Tag how to think

“Getting away” and thinking

My husband and I were on vacation last week. We drove to Utah to visit some of the national parks. Our favorite was Canyonland. To God be the glory for this piece of creation. It’s amazing. My pictures don’t come close to showing how beautiful it was. It was a really long drive for us–took three hard driving days to get there. I found myself singing “How great thou art” a lot. I thought of David’s Psalms when he praises God for creation. This is truly a beautiful world. I wish everyone could see as much of the world as I have.

I have found that when I’m away, I feel more focused. I can look at my life, my routines, and my schedules and see things so much more clearly. It’s like I’m looking through a telescope, and things come into focus. It’s like I’m viewing someone else’s life. Thus, I’m more objective. It’s not necessarily because I’m physically away as much as my mind is resting.

What does “getting away” mean?

Getting away, even if it can’t be far away, can be powerful for our mental health. Even a few hours can be beneficial. It doesn’t have to be a true vacation as we think of vacations. Certainly, one or two weeks ago doesn’t change our lives because we return to the same life we left. And certainly vacations, whether hours, a long weekend, or weeks, are meant to be times of renewal, times we let our minds rest. That’s the whole point, isn’t it?

But what if, when we return, we can find a way to use our rested and renewed lives as a catalyst for change? Is there a way to take that focused view and actually implement it in real life?

This is new territory for me. I’ve never even read anything about this subject, so I feel as though I’m breaking ground. Hopefully,, it makes sense.

Thinking and focus

Seeing the change we need

This is easy. When we distance ourselves from any situation, we see it more clearly. It can be simply out for coffee for a couple of hours. But as a rule, we need to get out of our environment. It’s really hard to change your environment while you’re sitting in it! We are far more impacted by our physical surroundings than we think we are.

Getting away can mean different things depending on our circumstances. But most people can find a space somewhere outside their home where they can isolate and be alone to think.”Getting away” means getting away in our heads more than anything else. And this we can do anywhere but a change of scene helps.

That change can be to a coffee shop, a library, the beach, or the woods—anywhere out of the environment that is stressing you.

We have to think.

Can I be honest and say that most people don’t think? We’ve lost the ability to think. No, it’s more than that. We don’t want to think. But let me be clear. There is a huge difference between thinking and rumination, which is what most people do. They just keep rehashing the same thing. The definition of insanity just doesn’t refer to repeating the same actions and expecting different results; it’s also thinking the same way over and over and expecting different results.

Excellent thinking involves thoughtful reflection, challenging our assumptions, and being open-minded to the Holy Spirit. This keeps us from surface-level thinking.

Good thinking means finding a way to let our minds be creative and do what they were created to do. Excellent thinking is not easy. Our minds naturally lean toward confusion and uncertainty. I could get very theological here, but I’ll make it brief.

God is not a God of confusion, meaning our thinking is not to be confused either. So the most important part of good thinking is a rested mind. Our minds don’t rest on their own. We have to actively seek to rest them. That seems paradoxical, doesn’t it? It isn’t. Therefore, the “getting away” idea.

Thinking isn’t easy.

Excellent thinking requires training. Like our muscles, our minds need to be trained. I think training our minds might even be harder than training our muscles. Why? Because we don’t think our minds can be trained. But most successful people have learned to do just that, as have truly spiritually mature people. You can always tell when a person has a trained mind because they have a disciplined mind.

There are dangers with thinking, though

The result of thinking can mean change. We realize there are areas in our lives that need changing, and changing one’s life, routines, and schedules is hard. Let me give you an example. I realized that I stress too much about some things. I make some things more important than they are. Didn’t Christ say we shouldn’t worry about what we eat, drink, or wear? (Matthew 6:24-35) Doesn’t that mean we don’t have to always have everything figured out all the time?

If you’ve been reading my posts for a while, you know I like routines and schedules. I function better with them. Most people do. Some of you probably feel you need to be more organized. However, obsessive organization can also be a downfall.

For me, it’s meal-planning. Click on the photo below for a link to a free resource for summer menu planning.

I feel stressed about what I’m going to fix for dinner. Most people I know never worry about meal planning. They just figure it out when the time comes. I’m not that person, but I need to learn how to be that person to a degree. That’s one of the things I realized on vacation; I obsess too much about meal planning.

So, I’ve changed my focus. I still like to plan my menus, but it’s no longer a huge deal. Strangely, I seem to be on top of it, as always. It just isn’t causing me the same amount of angst.

What Christ said about stress.

But when Christ said we are not to worry (get stressed) about what we eat, wear, drink, etc. could he have also meant meal-planning? When I realized meal-planning caused me stress, I knew it meant two things: better planning and, at the same time, more spontaneity when my plans go awry. Does that make some sense?

But sometimes, we learn that what we’re doing isn’t necessarily wrong or anything that needs changing. Instead, it’s how we think about things.

Everything doesn’t have to be a big deal!

How thinking can improve mental health

Talking isn’t thinking.

I know many people who confuse talking with thinking. You know the type. It’s the person (maybe it’s you, but in order to change, we have to be honest with ourselves) who talks a lot about a lot of things they’re going to do but never do them. At times, if I’m being honest, I’m one of those people. I can decorate my whole house in my head in minutes!

I’ve known people who talk endlessly about things they’re going to do, and months later, when they’ve taken not one step forward, they’re still talking about it! Their talking has resulted in only more talking. They’re spinning their wheels and not getting anywhere. If they thought instead of talked, they might be further along.

Even as I write, I can think about things I’ve been giving lip service to but no action to. I write them on my list but keep moving them to the next day. That’s like the person who talks something to death. In my case, I list it to death!

(BUT: sometimes thinking just to be thinking is good. It’s OK to let our minds fantasize,, meander, etc. Often our best ideas come from such freedom. But even then, a rested mind is most conducive to this.)

Structuring our thinking time

Maybe we tackle the biggest or hardest problem first. This is called “Eating the Frog.” (The author is Brian Tracy and I highly recommend this book.) Handling the biggest problem first, the one we don’t want to face, makes everything else easier after that.

But some people function better by changing the small things first. You have to use whatever works for you.

Tackling the things that bring us stress and making the necessary changes is essential to our mental health. Most people do better with an organized, structured environment. I remind you that God created the world and everything in it in a methodical, organized manner.

I wonder how much thinking God did beforehand…hmmm.

Concluding

Let’s make an effort to rest our minds just like we rest our bodies. Then we can engage in constructive and excellent thinking. Remember, giving our minds rest usually means changing our environment. But it doesn’t have to be a vacation. Any change of scene can work.

Thinking should be purposeful. If you’re a believer in Christ, ask God to calm your mind and direct your thinking. Be aware of your thoughts. Yes, some negative thoughts may show up in the process, but identify them as such and let them go; don’t be afraid of your thoughts.

Take some time this week to just think. You’ll be surprised how refreshed, revitalized, and redirected you might feel.

God bless and have a good week.

• Are You Hearing the Spirit’s Voice? Four ways to know.
  Every believer hears two voices. Hearing the Spirit’s voice isn’t that hard. But it means silencing the other one. Scripture:   “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” — Romans 8:1 Four ways to tell the difference. The Holy Spirit’s conviction is a gift. It is the gentle nudge of a Father who refuses to let you settle for less than the best. The Spirit’s voice is clear, specific, and full of hope. Even when He points out sin, He does so with the promise of forgiveness and the… Read more: Are You Hearing the Spirit’s Voice? Four ways to know.
• 
  How To Find Joy In God When Life Feels Heavy
  🌘 It’s hard to find joy, even the joy that comes from God, when life feels so heavy. That’s because we often confuse joy with happiness. They’re not the same. Happiness depends on our circumstances, while joy comes from God. There are seasons when the world feels dimmer than it should. Times when you wake up, and the weight of the world lies heavy on your shoulders. It’s an uphill battle. In those moments, it’s easy to wonder where God is, or whether He’s paying any attention at all. You have to work… Read more: How To Find Joy In God When Life Feels Heavy
• 
  How to confront honestly and with integrity.
  I don’t know anybody who likes to confront, at least not among the people I know. But we’re all going to have to do it at some point in our lives. So, we need to learn to do so with honesty and integrity. Confrontation is not a bad thing. Honest communication handled with integrity can ensure a positive outcome. God Confronts If we need justification, we only have to look at the Bible. The Old Testament abounds with examples. Starting with Adam and Eve, Moses, David, and many others. In the New Testament,… Read more: How to confront honestly and with integrity.
• 
  What does a simple life look like for you?
  Simple is different for everyone. I’m all for simplifying our lives if it makes them better. But to simplify, just so we can say we did and sound all hep and everything, is ridiculous. Besides, what looks like simple living for me is different from what it looks like for you. Compared to my “bestie” I’m practically a minimalist. Compared to my daughter, I’m a hoarder. But I do have one area where I need to give myself a break. Meal-planning is where I seem to think more is better. I always think… Read more: What does a simple life look like for you?
• 
  Exaggeration is too common. But not God.
  So Michigan was supposed to accumulate over a foot of snow in one day last week. Not! Oh, the weather forecasters are saying that it will still happen. I’ve lived in Michigan for a long time. And let’s just say it’s going to have to “mega” snow the rest of the day to accomplish that. Which brings me to this point. We know how the media is today. ALL of them have “Breaking news”,  every minute.  Really? And major snowstorms? Seriously. The weathermen and women call everything a major this or that, anymore. I… Read more: Exaggeration is too common. But not God.