Chapter 7
I AM a Mighty Caster
Today I want to address our self-talk, which is the conversation that we carry on in our head all day long. Your self-talk probably confirms that you are agitated, worried or uneasy all this time. But this is a message straight from the devil. In 1 Peter 5:8, Peter warned us, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." Satan is trying to devour your life, your joy, even your marriage - and with this type of anxiety running around in your head, Satan appears to be winning the battle.
Don't feel alone. You're not the only one fighting this battle. For many of us, negative thoughts enter into our “self-talk” every day. It can be a constant fight to think and talk positive all the time, especially if we have developed the habit of worrying about things. But for every negative thought Satan can throw at us, God has a positive answer. In response to our bad habit of negative self-talk, in 1 Peter 5:7, Peter advised us to ... "Cast all your care upon Him; for He careth for you."
Now Peter really used a forceful word when he said "cast." Notice he didn't say, “Lay all your cares upon Him,” because we have to do this ejecting of negative stuff more energetically than that. Throw your cares and worries away as far as you can. I am visualizing the discus thrower in the Olympics - the way he throws that heavy disc with all his might, as far as possible. The pressures and the burdens of your life are so heavy and difficult, and Jesus wants you to catapult them right out of your life and into His. He has promised to take care of everything for us.
I want you to do a mental exercise. I want you to visualize yourself going to the beach by the ocean. I want you to take everything that is worrying you, put it in a box, and imagine yourself putting a bunch of duct tape on every side of the box - so none of the negative stuff can get back out. Now cast your trouble-box out into the ocean, and watch the waves and the riptide underneath carry it far away from you - out to sea.
I have done this exercise more than once, and have thrown away worries, bitterness and hurt feelings. Sometimes I imagined throwing the box out to sea. Other times, I pictured Jesus walking along on the beach beside me, and I saw myself handing the duct-taped package over to Him. Either way, the burden was out of my hands and into His.
Continue to Chapter 7: Questions
