Occasionally we may look at the state
of the world and begin to think that the vast majority of what transpires is
negative. We see the state of our
economy or our foreign policy or a church scandal and we could easily become
discouraged. Our society loves to tell
bad news, and sadly, often so do many Christians. What can be done to combat this barrage of
negativity?
Scripture provides several solutions
to negative thoughts. First, spend time
in the Word of God. The Psalmist wrote,
“Thy word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against Thee.” When we focus on the timeless promises of
God, negative news seems passing and temporary.
In addition to study, prayer is a
key factor in staying positive. It is
amazing to write down a prayer or prayer list and then to see in a few months
how the situations have either resolved or now seem unimportant. Praying can focus the mind and crowd out the
drama of negative thoughts.
Finally, meditation is an essential
part of spiritual discipline. Meditation
doesn’t have to be a strange concept to us.
It is simply thinking about certain things and allowing the mind to
focus around positive energy and thoughts.
If we would just spend some time thinking about all the good things in
the world, we would soon run out of time to be caught up in the negative.
Putting these three practices to use in our
live will have us feeling better about the world and our place in it. As we grow more positive in our approach to
life we by necessity will leave off our negative thinking. As I have said, enjoyment in life is largely
found not in what happens to us but the attitude we have in dealing with what
happens.
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