I consider myself to be a fairly positive person. Grumbling helps nothing. I don’t like hearing it from others and I don’t like participating in conversations that are negative and whiny.
Inside my own head, however? I have found myself fighting to take captive every thought and make them obedient to Christ. I haven’t even recognized how negative my thoughts have been because ultimately, I really am trying to figure out positive outcomes for every aspect of my life – my marriage, my boys, our church life, my friendships. But with each of those can come discouragement since life isn’t perfect and my ideals aren’t being rolled out on a red carpet. That’s how I find myself focused on the negative instead of breathing in and relishing in the positive.
This was my brain this morning:
- Did he really leave his strawberry bowl on the floor after I asked him last night before bed to put it in the sink? I’ve gotta get that boy to listen and obey better.
- Whose duffle bag is that? I know they are tired after camp, but I asked the boys so many times to unload their dirty laundry in the bathroom. Ugh.
- I don’t even know where to begin on my to-do list.
- Is it really cloudy again today? When is the sun going to shine???
- Shoot. I forgot to thaw meat last night.
This was, of course, all within the first five minutes after I stumbled out of bed this morning. So much for “This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it!”
While frustrations are real, my thoughts and attitude have been very negative.
Without knowing it, a friend of mine – during a 30 second, obviously Spirit led conversation – convicted me in the church foyer yesterday between Bible class and worship time. I don’t even remember her exact phrase. I was just struck by her suggestion that the positive must outweigh the negative. I actually barely heard her at the time because I was gathering my kids so we could find a pew.
Well, God did His work, as He always does. I chewed on my friend’s words, which helped me recognize how negative many of my thoughts have been. This morning (strawberry bowl, duffle bag, list, cloudy, meat – yes that) sealed the deal as I got ready to open my Bible with my coffee.
Even in my prayer life, I have been so focused on the negative. It’s as if I don’t even recognize all of God’s goodness and His promises.
So hi. I’m confessing all of this here to you. God is so good, you guys. He offers so much goodness. My life is full of goodness. When I stop being negative and recognize the positive? It’s a no-brainer that I am more cheerful and have more energy.
I’m sharing this on Gratituesday not just so we can think about what we’re thankful for. It’s more than that. It’s about fully allowing our minds to recognize that God has provided so much goodness! We’ve got to fill our minds with the positive so that we can actually see the God-given blessings that are absolutely overflowing around us.
Please join me today in allowing God to do His work in our minds as we recognize His abundant goodness.
Look around you. Breathe in the good. Leave a comment here to share and encourage us all: In what ways do you see God’s goodness in your life?
Lisa @TrueandFaithful.net says
What a great reminder. Sometimes I think we get so used to the belly-aching swirling in our head, that it becomes background music we don’t even notice. One of my favorite verses . . . to take every thought captive to the truth of Christ. Good words!
mrs.p says
Last sunday our pastor said next you pray instead of praying for request start praying for what you are thankful that God has provide.
Tracy Tidmore says
That sounded just like me. I try really hard not to be so negative but it just comes out before I even think. I am thankful for my husband and my kids and the Lord!
Sue says
God has been so wonderful to us. My daughter has been accepted into an internship program at the community college she attends. This is a huge blessing to us. I am so thankful!!!!
When reading the Bible where I see so much complaining and God’s response, I am trying to change my thinking if I am grumbling.
Kim says
Thank you! I find myself needing to hear this. I’m thinking of starting a grateful journal to help be more positive!
Clair Langford says
That is a wonderful idea! I think I’ll try it, too. Anything to counteract the mean, negative bully in my head.
Thank you!,
Kim says
:)
Lindsey Swinborne says
I tend to fall into patterns like you of looking at all of the mess and the neglected chores and being frustrated. So, this was a great reminder today! Something I am so, so, so thankful for was the ability to sing in the shower and sound good this week. After vocal chord surgery this January and 7 months without being able to sing, it was wonderful to be able to sing for 10 minutes without my voice cracking like a teenage boy’s!
Meredith P. says
I definitely have been letting the negative override the blessings this week. We have a lot of emotional challenges right now because of moving hours away from everyone we know, but I have just been letting it pile up lately. It got so bad yesterday that I cried after dropping my boys off at church camp because I wasn’t connected enough to the church (ANY church) to be volunteering like usual. I was forgetting the enormous blessing of God’s work in bringing us here, the precious time I was gifted in homeschooling my boys for the spring semester during the move (amazing time to learn more about my boys in a way we’ve never before had available to us), and the fact that we now LIVE where we used to VACATION!?! God has been and is being so wonderful to us. I just miss seeing the forest because of all these trees sometimes… ;)
Charlotte Moore says
Food for thought! LOVE it!!
Kirsten Pankratz says
Yes, a good reminder-thank you. 5 kids-all very young, a sustainable farm we’re working very hard to start, trying to make our bills and just life’s problems. It’s easy to focus on the hard stuff. I pray for joy often and to delight in the kiddos-not just have patience- but to love life and laugh. It seems like a snowball either way. When I’m joy filled, I’m happy and I see the good in so much more than when I’m having an attitude problem, then it’s a snowball the other way (and I think the snowball is melting lol). And I’ve got to tell you, my 4 year old asked to sing the lettuce song the other day during our morning Bible time. Huh? Lettuce? Uh-huh, You now, This is the day that the Lord has made, lettuce rejoice and be glad in it. We sang it, at last as much as we could between laughing!
Shaela says
Thanks for the honesty. You are such a good example to so many. It’s nice to hear about things that make you human! We all need to straighten up and be better and not so negative. It is a process.
Linda says
I read a quote somewhere that said, ” What if you only had today what you thanked the Lord for yesterday.” I try to start the day saying thank you before I ask for more.
Linda
Tiffani Keyes says
Read.my.mail. Needed that ????
Tiffani Keyes says
Not sure why the question marks. I had a smiley face…..lol!
Jessica G says
I am blessed to be at our country house for a week where my husband is near every day while I homeschool and wrangle the other children the Father has given us!
Dorene says
I definitely see myself in this, and although I try to be positive, too often the critical, negative and even condescending thoughts run automatically through my mind. I am trying to identify those self-righteous thoughts and expose them for what they really are, so that I can truly love those around me, and see them through the eyes of Christ. He loved so fully, despite the flaws of each human being, and I’ve realized that I want to see people, and life, with that love. It is so much more beautiful than the negative panorama that I have spent so much time gazing at up till now. I like to repeat Philippians 4:8 to myself to remind myself where my thoughts should reside.
Melanie Sullivan says
Laura, thank you. I didn’t see this post yesterday, but was clicking around your site (from the build a breakfast burrito bar post) and read this. WOW. God has been so good to me in a gazillion different ways and I’m over here whining and complaining about mundane junk. He’s proven Himself faithful and good and lovely to me time and time again… why do I so quickly forget that to focus on the gnat flying around my head? Why do I continually run back to my old ways and forsake His arms for yucky stuff? Thank you for the reminder, my friend (though we’ve never met). Your words were exactly what I needed today! :)