Axis Podcast Bible PlanSample

Mind

Within the alignment of our spiritual axis and the mind, body, soul connection is perhaps the most powerful and often overlooked element. Our mindset. With the right mindset, there’s nothing that can bring you down or anything you can’t accomplish. Nothing seems impossible. Likewise, when our mindset suffers, it seems nothing can rescue us from the negative web of thoughts that entangle us. It’s not surprising that our enemy would come after something that so greatly controls our understanding and execution of our purpose. “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he….” (Prov. 23:7 NIV) That is why it is so important to learn the powerful practice of taking our thoughts captive and making them obedient to the truth of Christ.

Much has been written about the mind and our brain’s ability to rewire old thought patterns, creating new pathways of positive, healthy thoughts. This can lead us to better habits, and eventually, a better life as we work ourselves out of our mind’s natural bent toward darkness, negativity, and sin. 

I, (Anna) have personally done this in my own mind. Growing up I battled constant negative thoughts about my appearance, my personality, and how I fit into the world. The darkness of my thoughts led me to consider suicide because I didn’t see another way out of the taunting. You’ll never amount to anything… nothing you do is good enough, no one will ever love you, you’ll never do anything great for God. The more I dove into God’s Word the more I realized my thoughts did not line up with His truth. When I began to bring my thoughts out of darkness and into His light and realign with what He said about me, my mind began to change.

Did you know old wounds, harmful memories, and dark thoughts actually show up differently on a brain scan than regular, normal, happy thoughts and memories? In her book, Switch on Your Brain, Dr. Caroline Leaf explains the brain’s amazing ability to actually retrain itself. “As we think, we change the physical nature of our brain. As we consciously direct our thinking, we can wire out toxic patterns of thinking and replace them with healthy thoughts. New thought networks grow. We increase our intelligence and bring healing to our brains, minds, and physical bodies.” 

We can heal our minds, and in turn, affect our spirit and our bodies. The connection between the three—mind, soul, and body—is unavoidable. We don’t have to live our whole lives stuck in the same thought patterns that our past has given us. God has created us in His image, which means we are so intricately and creatively able to affect change in our very minds. This is called imagination. When we use the gift of imagination we can begin to see our life take shape in the way we want it to go even if we aren’t quite there yet. Is there something you want to accomplish in life? Someone you want to become? Something you want to change? Begin creating change in your mind and watch the power of mindset work its transformation. 

The mind is an amazing gift from our creator. Fickle and mysterious, the mind is the only thing we possess untethered by physical boundaries. As far as your imagination can roam, your mind can go. Because of this, the mind can also be easily deceived. Without a strong basis with which to attach our mind, our thoughts have the power to run rampant and take us places we never meant to go. That is why it is so important to develop the habit of daily time in His Word and in His presence to help us take captive the negative thoughts that are bound to come our way. His standard is that foundation to which we can tether our minds, so that we will live confidently and victorious no matter what life throws our way.

Anna