Negative Thinking Part IV.
Breaking Free
Here we are; Part 4 (and about half way through) our study on breaking the yokes of negative thinking. Thoughts that the Enemy has had us bound up in for years. Are you feeling liberated yet? If not- not to worry. You will be by the time we conclude our study!
1. I'm afraid. (Part I)
As you have probably heard me say before, it takes 30 days to form a new habit. This "fast" from wrong thinking is revolutionary, because not only does it carry the "supernatural" effect of transforming the core of your being and your inner image, but it also has the "natural" effect of developing the new habit of thinking right and looking at life from a new vantage point.
Today we're fasting from the granddaddy of all wrong thinking: "I'm afraid."
Fear is at the root of just about every negative thing that happens in our lives. We're afraid of failing, afraid of being alone, or rejected; afraid of running out of money; afraid that people will let us down; that we won't find a spouse, or a job; and the list goes on and on. All fear is rooted in the core belief that God's Word won't work. For example, the fear of not having enough is rooted in the fear that Philippians 4:19 isn't true. If you believe that "God will supply all your needs according to His riches..." then fear leaves.
Let's fast from the thought "I'm afraid."
1. Meditate on the fact that God's Word is true. In John 17:17 Jesus said, "Thy Word is truth." What God says is fact—whether you feel it, whether you see it, whether you have ever experienced it.
2. Consider God's track record. 1 Kings 8:56 says, "Thanks be to the Lord. He has given rest to His people Israel. He has done all that He promised. Every word has come true of all His good promise, which He promised...". He has done all that He has promised. He has never failed. Fear leaves when you can rely on something that can't fail. There are over 1000 predictions or prophecies in the Bible—promises that God made before they happened. The chances of merely 17 of these coming to pass is ONE out of 450 billion x 1 billion x 1 trillion! Yet, not one of these 1000 promised have failed. In fact, to this day, 668 of them have already been fulfilled. What does that tell us? God keeps His Word.
3. Accept the truth that what we fear comes upon us. In Job 3:25 Job feared that his children would curse God, and that's what happened. When you realize fear has the power to produce negative results, you stop dabbling in it. When a child learns what fire can do, he no longer plays with matches!
4. Perfect love casts out fear...1 John 4:18. Flood your mind with thoughts of love—God's love for you, what He was willing to do to rescue you. If He would die for you, while you were in sin, separated from God; what wouldn't He do for you? There's just nothing He wouldn't do for you! Think on that, and fear will leave.
5. There is a promise, from God's Word, for every need you will ever experience. In fact there are over 7000 promises in the Bible. That's 7000 solutions to life's problems! For example, there is a promise of protection in Psalm 91:1-12, which delivers you from the fear of tragedy.
6. Pause and think about the fact that God is with you. Psalm 23:4 says, "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil—for YOU ARE WITH ME." God's presence is the secret to a fear-free life. All fear ultimately is a sense of God's absence, or our separation from God. By contrast, a sense of God's presence delivers us from fear. Hebrews 10:19 says we enter the holy place of His presence by the blood of Jesus. YOU ARE IN HIS PRESENCE, NOW—therefore fear not!
THINK IT & SAY IT...
God's Word is true, whether I feel it or not. He has kept all of His promises, and has never failed. Fear leaves me because I rely on something that can't fail—His promises.
What I fear comes upon me, therefore I will fear ONLY GOD, and He will come upon me! God loves me perfectly, and I will not think otherwise, no matter what! God has not give you a spirit of fear, but power love and a sound mind.
God has made 7000 promises to me, because He knows we need them! God is with me, and therefore I will fear no evil, in Jesus' Name!
2. I'm afraid. (Part II)
1 John 4:18 says "...fear has torment." Perhaps you have felt tormented by the fear of dying, the fear of cancer, the fear of running out of money, or the fear of what someone could do to hurt you. Today, we put an end to the torment, and punishment of fear.
1. Reject and resist whatever isn't from God. 2 Timothy 1:7 says, "God has not given you the spirit of fear—but power, love and a sound mind." Fear is from the devil. Don't tolerate it for a second.
2. Speak to fear— Mark 11:23 says, "...say to this mountain (of fear) `be removed and cast into the sea' and do not doubt, but believe those things you say, shall happen." The spoken word has more power than the running thoughts in your head. Speak to those thoughts of fear and command them to go.
3. Understand how fear comes. Romans 10:17 says, "FAITH COMES FROM HEARING THE WORD OF GOD." Therefore, FEAR COMES from hearing things contrary to the Word of God. What we hear on the news about tragedy, the economy, etc. is the source of fear. Cut it off at its root. You must spend more time listening to the good news of the Word, rather than the bad news of this world.
4. Expect to walk on water! Set your hope and expectation on GREAT things happening in your life. Peter walked on water with Jesus showing us that faith can overcome anything. However, remember why Peter began to sink. Matthew 14:30—he SAW the wind, he BECAME afraid, he BEGAN to sink. What we focus on produces fear or faith. FOCUS on the circumstances around you and fear will sink you. FOCUS on the promises of God, and faith will raise you up!
5. Trust HE will catch you when you fall. Even when Peter began to sink, Jesus reached out and grabbed His hand to save him. (Matthew 14:31) You always have a safety net, in Him! So, fear not!
THINK IT & SAY IT:
God has not given me the spirit of fear, but power, love and a sound mind. I reject all forms of fear beginning today. I speak to fear and command it to leave my life and family. I walk by faith, not by sight.
I surrender my ears to listen to God's Word, and my eyes, to focus on God promises. I expect the miraculous to happen in my life, and I know God will catch me if I stumble or fall. Therefore, I will not be afraid, another day in my life, in Jesus' Name!
3. I can't believe this is happening to me!
When we think this way, we become victims. The devil wants you to live in shock. He wants you to be stopped by the "WHYs." Folks, every one of us has experienced adversity, trials—a sickness, a sudden break up, a job loss, etc. In John 16:33, Jesus said, in this world, you'll have tribulation...but, He went on to say (the key to overcoming this way of thinking)...
1. TAKE COURAGE—How? Realize that He has overcome the world. See yourself as an overcomer—Romans 8:37 says you are more than a conqueror!
2. Stop letting life "happen" to you. And begin to start happening to life. The violent take the kingdom by force. (Matthew 11:12) Force your faith upon the things that happen to you. Force your victory on your trial.
3. Confront life. Stop reacting to it, and get after it! 2 Corinthians 8:1-2...they overcame their great trial of afflictions with an abundance of joy. Confront trials with joy. They also overcame lack with generosity. Confront lack with giving. It will change!
4. Focus on what's happening IN YOU, rather than TO YOU. Jesus could calm the storm AROUND Him, because He had peace and calm WITHIN Him. Paul said, "We are troubled on every side, but not distressed..." (2 Corinthians 4:8) Pressure may come from the outside, but remain fixed on God's Word on the inside. You will come out of every storm!
5. Remember the power you have in your hand. Your seeds determine your future. (Galatians 6:7-8) You can change what happens to you, by changing the seed you sow. For example, sow the seed of treating others right, and you will reap the harvest of good treatment yourself. Sow the seed of giving, and you will reap the harvest of receiving.
THINK IT & SAY IT:
I take courage today, because Jesus has overcome the world; therefore I have overcome the world. As He is, so are we in this world! I will no longer be a victim of life, but a victor OVER life. I will happen TO life, rather than the other way around!
I will force my faith upon the things that happen to me, and they will be changed. I confront trials with joy. I develop peace within, by believing God's Word, no matter what is happening on the outside. I have the power to change my future, by the seeds I sow. What happens to me will be transformed by what happens IN me, in Jesus' Name!
4. People are against me.
This thinking stops your love-walk. It's hard to love people that you think are against you. It stops your faith, as well. When you're concerned about what others think, you are not standing on God's promises. Your eyes can't focus on two things at once--when you get your eyes on what others think of you, you take them OFF of what God thinks of you.
1. Think on what God thinks about you. Psalm 139:17 says, "How precious are Your thoughts toward me, O God. If I could count them, they would outnumber the sands by the seashore."
2. Realize "even if." EVEN IF, people are against you, it has NO POWER, because God is for you. Romans 8:31 says, "If God be for us, who can be against us?"
3. Recognize where the battle is...NOT AGAINST FLESH AND BLOOD—Ephesians 6:12. We are pulling down strongholds that come from THOUGHTS that oppose the Word of God. DON'T see people as your enemy.
4. No weapon formed against you can prosper. (Isaiah 54:17) Condemn every thought that accuses you or threatens you. When a city "condemns" a building—it means, you can't live there, or build on that property. Refuse to build upon any thoughts that oppose you or oppose the Word of God.
5. Stop letting people have so much power in your life. Jesus is your Lord—you're under His authority, not the authority of others' expectations, plans, or opinions of you.
THINK IT & SAY IT:
God's thoughts toward me are precious. His opinion of me is all that matters. He is for me, not against me. EVEN IF, people are against me, it doesn't matter. I refuse to give them power over my life. I am under the power of God, and I walk in the power of God. No weapon formed against me can prosper, because I am the righteousness of God, In Jesus' Name.
5. Will I ever win the battle?
Perhaps you're battling depression, an addiction, or fear. Perhaps it's a sickness or pain. Regardless of what it is, here is the key to your victory, as we take this thought captive:
1. YOU'VE ALREADY WON! Jesus' declaration on the cross sums it up: "It is finished." (John 19:30) What was finished? The battle against the power of sin and the devil.
2. Ask God to open the eyes of your heart. (Ephesians 1:18-19) You must look at life from God's point of view. In 2 Kings 6, when Elisha was surrounded by enemy armies, his servant became afraid and said, `we're surrounded, what should we do?' Elisha didn't pray for more angels. He prayed: "Lord, open the eyes of my servant, that he would see there are more for us than those against us." (2 Kings 6:17) Suddenly, he saw chariots of fire and a host of angels surrounding their enemies! The battle was already won.
3. Believe you have it! In Mark 11:24, Jesus said, "That's why I tell you to have faith that you have already received whatever you pray for, and it will be yours." That's power this world can't give you and money can't buy! Remember 1 Peter 2:24 "...with His stripes you WERE healed." Notice, God speaks to us in past tense. It's already yours!
4. ONLY BELIEVE. Stick to what God told you to do! John 6:29 says, `This is our work: TO BELIEVE.' In other words, BEFORE you pray for rain, bring your umbrella! Expect it to happen. Remember, it's "the good fight of faith." (1 Timothy 6:12) Our job is to believe. Our battle is to believe what God has done, and what is already ours. 2 Chronicles 20:15 says the battle is not yours, but God's.
5. Praise God that you HAVE the victory. In 2 Chronicles 20:22 it says, "As they began to sing and praise the Lord, the Lord sent ambushes and their enemies were defeated."
THINK IT & SAY IT:
I already have the victory in my life. Jesus has already won my battles for me. My fight is to believe. I refuse to stop believing. I walk by faith and not by sight. I'm the head and not the tail. There are ALREADY more for me than those against me.
I cast my care and trouble on God. He is fighting for me. He is interceding for me right now! I rejoice in the midst of my battles, no matter what things look like. I choose to praise God, in Jesus' Name!
