Have you ever gotten into someone else's car by accident? If you're honest with yourself, we've all done it. I once walked out of Walgreens and opened the door to climb into my silver car. Once the door was open, I noticed that something didn't look right. Where was my stuff? Also, where was my daughter waiting in the car. That's when I noticed her watching me from my silver car parked right next to the one I opened due to lack of awareness.
I remember sitting outside of McDonalds when a total stranger opened my passenger door and started to climb into my car. I had several thoughts that started to fly through my head. I immediately go to worst case scenario that I'm about to be carjacked, so I think I should yell out "help!" Or I could open the door and run for it.
Or I could challenge the man and say, "Excuse me! Can your please get out of my car." I didn't need to do any of those things. He looked at me with surprise and immediately said, "I'm sorry!!" I could hear the woman he had arrived with in the car next to me laughing.
When something like this happens, we tend to go to worst case scenario. Even if you are an optimist and don't usually think the worst, you might because of 2020. We have experienced pandemics, continent fires, floods, earthquakes, murder hornets, cannibal ants, and that's just the first half of the year. We think to ourselves, "
what is this year going to throw at us next?" Because of this, we all tend to lean towards the worst.
Negative thinking brings stress, health issues, and lack of faith. Imagine if we take the negative thought and tagged on a "but." You may be asking, "What do you mean by that?" In 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 it says, "
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in dispair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. NIV" First of all, the Bible never mentioned that all would be perfect.
Being hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down pretty much sums up how we all feel right now. There is a sense of being overwhelmed by everything that is going on in our world.
However, if you read the part that follows the conjunction "but," we find the answer to how we can destroy negative thoughts and survive whatever 2020 throws at us. We may go through some things as Christians, but God does not allow them to destroy us. If you read the later part of that passage it says in 2 Corinthians 4:16-
18 "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. NIV" What are you fixing your eyes on? If we begin to add a "but" to our problems, we will refocus our eyes on what matters. For example: I just ripped my favorite pair of jeans, but I have clothes to wear. Things are hard at work, but I am thankful I have a job to go to. Eventually we will begin to erase the negative thoughts and automatically go straight to positive thinking. I challenge you this week when you find yourself looking at the negative things in your life, add a "but" and thank God for what He's done.Have a great week high-heeled warriors!
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