Jesus said in Mark 4:24, “Be careful what you are hearing…” The voices that we listen to affect our lives in many ways. But do you know whose views you listen to the most?
The truth is that you believe your own opinions more than the ideas of others. You and I are thinking the whole time and those thoughts impact our lives in several ways:
1. YOUR THOUGHTS SET WHAT YOU EXPECT
Your inner thoughts determine your expectations from life. They create a deep sense of what you think might happen. Prov 23:18 says that the expectations of the righteous shall not be cut off. That means we get what we expect.
If we have high hopes, we set the stage for success, but if we anticipate disappointment, we make achievement hard. What do you really expect? What are the inner opinions that have influenced those ideas?
2. YOUR THOUGHTS MAKE YOUR MOOD
Our thoughts affect our attitudes. The Bible tells us that, “As a man thinks in his heart so is he.” (Pr 23:7). Being in a gloomy mood takes all the joy out of life. Someone once said that a bad attitude is like a flat tyre. You can’t get anywhere until you change it.
The way we react in our minds when a few things go wrong can end up framing our whole day. Several sets of red lights all too often we tell ourselves that, “Today is going to be one of those days.” We listen to the lie and discouragement sets in slowly.
3. YOUR THOUGHTS FUEL (OR DRAIN) YOUR FAITH
Jesus told us that “All things are possible to him who believes” (Mk 9:23) We need to have faith every day. When we listen to the constant drone of inner negativity, it is hard to believe for God’s best.
A setback at home or at work can have us listening to all sorts of lies that dampen our faith. “And I thought this was supposed to be my year of new beginnings!” Or “Why do I bother getting my hopes up, I always get disappointed.” Lies like these just drain your faith.
ARE YOU LISTENING TO LIES?
The devil “…is a liar [himself] and the father of lies and of all that is false.” John 8:44b (AMPC). We have an enemy that is constantly telling lies. He wants to infect our thinking and drip feed negativity into our mindsets.
But that’s not all. Jeremiah 17:9 says that “The heart is deceitful above all things…” This verse is saying that our hearts are prone to believing lies, and the condition of your heart sets the atmosphere for most of your thoughts.
TIME FOR CHANGE
I encourage you to start paying attention to what you are thinking. Whenever you find yourself rehearsing the reason why things could go wrong, speak out, “I’m not listening to these lies any more!” Instead, dwell on God’s promises in His word.
As I said, the condition of your heart sets the atmosphere for your thoughts. If you really want God’s best for you life, allow the Lord to work from the inside out. We have some life changing events coming up. Join us at one near you.
