We’ve learned about how our thoughts can guide our feelings, and today we’re going to expound on how your thoughts also affect your actions. There are many different variations of thought around this, but today we’ll be using the Thought Model as created by Brooke Castillo.

This model centers around the abbreviation CTFAR and it stands for Circumstance, Thoughts, Feelings, Actions, and Results.

Resources Mentioned:

Thoughts Matter Episode: https://ashleyvarner.com/thoughts 

Mindset Reset: https://ashleyvarner.com/mindset 

Get Ashley’s ground breaking program The Mindset Reset. It is a self-paced program made to guide you to taking your thoughts captive and finally control your emotions, so they stop controlling you!

Highlights from the Episode:

Remember the Way Thoughts Work

Thoughts create feelings, feelings create actions, actions create results, and circumstances are neutral.

Circumstance
Thought – a sentence in your mind
Feeling – a feeling in your body
Action – the physical actions you take
Results – the outcome

This is the problem with changing your actions only.

You’ll struggle because you’ll still be fighting against the thoughts and feelings that are still the same.

The Goliath Circumstance

1 Samuel 17:1-9
Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Socoh in Judah. They pitched camp at Ephes Dammim, between Socoh and Azekah. 2 Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah and drew up their battle line to meet the Philistines. 3 The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them. 4 A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. He was over nine feet tall. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels; 6 on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. 7 His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer went ahead of him. 8 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us.”

Verse 11: Hearing the Philistine’s words, saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.

For forty days, Goliath came out and said the same thing. And every day, the Israelite army was afraid.
When David got there, they heard the giant say the same thing. What Goliath was saying wasn’t anything different.

And yet, his response in verse 26 was completely different. He didn’t run away afraid. Instead he said, “who is this philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

In the story, the circumstance was the same.

Goliath came and said “Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and
serve us.”

Saul and the Army’s Response

Then Saul and the men in the army thought, “there’s no way we can win this battle, we’re going to be slaves for the rest of our lives.”

That thought led to the feeling of extreme fear.

That emotion led to the action of inaction – not doing anything.

That inaction led to Goliath came out over and over with nothing being resolved.

David’s Response

On the other hand, when david heard goliath say that, he thought, “Who is this guy that thinks he can talk about God’s people like that? Who does he think he is?”

That thought led to the feeling of bravery.

That feeling of bravery led to the action of him going to Saul and telling him that he would fight the giant.

And that action led to him defeating the giant.

And his actions caused the rest of the army to think different thoughts. In verse 52, the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines.

So the same men who sat in fear for 40 days were able to conquer the Philistines.

Whatever your circumstance is, you have the ability to think any way you want about it.

And when you put God into your thoughts, it will change your feelings and actions.