Thoughts That Transform

March 2, 2021

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Philippians 4:8 NIV

Type Ones are those among us who strive for excellence, beauty, and perfection in themselves and the world around them. At their best, Ones champion excellence, live with integrity, and make the world a better place. They are highly principled, with an eye for detail, and want to solve problems and bring order out of chaos. What could be wrong with that? 

The difficulty is that their wonderful, inspiring personalities, and attunement to the good and ideal, find it incredibly easy to move from the desire to a requirement. The life of recreating and reforming what seems to be flawed and incomplete becomes a burden to them and makes them a burden to others. They can be overcome with “shoulds,” and then resentment when people don’t agree, or things go wrong. The One’s focus of attention seems to be on what’s wrong, and their energy is directed toward criticizing or fixing whatever doesn’t match their standard of rightness. Their minds get occupied with a mental list of what needs to be done next to ensure the best possible results for themselves and everyone else. 

Their anger when things are not going well can take the form of resentment or judgment toward themselves and others. That’s a result of tapping into the One’s fear of being unworthy of grace because they are not right. They don’t intend to be unkind. They see it as an act of love to correct what is wrong. But when they are occupied with endless efforts to make things perfect, it not only creates tension and conflict in their relationships, but also in their guts. 

Type Ones will experience transformational growth as they accept the grace of God for all of their imperfections and learn to extend it to themselves and others. As they let God be in charge of what is perfect and right, they can relax and work on what He directs. 

If this is you (and focusing on the negative and what’s going wrong happens to all of us sometimes), make the choice to change your focus right in the moment from noticing what is wrong to thinking about what is right. That was Paul’s advice from a prison cell! It’s such a relief to start thinking about what is good. We are enabled to release resentment, extend forgiveness, and exchange fear of the future for anticipation. Pressure diminishes, and graciousness, love, and appreciation grow. It’s actually life changing.

• Pray for God’s help in recognizing your own negative thought patterns and releasing them.
• Pray for anyone who came to mind as you were reading. Ask God to give them joy in focusing on what is good.