Horse Happy

Ben, my husband, is not particularly fond of horses. Equines had not really been on his radar until I came into the picture. For example, on our honeymoon, we went horse backing in Colorado, something he wanted to do for me, of course. Things went a bit south on the trail ride when he was suddenly thrown from his horse who spooked. Not good.

I wouldn’t say my husband had negative feelings towards horses after that. He just never got on one again. I’m happy to say things can change! We are currently taking Family horse handling  and riding lessons in preparation for owning a horse. I can’t help but grin as I watched Ben recently take a try at picking the horse’s hoof. I love seeing his heart soften toward horses!

All of us have things happen in our life that tend to change the way we think about things.  How do bad experiences affect you moving forward? Whether it’s a strained relationship, a business deal gone south, a scare while flying, speaking in front of a group, or being bit by a dog- these things can produce some negative thinking going forward.  Have you ever vowed….I will never do that again?

When we let negative thinking creep into our minds, it can produce pessimistic thinking, either about our situation, our self-worth or our abilities. Without even realizing it, our minds can take on old memories and translate them into the current situations. Negative thinking patterns affect the way we think, live, work and play. Thankfully, our brain can be reshaped and reformed!

I encourage you to mind your mind. Notice what you put into your mind. What occupies your mind today? Remember the phrase, garbage in, garbage out? It’s the idea that incorrect or poor quality input will always produce faulty output. Whatever we think about, dwell upon and contemplate tends to be what our mindset is. We can’t control all our circumstances, but we can control how we think about them.

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Philippians 4:8

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.