Yes, it’s true that learning to do life differently (the mission of UnbridledACTS) can be “easier said than done…” but, it’s also true that it is easier done when said. Our thoughts and words are so powerful that what we believe and say, we actually end up proving true in our lives.
It’s called the “self-fulfilling prophecy.” You’ve heard the phrase. Psychology Today defines it as “a belief that comes true because we are acting as if it is already true. Our expectation that we will see a particular outcome changes our behavior, which shapes the way others see us. In turn, others provide the feedback we’ve set ourselves up to get, which serves to reinforce the original belief.”
Wikipedia explains it as “a prediction that directly, or indirectly, causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behavior. In other words, a positive or negative prophecy, strongly held belief, or delusion—declared as truth when it is actually false—may sufficiently influence people so that their reactions ultimately fulfill the once-false prophecy.”
And eons before Robert Merton coined the term, the Bible recorded the very same concept in the ancient wisdom of King Solomon: “As a man thinks in his heart, so he is.”
Interesting wording, isn’t it? As we think in our hearts…this is why it’s so important to be aware of what we really believe in our hearts. If you haven’t read our previous post entitled “Listen to Your Heart: It’s Trying to Tell You Something,” take a minute to flip back a few pages, and notice what your heart may be trying to say to you today. Then listen to this sampling of prophetic words from the heart of God in the book of Jeremiah, and consider whose thoughts you would rather see fulfilled in your life. Yours or His?
I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn you and continued my faithfulness to you. Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is there anything too hard for Me? I will cause their captivity to be reversed, and I will have mercy, kindness, and steadfast love on and for them. For I know the thoughts and plans I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for your welfare and peace and not for harm, to give you a hope and a future.
These are the thoughts of His heart toward us…truths and promises He wants to fill our hearts with and fulfill in our lives. And this is why Stan and Cindy are tenacious in their commitment to the UnbridledACTS vision and mission…helping us replace our negative and distorted thoughts with God’s loving, powerful, and promising Truth. And we want the same for you. To see the power of the “God-fulfilling prophecy” at work in all of our lives!
