“Kid on Bus: What are you gonna do today, Napoleon? Napoleon Dynamite: Whatever I feel like I wanna do. Gosh!”
- Napolean Dynamite
“Though it is an exciting thrill in one way to realize that we get to make up the unique rules by which we will live, it can also be a bit of a terrifying responsibility. As a therapist, I frequently interview clients who come in to my office almost demanding that I tell them what they ‘should’ do. One woman sat in great dismay one day loudly lamenting that she just didn’t know what she was supposed to do. When I suggested that she should do whatever it was that she wanted to do, she looked at me like I was crazy. As if everyone could just go around doing what they want to do!”
- Carol H. Lankton, M.A., LMFT
I want to speculate a little on the idea of “self-talk” and the value of affirming things we already believe, and it relates to the issue of whether we can “will” to strengthen, but not determine, our beliefs. I think this topic has application in areas of psychology and also religion. In psychology, we tell ourselves things, sometimes consciously, sometimes unconsciously, and these things seem to have an impact on our self-image. In practical theological terms, we sing things and repeat things about God, and these things we repeat, even though we may already know them, somehow affect, or are supposed to affect, our spiritual life.
But, in order to address this subject, it’s important to briefly lay out my view of belief. I think a belief is not the kind of thing that you can choose. Upon reflection you’ll realize the problem of simply choosing to believe those things which you have no good reason to believe and at worst those things you have good reasons to believe are false. You can say you believe, but you can’t simply choose to believe whatever you wish. This is because beliefs depend upon evdience/reasons. beliefs are supported by reasons. I can’t choose to believe in insivible turtles or Santa Claus by will power alone.
It helps to see that Jesus understood the concept as well, that belief needs a basis, and that basis turns true belief into knowledge:
In light of this, how do we come to understand the power that self-talk has and that affirmations seem to have in the areas of psychology and theology? It seems like when we repeatedly tell ourselves certain things, we begin to believe these things, not because we have good reason, at least initially, to believe them, but because our mind searches for evidence to justify them. This is where rationalization comes in. Instead of pursuing the real reasons for believing X, we pursue any reason for believing X. So, someone who tells him or herself that they are worthless may look for reasons to confirm their hypothesis, and eventually they will find and continue to find the evidence they are looking for. So, if we apply the point that beliefs cannot be chosen, could it still be the case that we may be able to strengthen our beliefs in this way, rather than determine them?
Let’s turn to theology for a moment to see if this might be so. Could it be that one of the reasons God gave us propositional revelation is so that we can be transformed by external affirmations of truth; truth that will be gradually appropriated and internalized by its readers? Paul wrote, “Do not be conformed to this world (or “age”), but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom. 12:2) Also, “Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” (John 8:31-32) It seems to me the key idea here is “if you continue”. I don’t want “read into” the passage a modern psychological theory, but there definitely seems to be a connection between “if you continue… [then] you will know the truth.”
Although we can justify our belief in these truths by appeal to authority, could there be more value to Scripture memorization than simply as a reminder and affirmation of those things we already know? Sometimes, when we recite memorized passages or tell ourselves certain things we are essentially solidifying already held beliefs by bringing them vividly to our conscious attention. On the other hand, the repeated recollection of certain truths can guide the mind and thus the whole person into a deeper appreciation of these truths. If it is true that our beliefs need reasons to latch onto for their very existence, then it may be the case that the more we dwell on certain propositions, the more our mind seeks to rationalize these, turning them into full-fledged beliefs. To state this in a more positive way, we can foster genuine belief by putting ourselves in environments in which we have available to us good, honest reasons for the things we affirm, but also by bringing those affirmations to mind repeatedly, we are creating the environment in which such unconscious search for reasons take place. This may be why Jesus told his disciples to remain in his Word.
So when we pray, perhaps it is valuable to vividly bring before our conscious awareness truths of scripture and self-affirm those truths to ourselves, e.g. “God is concerned about me”, etc. This isn’t to say that thinking rationally about our beliefs should ever be substituted with a rationalizing of our beliefs. Whatever we truly belief, we must have good reasons for believing. But the degree of justification we have can be strengthened, thus increasing our certainty in X and therefore our confidence in X; so by doing so we are also strengthening the connection between our emotional life and our thought life.
Although the first few thoughts are imperative in nature, perhaps this is why the Lord’s prayer starts with “Father, who is in heaven, hallowed is your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven…”, only after this is a request made “give us this day…”. We are to start by affirming, and bringing to mind, truths we already are aware of, (e.g. “Father, who is in heaven…”), and after this, seeking and requesting of God.
I could be wrong about this, or my Scriptural examples may be out of context, but these are just some of my current thoughts on the matter.
WPF
