Your brain is so powerful that you need only to think about something two or three times for your brain to register it as an important topic for future recall.  If your repeated thought causes you laughter, the chemicals in your brain work as a medicine.  If your thoughts are fearful, your brain pumps adrenaline into your system even though an actual conflict may never take place.  Therefore, the greatest habit you can develop in your brain is to “take EVERY thought captive” to make certain each thought is virtuous and not harmful!  Wisdom identifies this one mental discipline—policing your thoughts—as the process for pulling down mental strongholds and building towers of strength in their place.  Furthermore, wisdom provides a list of virtues for evaluating whether your thoughts are acceptable.  Your thoughts should always be true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, of virtue, or of praise.  Anything that is contrary to these qualities will eventually cause conflicts in your spirit, resulting in mental dysfunction and pain in your soul.  Therefore, examine every thought to verify its acceptability, and if it’s not virtuous, immediately reject it.  If the thought IS virtuous, proceed to enjoy it and benefit from it. 

If you are not currently in control of your thoughts, evaluating each thought will sound like an impossible task, but you don’t have to work at this very long before it becomes a habit.  Your brain will start doing the work for you!  Begin by developing a mindful awareness of your thoughts, and because you understand the importance, police your thoughts.  Accept all virtuous thoughts and reject all negative thoughts—ONE THOUGHT AT A TIME!  How do you reject a thought?  By replacing it!  Tear down the stronghold and replace it by making certain that your next thought is one of virtue.  You’ll be amazed at how quickly your brain will assist your policing efforts just as soon as it knows you really desire this change.  Remember the rubber band on your wrist?  Many people have found success gaining control over negative and hurtful thoughts by snapping the band each time they catch an unacceptable thought.  Doing so adds a behavioral response to the mental process, helping your brain record, remember, and assist you with your desire to change that habit.  Soon, your brain will stop the old automaticity and develop a new one, giving you the mental discipline of “taking every thought captive.”