“The thoughts of the [steadily] diligent tend only to the plenteousness, but everyone who is impatient and hasty hastens only to want.”
Proverbs 21:5
Many times we hurt ourselves by our own thoughts. When we aren’t careful, we can think on things that don’t benefit us. These thoughts are destructive, and they can destroy our lives. Each day, we need to think positively about our situations. Even if our situation is looking grim, we can use our imaginations to see what our lives were created to look like.
God didn’t create us to live in the dump. Some of us may live in nice homes, but, when it comes to our thoughts, we live in filth. There are ways to combat these negative thoughts. Of course, we need to willingly and diligently work on our thought patterns. They are a valuable asset to the success we create in our lives.
“A man is what he thinks about all day long.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
In my first blog, I stated that my desire is to help people with personal development. Success is the end product of personal development, and positive thoughts are the path way to success. If we do not change our negative thoughts to positive thoughts, we will never get unstuck from our own personal dump, pursue our dreams, and succeed in our lives.
In Proverbs 21:5, we are taught that our thoughts should be plenteous. Plenteous means to have plenty, which means our thoughts could yield plenty of success. Our thoughts could help us financially, physically, emotionally, socially, mentally, and in any other way that is needed. Our thoughts can stop success in these areas dead in their tracks.
So, how do we have thoughts that produce abundance in every area of our lives?
“For the rest, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things [fix your minds on them].”
Philippians 4:8
Many of us have bad habits that affect our thoughts. These bad habits either cause useless thoughts or destructive thoughts. If we don’t change these bad habits, we’ll never grow and mature in any area of our lives. These kinds of thoughts are powerless, and powerless thoughts lead to inactivity.
The bad habits that I’m talking about are thinking negative thoughts, allowing television and movies to serve as a main source of education and information, a lack of reading quality literature and spiritual inspiration, and lack of integrity. There are ways we can change these habits, but it takes action.
“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. As one who reckons, he says to you, eat and drink, yet his heart is not with you [but is grudging the cost].”
Proverbs 23:7
If we constantly dwell on negative thoughts, our whole attitude will be negative. It takes work to exchange negative thoughts with positive ones. Usually negative thoughts come from low self-esteem. One way to switch to positive thoughts is by reading scriptures that talk about who we are in Christ. We are His children and He loves us. This gives us reasons to rejoice, which is a positive thought that can change our whole outlook on life.
It is also important that we watch what we are thinking. If a negative thought pops into our heads, we need to immediately change it to a positive thought. This is very hard for many of us to do, because negative thoughts are ingrained in our minds. We’ve grown up with these negative thoughts, so we must constantly remind ourselves to think positively.
We even need to watch how we pray. When we keep our prayers positive and hopeful, our thoughts line up with that prayer. The opposite is true, too. If we keep our thoughts positive our prayers will be positive. Yes, there will be times when we pray for something very serious, but, even when the situation is bad, we need to acknowledge that the situation will change for the better. Bad situations come and go, but we need to create positive thoughts continuously. This especially means no whining and complaining.
“[Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One)…” II Corinthians 10:5
It’s okay to keep up with current events, but it is damaging if television and movies are your whole source of information. Sometimes, when I’m talking to someone about a subject of interest, I’ll realize that most of our facts have come from a television show or a movie. I’m not talking about informational television. A lot of information we receive is from a sitcom or other program or the latest big movie hit. Most the time this information is not correct or only partially correct.
It is also sad that many of us have given up books and turned to television or movies for our education. When we dwell too much on entertainment, we are in danger of not growing mentally. Unfortunately, television and movies can become a bad habit. Believe me, it is a habit that I’ve broken. Entertainment is not bad, but I use to watch so much television that I had no time to work on my writing or to read a good book.
Many of us desire to increase our thinking, reading, and writing skills. Reading quality literature can make us smarter and more informed. There are great classic books that can teach us about past perspectives, which we can compare to the present time. Actually, we might find that humans have dealt with similar problems throughout history. If we learn how past generations have handled their problems, maybe we can apply their knowledge to our current circumstances.
There is a reason we hear speeches with quotes from great men and women from the past. Many times, I’ll come across an all inspiring quote from Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelt. These quotes inspire us, but most of us depend solely on the quotes. If we actually read the biographies of these greats and classic books that inspire, we will learn so much more from their wisdom.
“Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].”
Romans 12:2
It’s great to read non-spiritual books that inspire us. Even reading entertaining books is okay from time to time. We all need a break from learning once in a while. Just make sure you’re reading material that is not depressive or morally and ethically questionable. It’s important that we set standards and do not compromise those standards.
With that said, it is highly beneficial to read spiritual books. Of course, at the top of my list is the Bible. It is important to read the Bible every day. There are many other spiritual books that can teach us and uplift our spirits. An author that I read on a regular basis is Joyce Meyer (http://www.joycemeyer.org). Her books inspire and motivate me to live a life pleasing to Christ.
Sometimes, spiritual education is the last on our list, but we should make it a top priority in our lives. When we become spiritually educated, our life becomes anchored to Christ. Christ should be our foundation. This is a solid foundation that will never move and can never be broken.
Proverbs 21:5
Many times we hurt ourselves by our own thoughts. When we aren’t careful, we can think on things that don’t benefit us. These thoughts are destructive, and they can destroy our lives. Each day, we need to think positively about our situations. Even if our situation is looking grim, we can use our imaginations to see what our lives were created to look like.
God didn’t create us to live in the dump. Some of us may live in nice homes, but, when it comes to our thoughts, we live in filth. There are ways to combat these negative thoughts. Of course, we need to willingly and diligently work on our thought patterns. They are a valuable asset to the success we create in our lives.
“A man is what he thinks about all day long.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
In my first blog, I stated that my desire is to help people with personal development. Success is the end product of personal development, and positive thoughts are the path way to success. If we do not change our negative thoughts to positive thoughts, we will never get unstuck from our own personal dump, pursue our dreams, and succeed in our lives.
In Proverbs 21:5, we are taught that our thoughts should be plenteous. Plenteous means to have plenty, which means our thoughts could yield plenty of success. Our thoughts could help us financially, physically, emotionally, socially, mentally, and in any other way that is needed. Our thoughts can stop success in these areas dead in their tracks.
So, how do we have thoughts that produce abundance in every area of our lives?
“For the rest, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things [fix your minds on them].”
Philippians 4:8
Many of us have bad habits that affect our thoughts. These bad habits either cause useless thoughts or destructive thoughts. If we don’t change these bad habits, we’ll never grow and mature in any area of our lives. These kinds of thoughts are powerless, and powerless thoughts lead to inactivity.
The bad habits that I’m talking about are thinking negative thoughts, allowing television and movies to serve as a main source of education and information, a lack of reading quality literature and spiritual inspiration, and lack of integrity. There are ways we can change these habits, but it takes action.
“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. As one who reckons, he says to you, eat and drink, yet his heart is not with you [but is grudging the cost].”
Proverbs 23:7
If we constantly dwell on negative thoughts, our whole attitude will be negative. It takes work to exchange negative thoughts with positive ones. Usually negative thoughts come from low self-esteem. One way to switch to positive thoughts is by reading scriptures that talk about who we are in Christ. We are His children and He loves us. This gives us reasons to rejoice, which is a positive thought that can change our whole outlook on life.
It is also important that we watch what we are thinking. If a negative thought pops into our heads, we need to immediately change it to a positive thought. This is very hard for many of us to do, because negative thoughts are ingrained in our minds. We’ve grown up with these negative thoughts, so we must constantly remind ourselves to think positively.
We even need to watch how we pray. When we keep our prayers positive and hopeful, our thoughts line up with that prayer. The opposite is true, too. If we keep our thoughts positive our prayers will be positive. Yes, there will be times when we pray for something very serious, but, even when the situation is bad, we need to acknowledge that the situation will change for the better. Bad situations come and go, but we need to create positive thoughts continuously. This especially means no whining and complaining.
“[Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One)…” II Corinthians 10:5
It’s okay to keep up with current events, but it is damaging if television and movies are your whole source of information. Sometimes, when I’m talking to someone about a subject of interest, I’ll realize that most of our facts have come from a television show or a movie. I’m not talking about informational television. A lot of information we receive is from a sitcom or other program or the latest big movie hit. Most the time this information is not correct or only partially correct.
It is also sad that many of us have given up books and turned to television or movies for our education. When we dwell too much on entertainment, we are in danger of not growing mentally. Unfortunately, television and movies can become a bad habit. Believe me, it is a habit that I’ve broken. Entertainment is not bad, but I use to watch so much television that I had no time to work on my writing or to read a good book.
Many of us desire to increase our thinking, reading, and writing skills. Reading quality literature can make us smarter and more informed. There are great classic books that can teach us about past perspectives, which we can compare to the present time. Actually, we might find that humans have dealt with similar problems throughout history. If we learn how past generations have handled their problems, maybe we can apply their knowledge to our current circumstances.
There is a reason we hear speeches with quotes from great men and women from the past. Many times, I’ll come across an all inspiring quote from Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelt. These quotes inspire us, but most of us depend solely on the quotes. If we actually read the biographies of these greats and classic books that inspire, we will learn so much more from their wisdom.
“Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].”
Romans 12:2
It’s great to read non-spiritual books that inspire us. Even reading entertaining books is okay from time to time. We all need a break from learning once in a while. Just make sure you’re reading material that is not depressive or morally and ethically questionable. It’s important that we set standards and do not compromise those standards.
With that said, it is highly beneficial to read spiritual books. Of course, at the top of my list is the Bible. It is important to read the Bible every day. There are many other spiritual books that can teach us and uplift our spirits. An author that I read on a regular basis is Joyce Meyer (http://www.joycemeyer.org). Her books inspire and motivate me to live a life pleasing to Christ.
Sometimes, spiritual education is the last on our list, but we should make it a top priority in our lives. When we become spiritually educated, our life becomes anchored to Christ. Christ should be our foundation. This is a solid foundation that will never move and can never be broken.
