Topic: The Power of a Positive Mind [Joyce Meyer Devotional 30 August 2020]
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Jesus said, Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed….— Matthew 8:13 (AMPC)
Sometimes when I stand behind the pulpit, before I speak, I pause and my gaze sweeps across the audience. I look at the faces of the people. I love to see their bright smiles and expressions of anticipation, but there are always a few who look downtrodden and discouraged. I don’t know anything about them, but their faces look sad. They look as if they’ve lost hope and expect nothing positive to happen—and too often, they get exactly what they expect.
I understand those discouraged people, because I was once one of them.
Here’s a simple fact I’ve learned: positive minds produce positive lives, but negative minds produce negative lives. The New Testament tells the story of a Roman soldier whose servant was sick, and the soldier wanted Jesus to heal him. This wasn’t uncommon—many wanted Jesus to heal them or their loved ones in those days. But this soldier, instead of asking Jesus to come to his servant, expressed his belief that if Jesus would just say the word, his servant would be healed (see Matthew 8:8 NIV). Jesus marveled at his faith and sent out His word to heal the servant. The soldier’s positive mindset—his faith—brought positive results. He expected healing, and that’s exactly what happened.
Too often, we ask Jesus to heal us, to take care of our finances, or to deliver us from problems, but we don’t fully expect the good things we’re asking for to happen—we allow our minds to stay stuck on the problems instead of believing God to bring the solution we need. Doubt and unbelief will effectively steal our faith if we’re not careful with our thoughts.
As I wrote in my book Battlefield of the Mind, many years ago I was extremely negative. I used to say that if I had two positive thoughts in a row, my mind would get in a cramp. That’s an exaggeration, of course, but that was how I saw myself. I lived with the same philosophy that many other people have: If I don’t expect anything good to happen, I won’t be disappointed when it doesn’t.
I could have excused my negative attitude by telling everyone about my disappointments in life—and I had many. But it wasn’t just my lack of expectation—it was more than that. Because I thought negatively, I spoke negatively. When people told me about their spiritual victories, I’d think, That won’t last. When people spoke of their faith, I’d smile, but inside I would think, They are so gullible. I was always thinking of ways that plans would go wrong or people would disappoint me.
Was I happy? Of course not. Negative thinkers are never happy. It’s too long of a story to explain how I came to face that reality, but once I realized what a negative person I was, I cried out to the Lord to help me.
I learned that if I kept studying the Word of God, I could push away the negative thoughts instead of letting them run my life. My responsibility was to become the kind of believer who honors God with her thoughts as well as actions and deeds.
I understood the remorse David must have felt when he wrote Psalm 51: “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your steadfast love . . .” is the way he starts. I especially meditated on verse 9: “Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my guilt and iniquities.” I hadn’t sinned the same way David did, of course, but my negative thinking and bad attitude was still sin. It wasn’t just weakness or a bad habit. When I focused on negative thoughts, I was rebelling against God, who tells us to focus on things that are true, wholesome and uplifting (see Philippians 4:8 NIV).
As I continued studying His Word and asking Him for help, God had mercy on me and freed me from all of Satan’s strongholds in my mind, and He’s ready and waiting to do the same for you!
Prayer Starter:Father, please help me keep my mind set on higher things, so my thoughts don’t wander into worry and anxiety. Thank You for directing my thoughts and showing me who I can help today! In Jesus’ Name, amen