You can change your world view

Our mindset is conditioned by how we view our surroundings.

We can observe two people in the same clan with the same advantages, abilities and challenges and they can see everything differently to one another, act accordingly, and potentially see different outcomes.

I knew someone who saw everything through dark glasses and assumed all would go wrong that could go wrong, and, much of the time it did for him, and, most of the time, we carried him through issues, as friends do, which so often seemed to arise.

Yet others around him saw at least a glimmer of sunshine every day for their own lives and had a brighter testimony, even when faced with challenges. Someone needs a bright outlook to carry those who struggle with a positive perspective.

Call it coincidence if you will, but our attitude can make a difference to our outcomes.

As scripture tells us, how does it help to worry about possibilities when we can trust God for a favourable outcome? Worry is a projection of a potentially negative conclusion. How often have we worried in vain over some issue? How did it help us emotionally to be anxious without cause?

Whilst circumstances do have a bearing, it’s possible to go through our lives with gloom-laden thinking, responding to situations in a defeatist way and have the same old depressing issues repeating themselves time after time, or we can determine to allow change to become the arbiter of our destiny by converting to a positive approach to each issue that demands a solution.

This isn’t always an easy or simple thing to achieve, and it doesn’t negate challenges. For those who are prone to depression, it can mean several attempts, or even a number of stages to get to the place where we believe we can deal with the issues of life in a more productive and less painful way. However, for the person of faith, there is a solution.

The important thing is the starting point, followed by consistency of approach.

Heart matters

We can begin by having a change of heart. You see, it’s our heart that can determine our outlook. If we can change the way our heart responds to circumstances we can elevate our speech to match our responses. We can turn fear into faith.

According to God’s Word the issues of life emanate from the heart (Pro.4:23). We are admonished to guard our heart above all things. It would be wise, then, to examine our heart to see if there is anything in there that needs adjustment. What are the issues of the heart that could stop us moving forward?

For those who have become Christians through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the change of heart has already taken place, and we have an amazing advantage in the process of change. Now we have to apply that inward change to our outward views.

He tells us that He has put His Spirit in us and given us a new heart that is aligned with His will and Word (Ezekiel 11:19) (Jer.31:33). This is a tremendous opening to our new life.

Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.

Proverbs 4:23

He wants us to put everything we can into guarding our heart, with reference to the new heart He gives us at the new birth. We can’t really do this without Him. He offers us perfect liberty. For this we need to accept God’s offer of salvation. His favour is towards us despite all we have done to defy Him previously.

We can repent, that is, decide that our way doesn’t work so well, so we need to accept His way. We begin this journey by accepting Jesus as Lord and Saviour and allowing Him to have first place in our life, starting with the present and leading into the future.

Those of us who have already begun this journey know that we are constantly changing for the better as we learn His ways, which after always higher than our own ways. We learn to know His ways by reading, studying, absorbing and living out His will as revealed in the Word.

We can improve our position by casting our cares upon the Lord. Give them to Him. Talk to God about it. We are admonished to be anxious for nothing (Phil.4:6). He tells us to rejoice even in seemingly dire circumstances (Phil.4:4), which produce resilience and hope in us (Rom.5:3). Fear changes nothing. Faith changes everything.

Change of speech

We can also adjust what we say according to what He says about us. Our tongue is a fire if we allow it to remain wild (James 3:6). It can bless and curse in the same conversation (James 3:10). James in his epistle tells us that it can be an unruly part of our life, even after we have been saved, if we don’t take authority over it.

Proverbs tells us that death and life are in the power of the tongue (Pro.18:21). Yes, our words can make that kind of difference one way or the other. Taming the tongue becomes a priority if we are wanting to see a more positive output and outcome in our life.

Jesus said that our mouth speaks according to what we have in our heart (Mat.12:34). If we have evil in our heart we will utter evil. If we have good in our heart we will speak well.

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.

Matthew 12:35

So our heart is a key to our worldview and how we deal with the issues of life that present themselves, often at the most inconvenient times. Our words will utter our heart condition. What are we putting in our heart? Whatever it is we are also putting it in our mouth.

If we insert God’s will and Word into our heart we will speak His will and Word. This is the great key to change. Life is changed through our heart and mouth.

Jesus spoke of the treasure of the heart. We speak according to this treasure. First we have to fill our heart with this treasure trove of the richness of God’s Word. It’s a steady consistent insertion of His ways that will convert ours.

We can change our mind by changing our heart and mouth, and we will see everything differently. All things are possible with God.