“Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it for that determines our success or failure.  The way you think about a fact may defeat you before you ever do anything about it.  You are overcome by the fact because you think you are.”  Norman Vincent Peale

How will you be able to tell when a belief in your head has become a belief in your heart?

The people refused to enter the pleasant land, for they wouldn’t believe his promise to care for them.  (Psa. 106:24)

Even though there is much, much more, this will be the last (for a while) of our series from the book Favor, The Road to Success, by Bob Buess.  As before, this comes from my personal rewrite (see the 10/22/07 Daily Gram):

“Therefore, I purpose to live like an overcomer and take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ as directed by 2 Cor. 10:5.  I purpose to bind all negative thoughts in the name of Jesus and cast them into oblivion.  As I become more and more comfortable with the reality of God’s constant presence in me, and realize that all my thought and self-talk are occurring in His presence, it becomes easier and more instinctive to discard that negativity as soon as I recognize it as such.

“I also understand that my mind is the one thing over which God has given me complete and total control.  Therefore I am the only one responsible for the thoughts I choose to nurture.  My thoughts will always be reflected for all to see by my attitude as well as by my circumstances, i.e., my thoughts have made me who I am.”

It’s kind of sobering, isn’t it, to recognize that everyone can read your thoughts…just by observing your life and surroundings.  But, when you begin to accept these principles, it becomes extremely exciting to think that it all can change by just changing your thoughts.  We’re not victims as we are so prone to think.  But victim vs. responsibility is a topic for another day.

Prayer Power
Lord, please show me those beliefs that I profess which are not deeply seated in my heart.  Show me how to effectively write them on my heart so that they become second nature in my behavior.  Forgive me for all the times I have said I believe one thing and then turned right around and done the opposite.  Thank You for your patience and grace as I take steps to become more and more Christ-like.

Link of the Day
Take Captive Every Thought

Blessings on you as you identify at least one area in your life where your behavior does not line up with what you profess to believe.
 

“If the facts don’t fit the theory, change the facts.”  Albert Einstein

Do the words that come out of your mouth (even in jest) reflect God’s promises?  If not, what can you do to change that?

As for God, his way is perfect. All the LORD’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.  (Psa. 18:30, NLT)

Continuing with our series from the book Favor, The Road to Success, by Bob Buess, comes the following from my rewrite (see the 10/22/07 Daily Gram):

“I purpose to expect favor to flow to me even when it looks as if it is not.  (In other words, I choose to recognize that favor is flowing to me even thought I may not recognize it due to my limited perspective and understanding.)  I purpose to extend favor and love to others.  I purpose to speak only words of success.  I purpose to stand on the truths of Scripture and confess godly beliefs instead of what I see in the natural.

“I will keep my eyes on Jesus, my Logos.  I will stand on the living Word of God whether or not my circumstances change.  My recognition of God’s love and favor toward me, no matter what the circumstances, makes the circumstances fade into the background.  God’s presence brings me total victory in every circumstance.  I purpose to rejoice in the presence of adverse circumstances recognizing that they are simply moving me to the place I need to be.  (Opportunity often enters through the back door presenting itself disguised as adversity or even as temporary defeat.)”

Kinda says it all, doesn’t it?  As today’s quote points out, it was Albert Einstein who said “If the facts don’t fit the theory, change the facts.”  Most feel he was being sarcastic when he said it, because obviously, if the facts don’t fit the theory you need to change the theory…unless, of course, that theory is God’s theory.  Maybe he wasn’t being sarcastic after all.

Prayer Power
Lord, forgive me for the times I’ve ignored Your theory in order to believe the facts that I could see from my limited perspective.

Link of the Day
God’s Promise by Woody Guthrie

Blessings on you as you purpose to speak out the promises that are rightfully yours.
 

“An attitude of gratitude creates blessings.”  Sir John Marks Templeton

How did you respond the last time something bad happened to you?

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.  (Rom. 8:28, NLT)

From the book Favor, The Road to Success, by Bob Buess, comes the following from my rewrite (see the 10/22/07 Daily Gram):

“Romans 8:28 assures me that whatever happens to me today will ultimately work out for my good — even though I may not immediately understand how that could possibly be.  Therefore, I purpose to maintain an attitude of gratitude and thanksgiving centered in an unwavering faith that God’s promises are more real than my perception and understanding of outward appearances.”

Boy, that sounds good on paper but pretty hard to remember, let alone do when something “bad” just happened.  Books have been written about why bad things happen to good people.  Bottom line, the books don’t have any good answers either.  Whether it was the devil himself, or God allowing it, or my own stupidity, after it has happened, it makes no difference any more.  The thing that makes all the difference in the world for the believer is that God supernaturally shows up and is now very much in the situation.

Experience shows that no matter how negative the situation, with the passage of time we can look back and see how God used the circumstances to grow us, change us, or generally improve us.  How many times have you ever heard (or said), “Wow!  I wouldn’t want to go through that ever again, but I’m sure grateful that it happened.”  

As Christians, we’re not promised a “bowl full of cherries,” but we are promised that we will be overcomers if we just keep our eyes and our trust on Jesus  (1 John 5:4, 5).

Prayer Power
Lord, please provide advisors when I am experiencing those “valley” times so that I can be reminded to keep my eyes on You knowing that “this too will pass.”  Similarly, provide advisors when I am experiencing those “mountain-top” experiences so that I will remember to give glory to the Source of all blessing.

Link of the Day
So Why Do Bad Things Happen

Blessings on you as you walk out an attitude of gratitude this day.
 

“Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance.”  Bruce Barton

How would you characterize your thought life?

I stay awake through the night, thinking about your promise.  (Psa. 119:148, NLT)

Several years ago I ran across a dynamite little book entitled Favor: The Road to Success subtitled, “How to Receive Special Favor with God and People,” written by Bob Buess.  It’s a very short, easy read.  Basically, it is a book of Scriptural affirmations.  Very different in style than the typical “Promises” books that I have seen, this book takes a number of Scriptures and challenges you to believe what God says instead of what you may be observing around you.

Buess writes in the Introduction, “Thoughts are the beginning of reality.”  He proposes that sowing the positive affirmations from the Bible will ultimately alter your circumstances.  This certainly is in line with the Proverb that declares, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he” (23:7, KJV).

I personally found this book to be of great help in my ongoing transition from a “glass half empty” guy to a “glass half full” thinker.  Some may discount the efficacy of affirmations, but it’s hard to discount the efficacy of God’s Word.

I’m sharing all this, not so much to recommend the book (although I do heartily recommend it), but to share with you the source for the next several Daily Grams that I write.  Several years ago, over the course of several months as I was using Buess’ book as a devotional, I rewrote (reorganized?) some of his thoughts to make them more applicable to me personally.  It’s from portions of that rewrite that I will be sharing.

Prayer Power
Lord, when You gave me the power to manage my thoughts, You gave me a level of power and responsibility that I haven’t fully comprehended.  I praise and thank You for Your guidance and protection as I make progress in this unfamiliar territory.

Link of the Day
Favor

Blessings on you as you become more and more aware of your thoughts and your self-talk this week.