Most days I have to fight negative thoughts. It is like a war playing out in my mind.I tell myself that I can win this war!I can stay positive.I will believe God’s promises to me.Many of us go through life with a negative message playing in our minds. The negative message goes something like this, “You will never make it, look how successful others are in comparison to you. Why don’t you give up and stop trying? God doesn’t care about making you successful or He would have already done it.”I constantly fight these negative messages recorded in my mind.

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The key to stopping negative thoughts is to dislodge them by replacing them with positive thoughts.A verse in Matthew 5 really encourages me in the fight downgrading negative thoughts and replacing them with uplifting positive thoughts.

Matthew 5:6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for God's approval. They will be satisfied.

I like to paraphrase Matthew 5:6 with, "I am the most happy and carefree when I am craving God because He satisfies me with approval and acceptance."

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One of our greatest emotional needs is for approval. We can not truly love ourselves and be healthy without approval and acceptance of someone. We go to great lengths to get love and approval from people but they always fail us because they are unable to give us unconditional approval. Only God can give you unconditional love and approval. And He has given it to you. He loves and approves of you unconditionally. When we are confident that we have God’s approval - our minds are powerful! We receive His blessings, happiness, affirmation, security, acceptance, and certainty.

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Here are three ways to receive His unconditional approval.

One: You must constantly tell yourself positives from the Bible.  (The Bible is God talking to you). Repeat the scriptures you have over and over until it has you.

Here is what I declare constantly:

I have God’s approval.I am acceptance and appreciated by Christ who lives in me.I am loved and highly valued.I have Jesus’s backing and favor.God admires and esteems me.I am respected and praised.God approves of me.I am stamped with His approval.I believe in myself.I go through my day with power and confidence.

Two: Practice visualization, this will take you into a new realm of the Spirit. Take a few minutes to close your eyes and hear God speaking words of approval to you.

He is saying “...good job, daughter, I am so proud of you.”

As I was practicing this...The Holy Spirit said to me: “I was proud of you when I watched what you did for your mother it was a great sacrifice. I was proud you when you forgave that person who hurt you and then you showed them kindness. And yesterday, I saw you overlooked your husband’s hurtful words and deeply love him anyways”.

God is saying to us.. "Great Job”!

Three: Never again build a case against yourself.

Many us have a hard time not liking ourselves and that’s why we need to practice replacing negative thoughts with positive thinking.

You think 30,000 thoughts a day -make them all positive!

Remember Matthew 5:6, "I am the most happy and carefree when I am craving God because He fills me with approval and acceptance."Love you,Tami McKinney