S8.6 | Renewing Your Mind: 3 Steps to Replace Negative Thoughts with Biblical Truth
In this episode, Carla delves into the crucial topic of renewing our minds and taking control of our thoughts. She offers valuable insights and practical steps to help you overcome negative thinking and align your thoughts with truth. Join Carla as she guides you through the process of renewing your mind and finding freedom in Christ. Don't miss out on the opportunity to grab the complimentary workbook designed to complement this episode. Let's dive into Carla's affirming truths.
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Key Takeaways
Our Thoughts Matter:
Carla emphasizes the pivotal role our thoughts play in shaping our emotions, behaviors, and ultimately, our lives. By taking control of our thoughts, we can create positive changes in our lives.Carla draws on Biblical truths to illustrate the importance of aligning our thoughts with God's word. Through 2 Corinthians 10:5 and other scriptures, she highlights the significance of making our thoughts obedient to Christ.
Practical Steps to Renewing the Mind:
Carla provides a simple yet powerful framework for renewing our minds. Acknowledge, test, and replace—are the three actionable steps that she shares, helping listeners understand and overcome negative thought patterns.
Embracing Neuroplasticity:
Carla sheds light on the concept of neuroplasticity, affirming that our minds are not fixed. She encourages listeners to practice developing new thought patterns through the power of biblical affirmations and persistence.Perseverance in Faith:
Proficiency Through Practice:
Carla emphasizes the importance of consistent practice in renewing our minds. By sharing insights from her one-on-one coaching experience, she highlights the necessity of repeatedly aligning our thoughts with biblical truths.
Connect With Carla:
Inquire about 1:1 coaching ---> carlaagreswellness@gmail.com
Renewing Hope Course —-> https://www.carlaarges.com/renewing-hope
Come hangout on IG with me @carlaarges
Check out the blog
Resources:
5 Steps to Building Resiliency
Affirming Truths Facebook Community
5 Tips for Overcoming a Negative Body Image
Who You Say I Am Biblical Affirmation Cards
TRANSCRIPT
Carla Arges [00:00:08]:
Hey friends, welcome to affirming truth. I'm your friend and host, Carla Arges. This show is a safe place to share our struggles, grow in faith, and root our identity in Christ. My hope is that you will leave each episode feeling encouraged in your journey. It subscribe so you don't miss an episode, and it would mean the world to me if you would leave a review. I am so glad you're here. Let's get started.
Carla Arges [00:00:34]:
Hey friends, welcome to this episode of affirming truths. I have a treat for you because I have a special workbook to go along with today's episode. We are going to talk about renewing our mind and taking thoughts captive, and I'm so excited to offer you this free workbook that will take you through the process of what it looks like to take a thought captive and make it obedient to Christ. So the link for that freebie is in the show notes. Go grab it, practice it, and let's get into today's episode. We read in two corinthians ten five, we demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. This here is how you actually renew your mind. You demolish the arguments and every pretension that goes above God, that misaligns with God.
Carla Arges [00:01:46]:
You demolish them. You take them captive and you make it obedient to Christ. You take that thought and you rewrite it to a thought that is glorifying to God and his truth and his character and what he says about you. Two corinthians ten five outlines how to do romans twelve two be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Why? So you can know what is that good and pleasing and perfect will of God in your life? The battle is in your mind. The battle is in your mind. We do not fight against flesh and blood. We fight against powers and principalities.
Carla Arges [00:02:28]:
We know this. And the biggest place that we get attacked is in our mind. We get attacked from the messages of the world around us. We get attacked from things that people have said over us that are now deep in our subconscious and play out. We get attacked sometimes by the enemy and his minions themselves. There is a battle in our mind, and this is so important, guys, because here is the truth. The core beliefs we have about ourselves drives our thoughts, and our thoughts is what produces our feelings. And we are emotive people.
Carla Arges [00:03:11]:
Our behaviors, our decisions are, by and large driven by how we're feeling, whether we like to admit that or not. And the behaviors that we have, the decisions that we make lead to the result that is our life. The life that we are living, whether it's an overcoming life or a life in bondage, the life that we are living, whether it's a life pleasing to God or one that breaks his heart, largely comes down to our thoughts, because they drive everything. The sum of our life is our habits. Our habits are a product of behaviors we do regularly. Our behaviors are driven by our emotions, which are created by our thoughts. This is why it is so important that we gain control over what we think, because what we think will be made manifest in our life. This is why it's so important.
Carla Arges [00:04:16]:
If you struggle with anxiety, if you struggle with overwhelm, if you struggle with depression, if you struggle to find joy, if you feel like you're not having fun in life anymore, if you struggle to see the bright side, if you struggle to see God's fingerprints in your life, if you struggle with people pleasing, if you have a hard time putting in boundaries, if you struggle communicating with your spouse, a lot of these struggles come down to your thought life. And if you can master your mind in alignment with what God wants for you, your life will be radically different. And so, taking thoughts captive while we read it in the scripture, it can sound quite abstract. How do you take a thought captive? How do you take this intangible thing captive? How do we renew our mind? Isn't it fixed, guys? No, our mind is not fixed. Science is finally catching up with the Bible, showing that through neuroplasticity, our mind is not fixed. We can create new neuropathways. Neuropathways are really just the freeways of our thoughts. We can create new freeways with new thoughts.
Carla Arges [00:05:39]:
But this is a practice. This is a skill, right? You have to learn the skill. And to become proficient at any new skill requires practice. It means practicing it even when you're not being attacked by your thoughts. It means speaking truth over yourself regularly through the power of biblically based affirmations. So you start creating those new neural pathways. But, okay, how do you take a thought captive? Three steps. Simple.
Carla Arges [00:06:14]:
Not easy, but simple. You acknowledge the thought. Okay, I see you there. Thought saying that I'm not good enough. You test it against the word of God. Does me not being good enough align to what God says about me? No. What does God say about me? God says that I am valuable. God says that I am treasured.
Carla Arges [00:06:42]:
God says I am his beloved. God says I am his masterpiece. God declared, in coming to die on the cross for me that he so loved me, that in Christ I am enough. In Christ I am more than a conqueror. And then we replace the old thought with one based on that biblical truth. I am more than enough. In Christ Jesus, who loves me, we acknowledge the thought, we measure it against the truth of God's word, and then we replace it. And this is a practice that you have to do over and over again.
Carla Arges [00:07:26]:
This is where my workbook comes in, a free gift, a free resource to you so you can practice it. This is what I have my one on one clients do. This is a big part in the early days of our time together. Write down those reoccurring thoughts of I'm not good enough, people don't like me. I have to earn my worth. Nothing I do is ever good enough. I can't do what God's asking me to do. Whatever it is, we usually have an orchestra going off in our mind, redoing the same thoughts over and over and over again.
Carla Arges [00:08:10]:
The enemy is not as creative as our God. He doesn't have a lot of tricks. He uses the same ones over and over again. In fact, if I were to take all my client files and lay out what their negative thinking is, that has to be rewritten. They always get to be summed up in the same thing. They all fall into the same bucket. Because the enemy is not creative and he uses the same tricks over and over and over again. He gets us to question who we are in Christ.
Carla Arges [00:08:39]:
He gets us to question God's goodness. He wants us to have doubt and discouragement and distraction. His tricks are old. We can be savvy to his tricks. So what are your reoccurring negative thoughts? Write them out. Measure them against the word of God. Then write out a biblical truth. And then start every day declaring those truths over yourself.
Carla Arges [00:09:08]:
Even before you get that negative thought, so that you will be practiced, you will be rehearsed. That when that thought comes, you can say no wrong. That is not the truth. This is the truth. This is what God says. It's simple. It's not easy. It's not easy because a lot of these reoccurring thoughts that have come up have come up from childhood.
Carla Arges [00:09:40]:
A lot of these reoccurring thoughts that we have are based on our life experience as a young child, based on our traumas, based on our hurts, based on our family of origin. They have deep roots. It's going to take some digging to get them out, and we're going to have to overseed the area with truth and water. The truth and tend to the truth so that the truth starts choking out the lies. And this is not a one and done process. You have to keep doing this because guess what? The world keeps giving you messages that are lies. The enemy keeps giving you messages that are lies. You, yourself and your sinful flesh nature keeps giving you messages that are lies.
Carla Arges [00:10:29]:
So if you are not vigilant in guarding your mind, if you are not vigilant in putting on your helmet of salvation, if you are not vigilant in using the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God, and speaking biblical truth over the lies, you will be overcome by them. But God made you an overcomer, and he's given you the solution on how to do it by taking your thoughts captive and making them obedient to Christ. So make sure you grab my renewing your mind workbook. Go through it, practice it, say the stuff, the affirmations, out loud every day. Don't worry if your kids or your husband looks at you funny. Go to war. There's a war raging on in your mind, and you cannot afford to sit on the sidelines. You can't.
Carla Arges [00:11:32]:
Your transformation, knowing God's good and pleasing will demolishing the arguments that go up against the knowledge of God. Your mental well being, how you show up in your life because your thoughts drive your behaviors and create your life. It's all on the line. It's all on the line. You have to get proficient at mastering your mind. You have to get proficient at taking thoughts captive and making them obedient. You have to get proficient at renewing your mind. God didn't leave it a mystery for us on how to do it.
Carla Arges [00:12:14]:
Acknowledge the thought. Measure it against the word of God. Replace it with the truth of the word. Repeat. Rinse and repeat. My affirming truth for you today is I have power over my thoughts in Jesus name. For who can know the Lord's thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him? But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ. We can have the mind of Christ.
Carla Arges [00:12:48]:
Philippians four eight whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, praiseworthy. Think on these things. When you are taking a thought captive and measuring it, measure it against Philippians four eight. Is this thought true? Does it align to the word of God? Is it pure? Is it admirable? Is it praiseworthy? Test your thoughts and replace them with the word of God, the truth. Use your offensive weapon, the sword of the spirit, to take back your mind from the enemy. I have the power over my thoughts in Jesus name. Go grab the workbook now, the links below, and I'll talk to you guys next time.
Carla Arges [00:13:49]:
Thanks for joining me today. I hope we're already friends on social media, but for not come find me on instagram at Carla Arges or at affirming truth. Can't wait to see you back here next week. Bye, friends.