Have you lost your mind
Have you lost your mind Week 3
Pastor Micah Pelkey • Psalm 119:112, Romans 1:21–32, Genesis 6:5, Ecclesiastes 10:2, Hebrews 3:12
How healthy is my thought life? Do I let things get to me? Do I let them get in my head? Am I allowing (entertaining) too many toxic thoughts? Genesis 6:5 — The Lord saw that the people on the earth were very evil. He saw that they thought only about evil things all the time. Proverbs 15:26 — The Lord hates evil thoughts, but he is pleased with kind words. Ecclesiastes 9:3 — Of all the things that happen in this life, the worst thing is that all people end life the same way. But it is also very bad that people always think evil and foolish thoughts. And those thoughts lead to death. Romans 1 21 People knew God, but they did not honor him as God, and they did not thank him. Their ideas were all useless. There was not one good thought left in their foolish minds. 26 Because people did those things, God left them and let them do the shameful things they wanted to do. Women stopped having natural sex with men and started having sex with other women. 27 In the same way, men stopped having natural sex with women and began wanting each other all the time. Men did shameful things with other men, and in their bodies they received the punishment for those wrongs. 28 People did not think it was important to have a true knowledge of God. So God left them and allowed them to have their own worthless thinking. And so they do what they should not do. 29 They are filled with every kind of sin, evil, greed, and hatred. They are full of jealousy, murder, fighting, lying, and thinking the worst things about each other. They gossip 30 and say evil things about each other. They hate God. They are rude, proud, and brag about themselves. They invent ways of doing evil. They don’t obey their parents, 31 they are foolish, they don’t keep their promises, and they show no kindness or mercy to others. 32 They know God’s law says that anyone who lives like that should die. But they not only continue to do these things themselves, but they also encourage others who do them. Ecclesiastes 10:2 — The thoughts of the wise lead them the right way, but the thoughts of the foolish lead them the wrong way. Neurological Pathways If you allow anger and fear to dominate, you will lose the neurological ability to think logically and act compassionately toward others. It is nearly impossible to find peace and serenity if your mind is preoccupied by negative, anxious, or hateful thoughts. Your thoughts clearly affect the neurological functioning of your body. Optimism is essential for maintaining a healthy brain. Positive thoughts neurologically suppress negative thoughts. Watching violence on the news, or taking in a violent movie, will make you feel more angry, aggressive, negative, and powerless. The same thing happens in your brain when you listen to songs with hostile lyrics, even if they are presented in a humorous way. A meta-analytic view of video-game research found that “violent video games increase aggressive behavior in children and young adults. Our brains are designed to mimic the emotional expression of others. This is known as “emotional contagion”. When you see an angry expression, it takes less than one second for your brain to respond with fear. Negative remarks and memories are more strongly encoded in the brain, and they are the most difficult memories to eradicate. Simply being around negative people will make you more prejudiced, because listening to negative opinions can easily undermine your positive opinions about virtually anything. My two cents on Swift. Unsaved in college, I loved Taylor Swift. I knew every word to Red and all the other albums too. Her music is intoxicating bc she’s done a very good job capturing worldly relationships and hookup culture. Now, as a believer– I stay far away from it. Why? Because I will like some of it. It will take my mind places that it shouldn’t go. There will be new lyrics in my head with tunes I can’t shut off with unedifying words on my lips. Hebrews 3:12 — So, brothers and sisters, be careful that none of you has the evil thoughts that cause so much doubt that you stop following the living God. Poise in the noise! Psalm 119:112 — I have made up my mind to obey your laws forever, no matter what. (CEV) Psalm 119:112 — I have resolved to obey your laws forever, at every step. (CJB) Psalm 119:112 — I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway, even unto the end. (KJV)
Have you lost your mind Week 2
April 14, 2024 • Pastor Micah Pelkey • Colossians 3:2, Romans 8:5–6, Philippians 4:8, Isaiah 26:3
Colossians 3:2 — Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. We have an average of 6.5 thought transitions per minute, and we can typically only think about 4 things. It’s possible that you could be repeating the same negative thoughts to yourself more than 5000 times a day. Come Consume We will control our thoughts — Or our thoughts will control us. Romans 8 5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. Where am I being led? Who has access to your mind? FAITH F — Focus on the positives A — Affirm yourself I — Imagine God doing something good T — Trust God always H — Hope for the best Mindfulness Mindfulness helps us to stay in the moment. ABC’s A — Action (Activating Event) B — Belief C — Consequence (Feeling) Our BELIEF needs to be challenged. Philippians 4:8 — Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things. Is it true? If we take this thought to court, do we have enough evidence to win our case? Is my thought based on facts or feelings? Am I taking this personally? Am I jumping to conclusions? Isaiah 26:3 — Lord, you keep those people safe who continue to trust in you. You give them peace in their minds, because they believe in you.
Have you lost your mind Week 1
April 7, 2024 • Pastor Micah Pelkey • Philippians 4:8, Psalm 139:23–24, Colossians 3:2, 2 Corinthians 10:3–5
2 Corinthians 10 3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 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. You are your brain. — Cleveland Clinic . Your brain is a three pound universe that processes 70,000 thoughts each day using 100 billion neurons that connect at more than 500 trillion points through synapses that travel 300 miles/hour. The signals that travel through these interconnected neurons form the basis of memories, thoughts and feelings. Throughout your life your experiences create patterns of activity that explain how our brains code our thoughts, memories, skills and sense of self. 70%-80% of our thoughts lean negative. — TLEX Institute Philippians 4:8 — Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things. We cannot live a positive life with a negative mind. What is underneath your irritability? Recognize Realize Reject Refocus Replace Retrain Psalm 139:23-24 — Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! “I am the subject of depressions of spirit so fearful that I hope none of you ever gets to such extremes of wretchedness as I go to.” — Charles Spurgeon “Personally I have often passed through the dark valley.” — Charles Spurgeon COME CONSUME What do they think about me? What do I think about them? Think about what you’re thinking about. FAITH F — Focus on the positives A — Affirm yourself I — Imagine God doing something good T — Trust God always H — Hope for the best Colossians 3:2 — Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.