Having intrusive thoughts seems to be
something many people
are struggling with.
Sometimes destructive thoughts just
randomly flood into our minds, thoughts
to hurt ourselves or others, or thoughts
about what could happen. These thoughts
can also be sexual in nature and can also
be toxic thoughts about ourselves
and our weaknesses and they can be the
cause of discomfort, fear, or anxiety. So
should the time come and you have an
intrusive thought, I have four steps on
how to handle them so that you can
hopefully have more peace and a
healthier mind. Step number one, respond
with assertiveness. 2 Corinthians
chapter 10 verses 4 to 5, "For the
weapons of our
warfare are not carnal, but
mighty in God for pulling down
strongholds, casting down arguments and
every high thing that exalts itself
against the knowledge of God, bringing
every thought into captivity to the
obedience of Christ." In this passage
Paul explains to the church that the
weapons Christians are to use aren't of
the flesh but are of God and are
powerful. And then he mentions that
they're capable of bringing down
arguments or anything that is opposed to
God and that they can capture thoughts
and bring them to captivity. And then
Paul explains that those thoughts should
be brought under the obedience of Jesus
Christ. So when it comes to intrusive
thoughts, you can't just allow yourself
to be controlled by them. You need to
capture these thoughts and bring them to
submission. And the first step to do that
is to realize and identify that
you're having an intrusive thought. What
you shouldn't do is feed the thought,
dwell on the thought, or focus on the
thought and then allow it to flood your
mind uncontrolled. So when you find your
mind getting flooded with these thoughts,
first acknowledge that what you're going
through is an intrusive thought. And then
think this thought needs to be captured
and brought under control. The idea is to
not be controlled by this thought, by
just focusing on it, but to identify your
intrusive thought and to respond with
assertiveness and to make the mental
decision that it needs to be brought
under control. Step number two, respond
with prayer. Philippians chapter 4 verse
6, "Be anxious for nothing, but in
everything by prayer and supplication.
With thanksgiving let your requests be
made known to God." In this passage, Paul
is commanding the church of Philippi to
not be worried about anything, but to
instead respond with
prayer, supplication,
and thanksgiving. So the next thing you
do after you realize that your intrusive
thought needs to be controlled is to give
it to God. And you can pray a
prayer like this, "God, I'm thinking this
thought, and I don't want to think this
thought, so please help me to control
it." The key here is to try to flood your
mind with God instead. Intrusive thoughts
attempt to take control of your focus
and get you to only think this bad
thought. So once your mind starts
flooding with these intrusive thoughts,
you need to switch the floodgate and to
try to flood your mind instead with
things of God. And I've found that the
best way to do this is through step
number three, which is to respond with
gratitude. Philippians chapter 4 verses 8
to 9, "Finally brethren, whatever things
are true, whatever things are noble,
whatever things are just, whatever things
are pure, whatever things are lovely,
whatever things are of good report, if
there is any virtue and if there's
anything praiseworthy, meditate on these
things. The things which you learned and
received and heard and saw in me, these
do, and the God of peace will be with
you." In this passage,
Paul tells Christians
to meditate on things that are true,
noble, just, pure,
lovely, and things that are
overall just good. So if you want to
flood your mind quickly with things that
are of God, pray prayers of thanksgiving.
I mean, if your mind wants to hyper focus
on something, that's fine, so let your
mind hyper focus on something healthy and
good. I know all of your situations are
different, but maybe in your situation
you can thank God for a good friend that
you have, or the loving support of a
parent, or maybe thank God for something
fun that you did, or for the simple
pleasures in life. You know, back when I
was in college, one of my teachers gave
me the assignment to write down 1,000
things that I'm thankful for. And while
at first I thought it was too difficult,
I soon found that I had a lot to be
thankful for. And pretty soon it just
became a habit to see things in my life
that I took for granted, and then to
smile in thanksgiving, and then to
acknowledge God for that blessing. And
soon I finished that list. So I know that
intrusive thoughts can be overwhelming,
but try to respond immediately with
quick prayers of things that you're
thankful for. And once you find one, or
two, or ten, try to focus on those
blessings instead, and let those thoughts
fill your mind. And for some reason, if
that doesn't work, I have one more step
for you. So step number four, respond
with action. Mark
chapter 12 verse 30, "And you
shall love the Lord your God with all
your heart, with all your soul, with all
your mind, and with all your strength."
In this passage, Jesus tells us that the
first commandment is to love God with all
your heart, soul, mind, and strength.
And what I want you to focus on here is
the word "strength." You see, a person is
more than just their mind, soul, and
heart. They also have a
body that holds all of
these things. And one observation that
I've noticed in my life is that my mind
is connected to my body. So how will I
take care of my body will affect how I
think. So please note that Jesus says we
ought to love God not with just our mind
and heart, but also with our physical
strength. So if you are struggling to
control a thought, I would suggest that
you try to respond by physically doing
something for God. Maybe you call a
friend to encourage them, or maybe you
exercise while thanking God for your
health, or maybe you watch a Bible study
to learn more, or you listen to some
praise and worship music to ease your
mind. All of that to say. One way to help
control your mind is to express your
love for God by physically doing
something so that hopefully your mind
will be forced to think about that thing
instead. And as a final thought, if
intrusive thoughts are a regular thing
for you, try to fill your life with more
of God. John the Baptist says in John
chapter 3 verse 30 that "He, Jesus, must
increase, but I must decrease." You see,
John the Baptist understood that he
needed more of Jesus and less of himself.
So I would be mindful of how much social
media, TV shows, movies, or music enters
your mind. Oftentimes our brains thoughts
can have less negative thoughts if we put
less trash into it. So maybe we
should make it a point to fill our minds
with things that can uplift our soul and
make our heart smile. So if you get an
intrusive thought, don't freak out.
Everybody gets random destructive
thoughts from time to time, so don't beat
yourself up over it and follow these four
steps. Respond with assertiveness,
prayer, gratitude, and action. And to
take preventative
measures, try to fill your
mind with more good than bad. Okay? So I
hope that the next time you have an
intrusive thought, you'll know what to
do. And I hope that
one thought that fills
your mind is the
thought that Jesus loves you.