LIFE NUGGET #12: “86,400 SECONDS”
Please just consider this…
Ask the Lord, “What do You want to show me, and what do You want me to do with this?”
Everyone gets 86,400 seconds…
There are 60 seconds in a minute
60 minutes in an hour
24 hours in a day
86,400 seconds in one day.
Every single human is given the exact same quantity of time in a day of their life. What we choose to do in those 86,400 seconds varies. The quality of existence varies from person to person. Consider those 86,400 seconds a day an investment.
The average person takes less than seven hours of the day to sleep… (according to the National Institutes of Health the average person “gets” less than seven hours of sleep a day). For the purpose of this contemplation, I’ll say “takes”.
The BRAIN is a physical organ in our head that supports the functions of the MIND. The mind refers to our ability to think, feel, and engage in physical activity. For the purpose of this contemplation: Let’s presume that, if we have a functioning brain, it is possible to have a thought every single second we are alive.
Humans are born with only two innate (inborn or natural) fears: the fear of falling and fear of loud sounds. Everything else…we LEARN to be afraid of it. The amygdala (a small part of the brain) processes FEAR by sending fight or flight signals to the rest of our body telling and equipping it to react.
Dr. Caroline Leaf frequently refers to the origin of our thinking in two parts:
1. The “Non-Conscious Mind”: In other words, “Lacking awareness and the capacity for sensory perception as if asleep or dead”.
2. The “Conscious Mind”: Which is from Latin meaning “Knowing” or “Aware”.
Cognitive functions allow us to think, remember, reason, plan, and problem-solve.
Our emotions are reactions that we feel in response to external stimuli or internal thoughts.
The “mind-body” connection is an integral part of this equation. Mental and physical health are closely linked, with our mental state often impacting our physical functioning and vice versa.
University of California Berkeley Neuroscientists have tracked the process of a thought through the brain. It’s a fascinating read about the prefrontal cortex at the front of the brain which coordinates activity to help us act in response to perception. It only takes half a second between being stimulated and responding. In that short amount of time the prefrontal cortex and amygdala coordinate with all the other areas of the brain to create a response. Wow.
According to Psychology Today: Our thoughts are “maps” representing and corresponding to things that our brains have either perceived with our senses, felt with our emotions, or formed as an action plan.
According to The WORD:
1 Corinthians 2:16 - “we have the mind of Christ”
2 Corinthians 10:15 - we are to “take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ”
Romans 12:2 - you can be “be transformed by the renewing of your mind”
God never commands humans to do something unless He equips them to do so. If God’s Word is true, (and it is) humans expressing themselves as: “I can’t” or “I’m working on it” or “I’m trying” are functioning from a state of faulty (not aligned with TRUTH) programming. Throughout all the examples in the Bible, (The WORD) when people TRY to make it happen, they are unsuccessful…but when trusting completely in God for HIS direction the inexplicable happens!
According to the World Health Organization, Mental Health is defined as the ability to manage stress, realize your abilities, learn and work appropriately and contribute to society. Our internal dialogue and belief systems can create an emotional landscape.
I’m a big proponent of following a train of thought and considering “if this…then that”. So, IF what I have chosen up to this moment to be ‘my truth’ / ‘my experience’ / ‘my perception’; IF my programming has in any way been faulty; and God’s Word is TRUTH and LIFE; THEN how shall I CHOOSE going forward???
I, (and you) get 86,400 opportunities for choosing…today! Let’s invest them well!
