Power of Thought | Crosstraining 9.1.15

Read Philippians 4:7-8 Have you ever noticed that the things you think about affect you almost as much if not more than what actually happens to you? One day a few months ago, I was having a pretty good week. Things were going fairly well, but I had a crabby attitude. So much so that my wife got on me for how I was acting. Nothing bad had happened to put me in a bad mood, I had just allowed myself to focus on the few negative things around me instead of all the positive things that I could have been thinking about. As Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, he urged them to fill their heads with positive thoughts. Paul wanted them to think positive thoughts because he wanted the peace of God to guard their hearts. How were they supposed to do that though? He told them to think about things that were noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable. He instructed them to spend time thinking about anything that was excellent or praiseworthy. If we were honest about our thought life, most of us would probably have to say that we spend much more time thinking negative, fearful, discontented, and critical thoughts than we do thoughts that are noble, pure, and admirable. In our heads, we trash ourselves and other people. We complain to ourselves about our situation and the people around us. We fret over every little detail of our lives in fear. This leads us away from having the peace of God. REFLECT: Out of the four types of overwhelming thoughts (negative, fearful, discontented, critical), which of these do you struggle with? Which of these do you struggle with the most? Why? PRAY: Share with God today the negative, fearful, discontented, and critical thoughts you struggle with. Ask God to help you with those. Ask Him to help you think more positively and have the peace of God in your life. // TWO-A-DAYS // GO A LITTLE FARTHER WITH YOUR DAILY DEVOTIONS // Go through these questions with your spouse, kids, or friend, or you can even journal about the answers to these questions:

1. What was the best part of your day?
2. What was the toughest part of your day?
3. Where did you mess up today?
4. Where did you see God today?