A seminar I took was supposed to be for work, but ended up impacting my personal life as well. One story from that made a difference for me. The instructor had a class and wanted to show them the power in their thoughts. He chose the burliest, biggest guy, and the smallest woman in the class to be his subjects. He took them out of earshot of the class, then instructed the class to focus “hate” thoughts toward the man when he came in, no matter what the instructor said. He then brought the volun-told couple to enter the class. The man was to put his arm out straight in front of him. The lady was to try to push it down while he held it steady, not allowing her to budge it. The man held his arm out, and as the class focused “hate” thoughts toward him, the lady pushed his arm down without any problem. Significant? Just wait. The couple was then asked to leave once again as he gave further instructions to the class, “This time, focus ‘love’ thoughts on the man.” The couple returned and once again the man put his arm out while the lady got ready to push it down. She tried with all her might, but could not budge the arm as the class focused “love” thoughts to him.
In the Bible we are told that life and death lie in the power of the tongue. If that is the case, can there also be power in our thoughts? I’ve personally seen the power of my own thoughts. When I focus on the negative, I go downhill. When I focus on the positive and set my heart on all the good God has done in my life, my countenance changes and my heart is uplifted.
This class showed me how powerful our thoughts can be. We are not always aware of it, but we can affect someone simply by focusing certain thoughts on them. I don’t know about you, but I want for my thoughts and my words to be “life giving” rather than “life-robbing”.
What about you? Are your thoughts towards others based on judgment or criticism, or are they based on thankfulness for who they are and who God is changing them into?
I challenge you today to take a look at your thought-life. Is it healthy, or is there room for improvement? The only One who can truly help turn this around for us is Jesus Christ. He has the power to change us from the inside out. Ask Him to change the way you think, and He will! He wants to bring us all into “life”!
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