Does “Positive Thinking” Really Change Things?

For years my husband and I were horrified by the extremes of certain Christian teachers and advocates of the hyper-faith movement. I can remember one particular horror story that surfaced about a young woman with breast cancer being ousted from her church because the fact that she continued to have cancer and was not healed gave the church a bad name, i.e. it was bad PR for the church. This incident was verified by her father who is a prominent Christian minister to the poor.

Recently I bought a book—at full price, ouch!—entitled Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America by Barbara Ehrenreich who is an established author. This is not a Christian book, but was reviewed in Christianity Today.  The author became interested in the subject after having breast cancer and being bombarded with Positive Think on every hand.

Being a former cellular immunologist the author refutes the theory that strengthening the immune system through Positive Think effectively counters the cancer cells in the body. She points out that the immune system is designed to counter “foreign” cells (such as microorganisms like TB or Strep) and not the body’s own cells. Cancer cells are the body’s OWN cells and therefore not attacked by immune cells! Then she goes on in the book to show how Positive Think has invaded our society and become accepted as “scientific fact”, which it is not, and even how it has invaded the Church.

My point: I would be willing to bet that every part of western Christianity has accepted Positive Think , and even consider it as an expression of the Bible. But, I would like to say that Positive Think, including it’s ability to change reality, is not scriptural. There is a vast difference between changing one’s heart and life in general by thinking positively and putting one’s whole faith and trust in the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12 says: “The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” The Word divides between what emerges out of our soul/mind  and what emerges out of our spirit where God dwells.

I am not advocating that every one become a Grinch, but think on this: the Positive Think mantra is really a form of manipulation. Where in the Word are we told to “manipulate” God or one another?  Sounds like some kind of witchcraft!?!

Confirmations

In the last week since I posted my thoughts about learning lessons from putting together jigsaw puzzles I have received two newsletters with this theme. One was from Chuck Pierce (access through Glory of Zion ministries) and the other was from Graham Cooke, an awesome prophetic person. The latter guy was advertising an upcoming conference: I believe this year's conference, The Missing Piece, will be an incredible time with God. This is an excerpt from my introduction onThe Missing Piece:

The plans of God are big, bold and beautiful.
The Holy Spirit knows who you really are
and the part you were meant to play.

Recognize your turning point. Take the opportunity to rediscover and upgrade your status in the epic drama of Heaven coming to Earth.

If you have never been to one of our conferences, it is worth the trip.The Missing Piece runs March 4-6 at the Mission, our home church in Vacaville, California. For more details, click here.

Lessons from a Jigsaw Puzzle

Believe it or not, over the years I have actually learned lessons from putting together jigsaw puzzles.  Once a year, after the holidays, I like to put together a puzzle. It’s kind of like a release after all the activity, gift-buying, decorating, etc. It seems to help me clear my head.

Recently I completed a complex one with two large cats under a Christmas tree. I regretted buying it because the two cats had similar areas of color and I ended up with a pile of pieces for each color of cat but some pieces could go either way. I almost put it all back into the box about 20 times, but didn’t want to be a quitter. Two lessons: (1) Don’t quit, and (2) give yourself breaks away from the task. I didn’t quit because it was the principle of the thing. Also, I discovered that if I took breaks, when I returned  to the puzzle I could immediately place pieces that seemed invisible before.

When I was a kid our family used to put together jigsaw puzzles as a group activity. No TV or Wii games at that time. First, of course, we lay down all the border pieces. Now we had a frame/framework in which to place all the other pieces.  Then, while we all participated in placing individual pieces inside the frame, each person also worked on a section by themselves. They sorted out pieces that seemed to belong together. Eventually the sections were added into  the frame, and then finally came the very last piece. What excitement for the one who got to place that final piece.

I haven’t mentioned an absolute essential element to the successful completion of this puzzle: the box cover. Without the box cover there would be no way of knowing what picture was on the puzzle. How, then, could we possibly proceed without first seeing what it was supposed to look like; without envisioning the finished puzzle?

God’s plan may often seem chaotic or without point. However, if we study the Bible and seek understanding through our teacher, the Holy Spirit, we will be able to envision His eternal plan, His “Big Picture”. With the “box cover” in hand we can see historically how the pieces came together and how they will ultimately be completed. With each one of us helping and working on his own area, as well as working together, eventually we will see the “puzzle” completed and God’s Kingdom plans come to fruition. We must, however, keep our eyes on the "box cover".