Tuesday, January 5, 2016

4 Truths That Will Turn Your Frown Upside Down

by Joyce Meyer

Would you like to be in a good mood every day? You are probably thinking, Yes, of course I would. Who wouldn’t? I spent a lot of years being controlled by a variety of moods and believing I had no choice in how I felt. I envied all the “happy people.” I used to wonder, What is their secret? Why them and not me?

Then I finally learned that our mind, mouth, moods and attitudes are all intricately connected. First youthink, and then your thoughts turn into words that you speak, and the two of them together affect you emotionally and turn into moods and attitudes.

For years, I paid no attention to what I was thinking, and I didn’t make the connection between my thoughts and the rest of my life. But the Lord has taught me many things from His Word about the “mind connection” since those early days, and I’m excited to share some of those truths with you.

You Can Choose How You Think

Although we don’t always have the power to change every unpleasant circumstance in our lives, we do have the power to change our outlook. Nobody enjoys a troubling or painful circumstance, but I’ve found if we look at it in a hopeful, faith-filled way, we can watch God work all things out for our good (see Romans 8:28).

Enjoying life begins with the thoughts you choose to think. Yes, it is that simple! No matter what is going on in your life today, if you will choose happy, hope-filled thoughts based on God’s Word, you will feel happier. Our thoughts are intricately connected to our feelings, so if we want to feel better, we need to think better.

Think of the mind like the gas tank in your automobile. Your automobile will run well, or perhaps not even run at all, depending on what kind of fuel you put into it. In the same way, when you choose your thoughts carefully, your quality of life will improve in amazing ways!

Sure, there are some people who are born with a temperament that makes it easier for them to look on the bright side of life than others, but even they have to make choices about their thoughts and attitudes toward life.

Be honest with yourself and think about what you have been mentally focusing on and how you have been feeling emotionally and even physically. I feel certain you will see a definite connection. Nothing good comes from thinking sour, critical, and negative thoughts, but something good always comes when we think according to God’s plan for our life.

You Can Change How You Think

Through His death and resurrection, Jesus offers us a new way of living; however, a new way of thinking will always precede this new way of living. Right thinking and right attitudes are roadmaps that allow us to reach our destination.

Romans 12:2 says, 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….

This Scripture is so important for us to understand! God has a good, acceptable, and perfect plan for you and me, and the way we can experience it is not to think like the world thinks, but to be changed entirely by learning to renew our mind and think the way God thinks. If you want to have what God wants you to have, learn to think like God thinks!

Ephesians 4:22-23 is one of my favorite groups of scriptures in the Bible. Verse 22 says to strip yourselves of your former nature. Then verse 24 tells us to put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God’s image.

How do we do that? Verse 23 gives us the key: And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude].

So, the way to “put off” your old life and “put on” the new is to constantly renew your mind and attitude. It begins with filling our minds with God’s Word, then choosing to think and speak the positive, faith-filled things He says about our lives.

You Can Think Positive Things On Purpose

Did you know you can jump-start your day by thinking and speaking good things on purpose as one of your first acts in the morning? It’s an exercise that only takes a few minutes, but it will be valuable to you all day. I encourage you to meditate on God’s Word and speak out things like:

This is the day God has made, and I am going to enjoy it! (Psalm 118:24)
I can handle whatever comes my way today through Christ Who is my strength. (Philippians 4:13)
Today, I am strong and energetic. (Isaiah 40:28-31)
I have favor with God and man everywhere I go. (Luke 2:52)
Everything I lay my hand to prospers and succeeds. (Deuteronomy 30:19; Joshua 1:8)
I enjoy being a blessing to others. (1 Timothy 6:18)
I am thankful for all that God has done for me. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
God is working on my problems, and I can wait patiently because His timing is perfect. (Psalm 31:15; 37:7; 46:1)

A negative mind and mouth will produce negative moods, attitudes and in all probability, a miserable day. But the positive approach of setting your mind in an uplifting direction, full of godly, faith-filled thoughts will have a good effect on you and your entire day.

Change Takes Time and Practice

Renewing our mind, mouth, moods and attitudes isn’t always easy, but it is possible with God’s help. I have personally been working toward this goal for almost 40 years, and although I have not arrived at perfection, I have made amazing progress. I have successful days, and I also have days when I feel like I’ve failed miserably, but I believe with God’s help I can keep growing.

If you desire greater emotional stability, and the ability to maintain a consistent good attitude no matter what your circumstances are, then make it a goal and don’t give up until you have reached it.

A walk begins with one step and then another and another. No matter how long your journey seems, if you take enough steps in the right direction, you will eventually arrive at your desired destination…and truly have the life you’ve always wanted.

For more on this topic, preorder Joyce’s book The Mind Connection which will be released in September. You can also contact us here to receive our free magazine, Enjoying Everyday Life, or by calling (800) 727-9673.

Your Words and Your Life

by Joyce Meyer

I am sure you have heard someone say, “You are going to eat those words.” It may sound like a mere phrase to us, but in reality we do eat our words. What we say not only affects others, but it also affects us.

Words are wonderful when used in a proper way. They can encourage, edify and give confidence to the hearer. A right word spoken at the right time can actually be life-changing. (See Proverbs 15:23.)

We can literally increase our own joy by speaking right words. We can also upset ourselves by talking unnecessarily about our problems or things that have hurt us in relationships.

Not too long ago I had a disappointing situation take place with someone I considered to be a close friend. I noticed that each time I talked about it, I would have a difficult time getting it off of my mind for the remainder of the day. I finally realized that if I wanted to get over it, I was going to have to stop mentally and verbally going over it again and again. People kept asking me about the situation out of genuine concern, but I ultimately realized that I had to answer, “It is better for me if I just don’t talk about it.”

What Happens When We Speak?

The words that come out of our mouth go into our own ears as well as other people’s, and then they drop down into our soul where they give us either joy or sadness, peace or upset, depending on the types of words we have spoken.

“ When we understand the power of words and realize that we can choose what we think and speak, our lives can be transformed. ”

God desires that our spirit be light and free so it can function properly, not heavy and oppressed. We can learn to choose our thoughts, to resist wrong ones and think on good, healthy, and right ones. I have often said, “Where the mind goes, the man follows.” And it could also be said that where the mind goes, the mouth follows!

When we understand the power of words and realize that we can choose what we think and speak, our lives can be transformed.

Plan to Say Something Positive

God has given His children a new nature, and we are taught to daily renew our mind and attitude. Having a positive outlook on life and speaking positive words based on God’s Word is one of the most wholesome things we can do.

When you get up in the morning, if there is something you need to attend to that day that you’re not looking forward to, you can say, “I dread this day,” or you can say, “God will give me strength today to do whatever I need to do and to do it with joy.” Which of these two statements do you think would better prepare you for the day?

As we have seen, we eat our words, and we can rightfully say that they are food for our souls. Anyone who wants to be healthy is careful to choose quality food that will provide good nutrition. If we want to be healthy in our soul and spirit, we should also choose to take in words that will build us up and increase our peace and joy.

Draw Attention to the Positive

I believe there are many good things happening in the world and probably there is more good than bad. But the evil is magnified in a way that often seems overwhelming. Turn on any news station or buy any newspaper or news magazine and you will find it filled with reports of murder, theft, wars, famine and all kinds of horribly tragic events.

We want to be well informed of what is going on, but to talk about world problems excessively or with no purpose merely creates a gloomy atmosphere that nobody will enjoy.

I recently walked into a room and heard a group of people talking about several businesses that had recently filed bankruptcy. Then they mentioned two others that they had heard were going to file bankruptcy. I felt a gloom hanging in the atmosphere so I said, “Well, God is not bankrupt and He is on our side.” Everyone agreed with me and immediately, the atmosphere changed.

I am not suggesting at all that we deny reality, but we can choose what we talk about. Instead of feeding ourselves a steady diet of “bad news,” we should choose to read, watch and talk about good things.

What Are You Talking About?

We talk a lot and quite often pay no attention to what we are saying, let alone think seriously about the impact of our words.

If we are honest with ourselves, we may find that some of our bad moods are directly linked to our conversation. Even some of our problems can be linked to bad choices we make about what we say.

I want to encourage you to take some time and think about the types of things you usually talk about. What kind of conversation do you enjoy and participate in?

How to Get More Joy Out of Life

Your words may not be the cause all of your problems, but they can cause a lot of them and they should be given a good deal of consideration when we are looking for answers to the problems we encounter in life.

We all have challenges in life, but we can make them better or worse by the way we talk about them. I don’t believe we can change all of our circumstances into pleasant ones by making positive confessions, but I do believe many of them will change according to God’s will. I simply want to teach you to be in agreement with God and learn to say what He says.

One thing is for sure, speaking negatively could hurt you and speaking positively never will, so why not go with the positive and see what kind of results you get?

This article is based on an excerpt from Joyce's book, Change Your Words, Change Your Life.

Words Are Food for the Soul

by Joyce Meyer

Words are wonderful when used in a proper way. They can encourage, edify and give confidence to the hearer. A right word spoken at the right time can actually be life-changing. (See Proverbs 15:23.)

We can literally increase our own joy by speaking right words. We can also upset ourselves by talking unnecessarily about our problems or things that have hurt us in relationships.

What Happens When We Speak?

When we understand the power of words and realize that we can choose what we think and speak, our lives can be transformed.

Plan to Say Something Positive

This article draws from material in Joyce's book, Change Your Words, Change Your Life. Order Your Copy Today.

Overcoming Depression

by Joyce Meyer

Depression is very real. It can cause us to feel isolated, alone, and hopeless…like everything around us is falling apart.

Satan uses depression to steal a person’s spiritual power and freedom—he seeks to fill our minds with darkness and gloom and bring us down emotionally. However, God wants to help us live free from depression. He wants to fill us with His joy, hope and expectation of good things for our lives.

An important part of battling depression is winning the war over our feelings. We will always have feelings…they will never go away. However, we can make our feelings line up with our decisions.

When depression attacks, what we feel like doing is giving up. However, the way we respond to depression makes all the difference.

First Peter 2:3 says to resist the devil at his onset. It’s so important to resist the feeling of depression immediately, because the longer we allow it to remain, the harder it is to resist!

All of us will deal with disappointments from time to time—that’s a part of life. However, if we let it, our disappointment can lead to discouragement…and discouragement can lead to depression.

I’ve said this for years: If you don't let the devil impress you with what he does, then he can't oppress you; and if he can't oppress you, then he can't depress you. One of the most important things we can do is resist the devil at his onset!

A Biblical Prescription for Depression

I realize that depression may be the result of a physical or chemical imbalance, and I don’t want to discount these causes. However, for a great number of people, depression is a spiritual issue…and the Bible gives us great instructions on how to fight it.

Philippians 4:4 says, Rejoice in the Lord always [delight, gladden yourselves in Him]; again I say, Rejoice!

Praising the Lord in the midst of our pain is the greatest thing we can do. Why? Because when we choose to fix our attention on God and rejoice in the good things He has done, we make Him bigger than our problems.

I love Psalm 16:11. It says, In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. When we worship God, we invite His presence into our lives. He replaces our discouragement and sadness with His joy and peace…giving us hope and breathing new life into our situation.

The mind is also a major key to overcoming depression. Did you know that what you think about has the power to affect every area of your life? That’s why it’s so important to renew your mind with the promises found in God’s Word.

The more time you spend reading and thinking about His Word, the more it gets inside of you and begins to change you from the inside out. Hebrews 4:12 says that God’s Word “is alive and powerful” (NLT) It has the ability to change the way you see yourself and even your future. As you fill your mind with what God says about you and claim His promises as your own, it will bring hope and build your faith.

We can't control all of our circumstances, and we will never be completely free from experiencing pain or disappointment, but we don't have to let what happens today ruin tomorrow.

We have a choice. We can actually turn things around by making a decision to let go of the situations that caused discouragement and depression, and move toward the good things God has planned for our future.

Depression doesn’t have to rule your life. No matter what you’re going through, God is ready and willing to help you take your pain…and turn it into something great.

This article is taken from Joyce's audio teaching, Understanding and Overcoming Depression.

8 Reasons to Celebrate

by Joyce Meyer

We have so much to be thankful for in life. I’m reminded of it every time I wake up in the morning—because God truly has worked out every negative thing that has happened to me for my good. Not only that, He’s made it possible for us to work together to accomplish some incredible things!

For each of the stories of God’s transforming love that we share with you from around the globe through our magazine and TV broadcasts, there are many thousands more. Together, God is using us to share Christ and love people all over the world—and I am so thankful for that!

Back in January, I set a goal for myself to be thankful every day of the year. I’ve tried my best to do that, and in the process, I’ve realized that complaining doesn’t change a thing! But choosing a thankful attitude can help me enjoy a perfectly lousy day.

I am so encouraged by this scripture and I hope it encourages you. John 10:10 says, The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).

You see, through every storm of life, we can be strengthened by God’s love, refreshed by His Word, and fully energized to press on in our journey of faith. Instead of focusing on the negative, we can choose to remember the good things He’s doing and celebrate!

Through the years, I have made many lists to remind myself of the reasons I have to be thankful to God. And to this day, I can look at them and be encouraged. A few of my favorites include:

God’s provision
The love of my family and friends
Our partners
The privilege of teaching God’s Word
The gifts of the Holy Spirit
Being able to help people
Clean water and good food
All the beautiful things that God has created

Each time I look at these things, I am blessed all over again! I encourage you to join me in this year of thanks. Write lists of thanksgiving for the good things God has done. Not only will it cheer you up in hard times, it will strengthen your relationship with God. He is so worthy of our gratitude!

Rejoice in the Lord and be glad. —Psalm 32:11 (NIV)

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You Have What It Takes To Do It Afraid

by Joyce Meyer

Fear is an enemy that torments the soul and seeks to steal our life. Conquering it is not something that we do in one day, or even in 1,000 days. It is something that we conquer one day at a time with God’s help. I still confront and deal with fears that try to make me think I need to do more, or try harder, or be nicer. Fear can show up unexpectedly. One of our goals should be to recognize it so we can deal with it right away.

Recently, I was waking up at about 2 or 3 in the morning and then having difficulty going back to sleep. After two nights of that, I found myself going to bed with a vague sort of fear that it would happen again, and sure enough it did. After about three nights of the same thing, God reminded me that I could pray and resist Satan, the source of all fear. According to God’s Word, the sleep of the righteous should be sweet (see Proverbs 3:24). I prayed immediately and went back to sleep and have not had any problems since then.

If you have difficulty thinking about resisting Satan, let me remind you that Jesus did it. We have His power and authority over the enemy, but authority is useless if it is not exercised.

Being free from fear doesn’t mean that we will never experience it or be confronted by it. It means that we are committed to not allowing it to rule our lives, and when necessary we will do what we need to do, even if we have to do it afraid.

Each fear you confront becomes a small victory and prepares you to face the next one. Each time you feel fear and decide to “do it afraid,” you will enjoy your new freedom so much that you will soon be totally unwilling to do without it. You will become determined to end your days of slavery to fear. That does not mean that you won’t still need to confront your fears, but it does mean that you will be more and more willing to keep confronting them.

When You Fall, Get Up and Keep Going!

The Bible says that the righteous man falls seven times and gets up again (see Proverbs 24:16). I love that scripture and I am greatly encouraged by it. Even the most righteous person fails to do everything he knows to do all the time, but he is committed to not giving up.

Even if you have a weak moment, that doesn’t mean you have lost your victory. If we give up, even God can’t help us because we receive His help through faith, not through hopelessness. We need to stay positive, hopeful and filled with faith, and when we do we can overcome anything with God’s help. I often say that anyone can succeed if they refuse to give up!

Some fears are more deeply rooted in us than other ones are, and for that reason they may be ones we will need to be more aggressive against. Mine is the fear of making people angry. My father was always angry, and I never really knew if I had done something to make him that way or not. I would like to be able to say that after all of these years of teaching others, I no longer have to deal with this one fear, but that’s not the case. However, the good news is now I recognize it and I deal with it, so I still have the victory.

Being able to recognize the lies, deceits and strategies of the devil is so important. We should always be ready to resist him at the onset of his attacks. The longer we let a fear remain, the more difficult it is to get rid of. So make a decision to be a person of action. You have what it takes to win!

Armed and Dangerous

The Word of God says that we are more than conquerors through Christ who loves us (Romans 8:37). You are armed with the truth of God’s Word, and you are dangerous to the devil as long as you keep lifting up the shield of faith and actively applying the truth that you now have. We have what it takes, but must be active and never give up!

Don’t be impatient! Possessing the full freedom that is yours in Christ is a journey. It is something we gain and then need to maintain. Always enjoy your progress instead of merely looking at how far you have to go. Today is a new day, and every day you can be one step closer to conquering your fears!

Trust More and Stress Less

by Joyce Meyer

Our thoughts are connected to every single area of our lives. They affect our words, moods, attitudes, the choices we make, and even our relationship with God and others. They also affect our emotional and physical health.

In fact, research shows that 75 to 98 percent of mental, physical, and behavioral illness comes from one’s thought life.1 The mind and body are definitely connected!

For instance, did you know you can stress yourself out by the way you think? So often, we believe our circumstances are to blame for our unhappiness, however it’s the way we think about our circumstances that usually causes worry and stress.

Stress is a modern-day epidemic. It’s been proven to cause issues like muscle tension, headaches, breathing irregularities, increased heart rate, artery inflammation, gastro-intestinal problems, constipation and diarrhea.2 And that’s only a few of the symptoms!

The good news is God has given us the answer for worry and stress. What’s his prescription? Trust.Proverbs 3:5 (AMP) says, “Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding.”

Trusting God is the greatest stress reliever in the world, and our minds play an important role in the process. We have a choice. We can “rely on our own insight and understanding”—endlessly thinking about our problems, trying to figure everything out ourselves. Or we can choose to adopt a trusting attitude that says, “God, I don’t know what to do about this situation, but I can’t fix it on my own. If You want me to do something, I ask You to show me. Meanwhile, I’m going to trust You and enjoy my life while You work on my problems.”

I used to be a professional worrier—I was good at it. Years ago, when my children were young, I would sit at our kitchen table and spend hours looking at our bills, worrying how we would pay them. Dave, on the other hand, would be sitting on the floor in the TV room, letting the kids put curlers in his hair.

I would say, “Dave how can you have fun at a time like this?” And he would answer, “Joyce, we’ve prayed about it, and we’re doing everything we know to do. I refuse to be miserable with you.”

It made me so mad! But Dave was right. I was allowing myself to get upset and waste time I could have been spending with my children.

In John 14:27 Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.]”

I love this! God is saying, “I am giving you My peace, but the choice is up to you!”

Through His death and resurrection, Jesus offers us a new way of living; however, a new way of thinking will always precede this new way of living.

Romans 12:2 says, “…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….”

This scripture is so important! God has a good, acceptable, and perfect plan for you and me, and the way we can experience it is not to think like the world thinks, but to be changed by learning to renew our mind and think the way God thinks.

So, when life throws you a curve and you’re tempted to get stressed-out, I encourage you to choose positive, faith-filled thoughts from God’s Word. You can think, The Lord is going to take care of this. It doesn’t matter what it looks like—I believe God is working!

The truth is God knew about your problem before you ever got it, and He already has a plan for your solution. In the meantime, you can choose to enjoy your life while you wait. He has equipped you with the “mind of Christ” (see I Corinthians 2:16) and with His help, you can trust more and stress less.

1Dr. Caroline Leaf, Switch On Your Brain, Baker Books, pg. 33–38, September 1, 2013. 2Ibid.