Stepping Stones: Freedom: 100% Mental

Transformational Thought

Pro athletes have such amazing physical skills. They have honed their bodies and developed muscle memory through years and years of training. Hours of drills, techniques, exercises. Going over the same actions with on-the-spot coaching and guidance develops them into athletic machines, permitting them to really maximize their physical potential. Despite all that physical preparation, when they get onto the field, a very significant physical organ will determine success. The brain!

They say sports are 90% mental, meaning, what’s between their ears: the intellectual, psychological, stress management, relational, and emotional skills. These are what really determine whether they will maximize their physical abilities. In fact, to even develop their physical skills at such a high level, perseverance, self-discipline, hard work, integrity to the drills and not taking short cuts, dietary self-control, studying plays, observation and application, learning from mistakes, and many more mental skills are vital.

Yes, we are all so very blessed to live in a country that provides the opportunity to be free. Freedom of speech…freedom to choose the vocation we want…freedom to practice any religion. But how free are we?

How many of us are prisoners of our own heart/mind? How many of us are “driven” to be something we are not…sabotaging the path designed specifically for us. In an odd paradox, freedom really comes from having only one Master…the only one qualified to be the Master. Most of our troubles come from trying to blend masters (self, world, others, God) for our life…thus devising and implementing our own game plan and ignoring His. You will maximize your abilities and life and achieve your God-given potential when you realize your life is 100% mental and you humbly let God be your coach.

Today, find freedom through seeking to please God above all else. When you are angry, frustrated, overwhelmed, or some other uncomfortable feeling, just stop. Don’t act yet. Think of God and His big picture of salvation and eternity, or about Biblical passages that calm you. That will start to soothe you. Then get back to the situation that was upsetting you. Now that you are calmer, think through a better solution than the one that was initially going through your mind when you became upset. This is how you can be victorious in the mental aspect of your everyday living. Concentrate on staying close to Him at all times and humbling yourself to His instructions for your conduct. To develop practical skills to strengthen your mind and put God on the throne of your heart in your decisions, click here.

Prayer
Dear Father God, I come to You with a thankful, yet penitent heart. I confess, Lord, that I have let worship of others’ and my own expectations drive me, scattering my energy and focus. My desire to “look good’ in the eyes of others is also draining my energy. Help me, Lord, to focus on You. I know that this is the only way to achieve true freedom. Help me focus on serving the one and only Master, You. Help me, Father, to develop discipline in my life, taking my thoughts captive, so I can master the mental game that goes on inside of me to be victorious in this spiritual war for my soul. I pray, Father, that today and always I will let You direct my next step so that I will be free to enjoy You and to look forward to what You have prepared for me this day. These things I ask boldly, through the love and work of Christ Jesus for us, and all God’s children said, – AMEN!

The Truth
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.
Ephesians 5:8-10

And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.
Isaiah 42:16