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For as he thinks within himself, so he is. Proverbs 23:7

I can’t say that I’ve ever been given an eviction notice.  But I assume it’s not a good thing to get one.  In my lifetime, I’ve had my power shut off before.  I’ve even had collections call.  But to get an eviction notice, that’s something I do not desire to experience.  It was about a year ago that our staff helped an individual who was being evicted.  The experience of seeing everything the person owned thrown on the lawn was surreal to say the least.  But to deal with the people whose family member was being evicted was quite the learning experience. This man went to bed in his “home” and woke up to not having a home.

For as he thinks within himself, so he is.

7 Mindsets you need to evict: 

1 – Assumption.  The old adage says, “When you assume you make a _______ out of U & ME” and it’s just as true in our marriage.  Fear drives assumption.  It’s the result of darkness in your relationship.  When you don’t know what has happened and/or what is going on (even in the little things), your mind is going to wander and indulge in wrong thinking. When you have communication breakdowns, assumption is the natural result and it will toy with your mind.  How many times have you had a shift in your mood because assumption has filled your thoughts and changed your emotions? How many times do you find yourself mad, hurt, frustrated with your spouse AND you don’t even know why? It’s assumption.

Side note:  If you are keeping ANYTHING from your spouse, don’t complain about your spouse assuming things.  Again, assumption is the natural result of invited darkness/mystery.

2 – Jealousy. This is a negative mindset rooted in low self-esteem and fear. Spouses are more likely to be jealous when he/she doesn’t believe he/she is lovable or that they are not worthy of being loved. People like this live in constant fear that their spouse will, first, see others more attractive and, second, take actions based upon those feelings.  Jealousy rapes your mind.  I know that’s a strong word but it’s the only way to project that damage it does.  It will rob the individual experiencing it of value while ripping the trust from the marriage.

3 – Suspicion. (Anne encouraged me to separate this from jealousy.) Many times, this isn’t based on anything a spouse may or may not have done. It might not be about what he/she actually did or is presently doing.  It may not be about what a spouse will ever do, Suspicion lives off of the “what could be” mindsets.  Suspicion is demanding and unreasonable because the spouse doesn’t have to do anything wrong. The fear is that they are losing that person and they have to do something to hold onto them, to test them and to make them understand that they are needed. If not dealt with, suspicion knows no reason and can be very detrimental to a relationship.

4 – Visual Pornography.  NOTE: This is not just a male issue.   Both men and women can be visually stimulated.  The goal of pornography is to skew the authentic with fantasy.  Visual pornography is a huge stumbling block for couples and causes tremendous sexual issues. Two of my biggest reasons is it causes an unhealthy view of the female body as well as an unhealthy sexual expectations.  Top it off with the addictive nature of porn devised to make you dependent upon it, you then have a monster that isn’t worth the amount of space it will take up in your thoughts.

5 – Emotional Pornography.  I guess I could have lumped both kinds together, but like jealousy and suspicion, this second type of porn needed to be separate.  Again, the goal of pornography is to skew the authentic with fantasy.  Emotional porn may not fill you mind with naked people, but it will fill your imaginations with the skewed reality of where your marriage is at.  Like it’s counterpart, unhealthy scenarios of what your partner is/isn’t doing, what you do/don’t deserve, what you are/aren’t experiencing fill your thoughts and develops unrealistic expectations that probably can never be met.  Like a thirsty man crawling through the desert after a mirage, emotional porn has you crawling toward an illusion that will leave you constantly in want.

6 – Unforgiveness.  I can’t bring this up enough.  Unforgiveness is the best way to define what having “skeletons in the closet” means.  Some of you are holding onto the bones of previous fights and issues that have long since died.  But you still keep the remnants around.  Maybe it’s because of the hurt.  Most the time it’s for ammo to use just in case a fight starts.  Nevertheless, the bones/remains of past issues will haunt your mind unless they are released to be buried in time.

7 – Negativity.  Living life in a pessimistic state is miserable.  Some people place themselves there because he/she feels they don’t deserve anything good. It’s like some sort of way of living out punishment.  Others refuse to be positive because they’ve never known that growing up. They’ll call it being the “realist” in the marriage.  I’m, by nature, a dreamer so I recognize the need for a realist (Anne) in my life.  She dreams with me but knows, at some point, the rubber must hit the road.   Spouses who rent out space in their heads to the negative are miserable people.  Stop giving yourself permission to be negative by saying you’re a realist.  That negativity in your mind is sucking the fun out of your life.

8 – Envy. Why do we look at others and fixate on what they have and what we do not.  We see others, compare our marriages, material possessions, and lifestyles and use them as ideals to chase.  In our minds, we conjure up so much frustration with ourselves AND our spouse because what we don’t have what others do.  We then project that mindset onto our spouse and make them feel miserable because what they offer and who they are is never going to be enough.

I don’t know what your mind is consumed with, but it’s time to hand out eviction notices.  It’s time to identify the infectious crap that wants to cloud your minds and destroy your judgement.   Remember, “For as he thinks within himself, so he is.”  Whatever it is you are entertaining in your thought life, you are inviting into the rest of your life. If you’re struggling with your thought life, would you take a moment to confess it? It may sound crazy, but scripture says,

Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.  James 5:16

We confess vertically to Jesus that we may be forgiven.  We confess horizontally to someone (namely our spouse) that we can find healing.  Sit with your spouse, and pray.  Take time to confess to the Lord what you’re struggling with. He already knows what you’re dealing with.  He’s faithful and just to forgive.  Then talk with your spouse.  Let him/her help you as you both move forward with minds that give no room for ANYTHING that has no right to take up space in your mind.

Guard your marriage by guarding your minds.

Thanks for letting me ramble…