Having a healed soul begins with having a healed mind. The soul houses your mind, will, and emotions. I am in the long process of healing my soul. When I was saved/born again, my awareness of the damage and trauma in my soul intensified as my relationship with God and his word continued to grow in my life. My thinking was so messed up. I cried out to God for help because I didn’t know how I was going to make it through all the trauma I had in my soul. With each experience and with each consecutive loss of family members, parts of me were deeply hurt by the losses. Three of the losses were my 3 brothers. After my little brother passed away, I didn’t know how I was going to get out of all the trauma.

As I was praying about it, God began to show me through different ministers that it is my way of thinking and changing the negative thoughts embedded deep in my neural pathways with the word of God. Although I know the word, it was going to require deeper work to heal my mind. Thoughts are everywhere and if you don’t throw them out, you will continue to fight them to a point where they can wear you down.

As 2 Corinthians 10:5 (The Voice) tells us what to do with a negative mindset:

We are demolishing arguments and ideas, all haughty and powerful philosophy that is opposed to the knowledge of the only true God. We are taking prisoners of every thought, every emotion, and bringing them into obedience to the Anointed One.

I learned from a well-known minister, Dr. Juanita Bynum, how to change my brain. Even my pastor AR Bernard taught about it. God was speaking to me out loud! As I began to apply what I was learning, the darkness of my soul was giving way to the light of God’s word. This is a lifelong process and you will have times when it feels like you are going backwards, but don’t give up on the process of taking control of how you think. Here are some steps to follow that I have learned and they will work as long as you are consistent in applying them:

1. You have 10 seconds before a negative thought becomes yours. Replace that thought with new information/positive thought: the word of God.

2. It takes 12 pieces of positive information to eliminate a negative thought.

3. Negative thoughts are going to come, make sure you don’t let them nest in your head.

4. Examine your thoughts and think about what you are thinking.

5. Do not let your mind wander everywhere

6. Meditate on the word of God to help expel the negative.

Romans 12:2 (New International Version) states:

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but transform yourself by renewing your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the will of God: his good, pleasing and perfect will.

You are the sum total of your thoughts, this motto rings so true “A mind is a terrible thing to waste” so don’t waste it.

Quote: Positive thinking will allow you to do everything better than negative thinking – Zig Ziglar