Tuesday, November 27 2012 -- Dealing With Depression (3)
Tuesday November 27, 2012
How do I get over sadness and disappointment? How does God want to work with me to deal with my feelings and circumstances? What do I need to do today to live in God’s encouragement? I need to practice taking my thoughts captive and making them obedient to Christ.
We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NLT)
How do I capture my rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ? We make a practice of renewing our minds with the promises found in God's Word. We claim the promises as our own and stand in faith, believing God will help us overcome our feelings and move forward into better things. Steps I can practice in this process are:
1. I locate and identify the negative thoughts in my self-talk. “I am no good because my life is not what I expected or even want.”
2. I speak against the negative thoughts. “I am not a failure just because I do not meet unrealistic expectations of myself or others.”
3. I avoid focusing on negative thoughts by immediately changing my thought pattern.
4. I replace the negative thoughts, the very second they occur, with the truth.
Some of God's thoughts I can use for building my hope and encouragement include:
1. I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13 NLT)
2. And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19 NIV)
3. Surely, your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. (Psalm 23:6 NLT)
4. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. (Romans 8:28 NLT)
Audio for Tuesday, November 27 2012 -- Dealing With Depression (3)
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