“Follow your heart!”

We hear that a lot. I’m sure it’s well-intentioned: our instincts and feelings are important. But our hearts can often lead us astray since (a) we are sinful by nature, and (b) our hearts are heavily influenced by the non-stop negativity around us.

Wouldn’t it be better to “follow your head” insofar as it is intentionally fixed on the goodness of God?

Psalm 103 is a corrective to our negative self-talk and forgetfulness about God. It was crafted to help us remember God’s blessings and to think more clearly.

Hymn-writer Isaac Watts asks: “Why should the wonders he hath wrought / Be lost in silence and forgot.” Good question!

When we consciously and proactively reflect on the goodness of God in our lives, they become clearer to us. Or put another way, the more you stare at something the more you see it!

Psychiatrist Martin Seligman did an experiment. Fifty people who were very depressed were asked to recount what went well in their day for 10 minutes each day for a week. Some of these individuals had felt so low at times that it was hard to carry out basic daily functions.

After the experiment there was a huge improvement in attitude. None of them were jumping over the moon; but it helped so much that they no longer registered in the most depressed category. Plus, their happiness score jumped from the 15th percentile to the 50th percentile.*

We’re wise to never over-simplify the mental and emotional challenges people face. There are many factors at play—some within our control but many outside of it. Seligman’s experiment is, however, a good reminder that consciously and proactively reflecting on good things helps counter the bad.

“Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all his benefits…” (Psalm 103: 2).

Forget not.

Read Psalm 103. Don’t dwell on what has got you down. Dwell on what God has done to raise you up.

Insofar as you are centring your mind on Jesus… follow your head.

---

Notes:

–*Martin Thielen, Searching for Happiness (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2016), 36.

–“Bless the LORD, O My Soul.” Here’s a Bible study podcast on Psalm 103. Click here.

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.