by Ward W. Bond, PhD
How many of you let thoughts race through your mind causing depression, stress, anxiety and emotional instability? Did you know your thoughts only have power if you give them power? Millions of Americans are taking prescribed medications to deal with depressive and emotional instability simply caused by the mind games they play. There isn’t a drug to erase our thoughts. There’s an old saying that 90% of the things we think of never happen, so why are we allowing our thoughts to control our destiny?
We all live in a life that has many emotions and we are the ones who control those emotions. It’s time to get a grip on our thought life. The Bible tells us, “For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7). Take a look at the last two words, ‘sound mind’ which is also interpreted as ‘self-control’. We were designed to have free will and not created as robots. We have the power to ignore the thoughts in our head or to act upon them. Most people never act upon the thoughts; they just stick the memory bank on repeat until it drives them into emotional instability. Many think self-control is a physical action, but every physical action is linked to a mental action.
Mentally we are always asking ourselves: What? How? Why? If you ask yourself these things, can you honestly give yourself the answer? If you can answer ‘What’, ‘How’, and ‘Why’ then you should stop the emotional mind games. The mind games are usually a result of the unknown or unanswered questions. We’ve all been hurt, taken advantage of, wounded, or self-diagnosing an undiagnosed condition and wonder if we are coming down with a dreaded disease and that’s just the short list. We trap ourselves in a mental cage with no bars!
“Banish emotional stress from your mind, and put away pain from your body; for youth and the prime of life are fleeting.” Ecclesiastes 11:10
We must not let unforgiveness, bitterness and resentment live in our minds and even our hearts. Life is too short and those who hurt us usually don’t realize it or they are too embarrassed or prideful to make the wrong right. In life, we are not going to get everything and that includes an apology. The Bible also tells us “love doesn’t keep track of wrongs…”(1 Corinthians 13:5). Just reading that stings us all. Love isn’t all joy, happiness, flowers and candy. Love is the action that heals all wounds and it takes an act of love to forgive, stop resentment and bitterness from leading us down a self-destructing path.
I write this article from personal experience. I know what it’s like to be wronged. For me, the thing that can be hard to overcome is why people just can’t apologize and make a wrong a right? This world is full of pride, self-centeredness, and self-agendas and it’s not going to change. What has to change is how we deal with the disappointments in life or what we perceive as disappointments. Some things we feel are disappointments can come from miscommunication in our lives and that’s when we have to ask ourselves some questions.
Listen closely to the following words.
“Trust in the Lord and do what is right! Settle in the land and maintain your integrity! Then you will take delight in the Lord, and he will answer your prayers. Commit your future to the Lord! Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf.He will vindicate you in broad daylight, and publicly defend your just cause. Wait patiently for the Lord. Wait confidently for him! Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner, a man who carries out wicked schemes. Do not be angry and frustrated! Do not fret! That only leads to trouble!” Psalm 37:3-8
In a world of mind games, you must seek the source of those thoughts. Are they real or they imagined? Let’s say the mind games you’re playing are coming from a past or recent hurt or betrayal. The above words direct you to one thing. To seek the high road and let go and let God. Move on. Don’t give another thought to your thoughts! We all deserve peace in our hearts and peace in our minds and it all comes down to us making the decision that we will do just that!
Medication has its purpose, but it can’t cure mind games and in some cases medications can cause terrible thoughts in the mind, so read your labels and see what the side effects are. Maybe your mind is being controlled by a controlled substance and you need to seek a better way. Christian counseling is one way to receive the help you may need. The Bible says to seek wise counsel. In certain times in life, we are not to live it alone.
Let me leave you with this scripture, "Resist the devil and he shall flee from you." James 4:7, the devil is the author of mind games and untrue thoughts. The Lord gives us the mind of Christ and when we desire to have the mind of Christ, we will know the thoughts which are true and those which are false.
I pray this article will help you lead a much peaceful, happier life full of truth and freedom.
How many of you let thoughts race through your mind causing depression, stress, anxiety and emotional instability? Did you know your thoughts only have power if you give them power? Millions of Americans are taking prescribed medications to deal with depressive and emotional instability simply caused by the mind games they play. There isn’t a drug to erase our thoughts. There’s an old saying that 90% of the things we think of never happen, so why are we allowing our thoughts to control our destiny?
We all live in a life that has many emotions and we are the ones who control those emotions. It’s time to get a grip on our thought life. The Bible tells us, “For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7). Take a look at the last two words, ‘sound mind’ which is also interpreted as ‘self-control’. We were designed to have free will and not created as robots. We have the power to ignore the thoughts in our head or to act upon them. Most people never act upon the thoughts; they just stick the memory bank on repeat until it drives them into emotional instability. Many think self-control is a physical action, but every physical action is linked to a mental action.
Mentally we are always asking ourselves: What? How? Why? If you ask yourself these things, can you honestly give yourself the answer? If you can answer ‘What’, ‘How’, and ‘Why’ then you should stop the emotional mind games. The mind games are usually a result of the unknown or unanswered questions. We’ve all been hurt, taken advantage of, wounded, or self-diagnosing an undiagnosed condition and wonder if we are coming down with a dreaded disease and that’s just the short list. We trap ourselves in a mental cage with no bars!
“Banish emotional stress from your mind, and put away pain from your body; for youth and the prime of life are fleeting.” Ecclesiastes 11:10
We must not let unforgiveness, bitterness and resentment live in our minds and even our hearts. Life is too short and those who hurt us usually don’t realize it or they are too embarrassed or prideful to make the wrong right. In life, we are not going to get everything and that includes an apology. The Bible also tells us “love doesn’t keep track of wrongs…”(1 Corinthians 13:5). Just reading that stings us all. Love isn’t all joy, happiness, flowers and candy. Love is the action that heals all wounds and it takes an act of love to forgive, stop resentment and bitterness from leading us down a self-destructing path.
I write this article from personal experience. I know what it’s like to be wronged. For me, the thing that can be hard to overcome is why people just can’t apologize and make a wrong a right? This world is full of pride, self-centeredness, and self-agendas and it’s not going to change. What has to change is how we deal with the disappointments in life or what we perceive as disappointments. Some things we feel are disappointments can come from miscommunication in our lives and that’s when we have to ask ourselves some questions.
Listen closely to the following words.
“Trust in the Lord and do what is right! Settle in the land and maintain your integrity! Then you will take delight in the Lord, and he will answer your prayers. Commit your future to the Lord! Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf.He will vindicate you in broad daylight, and publicly defend your just cause. Wait patiently for the Lord. Wait confidently for him! Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner, a man who carries out wicked schemes. Do not be angry and frustrated! Do not fret! That only leads to trouble!” Psalm 37:3-8
In a world of mind games, you must seek the source of those thoughts. Are they real or they imagined? Let’s say the mind games you’re playing are coming from a past or recent hurt or betrayal. The above words direct you to one thing. To seek the high road and let go and let God. Move on. Don’t give another thought to your thoughts! We all deserve peace in our hearts and peace in our minds and it all comes down to us making the decision that we will do just that!
Medication has its purpose, but it can’t cure mind games and in some cases medications can cause terrible thoughts in the mind, so read your labels and see what the side effects are. Maybe your mind is being controlled by a controlled substance and you need to seek a better way. Christian counseling is one way to receive the help you may need. The Bible says to seek wise counsel. In certain times in life, we are not to live it alone.
Let me leave you with this scripture, "Resist the devil and he shall flee from you." James 4:7, the devil is the author of mind games and untrue thoughts. The Lord gives us the mind of Christ and when we desire to have the mind of Christ, we will know the thoughts which are true and those which are false.
I pray this article will help you lead a much peaceful, happier life full of truth and freedom.