The 8 Day Challenge Day 3

Thought of the Day
"A healthy mind produces joy like a healthy body produces energy."

Good morning 4:8 thinkers!

What do you think? So far, has it been easier or harder than you expected?

Regardless of how well you've done to this point, remember that living consistently with Philippians 4:8 is not just an 8-day challenge, it's a permanent pursuit, a way of life. Like the first two weeks of a famous diet, this 8-day mental fast was designed to eliminate unhealthy cravings for unhelpful thoughts.

Similar to the physical diet, you've decided in advance to reduce certain "High-Carb Thoughts" and increase other lean, healthy thoughts. Even better, this relatively short exercise allows you to make significant progress quickly so that you'll be motivated to stick with this mindset for the rest of your life and, of course, spread joy indefinitely.

If your goal is to lose weight, then you know what you have to do. You must change your diet. You have to decide in advance what kind of food and drink is consistent with your weight-loss goals and what kind is not. And for this change in diet to be effective in the long run, you'll probably need to remove the junk food and unhealthy snacks from your environment and replace them with healthy, energy-producing choices.

Likewise, if your goal is to experience maximum joy, you have to change your mental diet. If you are serious about making progress in this area, you must alter the exposures that trigger negativity in the first place. You must toss the junk thoughts that oppose God's promises, and instead, stock your surroundings with joy-producing inputs that encourage right thinking and discourage negative, lazy thinking.

Questions of the Day
How much joy do you think you can stand? How much junk are you willing to put up with? What do you really want?

The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or the extra mile)
To build awareness of your joy-producing inputs, make a very specific inventory in writing of the most constructive exposures in your life in a typical week. These are the influences that make it easier and more natural to live in sync with 4:8. Then do the same on negative side. For both lists, consider daily rituals, certain people, chronic conversations, TV habits, reading material, weekly traditions, news consumption, etc.

Constructive Exposures-
1. reading and meditating on Scripture and other Christian books
2. spending time in prayer and gratitude
3. spending time with people who build me up instead of bring me down
4. worshiping 
5. being outside in nature, reveling in God's creation
6. listening to sermons while i work out
7. Elisabeth Elliot's daily devotionals

Destructive Exposures-
1. gossiping or being exposed to gossip
2. watching TV
3. focusing on my feelings instead of on truth
4. looking through woman's or gossip magazines
5. comparing myself to others
6. certain websites

7. negative self-talk

SCL#413. Trying to find a cause.

I found this entry on one of my favorite blogs, Stuff Christians Like, and I just had to post it on my blog because it is SO where I'm at right now...

Have you ever doubted your purpose in life? Have you ever thought, “What am I supposed to be doing?” Or why am I here? Why don’t I have a mission in life?

I have, with increasing intensity these last two weeks. I’ve been wrestling with the question, “What’s next God?” I’ve been reading books about purpose and listening to great sermons like Craig Groeschel’s “Warrior” series. I started asking God, “What do you want me to do? What would you have me do for you? What did you put me on this earth for? What is my cause?”

I wanted him to tell me to start a ministry or be a spiritual warrior in faraway lands on a faraway adventure. I wanted him to give me a big cause so that I could do big things for him in big ways. But last Monday, in the midst of working through the weight and burden of feeling like I didn’t have a cause, I felt like God reminded me that he doesn’t think like I do. Maybe, when he hears me crying out for a cause, when he hears me asking him to transform me into a spiritual warrior, he wants to cry back:

"You want to be a warrior? Be a warrior of need and surrender. Make fighting for a relationship with me your greatest cause and see what other causes come out of that. See what other causes I put in your path. I can bring you adventures, but those things are small. Those are tiny compared to the cause of surrendering your heart and soul to me. That's your cause right now. Daily, hourly surrender of your heart and soul to me. You are on an adventure, make no mistake, but the real adventure, the big one that I cheer loudest about from the bleachers of heaven is for your heart. The adventure that begins every morning. That is the adventure I care about. Don't miss that one."

And I do, I miss it all the time because I focus on "what's next" instead of "what's now." I get so lost thinking I need to “do something for him” instead of “be in a relationship with him.” Like it says in Revelation 2:4, I forsake my first love. Repentance. Forgiveness. A minute by minute, all consuming need for God.

I don't want to miss that adventure. I don't want you to miss it either. God has big, crazy things planned for all of us. But the biggest adventure, the greatest cause, the grandest purpose, is the one that starts in our heart.

The 8 Day Challenge Day 2

Thought of the Day
"I am responsible for the words I speak."

Welcome back to the challenge! How did you do with Day One?

Regardless of how well you did yesterday, congratulations on coming back for day two. Remember that today is a fresh start. You can't change yesterday any easier than you can change World War II. So make the very most of this day and push yourself a little further.

The words we use reflect our thinking. Listen more closely than ever on this second day, to the choice of words and phrases used by the people you are hanging around. Of course, I am referring to those who aren't committed to this 4:8 challenge. Don't comment on them. Just listen. The quality of the words they speak reveals the quality of the thoughts they are thinking.

You don't think excellent thoughts and then uncontrollably speak with gloom, doom, and disapproval. And you also don't think mediocre thoughts and then impulsively lift up others with positive, encouraging words. Remind yourself that the words you speak indicate the aggregate character of your thought life at the particular moment. Your words matter.

You can do it. Make the effort, just for today, to filter what you say to others and to yourself. After all, talking about what you do not want can never bring you what you do want. Instead, for today, speak about what is beautiful, valuable, praiseworthy and awesome. Search for the good stuff in every moment on this wonderful Wednesday. Your words matter.

Make it a game with yourself to find something virtuous in every experience and with every person you interact with...and then talk about it. Imagine that every word you speak today will be recorded and later expressed in your life in some way. Train your mind with your mouth. Start today. Start right now. Your words matter.

Question of the Day
In what ways have you tended to talk about your fears and worries more than your goals and dreams?

The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or for the extra mile)
Write a brief letter to God, thanking Him for all of your blessings of course, and then asking Him to reveal to you any areas of entrenched negativity so that you may become aware of it and begin to overrule it with joy-filled, 4:8 thinking. Date this letter for future reference.

Heavenly Father, today I am humbled to be entrusted to care for Isaac as his parents fly to Ireland for 8 days. What a joyful gift he is! I am constantly reminded of how much more You must love me than I love him when I spend time with him. It doesn't matter what he does, I never stop loving him. Is that how You feel about me?! I am so incredibly blessed. Thank You for letting me be a "mom" for 8 days. What a huge responsibility that I don't want to take for granted. Oh, how I love him. Thank You for a family who loves You and one another more than life itself! I can't imagine being in any other family. Thank You for Your provision for the last 6 months. I love all the free time I have had to enjoy my life more and to grow in grace and knowledge of You. Thank You for this gorgeous fall weather, my favorite time of the year!

Lord, will you please make me aware today of any area in my life that is entrenched with negativity and help me to overrule it with joy-filled thinking? Break me of my critical spirit and help me to find the good in others. Give me eyes to see and a heart to love others the way that You love them. Amen

Moonless Trust

by Elisabeth Elliot

Some of you are perhaps feeling that you are voyaging just now on a moonless sea. Uncertainty surrounds you. There seem to be no signs to follow. Perhaps you feel about to be engulfed by loneliness. There is no one to whom you can speak of your need.

Amy Carmichael wrote of such a feeling when, as a missionary of twenty-six, she had to leave Japan because of poor health, then travel to China for recuperation, but then realized God was telling her to go to Ceylon. (All this preceded her going to India, where she stayed for fifty-three years.) I have on my desk her original handwritten letter of August 25, 1894, as she was en route to Colombo. "All along, let us remember, we are not asked to understand, but simply to obey.... On July 28, Saturday, I sailed. We had to come on board on Friday night, and just as the tender (a small boat) where were the dear friends who had come to say goodbye was moving off, and the chill of loneliness shivered through me, like a warm love-clasp came the long-loved lines--'And only Heaven is better than to walk with Christ at midnight, over moonless seas.' I couldn't feel frightened then. Praise Him for the moonless seas--all the better the opportunity for proving Him to be indeed the El Shaddai, 'the God who is Enough."'

Let me add my own word of witness to hers and to that of the tens of thousands who have learned that He is indeed Enough. He is not all we would ask for (if we were honest), but it is precisely when we do not have what we would ask for, and only then, that we can clearly perceive His all-sufficiency. It is when the sea is moonless that the Lord has become my Light.

The 8 Day Challenge Day 1

Thought of the Day
"I am free to choose from an infinite number of potential thoughts."

Welcome to the challenge!

This eight day experiment of deliberately searching for and cultivating the good stuff in your life will not only help you make this month great, it will also be a springboard for many ultra-positive years to come. Remember, this 8-Day effort is about you and your resolve to let go of thinking patterns that are no longer useful or productive.

Few people have experience with intentional, focused thinking. In fact most people hardly ever evaluate their thought life at all, at least until a crisis strikes. It's not uncommon to go through days-even weeks and months-filled with hyperactive commotion while giving very little notice to the quality and accuracy of the thoughts passing through your mind.

If left unchecked, however, more than 90% of your inner dialogue and self-talk will tend to revolve around your own dissatisfactions, insecurities, worries, and fears. The compounded effect of negative self-talk can cap your potential far beneath God's plans and intentions.

Question of the Day
Since you are free to choose what you think about, and you have billions of options, what specific thoughts should you increase in order to reach your most important goals?

The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...if you need it, or if you just like going the extra mile)
Today, rewrite Philippians 4:8 in the Amplified version as shown below on 4 separate note cards that you can post in four high traffic areas for the duration of the eight days. (Bathroom mirror, steering wheel, gym or school locker, laptop keyboard, refrigerator, Bible)

"...whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things [fix your minds on them]." Philippians 4:8 (AMP)

I caught myself all throughout the day biting my tongue. This challenge is making me aware of how much I actually speak BEFORE I think about what I'm about to say...BAD HABIT of mine!! Lord, help me be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.

the 8 day challenge

I have been reading The 4:8 Principle by Tommy Newberry and so far, it has been life changing! My friend, Holly, said she was doing the 8 day challenge and so I am joining her in it, starting tomorrow. In the grand scheme of life, 8 days isn't long AT ALL, but I'll bet this challenge turns out to be harder than I anticipate...

Here's what it is......

You will receive a short email prompt from me each morning, containing inspiration, encouragement and the 4:8 Challenge of the Day. Your objective will be to THINK, SPEAK, AND ACT all day long in a manner consistent with Philippians 4:8. The challenge will be to keep your mind as well as your mouth preoccupied with what is beautiful, excellent, true, just, and worthy of praise.

Throughout the 8-Day Challenge, you can expect to see the people and situations in your life differently because, as Thoreau wrote, "we find only the world we look for." During this brief eight day period, you will be looking for, and consequently finding, fresh value in your relationships and circumstances and especially, new virtue within yourself. After all, it's so easy to get consumed with your obstacles that you forget about your goals. It is so easy to entertain hostile thoughts about the future and end up missing the gift of the present.

Here Are The 4 Ground Rules

Avoid any and all negative energy for eight days. During this 8-day challenge you'll be asked to steer clear of specific thoughts, words and deeds that violate the 4:8 principle. You'll also be encouraged to increase other thoughts, words, and behaviors that are in harmony with Philippians 4:8.

First, let's identify some of what you should INCREASE during the challenge:

Prayer and forgiveness beyond the norm for you
Verbally encouraging your spouse, friends and family
Thinking and reviewing your goals
Smiling and laughing
Dwelling on the character of God
Reviewing your blessings, especially the little ones
Defending a victim of gossip
Predicting a positive outcome aloud

Now, let's pinpoint the most negative behaviors that you MUST temporarily SUSPEND during the challenge:

All forms of whining and complaining
Talking about fatigue, boredom or aches and pains
Gossip-based conversations
Condemning language of any kind
Exasperating body language
Criticism of spouse, kids, coworkers and even politicians
Worrisome thoughts or words
Nursing old wounds
Can you think of anything else that should be avoided?

I am ready for the challenge!!!!!

Are YOU in?!?!

Maybe This Year...?

by Elisabeth Elliot

"I hardly know where to start," a letter begins. "My story is not one involving men. That's the problem. Male companionship seems not to be found, and, I fear, may never be found. They never ask me out twice. I'm always 'dumped.' The problem is I want a relationship. I have this overwhelming desire...."

Someone else said to me, "I fell deeply in love. He fell deeply in love, too--with someone else."

Another letter tells of the agonized yearning of one couple for a child. Since God has not removed the desire, they ask, may we not conclude that He wants us to employ whatever means we can (e.g., in vitro fertilization) in order to have a child?

God's not having taken away a perfectly normal human desire does not by any means indicate that we are free to pursue its fulfillment in any way we choose. A woman who had, after years of struggles, quickly lost sixty pounds told me that she had been expecting God to take away her appetite. When she realized He did not intend to do so (she had been asking for the removal of our God-given protection from starvation!), she stopped gratifying that appetite in the wrong ways.

Will the young woman find a mate? Will the couple have a child? Maybe this year will be the year of desire fulfilled. Perhaps, on the other hand, it will be the year of desire radically transformed, the year of finding, as we have perhaps not yet truly found, Christ to be the All-Sufficient One, Christ the "deep, sweet well of Love."

"Why won't God let someone into my life? I feel left out, abandoned. When will it be my turn?" The petulant letter goes on. "I feel deprived! Will He deny me the one small desire of my heart? Is it too big a treasure to ask? I sit in torture and dismay."

Life is likely to continue to hold many forms of torture and dismay for that unhappy person and for all who refuse to receive with thanksgiving instead of complaint the place in life God has chosen for them. The torture is self-inflicted, for God has not rejected their prayers. He knows better than any of us do what furthers our salvation. Our true happiness is to be realized precisely through his refusals, which are always mercies. His choice is flawlessly contrived to give the deepest kind of joy as soon as it is embraced.

Joseph Eliot, in the seventeenth century, said, "I need everything God gives me, and want [or feel the lack of] nothing He denies me."

In Moses' review of God's leading of the children of Israel he said,

"Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart.... He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then fed you with manna which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.... Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you.... For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land--a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing."

Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 5, 7-9, NIV

The cause of our discontent: We simply do not believe God. The wilderness experience leads to the Promised Land. It is the path God chose for us. His Word is established forever, and He tells us in a thousand ways that His will is our peace, His choices for us will lead to fulfillment and joy, the way of transgressors is hard. Do we suppose that we could find a better way than His?

One of George Eliot's characters says:

"You are seeking your own will, my daughter. You are seeking some good other than the law you are bound to obey. But how will you find good? It is not a thing of choice; it is a river that flows from the foot of the Invisible Throne, and flows by the path of obedience. I say again, man cannot choose his duties. You may choose to forsake your duties, and choose not to have the sorrow they bring. But you will go forth, and what will you find, my daughter? Sorrow without duty--bitter herbs, and no bread with them."

Instead of seeing His everlasting love, tenderly bending down to our humanness, longing over each one of us with a father's speechless longing; we sometimes think of Him as indifferent, inaccessible, or just plain unfair.

The worst pains we experience are not those of the suffering itself but of our stubborn resistance to it, our resolute insistence on our independence. To be "crucified with Christ" means what Oswald Chambers calls "breaking the husk" of that independence. "Has that break come?" he asks. "All the rest is pious fraud." And you and I know, in our heart of hearts, that that sword-thrust (so typical of Chambers!) is the straight truth.

If we reject this cross, we will not find it in this world again. Here is the opportunity offered. Be patient. Wait on the Lord for whatever He appoints, wait quietly, wait trustingly. He holds every minute of every hour of every day of every week of every month of every year in His hands. Thank Him in advance for what the future holds, for He is already there. "Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup" (Psalm 16:5, NIV). Shall we not gladly say, "I'll take it, Lord! YES! I'll trust you for everything. Bless the Lord, O my soul!"