How to Stop Thinking Too Much

Matthew 6:25-27 (NIV)

25. Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food and the body more important than clothes? 26. Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27. Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

How much time do you spend over-thinking? I know - we don’t like to think of it that way. We call it analyzing, meditating, ‘figuring things out’ and other euphemisms that cover up what we are really doing: thinking too much. How do you know when you’ve over-thought something? Here are some signs – 1. You can’t get that problem or situation out of your mind; 2. As much thought as you’ve given to it, it still does not make sense to you or 3. You still haven’t figured out what to do. If you find yourself experiencing any of these things, you have probably given something way too much thought.

Why do we do it? God equipped us with minds because we need to be able to ‘figure out' some things for ourselves. Our minds were meant to be the logical conduit that connected spirit to body. Our spirits know, our minds think and our bodies act. But many times we find that our mind is trying to control this triumvirate. We may pray about some things, but we think about all things. Somewhere, in the back of our minds, we are convinced that if we spend enough time problem-solving and analyzing, we will figure it all out. Well, let me set your mind at rest about one thing at least: YOU WILL NEVER HAVE IT ALL FIGURED OUT. So stop trying. Now take a deep breath. Rest your mind. And get ready to move on.

We will never have it all figured out, simply because God did not make the world, in all its many implications and variations, easy enough for you or me to ‘figure out’. There is only one All-Knowing, All-Wise, All-Seeing One and I’ll give you a hint who that is: it isn't you or me. But this is not cause for despair. As a matter of fact, you should start rejoicing and rejoice now! Because the weight of the world is really not on your shoulders, you don’t have to have all the answers so you can be free of all your needless worry and thought!

Once you’ve accepted that fact, you’re ready to let all that responsibility go and use your mind for the purpose for which it was intended: to think, but within reason. When you encounter a problem, you should always pray. And you can give it some thought. You can ponder for a while why it happened, what it meant to you, what you learned from it and decide whether or not you can do something about it. If you can do something about it, do it. If you cannot, then pray some more about it, then let it go (to God)! Then move on with your life. And don’t be discouraged if that same problem re-appears – this ‘letting go’ process might be ongoing - until you get the hang of it. If a problem re-appears in your mind, let it go again and then STOP THINKING ABOUT IT. And the best way to stop thinking about something is to start thinking about something else.

So think about the good things in your life. Think about the things for which you are grateful. Allow your thoughts to wander to some of the more pleasant experiences of your life. Thank God for those moments and then recall them in detail. Linger over each moment, savoring it as if it just happened. Now take a look around you right now. What do you have to be happy about right now? It may take a minute of thinking, but then you might recall that, while you are not happy with your job, it’s kept you in Gucci and Prada, so it’s a good thing that your bills are being paid. Or you can recall your gratitude that your parents still take such an interest in your life (instead of complaining that they call way too much). Or you can think about how you woke up this morning and that migraine you were battling last night finally went away. Or, you can find contentment in the fact that, though your problems still exist, you are here another day to get it right, make amends or make it better. And how great that is.

So stop over-thinking! Think something through once, not twice, three times or all night long. Move on with your life and allow the beauty of it all make those problems, situations or circumstances just fade into the background.

And trust in God for all things....



Religion, Spirituality, Christian, Christianity, Self-Help, Advice