A grouse house is constructed of every complaint, whine, murmur, fuss, fume, mumble, moan, grumble, gripe, and negative thought we have or utter. Each one is a building block for the next one. Then, the more we grumble, the more we gripe, the bigger the grouse house grows.

Our world gets grows dimmer with each block or brick of negativity. We start layering one on top of the other and, pretty soon, we have built ourselves a lovely grouse house, boxing ourselves in. No windows. No doors. Just a fortress of darkness.

No joy-light, no peace exists. Unhappiness and unrest are, then, our constant companions.

How much of that do we do? What is our mindset?

Anything contrary to a positive attitude darkens the soul, the heart, the spirit, and the emotions. It forms a structure of murkiness and gloom.

However, we can stop the building process at any time. We can choose life or death. We can speak a mouthful of negativity or A Mouthful of Thanksgiving…

Words kill, and we can even destroy ourselves with our own death-filled words. If you’ve never heard of or read the books written by Dr. Caroline Leaf (who is “a cognitive neuroscientist with a PhD in Communication Pathology specializing in Neuropsychology,” or a brain specialist for short), you have missed some fascinating studies and facts. She has shown how words and thoughts negatively affect not only our minds but also our bodies.

When negativity fills our hearts and minds, we spew it out. Our negative thoughts and words can actually make us sick. Dr. Leaf says toxic thoughts “are real physical things that parasitically invade our minds, destroying everything in their path – spirit, soul and body – if they are not stopped.”

She says a “Change in your thinking is essential to detox the brain.” But the only way to do that is to replace the negative with the positive.

Replacing a negative attitude of thoughts and words with a positive one opens the grouse house windows and doors to allow God’s Light to shine in.

Therefore, thanksgiving and praise will tear down the walls of that grouse house! And rely on the Lord. “If you are enveloped in darkness, with no light to see, take confidence in the name of the Eternal One; rely on your God.” (Is. 50:10b Voice)

Though your day may present you with the gloom and strain of life and weigh heavy on your soul, joy is still available. And you will always find that peace and joy in God’s presence, for His presence within you is still your joy. It may not be the bubbling-over-kick-up-your-heels kind of joy, but you can find something in which to rejoice. Paul said, “Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice!” (Phil. 4:4 NLT)

So, to knock down those walls of negativity, build on what is good, true, unshakable, harmonious, and enduring. As Paul says, “Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.” (Phil. 4:8 TLB)