It's All Good: 12 Devotions to Embrace Your NowSample

Reprogram Your Mind

Her worth is far above jewels. PROVERBS 31:10

Much of what we were taught in school came through imprinting and repetition. Math tables became ingrained in our minds largely through going over them again and again. We repeated equations until they stuck. This type of learning, referred to as rote, differs from deductive reasoning. It’s about programming our minds. We also programmed our bodies as we grew. That’s how we learned to eat. To crawl. To walk. We did it through exposure, practice, and repetition.

As an adult, you must reprogram your mind if it no longer serves you. If you feel stuck in anxiety, doubt, or judgment, your mind has become programmed to think this way over time. You can’t just say positive affirmations, snap your fingers, and wish for change. No one would expect a child to learn to walk that way. Rather, you need to repeat affirming actions to reprogram the patterns in your mind.

Shortly after my divorce over a decade ago, I made a conscious decision to reprogram my mind concerning my worth. Having home-schooled my kids as a stay-at-home mom for the majority of my twenty-two-year first marriage, I entered the career world at age thirty-nine. I barely earned enough to afford a one-bedroom apartment. No alimony. No support. Money was tight. Regardless, I knew I had to invest some of what I earned in reprogramming my mind if I wanted a better future than my past. If I didn’t, I could wind up in a similar relationship as before.

At a counselor’s advice, I chose not to date for years while focusing on creating a healthier mindset and increased esteem. I did repetitive actions to affirm my value—even if they were costly—like ordering flowers online. Sure, it would have been cheaper to buy a bouquet at the supermarket, but the flowers weren’t the purpose. The delivery was. I needed to retrain my mind to believe I was worth both the effort and the price.

When the flowers first arrived, I felt uncomfortable. I felt I didn’t deserve something so nice. But in time, I came to smile when the flowers showed up. I even started including notes like “You’re valuable.” Ironically, nearly a decade later as I began dating the man who would become my future husband (and had been a former classmate and friend), an interesting thing happened. Jack had no idea about my sending myself flowers before. Yet that’s exactly what he did. He often had elaborate bouquets delivered to me. I smiled, knowing the emotional work I had put in was now paying off. When you reprogram your mind to a place of value, dignity, and worth, your life and relationships will come to reflect that.

Jesus, show me how to reprogram my mind to know my full worth and value. Amen.