Thinking and Beliefs – Hope for Complete Healing

How To Overcome Holiday Stress

For many, the holidays are not a happy time and are full of stress. You may be one of the fortunate ones who has never experienced disappointment during the holidays; that is great. In this post, you will learn how to mitigate stress and change your perspectives, expectations, and focus to find joy and peace.

Do you remember a time you really wanted something for Christmas, and you didn’t get it? Does that memory steal your joy during the Christmas season? Do you feel sad because a family member died or there was a divorce? It is okay to feel sad about a loss. We will always have disappointments that make us sad or angry. I grew up poor, and when my father left, I never heard from him again, so the holidays were not joyous.

I have to confess that last year I became depressed because my children weren’t coming home for Thanksgiving or Christmas. They just had a baby and didn’t want to travel down from Syracuse. That is understandable, but I was still sad. It helped me develop compassion for others who lack family and will spend the holidays alone.

Stop Stressing About Gift-Giving.

Gift-giving is a tradition begun by the wise men who brought gifts for baby Jesus. Giving gifts shows honor to the person receiving the gift. Gift-giving became stressful when it became a competition on who could give the most. We were poor and could not give as many gifts. Buying gifts is a challenge for me and very stressful. So, I stopped making gift-giving the central theme of Christmas. Most of my family understood because they could all buy what they wanted, when they wanted. Most people don’t need anything. My husband’s family agreed to stop buying presents for the adults. So we only buy for the children.

My sister refuses to stop buying gifts and expects me to get her gifts. She is very wealthy, but I am not, so she would always compare the gifts she gave me with the ones I gave her, which was very humiliating. Do you see why gift-giving is so stressful for me? I came up with the idea of giving her gifts of service, which she appreciated more than a gift. I also make things for her, which she likes. This year, I am making her a unique raincoat. We picked out the pattern together, and she picked out the fabric.

I live with my husband, and I still cannot come up with a gift for him because he gets everything he needs or wants. Plus, we have the same bank account, so he would know everything I bought him, so there is no surprise. I did start making chocolate-covered peanut butter and coconut candy, which he loves. I also give them as gifts to my children, but not to my sister. For a few years, I gave my husband ten cards that he could redeem for a massage. He loved that. Please leave a comment with other gift ideas. We have so much, and we don’t need more stuff. I don’t need more stuff.

Change Your Focus.

Holidays are focused on family gatherings, which is good. But not every family is mentally healthy, and not everyone has a family. Change happens every year. A family member may die, get sick, move away, get married, or experience a job loss, and so on. There will always be disappointment around Christmas time. I found joy by focusing on the wonderful gift that God gave us in the birth of Jesus, the actual reason for the season. I look for opportunities to share the good news of salvation that came with the birth of Jesus, along with hope (Rom. 15:13), peace (John 16:33), joy (John 15:11), and love.

Start new traditions that focus on the real reason we celebrate Christmas. When I had children at home, we read the Christmas story and talked about the gifts God gives us. I also had them do a scavenger hunt for baby Jesus. I gave each child a clue, and they raced to find the next clue and see who could be the first to find something made of gold, then find myrrh, then frankincense, and the last clue was where baby Jesus was hidden. The kids loved that tradition. I would love to hear your ideas.

Reach Out to Those Who Are Alone.

Look for ways to encourage widows, take them a lunch, and spend time with them. Many will spend the holiday alone. Going to a Nursing home to visit those who have no one to see them. Singing carols with those in the Nursing Home gives them great joy. If there is an orphanage in your area, take time to give to them. James 1:27 states, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” Volunteering at a soup kitchen to feed the homeless will also make you feel good and show honor to someone who cannot give back.

One year, I could not go home for Christmas because of a snowstorm. A person I knew learned of my situation, came by my apartment, and took me to her house for Christmas dinner. I will never, ever, forget that Christmas, which was over 40 years ago. Her mother and father made room for me at the dinner table and gave me a bag of M&Ms as a gift. Whenever I see M&Ms, I am reminded of their kindness. So I encourage you to reach out to those who will spend Christmas alone.

Invite the people around you to church, take them a plate of cookies, or invite them to dinner. One year, our church encouraged the members to invite international students to their homes for a holiday meal. Many students cannot go home for the holidays. Inviting them to your home would be a memory you and they would never forget. Showing kindness to someone will boost your mental health.

Jesus gave an example in Luke 14:12-14: “He said also to the man who had invited him, ‘When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13) But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.’”

Conclusion

I hope this post was encouraging and helps give you ways to make the holidays less stressful. Giving gifts of service to those who have everything, not more stuff. Focus on the real reason for Christmas or Thanksgiving and start new traditions. Invite those who will spend the holiday alone to your home. Give to those who can’t give back. Be a blessing. I know there is so much more I could have shared, but I would love to hear your ideas, which would also encourage others who read this post. I pray God bless you richly as you focus on Him and share love with others.

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All verses are from the English Standard Version. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share this link with your friends and family: hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright-protected. Please do not reproduce any part of the posts or my book without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website.

My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Additionally, consider my book Fighting Unseen Battles, which describes the many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and the truths behind them. To learn more about this book, read the post How to Fight Unseen Battles. Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-Changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, the 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

FIVE WAYS TO TAME YOUR IMAGINATION

Have you ever caught yourself getting all worked up imagining a worst-case scenario that may never happen? It is unwise to let your imagination go down a dark path, because your emotions and behavior follow your thoughts, and you will often act foolishly. For example, my sister accused my husband of cheating in a game we were playing. She let her imagination fuel her assumption, and her emotions followed. She said many unkind words. I tried to reason with her, but she kept believing the lie that my husband was trying to do her in. My husband was not cheating, and he will no longer play games with her. Her foolish imagination and controlling behavior ruined her relationship with my husband. Has your imagination caused you to act foolishly?

What Stimulates Your Imagination?

Stories, TV shows, and movies are often make-believe scenarios to entertain you, but those images influence thoughts, which stimulate your imagination. For example, I became interested in the van-life movement, and I found their van creations and travel experiences very interesting. Watching these YouTube videos has inspired me to want to do the same thing. My husband is shocked because I am a homebody, and he loves to travel. Talking to people can stimulate good or bad thoughts and imagination.

Problems stimulate either creative thoughts or destructive thoughts. If you have a problem you need to solve, you can use your imagination to come up with a solution. For example, I had a problem with one of my chickens that always wanted to fight. I had to separate her from the flock because the other chickens would nearly kill her. My husband did not want to kill her, so I had to come up with a solution to keep her separate, protected from predators, and not a burden to care for her. It took me about a month to come up with a viable, though not perfect, solution. On the other hand, if you are having problems with your family, you may imagine it would be better to get a divorce, turn to alcohol or drugs, go to the bar instead of going home, and so on.

For a long time, as I was healing from the trauma of my past, I was caught up in a world of make-belief to escape the struggles of my life. As a child, I spent hours completely dissociated from reality, living in a make-believe world in my mind. Since I healed my trauma memories, I no longer struggle with dissociation. To learn more about how I healed my memories, read my website book called “Hope for Complete Healing.”

Unhealthy beliefs will stimulate your imagination to go down a dark road of make-believe that robs your life and sometimes your finances. If you have insecurity issues, you may have the unhealthy belief that someone doesn’t like you. Your imagination will come up with many scenarios of why they don’t want you, which feeds your unhealthy belief that you are unworthy. Some people have the harmful belief that they must prepare for some catastrophe that may never happen. Many people are caught up in the prepping phenomenon because of TV shows, YouTube videos, and prepping books. My sister is totally controlled by the prepping phenomenon, spending a vast amount of money and time on it.

What Does the Bible Say?

God writes a lot about our thoughts, which I explain in the page called “Posts on Thoughts.” I found two verses concerning imaginations.

Proverbs 18:11 states, “A rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and like a high wall in his imagination.”

Act 17:29 states, “Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.”

How to Tame Your Imagination.

A person’s imagination can be good when used to create beautiful works of art, engineering feats, or great inventions. But most of the time, imaginations are fueled by unhealthy beliefs and unrealistic fears. I explain this in a post called “How Fear Controls You.” In this post, I want to explain how to tame your imagination. Your thoughts direct your imagination, and you can control what you think.

Recognize (be mindful of) your thoughts and feelings. Note, God is aware of all your thoughts (Ps. 139:1-4).
Ask yourself, is what I am thinking the truth? Did the situation happen, and is there a real threat or problem that needs to be mitigated?
Take the unhealthy belief captive and tell it to be gone in Jesus’ name (2Cor. 10:5 and John 14:14).
Apply a truth to your mind and dwell on what is true (Phil. 4:8).
Let your mind dwell on God’s word (Ps. 1:1-3 and Joshua 1:8) when you become worried or fearful.

Conclusion

The quality of your mental health depends on what your mind dwells on. Understanding external influences on your mind and imagination will help you determine whether what you believe is the truth or a lie. Take captive all thoughts that stimulate feelings of anger, hate, malice, manipulation, sadness, fear, envy, impurity, sensuality, and so on. Don’t let your imagination cause you to sin. Set your mind on the things of God to stay in the will of God and to worship Him continually. Colossians 3:1-3 states, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ²Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. ³For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” And Romans 12:2 states, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-Changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, the 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

Putting Together the 3-D Puzzle of Life

Have you ever heard the term “life is a puzzle?” Have you thought about how all the events of your life brought you to the place where you are now? Some events were bad, and some were good. The family you were born into is part of the puzzle for which you had no control. Listen to anyone’s autobiography, and you will see the puzzle pieces of their life. Each person you meet or work with is part of your puzzle. The problem with the puzzle of life is that you had no control over the pieces in your childhood, and that every decision you make changes the picture of your life. This is a 3-D puzzle because you are a puzzle piece for many other people’s puzzles, and they are pieces of your puzzle. So how do you put a 3-D puzzle of life together, and why?

Mental Health Puzzle pieces?

I don’t know of anyone who has not had some type of mental health issue because we live in a sinful world with hurtful people. Resentment toward those who hurt you causes mental dis-ease. Even our perceptions can cause mental health issues. For some people, you mention the T****p word, and they have a visceral reaction. Even political events that affect us are part of our puzzle. Read this post to learn what a mentally healthy person looks like. How Mentally Healthy Are You?

I have spent 2025 writing about many types of mental health problems and what solutions to work through to resolve them. Every day presents new challenges that threaten to pop our control bubbles. To review the list, read “List of Mental Illnesses” by Very Well Health. I have good news: these don’t have to define you, and you can overcome them. There is hope for complete healing.

As I prayed about what God would have me write about, I couldn’t help but realize the impact of a decision I made at eight years old. At eight, I chose to believe and receive Jesus Christ as the Savior of my life (John 1:12), which dramatically changed my mental health issues. In college, I made Jesus the Lord of my life (Jude 1:25) and chose to follow and obey Him, which forever changed my puzzle and destiny. I am fully convinced that the mental health crisis is made worse when you don’t submit your life and will to God and trust Him. Let me know in the comments if you disagree and what you think is the reason for the current mental health crisis.

Why is it Necessary to Put My Life’s Puzzle together?

From experience, when I put my life’s puzzle together, I was able to come to grips with my past and heal my memories. Seeing the puzzle picture of your past put together allows you to rewire the wrong programming created by the various broken pieces. I explained how to rewire your brain in my last post. Also, seeing the puzzle pieces put together helps you create new pieces to change the future picture of your life. Seeing the life patterns of you and your parents enables you to identify and change the patterns you don’t want to continue.

I saw a pattern of victimhood and poverty throughout my childhood. I did not want that for my future, so I decided to apply for college. When I told my mother, she said I was too dumb. WOW! What a blow. I refused to let her words define the next puzzle piece in my life. I had a vision of what I wanted my future to look like, so I focused on that. Words have the power to create pieces of the puzzle. Remember, you can take every thought captive (2Cor. 10:5). With God’s help, I graduated from college. Though I was poor while in college and for some time before I started my teaching career, I have been doing very well ever since.

How to Put Your Puzzle Together.

To begin putting your puzzle together, do the following.

Journal your mother’s and fathers’s history. Talk with Aunts and Uncles to get their perspective because each person retains memories differently and has a different view of traumatic events.
For each parent, write down the trauma pieces that affected their lives and how they altered their destiny. For example, my mother was getting her nursing degree when she became pregnant out of wedlock with my sister and me. She lost her dream of becoming a nurse and had to marry a very irresponsible man. All three events changed my mother’s destiny and greatly affected her mental health, which affected my puzzle.
Record patterns of sin or dysfunction that were passed down (i.e., poverty, alcoholism, mental health issues, pride, gambling, etc.)
Journal all the things you see as significant in your parents’ puzzle and how it affected your puzzle. I hope this makes sense. Once you start your journal, you will get into a flow. Always begin by asking God to show you the significance of the event and any wrong beliefs that were developed and passed down to you. I talked to older relatives who gave me my great-grandparents’ history, which explained why my mother and her family were so angry. I learned why my father was irresponsible. All this helps you forgive, overcome resentment, and adopt new thinking and belief patterns that lead to better decisions.
Continue putting the pieces together from your birth to the present. Record all events that significantly affected your life, such as the birth of a sibling, divorce, moves, etc.
Now go through my webbook called “Hope for Complete Healing” to create beautiful pieces to fit the misfitting pieces created by trauma or bad memories.
Write your perceptions and the unhealthy beliefs you internalize with each memory.

Conclusion

I am a testament to successfully creating a beautiful puzzle of life with God’s help from the broken pieces of my past. My life is not over, and I have more opportunities to create beautiful puzzle pieces for my life, my family, and my friends. To learn how I transformed my life, read WHAT IS INNER LIFE TRANSFORMATION? My Story

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My latest book, Unlocking God’sPromises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Eight Ways to Rewire Negative Responses

I am often sad. I asked God why? He brought to my attention that my neurological pathways are wired for sad feelings. My family makes fun of me for my self-pity bouts. It makes sense that my brain is wired or programmed for sadness because I experienced a lot of rejection and trauma for many years of my life. Some people worry constantly, are angry, or complain all the time. When a negative emotion is persistent, it is because of the neurological programming or wiring of your brain. The good news is that we can rewire our brains due to neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change response pathways. You can rewire your brain for addictive issues as well.

I know that neuroplasticity is legitimate because I have experienced significant changes in my brain through healing bad memories and unhealthy beliefs. I am still in the process of reprogramming automatic responses to stress. You can read about how to change your brain in my free book on my website. I also wrote “Breaking Mental Strongholds.” My strongholds are destroyed, and most of my bad memories are healed, but I still have some rewiring to do. Some people say reprogramming, but you get the idea.

Here are the steps I use to rewire my emotional responses.

Be aware of my emotions, even ambivalence.
Ask myself, “Why am I feeling this way?”
When in my past have I felt this feeling, and why?
Is the situation triggering a resentment or painful memory? If so, ask God to show me. Read my website book to learn how I resolve resentment and painful memories.
Am I disappointed? Why am I disappointed? What expectation was not met, even unspoken ones? Accept that I am not in control of how other people respond, but I can only control how I react and feel. To learn more, read How to Develop Emotional Resilience.
What unhealthy belief triggered this emotion? What is a healthy belief instead?
Have I given someone or a situation power to control my thoughts? Why?
What can I be thankful for?

Writing the answers to these questions is insightful, and they will help you train your brain to recognize and process negative emotions and remain in control. Though I tend to feel sad, I don’t need to let it control my thoughts. Changing my emotional response is improving as I change my thinking, which is a form of neuroplasticity. I am getting quicker at going through the eight steps when I experience a negative response.

Keep in mind that negative emotions increase the stress hormone cortisol, which triggers your body’s fight-or-flight response. I wrote about this in The Best Way to Manage Stress. When you think good or thankful thoughts, it triggers the feel-good neurotransmitter dopamine. The key is to recognize negative feelings and address them promptly, without ignoring them. Ignoring them does not change your ability to manage your emotions or stress in healthy way.

Here are several good articles. Rewiring the Traumatized Brain for Positivity

Discover evidence-based interventions to reduce chronic negative thinking.

From Triggered to Empowered: Rewiring Your Emotional Responses.

May God bless you as you grow a healthy response.

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My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Purpose, Sadness, and Loneliness

Do you have a sense of purpose for your life? Do you see how sadness is related to a lack of purpose? How do you know what your purpose is? To learn more, read my post called Know Your Purpose? In this post, we will explore why having a sense of purpose diminishes or eliminates sadness and loneliness. Webster’s dictionary defines purpose as to aim, intend, or resolve to do something good or achieve a goal.

Focusing on achieving a goal or doing something good takes your mind off what makes you sad or lonely. Having a purpose can diminish and even eliminate sadness when the source is feeling hopeless and despondent. Let’s face it, most of the time we feel sad, and it is most often about how we have been wronged. Yes, grieving is healthy sadness, but when you become sad because of a wrong, this can be diminished or eliminated. Often, when we suffer a loss, we also lose our sense of purpose. You will learn how to find another purpose despite the loss. Loneliness makes us feel sad because we don’t feel connected to others.

How Trials and Afflictions Make You Sad But Give You Purpose

I can give many examples, but here is one: when I was going through a difficult trial at work many years ago, I focused on earning a post-baccalaureate certificate and on writing my testimony in Hope For Complete Healing. Achieving goals helped me not feel despondent about the unfairness. I had to battle anxiety since I was the only one with a full-time job, and helping my son with his college tuition. At the very last minute (God’s timing), my husband was given a full-time job, which also helped my son with his tuition. God is faithful, and we can trust Him. God also gave me a new purpose for when I would be laid off: to write my first book and start my Hope for Complete Healing ministry.

The trials in my life prepared me for my purpose. Romans 8:28 states, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” The condition is to love God and be called according to His purpose. His main purpose is for you to be conformed to the image of God. Verse 29a says, “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.” God foreknew everyone who would love Him. We are conformed to His image through affliction (James 1:2-4). King David said in Psalm 119:50, “This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.” Knowing God’s promises comforts us and lifts our sadness. Afflictions contribute to depression, so knowing God’s promises and trusting Him will give you hope and a feeling of life. I wrote a book called Unlocking God’s Promises. I encourage you to get a copy to know God’s promises.

Where Does Our Purpose Come From?

Our emotions are complex, but know that you are made in the image of God, who has all the same emotions. Even in the midst of your suffering and sadness, you can find purpose. Consider the following purposes that God shows us in the Bible. A sense of purpose breaks the stronghold of loneliness as well.

Show others love as you would want to be loved.
Be kind to someone, even the person or people who are troubling or ignoring you.
Be patient when things don’t go as you want.
Be gentle when annoyed.
Spread joy by encouraging others, even when you feel discouraged.
Ease a burden for someone.
Seek peace with others and don’t argue.
Be faithful to your family and employer.
Be trustworthy and not lie.
Be self-controlled and do not indulge your unhealthy feelings or desires.
Be thankful for something, even that you are not a leper in India.
Pray for someone who is struggling.
Minister to widows and orphans by visiting or helping them.
Show hospitality.
Use your gifts to serve others.

All the above actions help you focus on others and not yourself. I learned that sadness is self-focused on what I think is unfair and on my wants and feelings. Loneliness is also self-focused. When you focus on others or achieving a goal, it gets your focus off yourself and your troubles. Try it, and tell me how you feel afterwards. As soon as you begin to think about “poor me” and how you are being wronged, or whatever it is, then choose something on the list above and focus on accomplishing that instead. Make a habit of focusing on others, and you will feel as if you have a purpose.

Conclusion

Here are a few, but not exhaustive, ways to overcome sadness.

Being sad is an emotional response to living in a sinful world with sinful people. Stay in prayer and forgiveness so you aren’t filled with toxic sadness and hopelessness.
Acknowledge that you are sad, which is okay, forgive, and look for ways to avoid focusing on how you or others were wronged.
Let the wrong define your purpose. If a friend’s husband leaves her for another woman, you can feel sad for her, but you now have an opportunity to serve and help her in her time of need. When I was going through a divorce and was a single mother, many people helped me. I have the purpose to help other single mothers who are struggling.
We will always be offended or feel hurt by someone. Forgive and don’t let the other person’s weakness steal your joy and peace. Pray for them.
Don’t make excuses that you were born melancholy; that is a non-biblical label and not how God intended you to exist. See yourself as God sees you, which you can read in my post called How Does God See You?.

May God bless you richly as you seek Him and become more like Him.

Related Posts:

HOW TO REPLACE SADNESS WITH REJOICING

Prevent Suicide and Addictions with Hope

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Ten Ways to Overcome a Critical Spirit

Where does a Critical Spirit come from? We all tend to see how others can do better or be better, so we feel the need to tell them. This is not bad if it is done in love and received as being loving. Being criticized often feels like being judged. The problem is, we don’t like to be told what is wrong with what we did. When we feel criticized, we feel rejected, and we don’t want to be with the person who criticizes us. Has this ever happened to you? How did it make you feel? How is your relationship with the person who criticized you?

Why Are People Critical?

I was a very critical person for many years. The Lord showed me that I had low self-esteem, so I would criticize others to make myself look better. I had a judgmental stronghold that was built by a critical mother, and I felt like I could never be good enough. The critical spirit is fueled by anger. So the first way to overcome a critical spirit is to work through all the bad memories of when someone criticized you and you felt rejected. First, ask God to show you the earliest memory or strongest memory of when you felt judged or criticized (Psalm 139:23-24). Don’t relive the experience and don’t talk about it. Immediately forgive the person for what they said to you and ask God to release and heal the resentment, rejection, and anger you felt and still feel. Then ask God to remove the spirit attachment to that memory. Next, ask God to show you the next painful memory of criticism, then forgive, release, and remove the attached spirit. To learn more about how and why healing your memories changes your life, read my online book at hopeforcompletehealing.com.

How Do I Change My Heart From Critical to Caring?

The remaining nine ways to overcome a critical spirit are adapted from Counseling Through Your Bible Handbook by June Hunt.

Humble your heart to see your sin and your immense need for God’s mercy. Next, see others’ significance in God’s eyes, and when you criticize them, you hurt God. Pray and ask God to help you show the same grace to others that He shows you (James 4:11 and 2:13)
Put on and practice showing compassion for others (Col. 3:12). Look closely at the life of Christ to learn His compassionate way of confronting the truth. Pray that you will be controlled by Christ’s love for others (1Cor. 16:14 and 1John 4:7) .
Draw out the heartfelt needs of others (Prov. 20:5). Pray that God will give you a discerning spirit as you seek to draw others out and encourage them with what they are doing right.
Offer acceptance to others (Rom. 15:7). Realize that everyone has an innate fear of rejection and a deep yearning for acceptance. Pray and ask God to be a channel through which He extends His grace and values others.
See the God-given worth in others (Luke 12:6-7). Ask God to help you treat every person, especially the one most problematic to you, as someone with God-given worth. And pray that the Lord will not allow you to despise anyone whom He created and loves. If you despise someone, ask God to show you why, forgive them if they have hurt or disappointed you, then ask God to give you mercy toward that person.
Praise the positives in others (Phil. 4:8). Ask God to help you see the positive and right things people are doing, and be thankful. Also, ask Him to help you see others as He sees them and value them as He values them.
Refuse to wound others with words (Col. 3:16 and Eph. 4:29). Prayerfully consider the possibility that what you are criticizing in someone may be something God wants to deal with you about. Before speaking words of criticism, ask a wise friend to evaluate the content and tone of your words. Realize that after critical words are spoken, you can never take them back. If you need to share how someone has hurt you, ask God for the right words as His instrument for good, and pray that the other person will receive what you have to say.
See the unmet needs of others (Phil. 4:19). Instead of judging the inappropriate actions of others, seek to understand the need behind each action. If someone is critical of you, realize that their words reveal that they have unmet inner needs (for love, significance, or security). Realize that people don’t always mean what they say, nor understand their own deepest needs.
Rely on God’s Word and God’s Spirit for wisdom (Heb. 4:12). Memorize James 3:13-18 about what the wisdom from above is and is not. Pray that God’s Spirit will teach you spiritual truths and lead you to speak these truths in love (1Cor. 2:13).

Conclusion:

A criticism begins as a thought, which is in your control. Ask God if it is necessary for you to address the issue; if so, ask God how you should address the issue in love. For example, our church was practicing for the Christmas program. The choir director got mean with the children’s program director. I witnessed it and knew it needed to be addressed because the other person is easily offended. I prayed about how to address the critical words spoken by the choir director and asked God to direct my words. I called her, and when I described what I witnessed, she immediately saw her sin and repented. She called the children’s program director and apologized. The next Sunday morning, she apologized to the whole church. Since that time, I have noticed that she is more careful with her words. But the damage is done.

Jesus explains in His first sermon how we are to act as His followers. Matthew 7:12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Jesus also said in Matthew 22:37-40, “And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38) This is the great and first commandment. 39) And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40) On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.’” Let everything you do be done in love. Before you can love others well, you need to fix your love issues. See my page on resolving love issues.

Love From a Pure Heart

How to Respond to Criticism

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

The Best Way to Manage Stress

Would you agree that fear and powerlessness cause the greatest stress? For something to be stressful, it has to trigger an emotional response from the amygdala, the emotional part of your brain. When your amygdala is activated, it raises your cortisol levels, which is your stress hormone, and you have a physical reaction: either fight, flee, or freeze. The longer you remain in this stress reaction, the more adverse physical symptoms you will have. There are many articles about the effects of Cortisol and how to reduce stress, which I linked below. In this post, I want to share my experience on the best way to manage stress.

How to Overcome Stress – https://hopeforcompletehealing.com/2025/02/02/how-to-overcome-stress/

20 Ways to Relieve Stress – https://health.clevelandclinic.org/how-to-relieve-stress

Trauma and Cortisol: Their Impact on Mental Health – https://integratingpulse.com/articles/trauma-and-cortisol-mental-health-implications/

Managing Stress With Prayer

Friday nights, I go to the County Jail to lead a Bible Study with a co-teacher, Sandy. An inmate, who never went to church or read the Bible, asked if overcoming her addiction was as simple as praying. I said, “Yes.” So I put together a Bible study on prayer —why and how it works. During the next Bible study, a stressful situation happened to one of the inmates. But before I tell you about it, I need to share some of my Bible study so you understand how I helped the woman overcome the overwhelming stress.

I knew something was wrong because she turned red, was breathing faster, and looked terrified. I asked her what was wrong, and she said, “The CO (Correction Officer) was carrying reds.” I asked her what “reds” meant. She said you are put in a red uniform when you are in lockdown, and everything is taken from you. She felt she was going to be put in reds because of a verbal altercation she had with another member of the Bible Study, who then refused to come. The fear that the red uniform was for her sent her into a panic. I was on the spot to prove that prayer works.

How Prayer Works: Outline.

What is prayer? – It is our power connection (find an electric outlet). It’s useless unless you plug into it, but it is available when you need it. Prayer is useless until you plug into God, but you must be connected to Him through believing. (1Cor. 2:5, Rom. 1:6, 1Cor. 1:18).

What is faith? – It is our connection to God as we trust Him. Faith is our power cord that connects our spirit to God, the Almighty Spirit. He is our power source that we access through faith (Heb. 11:1 & verse 6, Gal. 5:5).

What is submission? – To yield to the authority, control, and power of another, also called surrendering. Submission turns on the power and allows God’s power to work in your life. If you are prideful and want to stay in control, then your prayer does not turn the power on. Submitting to God’s will allows His power to flow in your life and make changes.

What is sin? – It is disobedience to God, and it separates us from God, so our prayers are not effective until we repent and submit to God’s will. Sin causes power outages that need to be fixed so power can flow again. Sin separates you from God (Is. 5 9:1-2 and Ps. 66:18). Repair the break through confessing and repenting (1John 1:9, Acts 3:19, 8:22).

To learn more about prayer, please see my page called “Posts about Prayer.”

Why Prayer Works: Outline

I then explained to the girls the four realities of the Spirit world to understand why prayer works. Read my post called “Four Realities of the Spirit World” for complete details.

Reality one: We are spiritual beings in a physical body living in a spirit world within a physical world. (Jm. 2:26, Lk 23:46, Acts 7:59).

Reality two: God is an eternal Spirit being, which means He has always existed. He is also an all-powerful Spirit-being that is present everywhere. (Rev. 1:8, 1Cor. 2:11, John 4:24, 2Cor 3:17).

God’s desire from the beginning of time is to be in a loving fellowship with mankind. Fellowship also means companionship, and some call it a relationship. (1Cor. 1:9, 1John 1:3, and Isaiah 41:10-13 tell us that God holds our hand through our spiritual being.

Reality three: The devil and demons are evil spirits who are fallen angels. These evil spirits want to keep us from being in fellowship with God. And they will deceive and tempt us to please our sinful, fleshly desires and live independently of God. (1Peter 5:8-9, Matt. 4:1-11). James 4:7-8; “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8) Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

Reality four: God the Holy Spirit replaces our sin-corrupted spirits and gives us a new life, and we become born again spiritually (see 1Peter 1:3 & 1 Cor 6:17). We get this new life when we believe with our heart and confess out loud that Jesus Christ is God the Son, who died to pay the debt for sin, forgives our sins, and frees us from sin’s control (see John 1:29; 1John 4:15; 1Peter 1:18-19; Colossians 1:14; & Galatians 5:1).

Conclusion:

Because God is our power source, and prayer is how we access His power, this makes prayer the best way to manage our stress and also become free from addictions and habitual sin. So, when Amanda had the stress reaction, I had her practice praying and giving her fearful thoughts to God and to bring in His peace and joy, and if she were put into reds and locked down, that God had a purpose for it. Rather than letting Satan steal your peace and joy, take the fearful thoughts captive, command them to be gone, and then focus on praising God. She immediately calmed down. I told her that it is okay to be upset when something bad happens, but dwelling on it will give fear power over your emotions and behavior. Praying causes you to focus on God’s power to help you. Where you allow your mind to focus will be the direction you go. Do you want to live in fear and anxiety or in peace and joy? Prayer is the best way to manage stress.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Heal Goodness Issues to Heal Mental and Physical Illness

What happens when someone says or does something bad to you? Why are people bad and hurtful, and how can they be good and helpful instead? When people do or say bad things to you, it wounds your soul or heart. These offenses create negative energy that negatively affects your health. I was amazed when I healed the goodness issues from my past, and my asthma improved. Everyone has goodness issues to heal because we all have been abused (in one way or another), shamed, gossiped about, devalued, and so on.

Why Are People Not Good?

We are all born with a sinful nature that causes us to be naturally bad and desire to hurt others. You don’t have to train a child to disobey, hit, lie, steal, be selfish, etc. Therefore, we are intentionally or unintentionally hurtful and cause wounds in someone’s heart. Our hearts are healed when the painful memory of the hurtful action is healed through forgiving the person or people. See my webbook to learn more about healing your memories.

Only God is good, and only He can make us good. When a person acknowledges they are a sinner, asks God for forgiveness, and receives Him into their hearts, they will have the true power to be good. Many people think they are good, even though they are sinners. All sin separates you from God, and no one can be good except through God. Though sinners may do good deeds, they are often driven by unconscious sinful desires. For example, I had an unsaved prisoner say she was a good person, even when she sold drugs. I explained that selling drugs causes harm to another person and is therefore bad, not good. Another inmate, who was saved, understood and explained to her that they thought they were being helpful by selling drugs.

What is Goodness and Good Works

Let’s examine what goodness and good works are. Goodness is a fruit of the Spirit that develops when we become spiritually and mentally healthy. Additionally, when we receive Christ as our Savior, we must conform to His image as we allow Him to heal our minds. Ephesians 2:10 states, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Titus 3:1-8 explains some of the good works we are to do and how God’s goodness empowers us to do good works. There is a lot to unpack in this passage.

“Remind them

to be submissive to rulers and authorities, (Rom 13:1 also states, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.”
to be obedient, (Col 3:22-24),
to be ready for every good work, (2Cor. 9:8, Col. 1:10, and 2Tim. 2:21)
to speak evil of no one, (James 4:11 and Acts 23:5)
to avoid quarreling, (Rom. 14:1 and 2Tim. 2:14)
to be gentle, and
to show perfect courtesy toward all people (1Cor. 13:4-5).

It is hard to submit to our rulers and those in authority, especially if we disagree with them or have resentment towards them. We are still required by God to obey them. This passage has the same advice as I explained in my last post. If you haven’t read it, please do. Thank you. The reason we struggle with Titus’s instructions is that we harbor resentments and anger from hurtful memories, especially toward authority figures. Many of us also have trust issues because those in authority over us hurt us by their sinful actions. These wounds need to be healed, so we can trust and submit to authority.

3) For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. This describes our sinful nature and the present worldview. 1Corinthians 6:11 adds, “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

4) But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,

He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy,
by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,
whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
so that being justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

It is God the Holy Spirit who will wash us clean from our sins, regenerate our sinful nature to be righteous, and renew our minds to do what is good and right. Re-read the above verses and meditate on each phrase until you have internalized these fabulous truths.

8) The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.” Now we must seek to do good to those around us and not harm them. But first, you need to be washed, regenerated (sanctified), and renewed by the Holy Spirit; otherwise, our sinful nature still controls our thoughts and actions. Sanctification or renewal begins by putting off our old sinful nature by counting it dead, then putting on our new self, which is in the image of God, righteous and holy in truth (Eph. 4:22-24).

Go to my web page that explains the process for working through your goodness issues. This is not a quick process, but it will be well worth your effort.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Additionally, consider my book Fighting Unseen Battles, which describes the many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and what the truths are. To learn more about this book, read the post How to Fight Unseen Battles. Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-Changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, the 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

Ten Ways to Live in Peace to Maintain Mental Health

Are there people who make you miserable? Do you have a hard time living in peace with family members, co-workers, or even church members? Are you triggered when someone challenges you or disrespects you?

Peace is a hallmark of someone who does not let people and situations affect them emotionally. How can someone do that? I admire those who stay calm and can be rational with those who are angry and dysfunctional. I have always reacted negatively to those who were mean to me, which is human nature. I often become anxious when situations are outside my control. In this post, you will learn the ten ways to stay above chaotic people and situations that affect your mental health.

I grew up in a very angry home, where fights were the norm every day. I never had peace or joy in my life, even when I lived alone, because my mental health was affected by the chaos of my past. Then I married an abusive man, who antagonized me with constant threats and put-downs. The fights were horrendous because my old tapes replayed in my mind. I desperately wanted to feel valued and loved. Have you ever noticed that where there is love in the home, there is also peace and joy? Where there is respect, there is peace and cooperation.

First, Deal With Your Own Peace Issues.

You can’t live in peace with others if your mind and heart are filled with conflicting emotions from past trauma and painful memories. When I worked through my peace issues, I became emotionally stable. I am a completely different person today, and as I continue to work through peace issues, I can now separate myself from the emotions of another person and not let them bother me. For example, a woman who is contentious came up to me on several occasions and spoke in an unkind way. I was able to smile and listen to her and not react out of my past insecurity tapes. That is when I knew I had victory and could live in peace with anyone. The other way you know you are living in peace is if you don’t repeat the matter and gossip. Not being triggered by other people’s weaknesses is the victory we are to strive for.

Peace is as big an issue as love is to God. Matthew 5:9 states, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Peacemakers are not people pleasers, but they make peace with those who are controversial. And Hebrews 12:14 states, “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” Striving means to work hard for. People who make an effort to live in peace with those around them are also holy. Holiness is having a pure heart and living in perfect, harmonious union with God and people. Holiness is a huge topic that I will not cover in this post. Please read my posts about why and how to purify your heart and soul. WHY HEAL YOUR HEART AND PURIFY YOUR SOUL? and Five Steps to Heal Your Heart and Purify Your Soul.

Second, Give the Circumstances to God and be Thankful.

It is hard to have peace when the world around you is falling apart, or your health is falling apart, or your family is falling apart. God wants you to cast your cares and anxieties on Him because He cares for you (1Peter 5:7). The devil is looking for a chance to steal your peace and joy, through chaos. Overcome the devil by keeping your faith and eyes on Jesus (1Peter 5:8-9). In John 16:33, Jesus says, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

Being thankful is another way to keep peace in your heart despite your circumstances (Phil. 4:6-7 and 1Thes. 5:16-18). For example, you get a flat tire and you are late for an appointment. Before you get upset, thank God for his protection and for giving you a sound mind to know what to do. Ask God to help you and keep your mind on God’s perfect will being accomplished in the situation. It is amazing how being thankful helps you maintain a sound mind.

How to Respond to Those in Opposition.

I came across Second Timothy 2:22-26, which offers insight into how to live in peace with difficult people. In today’s politically divided world, we have ample opportunity to practice living in peace. Romans 12:18 states, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

22) So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. When we were young, we would take everything personally. If someone didn’t do what we wanted, we would get angry. If they snubbed us, we would get angry, and so on. Now we are to put away our youthful passions and childish thinking and love others (1Cor. 13:4-11). We must now pursue (strive for) righteousness, faith, love, and peace.

23) Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. We are all familiar with foolish, ignorant controversies, so I won’t describe them here. If you know an issue is controversial, do not become emotionally engaged with it. As I said earlier, when you are at peace in your own mind, then you will be at peace with others. No one ever wins a quarrel, which is why Satan baits us to quarrel with each other. The definition of quarrel is a cause of dispute, complaint, or hostile feeling (dictionary.com 2025). Quarreling destroys relationships.

24-26) And the Lord’s servant must

A. not be quarrelsome

B. (be) kind to everyone,

C. able to teach,

D. patiently enduring evil (trouble, Rom 12:12),

E. correcting his (or her) opponents with gentleness.

God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

Conclusion

The ten ways to live in peace are:

Deal with your peace issues to eliminate the triggers that cause emotional upset from other people’s rude unkindness.
Pray and give all your troubles and concerns to God.
Be thankful in every circumstance, even those that are stressful.
Strive for and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace.
Do not quarrel.
Show kindness.
Teach the truth.
Be patient.
Gently correct those in opposition.
Set your mind on the things of God and purify your heart.

1Thessalonians 5:23 states, “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

How to Become A New Person

Do you struggle with doubt that God is happy with your life? Do you feel like a hypocrite because you don’t feel you measure up to the church’s standard? When I read about putting off your old self with its evil practices, I felt guilty and helpless to overcome my personal sins and addictions. There is hope. We all know the verse in 2Corintians 5:17, which says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” So, why didn’t I act like a new creation? The new creation loves God with all their heart, mind, soul, and strength, and loves others as themselves.

God knows all about your struggles, and He still loves you (Ps. 139). He wants to help you be free (John 8:36). James 4:6-8 outlines the basic steps you need to take to see victory in your new life in Christ.

Humble yourself before God and admit that you can’t live godly and be like Christ without Him and His help. God honors the prayers of the humble person. James 4:6 states, “But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’”
Submit your life and your situation to Him. My last post explained how to submit to God and live through Him. Admit you want to please Him, but you need His help. James 4:7 states, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Also, read my post called Why, What, and How to Submit to God and be FREE.
Resist the devil’s temptations to sin or feel condemned and hopeless.
Draw near to God in prayer, and He will draw near to you (James 4:8). Hebrews 4:15-16 states, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16) Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Repent of known sins. Act 3:19 states. “Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out.” Our sins separate us from God and block our prayers. Isaiah 59:2 states, “But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” Repent means you seek God’s forgiveness for your sins and ask His help to overcome the sin, then resolve to obey and put on a new self that reflects Christ’s image.

I struggled for years to put off my old, sinful inner self. I hated how my sins and addictions continued to control my behavior. I was under tremendous guilt and condemnation. I prayed the following prayer every day for several years. When I submitted my resentments and trauma memories to God, and He began to heal them, and I forgave those who hurt me, then this prayer was more effective. Visit hopeforcompletehealing.com to discover how to receive healing for your painful memories and be freed from resentments. I now love God with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength, and love others as myself.

Prayer of Victory – source unknown; modified by Joyce Hanscom

Father, I want to remind myself this morning that my sin-loving nature (my flesh with its passions and desires [Gal. 5:24]) died with Your Son when He died. I am no longer under sin’s control. Instead, I am alive to God (Rom. 6:1-13) the Creator of the universe is inhabiting my very being (1Cor. 3:16). Live through me today as You choose, so that I may say as Jesus did, that I do nothing of myself, but live by the power of the living Father (John 5:19; 6:57). I don’t want to do anything from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind, I want to regard others as more important than myself. Not to look out for my own personal interests but also for the interests of others, which was Christ’s attitude (Phil. 2:3-5).

Today, I put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with others and forgiving them, not complaining about them but forgiving them, just as You have forgiven me. And beyond all these things, I want to put on a heart of LOVE (Col. 3:12-14, Eph. 4 :31-32). That I may be patient and not react to pain and trouble by complaining or losing self-control. I will be kind by showing sympathy, friendship, gentleness, and tenderheartedness. I have put into my heart a love that is not jealous, does not brag, is not arrogant, and is not full of pride or self-importance or haughtiness. Please help me not to act unbecomingly and not to seek my own interests. Please give me the grace to forgive and not keep a record of wrongs. I do not want to rejoice in unrighteousness but rejoice with the truth. Lastly, I put on Your love, which bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things through Your strength (1Cor. 13:4-7).

Father, I ask that I would be rooted and grounded in Christ’s love. That I may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge. Fill me with Your fullness (Eph. 3:17-19). And fill me with the knowledge of Your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, to walk worthily to please You in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Strengthen me with all power, according to Your glorious might, to attain all steadfastness and patience. Let me joyously thank the Father, who has qualified me to share in the saints’ inheritance in light (Col. 1:9-12).

This day is Yours. I realize that anything that comes my way today, whether a promotion or deposing (Ps. 75:6-7), victory or defeat, blessing or testing, mountain or valley, has come with Your permission. It has come with great purpose from my loving heavenly Father to bless me and conform me to the image of Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:28-29). And since you spared not Your Son, but gave Him up for me, won’t you surely give me everything else? (Rom. 8:32). Today, I am more than a conqueror through Christ (Rom. 8:37), and I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13). I will choose today to rejoice always in the Lord; pray without ceasing, and in everything give thanks; for this is Your will (1Thes. 5:16-18).

I now put on the armor of God that I may be able to resist in the evil day and having done everything, to stand firm: I put on the belt of truth and store Your word in my heart that I may not sin against you (Ps. 119:11). Next, I put on the breastplate of righteousness by putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires (Rom. 13:14). I will put on the shoes of the gospel of peace that I may strive to live in peace with all people (Heb. 12:14). Then, I will take up the shield of faith with which to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one. And put on the helmet of salvation, and take up the sword of the Spirit, which is God’s Word (Eph. 6:13-17). I put on the Lord Jesus Christ and choose to walk by the Spirit today, not carrying out the desire of my corrupt flesh and spirit as though I was still in darkness (Gal. 5:16, 25; Rom 13:13-14). Father, I want to glorify You today by bearing much fruit and showing myself to be Your disciple (John 15:8). I acknowledge that You are the vine, and I am a branch that cannot bear fruit apart from You (John 15:5). Help me, Lord, to bring forth Your love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control today. Amen.

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You may copy and modify this prayer to help you with your specific issues you want to transform.

My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.