It’s become far too easy to be negative
- Kyle Snyder: Live on Purpose
- November 4, 2020
- 808
“Change your thoughts and you change your world.” — Norman Vincent Peale.
I am writing this before the election, and like all major office elections, it’s ugly. Both sides are trying to hit the other with everything they have. It reminds me of a couple of 4-year-olds trying to get the most time with a toy before their mom gives it to the other kid. No wonder people don’t like to talk about the government; it seems to be all negative.
I wrote one of my early columns on my opinion of the government. Let’s just say I will never make that mistake again. I want to be a positive light for the world, so talking about an issue like the government is something I steer clear of.
Last night my wife and I were watching a game show when political ads came on, one right after the other. I was playing a game on an old phone of mine when I heard my wife say, “Enough, move on already.” I looked up and she was talking to the TV; she was tired of those ads. You could tell how much I cared about them because I was playing a game. It just seems like it is a real negative time every two and four years around election time.
We don’t have to be in an election cycle to hear negativity; it seem like it’s all around us. However, it is up to us if we are going to allow that poison into our mind or not. We absolutely have a choice. We don’t have to watch the news, go on Facebook or do things that will put the cup of poison (that is negative thinking) into our hand. Right now I can’t help but think about Jonestown, where a cult leader, Jim Jones, committed the worst act of mass suicide in history. Over 900 of his followers drank poison. The expression “don’t drink the Kool-Aid” was coined as a result of that event.
How many of us are drinking the Kool-Aid every day? We think we have to know what is going on in the world. Trust me, the world is not that interesting. In fact, I am convinced that if one watches the news once a week for five minutes, they know all they need to know. By the way, even when I don’t keep up watching the news, I end up hearing about it from other people.
Negative thinking poisons us and keeps us from living the rich life God intends us to live. When I look at the life of Jesus, I can’t help but see a life full of positivity. He helped everyone he met.
Some may say, “But didn’t he say some hard things, like take up your cross and follow me?” Yes, but don’t we all have to say some hard things in order to help people live better? Jesus points us to God and shows us how to live. In Matthew 15:32-39, we have Jesus feeding the crowd of 4,000. Jesus says in verse 32, “I have compassion on the crowd.”
My point is when I see statements like that, I can’t help but think Jesus was nothing but loving, caring and compassionate, which are all positive traits.
One of the ways I get rid of my negative thoughts is by reading the Bible and letting his word wash over me. Romans 12:2 tells us to be transformed by the renewal of our mind. We do that by reading the word of God. When we get to thinking negatively, sometimes it is because we are wrapped up in ourselves. Then when we read the word of God, we are hopefully putting the focus onto God and away from ourselves.
Go on a walk to clear your mind. Look at all the trees, hear the birds singing their songs to the Lord, look how green the grass is or, before too long, see the beauty of the white snow. Life is really simple; it’s we who make it complicated.
We need to replace the negative thoughts with good thoughts. When I was a child and I couldn’t sleep, my mother would always tell me to think about doing fun things, like going swimming, playing basketball or baseball. We need to think about fun things, just as my mother told me to do when I was a child.