The Joyous Umbrella of Denial

I have been asking God lately why I've been in this funk. Not depression, but not clarity. Kinda like being lost at the mall, but where you can only get so lost, ya know?

Today, at work, God pulled me out of my train of thought to listen to what I was thinking. And it was all negative, all down on myself, all reinforcing hopelessness...oy vey! I saw with this fresh perspective that I was feeding the negative wolf inside me with each thought. And I was entertaining the hopeless feelings as if they were reality. God showed me that the only time there is no hope left in this life is when it is over. I have been subject to the rain of negativity because I totally forgot my Joyous Umbrella of Denial, or JUD, if you will.

One of the simplest ways to avoid things you don't want bugging your brain is to brush any and all hints of that thought coming to mind before it sets roost. So to practice this, I imagine myself holding a strong and trusty umbrella--of joy--and just watch the negative thoughts bounce off the umbrella and away from me. It's just a visualization to help me in my quest to stay more positive. I also use affirmations like, "I'm done with negativity," or "I'm better than this," or "I got this," or "Hi, God." This last one reminds me to stay focused on good and positive things because I know God is watching. It also sparks dialogue with God, when I seek guidance.

The affirmations greatly fortifies the JUD and defends against any onslaught of negative thoughts, when I remember to use it. But the underlying important thing is to not entertain negative thoughts for even a split second. Because once they get settled...