21 Day Fast From Wrong Thinking
Every day, our minds are flooded with a constant stream of thoughts. Ranging from mundane daily tasks to deeper contemplations about life and the world around us. According to research, the average person has approximately 60,000 thoughts per day.
But what is truly concerning is that 75% of these thoughts are negative - about 45,000 - and 95% are repetitive. Many of our negative thoughts are driven by the flight or fight part of our brain. This constant barrage of negative and repetitive thoughts can significantly impact our mental health, happiness, and overall quality of life.
The impact of negative and repetitive thoughts can significantly impact our mental health and overall well-being. They can lead to increased stress and anxiety, decreased self-esteem, and a general sense of unhappiness and dissatisfaction with life.
Moreover, repetitive thoughts can become deeply ingrained in our minds, making it difficult to change our thought patterns and break free from negative thinking. This negativity can result in a feeling of being stuck, unable to move forward, and lacking motivation to change our circumstances.
Over the next few days, we will learn how to renew our minds in and through Jesus Christ by replacing those negative thoughts with positive and Godly ones. We will repent from those old mindsets and replace them with new positive, beautiful-promised thoughts.
Just as God designs a butterfly to soar, so are you! However, the butterfly can only emerge in its beautiful colour and magnificent wings after it has been transformed within the warm cocoon of its Creator! This Fast from Wrong Thinking is your cocoon. As you wrap your mind in God’s thoughts over the next 21 days, you too will miraculously be transformed!
Ready to fly? Let’s Go!
Day One: I Can't Change
Today we’re fasting from the thought that says, "I Can’t Change."
We’ve all felt at times that we can’t change a certain habit or a weakness in our lives. We often feel “confined” by whatever has previously “defined” us. But as we change our mindsets regarding WHO we are and what God has given us, ANYTHING can change. Today a new hope will be born in you!
Let's change that negative thought today!
1. Awaken to God’s grace. Titus 2:12 says, “This same grace teaches us how to live each day as we turn our backs on ungodliness and indulgent lifestyles, and it equips us to live self-controlled, upright, godly lives in this present age.” (TPT)
His grace empowers us to change, break a habit or be free from our past. The river of grace is always flowing. Just step into it and receive IT!
2. Believe that the power to change is a GIFT. 2 Timothy 2:25 says God grants "repentance," or "the power to change," AS A GIFT. The ability to experience lasting change in any area of our life is a gift from God. Receive the gift of repentance, or “the gift to change,” by FAITH. Ask for it and receive it. God gives generously when you believe! (James 1:6)
3. All change begins by believing you are loved by God. Romans 2:4b says, “Do you realize that all the wealth of his extravagant kindness is meant to melt your heart and lead you into repentance?" (TPT)
4. Notice, in that verse, that His love and kindness change the way we think; THEN they change the way we act. All lasting change begins by surrendering my thought life to the Word of God. (Romans 12:2)
“ 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:2
5. Believe in the process that leads to progress. Don’t worry if it doesn’t happen right away. Jesus touched the blind man once, then touched him a second time, before he was completely healed. (Mark 8:22–26) I believe these next 21 days are going to be your SECOND touch from Jesus.
6. Redefine yourself ONLY as what God says about you. Disconnect from past definitions of your habits, traits, and limitations. You are being changed into His image. (2 Corinthians 3:18)
“ 18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18
Think it, Say it, Pray it and Believe it
God has given me the gift to change. My habits, emotions, and life are changed by changing the way I think. I submit to the process of renewing my mind, and I expect divine progress. I refuse to accept past definitions and limitations of myself. As I embrace God’s view of me through His Word, I am being changed into His image, in Jesus’ Name!
Day Two: I Am Powerless
When we feel powerless over our past, we feel guilty. When we feel powerless over our future, we feel afraid. When we feel powerless over the present, we feel depressed. And when we feel like the people or circumstances of our lives just won't change, we feel angry.
A sense of powerlessness is the root of all negative emotions.
The thought that there's not much we can do about the economy, or our weight, or the allergies we grew up with forces us to accept and tolerate a mediocre and weak life.
Let's change that negative thought today!
1. Take inventory! God has NOT given you a spirit of fear; but POWER, LOVE, and a SOUND MIND. (2 Timothy 1:7)
2. Believe that power is in you. Ephesians 3:20 says, "God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think according to the power that is at work within you." There is power in you that enables God to do beyond what you can ask or think!
3. Think and ask big! Give God something to work with, because He can do beyond. We have to at least give Him a base to begin with.
4. Recognise the Holy Spirit in you. Acts 1:8 says, "You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you..." This power (dunamis = dynamite) is already in you. Romans 8:11 says, "The very same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives IN YOU."
5. Take the limits off. Don’t limit God. Psalm 78:41 says that the children of Israel limited the Lord because they did not remember His power (verse 42). We free God’s hand to bless when we remember His previous blessings.
6. Be expectant. Never underestimate the power of expectation. Expect God’s power to strengthen you today. Expect to be led by His Spirit.
Think it, Say it, Pray it and Believe it
I have POWER in my life right now. Through the Holy Spirit in me, I have the power to overcome temptation, the power to change my life for the better, the power to be healed, the power to forgive, and the power to speak God’s Word and see His promises show up in my life. I will think big and ask big, and therefore the POWER OF GOD’S SPIRIT WITHIN ME will bring it to pass in my life, in Jesus’ Name!
Day Three: I Am Afraid
Fear is at the root of just about every negative thing that happens in our lives. We’re afraid of failing; afraid of being alone or rejected; afraid of running out of money; afraid that people will let us down; afraid that we won’t find a spouse or the one we found will leave us.
All fear is rooted in the core belief that God’s Word won’t work. For example, the fear of not having enough is rooted in the fear that Philippians 4:19 isn’t true. If you believe that “God will supply all your needs according to His riches . . .” then fear leaves.
Let's change that negative thought today!
1. Meditate on the fact that God’s Word is true. In John 17:17, Jesus said, “Thy Word is truth.” What God says is fact—whether you feel it, see it, or have ever experienced it.
2. Consider God’s track record. 1 Kings 8:56 says, “. . . Every word has come true of all His good promise . . .” (NLV). Fear leaves when you can rely on something that can’t fail. God has never failed to fulfill His promises. There are over 1000 predictions or prophecies in the Bible—promises that God made before they happened. The chances of merely 17 of these coming to pass are 1 out of 450 billion x 1 billion x 1 trillion! Yet, not one of these promises has failed.
3. Accept the truth that what we fear comes upon us. In Job 3:25, Job feared that his children would curse God, and that’s what happened. When you realise fear has the power to produce negative results, you stop dabbling in it. When a child learns what fire can do, he no longer plays with matches!
4. Perfect love casts out fear. (1 John 4:18) Flood your mind with thoughts of love—God’s love for you and what He was willing to do to rescue you. If He would die for you, while you were in sin and separated from God, there’s just nothing He wouldn’t do for you! Think on that, and fear will leave.
5. There is a promise from God’s Word for every need you will ever experience. In fact, there are over 7000 promises in the Bible. That’s 7000 solutions to life’s problems! For example, there is a promise of protection in Psalm 91:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, which delivers you from the fear of evil, sickness, or tragedy.
6. Pause and dwell on the fact that God is with you. God’s presence is the secret to a fear-free life. Ultimately, all fear is a sense of God’s absence or our separation from God. By contrast, a sense of God’s presence delivers us from fear. Hebrews 10:19 says, “We are in His presence by the blood of Jesus.” You are in His presence now—therefore, fear not!
Think it, Say it, Pray it and Believe it
God’s Word is true, whether I feel it or not. He has kept all of His promises and has never failed. I am in God’s presence by the blood of Jesus; therefore, because He is with me, I will fear no evil! God loves me perfectly, casting out all fear. I have power, love, and a sound mind, in Jesus’ Name!
Day Four: I Don’t Feel Loved
We have embarked upon the most significant journey of our lives: fasting from wrong thinking. And today's thought is probably the most important one any of us ever deal with at a deep level.
Today we are fasting from the thought that says, "I don't feel loved."
The number-one need in every human life is to be loved. Yet sadly, so few actually enjoy a life where they actually feel loved.
Let's change that negative thought today!
1. God’s not mad at you, He’s mad about you. Dispel the myth of an angry God. He poured out His wrath on Jesus while on the cross, so He could pour out His love on you forever. "God is love." (1 John 4:8)
2. Our feelings follow our thoughts. Flood your mind with the thought, "My Heavenly Father tenderly loves me!" (John 16:27 AMP) You and God are inseparable. Nothing can separate you from Him or His love. Believe this with every fiber in your being!
3. Recognise your value. The value of a piece of art is not determined by the cost to make it, but rather by how much someone would pay to have it. God paid for us with the blood of Jesus. That makes us as valuable to God, as Jesus Himself! You are priceless!
4. You don’t have to earn something God has already given. He loves you. That can’t be earned. It is a gift from God (John 3:16). Accept it. Your value is not determined by what you’ve done or not done. Just be loved.
5. Reject the voices of rejection. Look in the mirror and tell yourself that you are chosen by God, accepted, and outrageously loved by your Heavenly Father!
6. Know your calling. By this, I’m not referring to your calling to serve in ministry or your profession. I’m talking about what God calls you. He calls you His beloved continually in the Bible. Do a word search. You are His beloved. So, be loved!
Think it, Say it, Pray it and Believe it
God is not mad at me, He’s mad about me! I am outrageously loved by Him! His love was shown on the cross and His love and favor are for a lifetime! My Heavenly Father tenderly loves me. Therefore, I will feel His love today! He continually calls me His beloved. Nothing can separate me from His love. I am valuable and priceless to Him. I am as valuable to God as Jesus is. I receive His love by faith, in Jesus’ Name!