I used to be a super negative person. Not because I wanted to be, but it was a predisposition to my own life circumstances. As a result of previous experiences, I always looked for the bad. Even when I was on "Great Street" I continually looks for "Terrible Alley". In my mind, nothing good could last for long, especially not to me.
As I have gotten more familiar with God and His word, He started showing me my own behavior for what it was. Negativity, with no Hope.
Being negative is a tool the enemy gives us to keep us down. To keep us from living our purpose, and most importantly to keep us from living the life God desires for us to live with hope of goodness and abundant life. Notice I said the enemy gives it to us. Once we accept the negativity there is no need to hang around because it's solely at our discretion whether we carry it with us or discard it immediately. There is a spirit of self doubt, low self esteem, and anger that can come with negativity. So we have to be fully prepared to deal with it and not let it linger.
Notice I did not write "turn" your negative into a positive. From experience I know that it's not that easy. I know that retraining your thought process is hard work. I know that you have to work everyday not to let negativity creep in. I today, still work extra hard to remain positive in tough times, and not to allow myself to fall down the rabbit hole of negative thoughts. If you were like me, sometimes I wasn't happy until I shared my negative thoughts. I would be at work and something would change in procedure, and it was my greatest joy to get with my coworkers and complain, then call my mom and complain, then get home to my husband and complain some more. But, where did it get me??? I was the only one feeling like crap, and of course the people that allowed me to come dump my madness on to them felt bad too.
As I started living out God's word and drawing closed to Him, I realized just how like people attract each other. I was ready to live in the promises of God, but those around me had set up residence in Terrible Alley. It made me realize what a deficit I was when I was like that. So I started taking baby steps, the negativity did not just go away, I had to work the bad into good.
Reciting scripture is powerful. Even if you don't get it all the way. Even if you are not feeling it. Speak that scripture into the atmosphere and you will feel a chance. Then I started writing down my negative thoughts as they occurred. When I wrote them down I would then think of an alternative to combat it. Once I did that, I would actively and symbolically throw them away. Yes, there were times I had a trash can full by the middle of the day. What that help me do is not to internalize what I was feeling. Most importantly when the negative would come and get in the way, and I could not scripture it away, nor write it away, I would pray. I would pray until I felt better. I would tell and still do say to God over and over again, "this is not how I want to think, please give me the mind of Christ. It was not, and has not been easy, but it works. I find myself on the positive side of things now. I don't look for the bad, I expect the good. Why, because scripture tells me that "all things work for the good of those that love God" (Rom 8:28). And I do love Him, with all my heart I love Him.
Pray to God, tell Him you love Him and that you want to change your mindset, that you are in need of a renewed mind. Purpose within yourself that you will work your negative into a positive with the strength of God on your side and go ahead and walk it out starting today. I promise this change is for the better!
~God Bless U
