What if …

Some people are annoyed by those positive-minded folks who help us see the potential for the best rather than the worst.

We need those people!

That’s because there are a lot of people who have adopted a cognitive distortion (a habit of irrational thinking) as a way of thinking and living — the cognitive distortion of “catastrophizing.” That’s when you make a catastrophe out the smallest problem or trouble. Such people are always thinking, “What if …” in the most negative way possible.

Living that way warps a person’s view and understanding of reality and floods them with anxiety as they stay stuck in “fight or flight” mode. Fortunately, counseling has been proven to be effective in helping these people learn to think more rationally as long as they engage and practice cognitive restructuring skills their counselors teach them.

But the truth is, at some time in life for most of us, a “worst-case-scenario” will finally occur. That’s usually not the case — for most of us, the worst-case-scenario almost never happens, but getting through life without winding up in the worst possible situation in at least one instance is difficult. That’s okay, because most people can work their way through a worst-case-scenario becoming reality, although it will take looking to God for wisdom, strength, and guidance, and likely some practical help from others.

Whether we fear life’s challenges turning into the worst possible situation for us, or tend to lean our thinking toward more positive outlooks, the great reality is the worst-case-scenario has happened for ALL of us:

Sin is life’s worst-case-scenario.

It doesn’t get any worse than that. And it’s happened to all of us:

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard,” Romans 3:23.

Sin separates us from God, robs us of our purpose and meaning for living, results in spiritual (and eventually physical) death, and dooms us for eternity if we don’t acknowledge the problem and the solution (confession), turn away from sin and turn to God (repent), and surrender our lives to God so He can change the way we think:

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect,” Romans 12:2.

“Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes,” Ephesians 4:21-23.

Knowing that life’s greatest worst-case-scenario has already occurred, the most pressing question that remains is what have you done about it? What if you resolve this genuine catastrophe through the remedy God offers you? What if you don’t?

Scotty