Stopping the Spiral of Toxic Thoughts
Jennie Allen might seem like she’s got it all sorted. The author is a loving wife and mother with a successful career spreading the word of God. To those around her, Allen appears to be a model of success. But even she struggles with negative thoughts. In fact, there was a period of a year and a half when she actually started to question her faith.
Allen’s period of doubt began with a visit back to her home town of Little Rock, Arkansas. She was giving a few talks at a Baptist church. In her first talk, she told the thousands-strong audience about demons. Demons were real, she told the crowd, and they were determined to steal your faith. But she wasn’t prepared for the demonic encounter she had herself after the speech. She was approached by a mysterious and angry stranger who said the following sinister words: “We are coming for you.” And then, just as she was about to go back on stage for her second speech, the building experienced a freak power cut.
This, the author was sure, was the work of the devil.
The incident sent Jennie into a dark pattern of negative thoughts that would spiral out of control every day – and every night – for a year and a half. She would wake up each night at the same time – 3 a.m. – filled with worries and fears. Was God even real, she wondered? Was she wasting her time? Every negative thought led to a new one, spiraling up to wild and terrifying conclusions.
The thing is, we all have thoughts like these – even if, thankfully, they don’t always last for 18 months. But there’s a way out. By thinking about our thoughts, we can break out of these negative spiraling patterns. You just need to interrupt yourself with one simple alternative thought: you have a choice.
According to the author, so long as you believe in Jesus and submit to Him, the power to choose is within you. That means the power to choose a positive spiral of thoughts instead.
That’s what Jennie realized – and that’s how she broke out of her 18-month spiral of negativity.
If that all sounds too good to be true, don’t worry – in the next few blinks, we’ll dive deeper into the specific choices the author made that helped send her into these positive, godly thought spirals.
Get Out of Your Head (2020) is a guidebook for those seeking to break free of negative thoughts. Jennie Allen’s remedy? Submitting ourselves and our minds to the embrace of Christ and God’s love. By doing so, the author believes, we can all lead lives filled with thoughts that steer us down a positive path – and avoid the negativity that is all around us.
How we think shapes how we live.
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Blink 3 von 12 - Eine kurze Geschichte der Menschheit
von Yuval Noah Harari
