Daily Readings from Think Better, Live Better by Joel Osteen
Introduction and Day 1 Excerpt.
Introduction
Your mind has incredible power over your success or failure to become all you were created to be. We all have our own struggles in life, and the first step in overcoming problems is to get rid of negative thoughts. If we can’t think positive thoughts, we can’t expect to live a positive life, because our thoughts will determine the life we’re going to live. When we start thinking positive, faith-filled thoughts, we have the power within that will enable us to go beyond the ordinary into the extraordinary life we were designed to live.
That is why I wrote my book Think Better, Live Better. In it I reveal a simple yet life-changing strategy for erasing the thoughts that keep you down and for reprogramming your mind with positive thinking to reach a new level of victory in every area of your life. As a child of the Most High God, you are equipped to handle anything that comes your way. To claim your destiny, you need to start thinking about yourself the way God does and to delete the thoughts that tear down your confidence.
My friend, over the next ninety days, will you take a journey of a lifetime together with me and explore ten powerful keys for your life:
1. Reprogram Your Mind
2. Remove Negative Labels
3. Release the Full You
4. Think Yourself to Victory
5. Pregnant with Possibility
6. The Promise Is in You
7. Ask Big
8. You Have What You Need
9. Keep Your Crown
10. Just Remember
This collection of ninety daily devotionals contains excerpts from my original book that will help you to train yourself to tune out the negativity and to tune into your calling, so you may begin to live the wonderful plans God has made for you. It offers the same positive, inspiring, and faith-building messages and encouragement of Think Better, Live Better in daily doses supplemented by a wealth of supportive scriptures, selected stories, daily prayers, and daily thoughts for contemplation.
I hope my words and the other material in this daily devotional will encourage you in a process of reflection that will enhance your thinking and help you to rise to a new level of living your best.
Daily Readings from Think Better, Live Better is divided into ten sections. Each section covers one of the ten powerful keys to improving your thinking. The goal is for you to take just a brief time each day to read and reflect, to put the events and circumstances in your life in perspective, and to receive a mental, emotional, and spiritual lift.
Each of the daily readings was selected to emphasize the fact that when we think better, we will see breakthroughs on all that is keeping us back from God’s abundant life. I’ve added several other features to help you apply and live out the truth that God wants you to know. Each daily devotional includes:
A suggested Scripture reading: These passages will sometimes relate directly to the point being described or will provide necessary background for accurately understanding the truth for that day. Reading these selected passages will help you fully benefit from this book.
Key verse(s): A biblical verse that specifically expresses the theme of the devotional.
A devotional excerpt from Think Better, Live Better: A brief lesson or story that I believe will encourage and uplift you.
Today’s Prayer: A daily prayer that can serve as a model to help you express your prayer requests, desires, gratitude, and fresh commitments to God. Feel free to adapt these prayers and make them your own. Have a personal conversation with your heavenly Father.
Today’s Thought: These are points meant for you to consider prayerfully after each daily reading. God’s Word tells us that our thinking patterns become our acting patterns. The way we talk to ourselves greatly influences our actions. The Today’s Thought sections are meant to encourage you to agree with what God thinks of you throughout each day.
By reading at a one-a-day pace, you’ll be able to go through these ninety readings in three months or so. As you put these ten key principles into action, your mind will be transformed and renewed as you allow God’s Word to refresh and to reshape your thinking, speaking, and daily activities.
Your life can be transformed. Let today be the day when the transformation begins!
DAY 1
You Have the Right Software
Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 9
For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…
PROVERBS 23:7 AMP
Our mind is like a computer. How we program it is the way it’s going to function. You can have the most powerful computer ever made, the latest and fastest model, with the maximum amount of memory available, but if you put the wrong software in it, it’s not going to function as it was designed. We’ve all had to deal with computer viruses. They can get into a perfectly good computer and start to contaminate the software. Before long the computer is slow, then you can’t access your files. None of these problems occur because it’s defective or poorly made. The computer’s hardware is fine. It’s because somebody reprogrammed the software. Somehow the insides got messed up. Now the software is contaminated.
In a similar way, when God created you, He stepped back and said, “Another masterpiece.” Your hardware is perfect. You’re the right size, the right nationality, and you have the right gifts. Not only that, God put the right software in you. From the very beginning, He programmed you to be victorious, healthy, strong, and creative. He programmed, “Whatever you touch will prosper and succeed.” He programmed, “You are the head and not the tail. You will lend and not borrow. You are a victor and not a victim.”
The reason we don’t always experience this abundant life is that we’ve allowed viruses to contaminate our software. We say to ourselves, “I’ll never be successful. I’m not that talented.” “I’ll never break this addiction. I’ve had it too long.” “I’m slow, clumsy, and unattractive. Nothing good is in my future.” Because our software is infected, we go around with low self-esteem, we’re negative, we don’t believe our dreams will come to pass, and we don’t expect problems to turn around.
Here’s the good news, though. Like that computer, there is nothing wrong with you. You’re not defective or faulty. The problem is in your software. You have to get rid of the viruses. All through the day, dwell on what your Creator says about you. “I’m blessed. I’m strong. I’m healthy. I’m confident. I’m attractive. I’m valuable. I’m victorious.” You have to get back to your original software. If your thinking is limited, your life will be limited. When you think better, you’ll live better.
Today’s Prayer
Father, thank You for creating me with the perfect hardware. I am the right size, the right nationality, and I have the right gifts and the right software in me. I declare that You programmed me to be victorious, healthy, strong, and creative. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Today’s Thought
You were programmed to live an abundant, victorious, faith-filled life. Your original software says, “You can do all things through Christ.” That’s how your Creator designed you.
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