If your mind challenged your arm to an arm wrestle, your mind would beat the arm every time
CQ, Lesson 6, 2011
Phil 4:8Our mind is the most powerful part of our body. If your mind challenged your arm to an arm wrestle your mind would beat the arm every time – if it chose to. Your thoughts can simply put your arm to reverse and "THUMP" - the score is Mind 1, Arm 0.
Basically, our thoughts run our body, nothing else really gets a say. What we do, when we do it, where we do it, how we do it and ultimately why we do something are all dictated by the mind.
Because our thoughts have such a crucial role in controlling our actions and emotions, you could argue that it is more important to look after your mind than it is to look after any other part of your body. For example, you can survive sufficiently well with an untrained, or even crippled right hand, but an untrained or crippled mind will make your life significantly more difficult.
Recognising the importance of our thoughts, and the dictatorship they hold over everything we do and feel, here's some ways you can best set up your mind to have a happy and healthy life:
1. Immerse in good, avoid the bad
Spend your life reading, watching, listening and taking part in things that increase your knowledge of all things good and eternal. Don't waste time filling your memory with the many meaningless distractions this world offers. From time to time stop to consider if the TV programs, movies, magazines, websites, shop purchases, sports, hobbies, work and even friends are worth the eternal space they fill in your mind.
2. Don't vandalise your mind
You can function if you mistreat your mind with poor food or sleeping habits. Even after consumption of alcohol, cigarettes or drugs, your mind can still miraculously function. However, considering your mind has such a crucial and powerful control over your life, the act of sabotaging it so it looses some of its functionality is asking for trouble!
3. Grow positivity
Everyone ultimately want's happiness. Some look far and wide for it, but ultimately it's up to you to think you are happy. Happiness is not something you can buy from a shop and be switched on when you get home. It’s up to your mind to look on the positive side of life’s situations and this will ultimately leads to happiness.
4. Avoid negative story telling
Often called gossip, being involved in one sided negative story telling has the power to sour our opinions of people without getting the ‘official’ story. Dwelling on the positive traits of each other and building each other up is of far more benefit to our minds and attitudes than dwelling on rumoured scandals behind people’s backs is.
REACT
1. How many movie quotes can you accurately recite compared to Bible texts?
2. Often you can not change a bad situation, but you can change your thinking. Explore how you could choose to be either positive or negative about having a crippled right hand and how the choice will impact your life?