Let me start by saying that I’m no therapist, nor do I play one on T.V. However, if you are someone who fights daily to keep your emotions in check, I hope that some of the things I will share in this article will help to move the needle in the right direction. If you’ve been in a relationship that is now a marriage for any length of time, you know how challenging it can be to keep the mood light and the relationship growing. There are so many things try to get in the way of making your relationship a success. But one of the most dangerous threats to a relationship on the move starts within. Our own thoughts can be the undoing of a happy marriage. If we feed the negative beast within us, the carnage it can leave behind will devastate almost everything around us, including our relationship with the one we love.
So what can you do to prevent negative thoughts from taking a hold of your mind and destroying your marriage? I won’t say it’s an easy thing to overcome. But with prayer and determination, you will be able to succeed. You know, the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 10:5 that we are to “take every thought captive.” This includes the negative ones. Following are three ways to take your negative thoughts captive so that they no longer have the power to do harm in your relationship with your spouse.
Share Your Negative Thoughts With God
Prayer is powerful. This goes without saying. But many people, self-included, forget that sometimes. So when mental and emotional struggles rise up, if we aren’t staying in tune with God, we allow the struggles to dictate our reality. With that in mind, it shouldn’t be too difficult to grasp why prayer is the way out of a negative reality. When you open yourself up to God, He opens up to you. He is able to offer you comfort which relieves anxiety. This leads to a better state of mind, a better mood, and ultimately better communication with your spouse. By refusing to hold onto those negative thoughts and share them with the Almighty, you give your mind the freedom it needs to move onto less stressful things. But, even more than that, when you share your mind with God, you are taking the first major step toward receiving the peace that you crave.
Practice Daily Affirmations
We weren’t born with negative thoughts. But years of training through varying life circumstances can make negativity the crutch we hold on to. So, whether good or bad things are happening in our lives, we only see and embrace the bad. In fact, we get so good at being negative that we make even the good things that are happening appear bad to us and to others. No spouse wants to be in that type of environment. Well, just as it took years of training to make negativity your go-to psyche, it will take years of training to develop a more positive way of thinking. This is because negativity is infused into your character. To get rid of it once and for all, you slap it in the face with some positive, spiritual, uplifting daily affirmations.
Before you know it, rather than negative energy circulating in your sphere of influence, there will be a sense of real joy to be around you. Your affirmations don’t have to be cookie cutter either. Find the ones that work for you and trust the process.
Journal Your Journey From the Dark Side
I know this isn’t Star Wars, but writing down the thoughts that threaten to ruin your mood can be both therapeutic and revealing. First, writing these things down will be another way to release them from your spirit. Second, you can’t fight what you don’t see. By revealing these thoughts on paper, you can clearly see that your thinking has gone off kilter. Then, you can find scriptures and affirmations that can help you cross over from the dark into the light.
Negative thoughts are dangerous. If you continue to feed them, they will devour your marriage. But, if you follow the steps above, you increase your chances of bringing joy and peace back into your marriage.