Why overthinking is a waste of life

Have you ever wondered what your life would look like if you spent less time overthinking and more time living in the present?

Life can be challenging I get that, but sometimes life is even more challenging because of the pain we cause ourselves. One way we cause ourselves pain is by overthinking

Overthinking is one of the tools the enemy uses to distract us from living our lives in full and enjoying every blessing God has for us.

Proverbs 3: 4-5 says we should trust in the Lord with all our hearts and lean not on our own understanding, in all of our ways we should acknowledge God and He will direct our paths.

God, not us will direct our paths when we acknowledge him. If we, therefore, trust and believe that God holds our future, we can let go of the habit of overthinking.

When we overthink, we dwell on the past, we worry about the future and we miss the present.

We dwell on a past that cannot be changed, over-analysing every little detail of what happened and regret what we did and didn’t do, we think about the what-ifs and wallow in the feelings of regret and disappointment.

We worry about the future and as if to protect ourselves, we imagine what could happen and what we will do if it actually happened. We do this because it gives us an illusion of control. Yet while we are so busy and caught up in this cycle, we are missing out on THE PRESENT, THE NOW.

Let me tell you something about THE PRESENT; the present is now, today, this very minute, this very second. It is not synonymous with the past, nor is it synonymous with the future.

The present is being aware of your surroundings, being aware of your body and all of its beautiful functions, it is feeling your body and all of its quirks. The present is being grateful for the things you have right now and trusting God for what is to come. It is being grateful for the people in your life right now and enjoying every little bit of them. It is taking a look at your life RIGHT NOW, soaking it all in and living it with contentment.

That my beloved is THE PRESENT.

When you are constantly stuck with living in your head, you miss out on the now and eventually your present becomes a past which forms part of the rumination on your past regrets.

You see my friend, overthinking causes you to miss out on LIVING.

Here are some tips that will help:

  • You need to be intentional about breaking the habit of rumination. When we create a habit of living in our heads, we get so used to it because of the potential imaginations we create. These imaginations tell us a story, right? And the stories we tell ourselves could be positive or negative. Out of those stories, we live our lives and create our reality. This can become a comfortable place for us so we will need to become very intentional about breaking the cycle of overthinking.

  • Schedule some time in your diary for overthinking/worrying

  • Practice spending time in the PRESENT, like walking in nature, doing things that make you fulfilled, spending time with loved ones.

  • Be intentional and present in your day-to-day activities rather than treating them as a tick-box exercise.

  • Learn to enjoy every process and detach emotionally from the outcome.

  • Forgive yourself for past mistakes and regrets, repent, ask God to forgive you and leave it with God and keep it moving.

  • Let go of the idea of what could be and trust God for what will be, knowing that He won’t give you more than you can bear. Also, trust that you are capable of dealing with whatever comes your way.

  • Learn to have difficult conversations with people when needed. This will stop you from overthinking and overanalysing situations.

  • Learn to communicate your needs in a healthy manner.

  • Learn to focus on God and spend time meditating on God’s word.

  • Create new experiences with your loved ones or yourself and enjoy every moment

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