What are you picturing in your mind?
- Amber Miller: A Word of Truth
- August 13, 2018
- 1890
The other day my youngest son Braxton was telling me a story. As he was recalling the scene he had witnessed, he declared to me, “I can picture it in my mind.” He had used his imagination in a positive way to replay in his mind the event that had taken place.
The phrase “I can picture it in my mind” stuck out to me. It made me wonder, “What are we picturing in our minds? What are we thinking about?”
I know I write a lot about the topic of our thought lives, and sometimes I feel like a broken record, but I know the importance of our thoughts to leading victorious lives. I want people to live in victory, not defeat, and those battles are won or lost in our minds. So are we filling our heads with victory or defeat, life or death?
My aunt, who was the last of my dad’s siblings, recently passed away unexpectedly. Her passing led to a time of reflection, a time of reminiscing on the past and on all the family members I have lost in the past several years.
As you can imagine, this started bringing me down and fast. I had to readjust my thinking, not on what I have lost, but what I have gained. I have a wonderful husband and three awesome sons. They are my biggest fans and fiercest protectors. I am blessed beyond words to have them in my life, and that is what I needed to focus on. Instead of staying in the pit, I brought myself back into the realm of peace by adjusting my thoughts.
I want to ask you, “What are you thinking about?” If you are feeling down, you need to think about what you are thinking about and change the direction of your thoughts. If we can line our minds up with what God’s word says, our emotions will follow. The following are some scenarios to consider.
Am I picturing past victories or past defeats?
Am I picturing all that could go wrong or all the word of God says about the situation that will cause it to go right (Isaiah 55:11)?
Am I picturing myself as unqualified or thinking how Jesus has qualified me (Colossians 1:12)?
Am I thinking about people who don’t love and care about me or the one who loves me more than I will ever know (John 3:16, Romans 8:35)?
Am I thinking about all that is wrong in the world or focusing on the good things that are in the world (Philippians 4:6)?
Am I picturing myself as a failure who can’t win any battle or as more than a conqueror through Jesus (Romans 8:37)?
Am I thinking that nothing ever goes my way or that God’s blessings and favor surround me like a shield (Psalm 5:12)?
Am I falsely picturing a God who might put a hardship on me to teach me a lesson or a Savior who came so that we may have life and have it more abundantly (John 10:10)?
Am I thinking about a sickness or on Jesus who bore my sickness on his own body (1 Peter 2:24, Isaiah 53:4)?
Am I picturing a God who holds sin against me or on Jesus who took all the punishment for sin that I deserved (Romans 4:8)?
Am I picturing an angry God or a God who will never be angry with me and whose kindness will never depart from me (Isaiah 54:9-10)?
Am I picturing myself as a dirty sinner or as righteous because Jesus took my sin and gave me his righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21)?
Am I picturing myself as unintelligent or as someone who has the mind of Christ living in me, directing and leading me (1 Corinthians 2: 12 and 16)?
Am I seeing myself as empty and broken or as a vessel in which all the fullness of the God-head dwells (John 1:16, Colossians 2:9-10)?
Am I fearful when I think there is an enemy who seeks to steal, kill and destroy or brave because I know the spirit of Jesus living in me is greater than him (1 John 4:4)?
Am I picturing myself as having to work to earn God’s favor or justified freely by his grace through faith in Jesus (Romans 3:24)?
So I ask you today, friends, what are you picturing in your mind? Will you picture what God says or what the enemy says? The road that leads to peace and joy or the road to depression and anxiety? Make a decision today to take every thought captive and renew your mind to the truth.
Amber can be reached at amberdeemiller32@gmail.com or through her AmberRiceMiller Facebook page.