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Jesus Hates Ants – by Derek Irvin

“I’m not good enough.” ……. “I can’t change” ……. “Why try, it won’t make a difference”

What all of these phrases have in common is that they are examples of thoughts that go through Christian’s minds every day. If left unchallenged, these thoughts will come to define us and bind us.

ANT’s stands for Automatic Negative Thoughts. Whether if you call it negative self-talk, the inner critic, or life scripts, these thoughts can create an inner dialogue that can be quite destructive.

So, how do you get rid of ANTs?

1) Write them down.

Keep a journal for one day of every negative thought that comes to mind. It might be eye opening to discover how many Ants you have. Writing them down will create awareness. Ants like to hide, but writing them down brings them into the light. After all, it’s hard to “take a thought captive” that escapes detection.

2) Review the list and ask if these things are true

Jesus said that the truth will set you free. Sometimes just seeing the ANT’s written down will be enough to exterminate them. However, it might be helpful to review the list with a trusted friend or Christian counselor.

3) Replace the ANT’s

Our enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. One of the devil’s more effective tactics is ANT’s.

The remedy to keeping your heart and mind ANT free is to learn to replace those thoughts with what God says is true about you. Colossions 3 is a great chapter to read to learn more.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 16th, 2011 at 4:30 pm and is filed under Develop Your Team, Family Ministry Essentials. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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2 Responses


  1. KiDs Beach Club 

    How often do we hear these ANTs in kids ministry? It is terrible to think little ones are incapable of doing anything they put their hearts to and trust in the lord.

    I will definitely use this method.

    Thank you, God bless.


  2. MK, Christianity Cove 

    This blog post comes at the absolute perfect time. I’ve noticed that some of my children’s ministry students have been in negative states of mind lately, and I’ve struggled with how to address this negativity in a positive way. You’ve provided me with the perfect way to talk to my kids about ANT’s! Thanks so much!

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