GOTCHA

By Julie Morris, RN 

Do you want to get rid of unwelcome thoughts that won’t go away?  You know—the ones you can’t get out of your mind no matter how hard you try.  You pray and journal about the problem that’s at the root of those thoughts and even talk it over with a friend, but they keep coming back.  Maybe it’s anger over something that’s unfair.  Maybe your recurring thought is one of shame, fear, or regret.  Maybe you can’t stop thinking about eating fattening “goodies” or doing something else that’s not good for you.

Taking your thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5) is almost impossible when the thought keeps coming back every minute or two.  Just when you think you’ve gotten rid of it, there it is again.

If that’s your problem, play GOTCHA!

Instead of trying NOT to think about a certain thing and mentally beating yourself up when you recognize that you’re doing it again, laugh every time the thought appears and say “GOTCHA!”  Take that thought captive even if you have to do it 100 times a day.  Let the negative thought trigger a positive one.  Every time that negative thought pokes its ugly head into your brain, thank God that He is helping you to take your thoughts captive and reminding you how much you need Him.  Don’t worry about how often you’re saying GOTCHA.  Just congratulate yourself that you’re not letting your thoughts run loose.  Then rejoice that every time you play this game, you’re able to say to the Author of Discord…“GOTCHA!”

Julie Morris (julie@guidedbyhim.com), author of 12 books and dynamic motivational speaker, is the founder of Step Forward www.stepforwarddiet.com and Guided By Him www.guidedbyhim.com–two Christian weight-loss programs that have groups meeting across the country.  She is The Christian Pulse’s Team Leader for Health and Fitness.  © 2009