As You Think, So Are You: How Your Thoughts Shape Your Faith and Health

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Have you ever stopped to think about how you think?

For example, what do you do when you are confronted with an idea that is contrary to your current way of thinking? Are you open to it, to the possibility of a new truth? Or are you convinced that your way of thinking is “the whole truth and nothing but the truth”?

Once again, Holy Spirit has been teaching me about the importance of my (our) thought life. I’ve been walking through some difficult circumstances for the last few months and finding my beliefs challenged along the way. This includes not only spiritual beliefs about God and His word, but who I am, God’s purpose for my life, the current healthcare system (conventional and natural), and what I’ve accepted as truth that maybe is not.

“If you do not stand firm in your faith, then you will not stand at all” (Isaiah 7:9 CSB)

My husband says, “Where you come from determines your level of expectancy.” This is a whole teaching in itself, but for now I’ll keep the focus narrow. We could say, “Where you come from in your thinking determines your level of expectancy, of what the outcome will be.”

So today, I want to ask you a wide-open question:

What do you believe to be true?

The Pharisees and Sadducees—the religious leaders in Jesus’ day—are a perfect example of this, including the Apostle Paul. They were all fully convinced that their understanding and interpretation of scripture was correct. They were devout followers of the law, and Paul even persecuted and had killed those who opposed his way of thinking.

In the Gospels, we see repeatedly the arrogance and unwillingness of the religious to embrace the truth of who Jesus was. He didn’t fit into their paradigm, way of thinking, or culture. Isaiah tells us that He was just an ordinary man; He was not attractive and did not stand out from the crowd. Their level of expectancy was a miliary leader to come an overthrow the Roman government. Instead of coming in a blaze of glory and triumph, Jesus came as a sacrificial lamb and so was scorned, mocked, and rejected as the Son of God by many.

How do we arrive at how we think?

Our thought processes are shaped by how we are raised and by the culture around us. When you start studying psychological coercion, you might be shocked to realize how the government, Big Pharma, social media, and all of the marketing through TV, internet, and radio commercials influence and manipulate our beliefs through indoctrination.

There is an all-out campaign in the world to coerce you into believing a certain way. Why? For one, profit and greed. If I can convince you that you need my product, you’ll buy it. For another, control. If I can get you to think my way then I control your behavior and subsequently you. I can get you to accept an alternate reality and keep you imprisoned. (See Plato’s Allegory of the Cave).

The question for all of us is: what have we been told that is really not the truth?

And how is what we believe shaping our lives and lifestyle—how we act and behave, our health, our faith, and our purpose?

Holy Spirit asked me one day, “How do you know that you are deceived when you are deceived?” That is a very powerful and insightful question! There is really only one way: the Light of Truth Himself. The Apostle Paul is a prime example of this. It wasn’t until Paul (as Saul) had a divine encounter with the Lord Jesus that his darkness was illuminated and he realized how completely he had missed the boat. The revelation of Jesus totally turned his life around and for the first time, Paul stepped into his divine purpose.

In Luke Chapter 8, the story of the woman with the flow of blood is recounted. The bible tells us that this woman had been bleeding for twelve years. Can you imagine how she felt? All the physical, mental, and emotional symptoms she experienced day after day? How worn out she must have been?

She went from physician to physician trying to get healing. The bible tells us that she spent everything that she had, down to the last penny. I’m sure that each physician had their own protocol, their own solution, and she was so desperate to be well that even though the last one had failed, she had hope and tried again—only to be disappointed again.

And then she heard about this man called Jesus. She must have heard the reports going around—the testimonies of blind people seeing, the deaf hearing, and the lame walking. She might have thought…how is that possible? In faith, she risked going out in public, thinking…if I can just touch the hem of His garment, I can be healed. In faith, she reached out, and she received her healing.

What do you need healing for today?

Where have you sought the counsel of man and received no relief? What is it that you believe about God, His Word, His wisdom, His counsel, and His ability and desire to restore you to health? What is your faith in?

Jer 30:12-13 (NIV) says, “Your wound is incurable, your injury beyond healing. There is no one to plead your cause, no remedy for your sore, no healing for you.” Have you ever been told that by a friend, family member, social media, physician, or Dr. Google? Did you—or have you—believed that and accepted that as the truth, your reality?

Friend, according to the world’s system that may be true. But God’s truth stands in direct opposition to this: “’But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’ declares the Lord” (v. 17). Whose report will you put your faith in?

A lot of us are way too quick to believe what everyone else says—and that includes what we tell ourselves—and not what God says.

What we believe is what we think. And what we think directly impacts our health and wellbeing.

Simplistically, when you think a thought in your mind, that thought sends a signal to your brain. Your brain then sends chemical signals out to your body, resulting in some kind of action response. Depending on what the thought was, this can be either a negative, health-destroying thought or a positive, health-promoting thought.

“As a man thinketh, so is he” (Prov 23:7). You can never rise above your thoughts, including your thoughts about God and His word and about yourself. If a doctor diagnoses you with a condition, if you believe and accept that, your body is going to adhere to your thoughts. If someone tells you that you are stupid or worthless and you believe that, you will be.

Remember: “Where you come from in your thinking determines your level of expectancy, of what the outcome will be.” In Isaiah 55, God tells us that His thoughts are higher than ours. So, to raise our level of expectancy, we have to learn what God’s thoughts are first, and then begin believing and speaking that…repeatedly.

Isn’t it time that we started learning what God has to say about us, our lives and purpose, our circumstances, and our health so that we can start changing the way we think and therefore are? Isn’t it time that we learn more about Jesus, what He accomplished for us at Calvary, the Dunamis power of Holy Spirit, and God’s love for us so that we can begin to speak life and not death?

I encourage you start today!

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Friend, if something in this message stirred your heart or challenged your thinking, you’re not alone. We’ve all inherited thoughts and beliefs that don’t serve us—some that even keep us from healing, hope, and wholeness.

If you’re ready to explore what it looks like to renew your mind, restore your health, and live from God’s truth—rather than the world’s expectations—I’d love to walk with you. Whether through a free discovery session, one-on-one biblical health coaching, or the GLEAN online program, there's a next step that’s just right for you.

You don’t have to figure it all out alone. Let’s walk this path together—toward healing, toward clarity, and toward truth.