from a beaten path into a road and from a road into a highway. Thoughts will always head for the fastest way, which means that the habitual way of thinking will appear first.

In order to change this way of thinking I can start to establish a small path with the thought that I am important and have something to say (because I read that in the Bible, more about that later). Each time the “not important” appears, I dismiss it and replace it with the healthy, positive version. So as this little road of my positive thinking is used more and in time becomes a much used highway. And so the highway of the negative becomes a run-down road that is no longer used.

My sketch shows that with time my positive thinking can replace the negative thinking. Furthermore, my thinking determines my behavior! Depending on how I think, I will behave. It’s not possible to change my behavior in the long run, if I don’t first change my thinking pattern.
To come back to my example: Only when I am convinced that my opinion is necessary and meaningful, will I dare to express my opinion out loud.

How do I find the truth about myself? With what should I replace the negative thoughts? The Bible tells us: Every human being is created in the image of God (Gen 1:27) and wonderfully made (Eph 2:10). When I believe in him, I am his child (John 1:12), his spirit dwells in me (1Cor 3:16), he gives me strength (Is 40:29) and much more.

God is pleased if you take his appreciation seriously, after all, he himself says that he has made you wonderfully and loves you!
It’s also healthy to check all your other thoughts to see if they are positive or negative. You can choose to think positively and feed your mind and heart with positive content.

Finally, brothers and sisters, keep your thoughts on whatever is right or deserves praise: things that are true, honorable, fair, pure, acceptable, or commendable. Phil. 4:8 (GW)

You can feel it when your thoughts are healthy and wholesome. Then you like yourself, you are confident and grateful, you can forgive quickly, you rarely worry and you are benevolent towards other people. If you change your thinking, then your view of the world changes and the world is a different one!

When I believe all the many wonderful promises in the Bible – not only with my mind but also with my heart – then I become a (biblical) optimist and a great encouragement for other people. That’s what I wish for you and me and that we help each other in this rethinking and “becoming”! It’s reassuring to know that it is completely okay for God that we are not perfect; he is a God who encourages us to change and helps us to do so.