A person is a product of his own thoughts. Thoughts form the thermostat that regulates what we accomplish in life. My body responds and reacts to the input from my mind. If I feed my mind upon doubt, disbelief and discouragement, that is precisely the kind of day my body will experience. If I adjust my thermostat forward—to thoughts filled with vision, vitality and victory—I can count on that kind of day. You and I become what we think about.
Let me make a suggestion. Consider your mind a factory…a busy, bustling place of action and production, for so it is! Your mind is a “thought factory.” It produces thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of thoughts each day. Production in your thought factory is under the charge of two foremen. One we shall call Mr. Triumph, the other Mr. Defeat.
Mr. Triumph, as you'd imagine, is in charge of manufacturing positive thoughts—wholesome, encouraging, reassuring thoughts. Mr. Defeat is responsible for the manufacturing of negative, depreciating, worrisome thoughts. Mr. Triumph specializes in producing reasons why you can face life victoriously, why you can handle what comes your way, why you're more than able to conquer. Mr. Defeat is an expert in the opposite. He develops reasons why you cannot succeed, why you're inadequate, why you should give up and give in to worry, failure, discouragement and inferiority.
Both foremen are instantly obedient. They await your signal to snap to attention. Provide yourself with a positive signal…and Mr. Triumph will throw the switches as he goes to work. He will see to it that one encouraging, edifying thought after another will flood your mind. He will take life by the throat and refuse to let even the slightest cloud of doubt float overhead. But Mr. Defeat awaits a negative signal (which he would rather you call “reality” or “common sense!”) and he's off and running. He will crank out more discouraging, destructive, demoralizing thoughts than Carter's has liver pills. He will soon have you convinced that you can't or won't or shouldn't. Given sufficient time he will drain your energy, squelch your confidence and turn you into a frowning, tight-lipped fatalistic victim, strangled by the yellow, clammy fingers of negative thinking.
Neither Dale Carnegie nor Norman Vincent Peale originated such a message as this—God did. Listen to three biblical counsellors:
Solomon, referring to man: For as he thinks within himself, so he is. Proverbs 23:7.
Paul, referring to thoughts: Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is attractive…let your mind dwell on these things. Philippians 4:8.
Peter, referring to the mind: Therefore, gird your minds for action… 1 Peter 1:13.
Thoughts, positive or negative, grow stronger when fertilized with constant repetition. That may explain why so many who are gloomy and gray stay in that mood…and why others who are cheery end enthusiastic continue to be so. Please do not misunderstand. Happiness (like winning) is a matter of right thinking not intelligence, age, or position. Our performance is directly related to the thoughts we deposit in our memory bank. We can only draw on what we deposit.
What kind of performance would your car deliver if every morning before you left for work you scooped up a handful of dirt and put it in your crankcase? The fine engine would soon be coughing and sputtering. Ultimately it would refuse to start. The same is true of your life. Thoughts that are narrow, self-destructive, and abrasive produce needless wear and tear on your mental motor. They send you off the road while others drive past.
I close with some sound advice. You need only one foreman in your mental factory. Mr. Triumph is his name. He is anxious to assist you and available to all the members of God's family. His real name is the Holy Spirit, the Helper. If Mr. Defeat is busily engaged as foreman of your factory, fire yours and hire ours! You will be amazed at how smoothly the plant will run under His leadership.
Copyright Charles R. Swindoll Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.
