YOUR MIND MATTERS

Two books I have read recently have helped me to discipline my mind so that it does not afflict me with negative and unwanted thinking. It is so easy to lay awake at night or to wake up in the morning and find your thoughts swimming in your head into uncharted waters. I resort to all kinds of strategies to overcome them. I pray, I think back over the previous day and give thanks for all God’s mercies. I confess my sins and try to focus on anticipations of pleasurable activities.

Some years ago I invited Kyle Idleman to speak at our annual Lenten Conference because I had read and profited from his books Gods At War and Not a Fan. His new book EVERY THOUGHT CAPTIVE: Calm the Mental Chaos That Keeps You Stuck, Drains your Hope, And Holds you Back, is equally inspirational. He writes about the power of our thoughts, the patterns of this world: insecurity, distraction, offense, pleasure and despair. His antidote to these patterns is to be transformed by the renewal of our minds and he gives us guidance on keeping a thought journal. He explores biblically grounded and scientific strategies for identifying toxic thought patterns, interrupting negative mental loops, replacing lies with truth, harnessing the power of neuroplasticity for lasting change, implementing practical daily habits to reinforce healthy thought patterns, leveraging the supernatural connection between thoughts, emotions and physical well-being, and cultivating a mindset that leads to true peace, joy and purpose. He invites the reader to a radical re-wiring of our minds that has the power to transform every aspect of our lives.

When I pastored a church in San Antonio I was privileged to get to know Max Lucado and invited him to speak at our church on Good Friday every year. My wife, Antoinette has led many discussion classes on his books. Since then he has become known as America’s bestselling inspirational author with more than 150 million copies of his books in print. His latest is TAME YOUR THOUGHTS: Three Tools to Renew Your Mind and Transform Your Life. He reviews the common thought ruts we experience and how to escape them: battling anxiety, struggling with guilt, when you can’t find joy, when you are lured by lust, when you feel overwhelmed, when you are puzzled by pain, when you fear rejection, and when you can’t find satisfaction. The book concludes with a study guide, questions for reflection on each topic and a scripture data base on each chapter. He gives three tools for thought management:

1. Practice Picky Thinking (guard your thoughts),

2. Identify UFOS (an Untruth creates a False narrative that leads to an Overreaction),

3. Uproot and Replant (weed out your most unhealthy thought patterns and replace them with divine truth).

Max is very practical and provides simple ways to interrupt self-sabotage and self-doubt, let go of anxiety and tap into God’s peace, snap the spiderweb strands of unpleasant impulses, disarm negative thoughts before they explode, defuse guilt and embrace grace, break free of self-critical thought loops and doubt, and relish the energizing truth of God’s love.

These are two books I am going to read again so that I can put into practice in my life Kyle and Max’s great teaching.