For several months now, I have been on a journey toward mental and spiritual health. Along the way, I’ve been doing a lot of reading on the subject of Neuroscience and how it is showing things about the mind that Scripture has taught us for centuries. I’m learning a lot and growing in mind and spirit. Recently, I’ve realized that there are a couple of things that seem to be essential for my ability to understand how my mind works without being overwhelmed by the information that I’m gathering. I don’t know if they are essential for everyone, but they might be worth considering.

Positive attitude

One of the most important things to me is to maintain a positive attitude or mindset. This has been especially needed as I am learning to deal with emotions and feelings. When faced with an understanding of my emotions and how they affect my way of thinking and expressing myself, the process can become very difficult and very negative. The stress can cause feelings of anxiety, anger, depression, and more. The deeper you delve into your emotions, the more you can see yourself as unworthy, unloved, and guilt and shame set in.

A positive attitude helps me to remember that this is all about learning and growing. It also helps me understand that my emotions, though they are real, can lead me to thoughts that are not true. A positive attitude also reminds me of a loving Father who always wants what is best for me.

Hope

The second thing that I really need is hope. Without hope, why would anything else be important? As a Christian, my greatest hope is eternity with God. But what about now, while I’m waiting? I find that I need hope that I can still grow and be better tomorrow than I am today. I need to have hope that I can help others in their journey. I need to believe that the world can be a better place.

Hope allows me to believe that God is still in control. I can believe that the Father can make everything right. It isn’t important whether He does or not. The important thing for me is that He can, and that gives me hope. I know that God promises that all this will happen one day. Hope says that today could be the day.

Hope feeds my positive attitude, which in turn feeds my soul. All that I wait for, all that my soul longs for, is based on hope. Without hope, everything else is meaningless. Without hope, why would I pray? Without hope, why would we want the best possible life for others? Why bother to teach our children anything? Nothing has meaning without the hope that it could make a difference.

My conclusion, at least for me, is that hope breeds a positive attitude and a positive attitude brings about hope for a better tomorrow.

What do you think? Let’s talk about it.