“I Spy Something Good”: A Surprising Lesson in Positive Thinking

Posted on Apr 27, 2017 Topic : Women's Christian Living
Posted by : Jennifer Rothschild

I sat in front of a little girl and her daddy on one of my flights. We had been sitting on the tarmac for 45 minutes when the captain’s voice pierced our collective irritation. “Folks, this is your captain. We appreciate your patience. Maintenance assures me we should be ready to roll in about 15 minutes.”

Fifteen minutes? At that point, it might as well have been 15 hours. Fellow passengers moaned and groaned, and I agreed. For the past 45 minutes I had been compiling a mental list of all the things I didn’t like about this particular air carrier. I had been dwelling on all the bad experiences I’d had in airports lately.

We’ll just see, I thought. It’ll be a miracle if this plane takes off in 15 minutes.

But I really wasn’t looking for miracles in that moment. I was pulling things out of some dark corner of my thoughts that were ugly, ill-fitting, and making me tense. Those ruminations were suddenly interrupted by the voice of the little girl in the seat behind me.

“Daddy,” she said, “I spy something blue.”

Determined to be cheerful, the father began to guess, “Is it that bug?” And so the game went.

“Daddy, I spy something good,” she said.

Her dad laughed. “Is it a bag of M&M’S?” he asked.

“No,” his daughter chimed.

“Is it your new shoes or your sweet smile?”

A tenderness washed over me as I eavesdropped on their exchange. Their words cut through my complaining and frustration and reminded me to fix my thoughts on “something good.”

In that moment, I decided to “4:8” my thoughts as I settled back in my seat. That’s Philippians 4:8 (ɴᴀsʙ):

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

I began to let my thoughts dwell only on what was true, lovely, and of a good report. I spy something lovely, Father, I began to pray. You have provided opportunities for me to experience. You have opened doors and made my path straight. I reminded myself that delays and inconveniences were just some of the bumps along the road.

Once I began to fix my eyes on truth, I was able to enjoy the rest of my journey. When I chose to dwell on “praiseworthy” thoughts, the motionless airplane became a sanctuary of peace.

Who was it that led me to that truth? Was it the sweet little girl and her daddy? Really, it was God’s Spirit. His role is to lead us into all truth. When I was guiding my own thoughts, I was headed for a train wreck.

I need a better guide than my own thoughts and emotions. Do I ever! I need God’s Spirit to lead me to truth. Leading myself, I don’t always end up at the destination of truth.

My friend, you probably don’t either. But if we follow God’s Spirit, we trade our negative and unprofitable thoughts for thoughts that are positive and fruitful.

Find more guidance on positive thinking and biblical soul-talk in these resources for women and teens...