Steps to Strengthen Belief System

Chapter 22 & 23

March 22nd & 23rd:

Steps to Strengthening Your Belief System (P. 233-234)

1. State with confidence and boldness: “God has equipped me with everything I need to be what He wants me to be and to accomplish what He wants me to accomplish.”

Taking action on p. 235:

Romans 8:1-2 personalized:
Through acceptance of Jesus’ payment for my sin of gluttony, I am fully forgiven and free to follow Him.

Psalm 27:1 personalized:
I don’t need to be afraid of failure to lose weight and be healthy because God is my Savior and will help me press on and release weight.

Philippians 4:13 personalized:
God equips me with the strength I need to withstand the temptation of poor eating choices and eating outside 0-5.

2. Remind yourself often of the Lord’s promise to make a way when there seems to be no way.

P. 235 encourages dealing with temptation with gratitude statements/thanksgiving journal and reading Scripture. I prayed:
Dear Lord, thank you for helping me persevere through ups and downs of the past 8 weeks. Please help me stick to 0-5 eating and be free from the mastery of the sin of gluttony. Please help me continue to surrender to you. Amen.

3. Highlight verses in your Bible that deal with courage, confidence, faith and believing.

I reflected on the following verses in prayer….

Matthew 14:27 – Lord, thank you for being my Savior. I trust and believe (not doubt!) that You are faithful and will give me the strength I need to fully surrender my greedy to you. Thank you.

Hebrews 3:6 – Lord, thank you for taking over the reins of my life. Help me hold onto You and cling to You.

4. Pray the promises of God.

1 John 4:4 – Father, I believe that You are greater then any force in the world. You are able to overcome ANY obstacle, any temptation Satan throws my way, particularily with regards to gluttony.

Psalm 20:4-5 – Thank you for saving me. Thank you for answering my calls to You. Thank you for the power You promise to give me to save me.

5. Visualize and affirm your assets.

I visualize the following impressions of what it would look like if I cooperated with God in the goals I listed in Chapter 16:

Goal #1 (reach 160lbs….restated success would be eating 0-5 consistently 10/14 days remaining) --
I would feel healthy, slim and victorious in God!

Goal #2 (exercise 3x week)
I would feel healthy and energized and disciplined.

Goal #3 (clean out different messes in the house)
I would feel lighter as a burden is lifted.

6. Make and memorize a list of character qualities that you desire to develop.

Character trait #1: Disciplined/self-controlled
I would like to incorporate this in my life in the following ways:
Eat 0-5, exercise 4x/week, watch 1 hr TV/day, 1 hr computer/day, keep house running smoothly, daily prayer/devotions

Character trait #2: Wise/Discerning
I would like to incorporate this in my life in the following ways:
Study God’s word, pray, memorize bible so I can more effectively apply and share my faith and ultimately pass it on to my kids.

Character trait #3: Patience/gentleness
I would like to incorporate this in my life in the following ways:
Slow to anger with my family, treat family with empathy, encouragement and love.

7. Actively replace negative thoughts and statements with positive thoughts and statements.

8. When an obstacle arises, state boldly, “If God is for me, who can be against me?”

9. When you are feeling harassed by Satan, say aloud, “Father, God, I want to thank you that you are greater than anything Satan can do to me.”

List some situations or circumstances in which you find yourself feeling most harassed by the enemy: p.248
· Anxieties – the “what ifs” of life!
· Failures – self control, gluttony, patience

10. Remind yourself continually: “God is with me in this. He will never leave or forsake me.”