“…For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” – Matthew 12:34

God has given us the wonderful gift of choice. And one of those choices is the ability to choose our thoughts. Day in and day out, we’re bombarded with thousands of thoughts. Some are good and some are bad.

I’ve heard it said that the average person has somewhere around 7,500 bad thoughts a day. This may be an alarming statistic to swallow but the truth is, you can change those negative, defeating thoughts.

Here’s the key, you don’t have to entertain every thought that enters your mind. Whatever you meditate on will take root, multiply, and grow.

If you’re unsuccessful at something, don’t meditate on what went wrong, dwell on what went right. if a friend betrayed you, don’t think that you’re “less than” or “not good enough.” No, your thought should be, “It’s their loss.” “That person lost a good thing.”

Maybe you had a bad day, and you’re tempted to get in despair. Your declaration should be, “as long as I’m among the living, I have hope.”

You see, the enemy wants to get you down in the dumps. The scripture says that the thief came to steal, kill, and destroy. How does he do that? Partly by appealing to your thoughts. The enemy wants to plant negative seeds of doubt, discouragement and defeat into your mind.

But you don’t have to be a slave to your negative thoughts. No, there’s a better way. God wants you to have an abundant life. A life full of peace, wholeness and joy.

I love how Philippians 4:8 puts it. It says, “Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable– if anything is excellent or praiseworthy– think about such things.

In other words, if it’s not building you up, don’t think about it. If it doesn’t bring a smile to your face, don’t think about it. If someone says something about you and it’s not true, don’t think about it. If it’s defeating you, don’t think about it.

If it’s causing you stress and bad health, don’t think about it. If the critics and naysayers come at you with a false negative report, don’t think about it. If an enemy comes at you with a bad accusation, don’t think about it. Notice, none of these things are noble, admirable, excellent or worthy of praise.

Next time you’re tempted to complain, remember the Nation of Israel and how they were stuck in the wilderness for forty years. Day in and day out, they circled around that same mountain. They were stuck in a rut. They didn’t progress forward, partly because they complained.

Remember, every complaint starts with a thought. Every thought is a seed. If you plant bad seeds, you’ll reap a bad harvest. Make a choice today. Choose to think positive thoughts of life, abundance, and wholeness as you charge forth on your journey of life!

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