Overcome Negativity Through Prayer
“I’m going to fail…”
“God isn’t going to show up…”
“My prayers are never answered…”
“I have no friends…”
“I hate my job…”
Have you ever had a negative thought like that? Of course you have!
In 2005, the National Science Foundation published an article summarizing research on human thoughts. The study found that the average person has between 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts per day. Of those thoughts, 80% were negative, and 95% were repetitive thoughts from the day before.
Negativity can rule our life and we can get stuck in a daily cycle of negative thinking. Your thoughts are with you from the moment you wake up until you fall asleep. You can feel surrounded by them.
In this post, we’ll share how you can fight negativity and overcome it with prayer.
We can face hardships with joy
“Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Hebrews 12:2 NIV
How could Jesus endure the pain and shame of hanging on a cross with joy? Being crucified was the most humiliating form of punishment that was reserved for criminals. Jesus did nothing deserving of death, but He faced the pain and punishment.
We do our best to avoid any type of pain. But many times ignoring or avoiding a painful situation has long-term consequences. Jesus knew that crucifixion would be the most painful time in His life but He faced it with joy, not negativity.
In Nehemiah, the Bible says that the joy of the Lord is our strength. When this was written, Nehemiah was in a situation where negativity would be the natural response. He was working on rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. People came to Nehemiah to discourage him and tell him that the work was useless. That he’d never be able to rebuild the walls.
Nehemiah understood that he needed strength to move forward, and the source of strength would be joy. Not the joy of himself or his current circumstances, but the joy of the Lord.
When was the last time you faced a painful situation with joy?
When we have the right perspective, we can look past the pain and see the benefits of facing the challenges in life. Jesus looked past the pain and suffering of the cross and focused on the result: a restored relationship with humanity. We won’t face crucifixion like Jesus did, but we all know life can be difficult. Practice looking past the pain.
Prayer gives us the strength and perspective we need to face hardships with joy.
Here’s an example of a prayer:
“Father, I ask you for your joy and strength today. I look to You as the source of my joy. I ask and pray that You would give me wisdom and the right perspective to navigate this situation I’m facing. I pray that You would surround me with the right people, and strengthen me today, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.”
God renews our mind
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Romans 12:2 NIV
While the world is stuck in negative thinking, we can live with a renewed mind.
You don’t need to look far to see the constant negativity, Turn on any news station and your mind will be flooded with negativity. The pattern of the world is negative. This is nothing new. Fear was the very first result of sin.
He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
Genesis 3:10 NIV
We know that God is the God of hope, love, and faith. All of those are positives. You can see how fear caused Adam to run away and hide from God instead of going towards God.
Hope and faith are a belief that our future will be good. Fear and worry are a belief that our future will be bad.
The pattern of the world will keep us afraid and away from God. But when we spend time seeking God our fears turn into hope and faith. When we spend time in prayer our minds will be renewed and we’ll develop a positive outlook on life. We will start trusting God and believing that our future will be good.
How to pray for a renewed mind:
“Father, I thank you that your Word says my mind will be renewed in Christ. I pray that your transformational power and love would be present in my life. Today I choose to not conform to the world. I choose to walk by faith in Jesus and not by sight. I choose to follow you, to hear your Word, and to follow You wholeheartedly. In Jesus’ Name. Amen”
God can restore what we lost
Job was faced with the most severe loss in the Bible. Within days Job had lost his family, all of his possessions and ability to earn an income, and his physical health. Everything in his life went from delightful to dreadful.
The losses that Job faced are unimaginable.
Job wasn’t always grateful or joyful for his circumstances. He had moments of negativity. How could you not?
Even Jesus expressed some negativity when people around Him didn’t meet His expectations.
Being negative in a moment of deep loss is unavoidable. And the Bible says we should mourn with those who mourn. At the same time, it’s important to not remain in a negative mindset.
Job could’ve lived in negativity for the rest of his life and no one would question that decision. Instead, Job choose to keep moving forward and embrace the hardships that he faced. He didn’t turn his back on God or run away. In the end, God restored everything that the devil had stolen.
“After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.”
Job 42:10 NIV
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