Our attitudes and beliefs are formed by our thoughts and the actions we take with our
thoughts. What we focus on, we will take on. What we take on, forms emotions, attitudes,
beliefs and becomes a stronghold in our mind. If we think it long enough, it will become
automatic in us. This is how our brains work. This is also why we don’t know why we believe
some of the things we believe. We formed many of our attitudes and beliefs as very young
children. We picked up information from our family and environment. We also formulated
many of our ideas based on the schema we had at the time. (Our schema is what our brain
knows at a certain age.)
Let me give you an example. My mother died when I was 5 years old. In my five-year-old
mind (schema) I believed I would die at her age. I did not know that was in my mind. When I
turned the age she died, a very loud thought came through my mind that said I am supposed
to die because my mom died. Gratefully, my older schema knew this was not the case. Still, it
is amazing it managed to pop up to greet me anyway.
Our brains like to take in information and store it and them make it automatic to be more
effective in life. The problem is that our brains don’t know what should stay and what should
go. They don’t always synthesize the information. So, there can be attitudes, beliefs in us that
are not useful nor helpful for us operating through us automatically. (How interesting, this
reminds me of computers in a way.)
It is fine, until it is not fine. You know, when life is not working out so well based on how we are
responding to it. It is then, that we need to hi-jack our brains and retrain them to work for us
and not against us.
For example, some thoughts are very ingrained in our minds. Some things we were told
growing up has impacted us as adults. We can know we are okay, loved, have value, but still
not live that way. Yet we want to love ourselves and believe that we are worthy of all the life
and blessings anyone else has or is.
We want to make our minds new in some areas-renew our minds/transform them, so they will
work for us. We want to believe the truth and get rid of the lies our minds have put in that
automatic thought process. I warn you. You must really want it because it is a workout for your
brain. It won’t just magically happen. (Unless God happens to touch you and set you free-it
can happen.) When we work for it and fight for it, it means more to us, and it builds us up and
makes us stronger humans. So usually, it is a process.
How do we tackle this?
One idea. get a timer and set it for one minute. During the one minute, have pen and paper in
hand and write down as many thoughts that come to your mind as you can. We have many!!!
Practice this to see what comes up for you. Maybe you will find something in the process that
you would like to focus on.
A second idea. Pay attention throughout the day (maybe even record yourself in
conversations) and jot down the negative beliefs and attitudes you hear that you want to
change.
+Pick a thought that you would like to change.
+What would you like to change the thought to?
+Find a scripture to back it up and write that by the new thought.
+Start saying this new thought and scripture out loud so your ears hear it and you own it (you
will feel silly at first but stay at it until you mean it). Say it 5-10 times a day or more.
+Say it when the negative thought comes to mind as an arrow you are shooting at it to shoot it
down and defy it in Jesus’ name.
+Say it to whomever is putting that thought on you when they start saying it over you.
Example: There was a person saying I am a pain in the butt. I say back to them, pretty much
every time, that God says I am a blessing. (Now they will say after they say that, that they
know. I am a blessing… but they want to say it anyway). Which is a victory. They are
acknowledging I am a blessing, and I am Hearing that.
+Add more scripture to Your new thought to make it more powerful. Remind yourself that is
what God says about you.
+It’s about learning to choose (no matter what feeling comes up, thought, or attitude) to
believe the truth until it becomes a part of you.
***Another thing. Who do you want to be? Visualize what that looks like and sounds like and
acts like and feels like.
Find scripture to back it up and declare it over yourself. It’s kind of like dressing in the
wardrobe of the job you want before you get the job. It gets your mind going in the right
direction to help you get there.
Example: I experienced a time that I felt inadequate as a wife. God gave me a Word about
this through someone else. It blew me away and I learned from it. God said that I am a
virtuous woman and (Proverbs 31) I started declaring that over myself and started choosing
to believe it and God did the rest for me. He helped me realize I was okay.
To this day, if I am starting to feel down about myself, I will pick back up those declarations
and speak to them to myself several times (like taking a prescription or vitamins) and ask
God to help me take hold of them in my heart.
God is not a respecter of persons. If you see yourself as less than anyone else, look at that,
ask God to lead you to scripture that will address that, and start speaking that Word over
yourself. You have God backing you up in your mind. You can take it from being conformed
to the negative lies coming at you, to thinking what God says. The way to do this is to wash
your mind with the water of the Word of God.
The Word is life to those that hear it. It is a lamp unto your feet and a light unto your path. He
wants to bless you.
Blessings,
Kristina Guerrero, NCC, LPC, LCDC