The Purposeful Path — Edition 7
You are living inside one of the most extraordinary creations in the known universe.
It weighs about three pounds. It contains roughly 86 billion neurons. At any given moment, it is processing sensory information, regulating your heartbeat, retrieving memories, generating emotions, making decisions, and somehow doing all of this simultaneously, without you thinking about any of it.
The human brain is a marvel. And most of us give it almost no intentional care at all.
Psalm 139:14 says, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” The word “fearfully” in the original Hebrew carries the sense of awe, of reverential wonder. David was stating truth. You were designed with incredible intentionality, and that includes the three pounds of neural architecture you carry behind your eyes every single day.
This edition is about how to care for it well.
Before I get into the practices, I want to acknowledge that some people are navigating brain health challenges that go beyond lifestyle habits. Brain injuries, neurological conditions, and other medical realities are genuinely harder terrain, and they deserve the care of qualified medical professionals. If that is your situation, please pursue that care. What I’m sharing here is not a substitute for it.
But for the vast majority of us, our brains are functioning within a range that we have far more influence over than we realize. The choices we make every day, what we eat, how we move, what we think, what we consume, how we rest, are actively shaping the brain we will live in for the rest of our lives.
That is both sobering and profoundly hopeful. Your brain is amazing and what you do now really makes a difference.
Your Brain Needs Your Body to Move
One of the most well-researched interventions for brain health costs nothing and requires no prescription: exercise.
When you move your body, your brain produces a protein called BDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Neuroscientists sometimes call it “Miracle-Gro for the brain.” BDNF supports the growth of new neurons, strengthens existing neural connections, and plays a significant role in protecting the brain against cognitive decline. Studies consistently show that regular aerobic exercise improves memory, sharpens focus, reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression, and even increases the size of the hippocampus, the brain region central to learning and memory.
You were designed to move. Your brain needs you to move.
You don’t have to train for a marathon. A thirty-minute walk several times a week creates measurable neurological benefits. The research is consistent across age groups: movement is medicine for the brain at every stage of life.
Sugar and the Brain You’re Building
This one is less comfortable to talk about, but it matters too much to skip.
Your brain is extraordinarily sensitive to what you eat. Chronic high sugar intake drives inflammation throughout the body, and the brain is not immune to that inflammation. It impairs the same BDNF function discussed above, disrupts neurotransmitter balance, and contributes to the kind of cognitive fog that makes it harder to think clearly, regulate emotions, and make good decisions.
The blood sugar spikes and crashes that come from a diet high in refined sugar and processed carbohydrates also affect mood and stress response in ways many people attribute to other causes entirely.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
Caring for your brain is an act of stewardship. What you consistently put into your body either supports the brain God gave you or works against it.
The ANTs Problem
Dr. Daniel Amen, a psychiatrist and brain health researcher, coined a term I find both memorable and clinically accurate: ANTs. Automatic Negative Thoughts. I had the privilege of earning my Brain Health Coaching certification through Dr. Amen’s work, offered through the American Association of Christian Counselors, and this concept is one of the most practically transformative tools I bring into my coaching practice.
ANTs (automatic negative thoughts) are the thoughts that run beneath the surface without invitation: “I’m not smart enough.” “This is never going to work out.” “Something bad is coming.” “I always do this.” They arrive quickly, feel convincing, and most people never stop to question them.
ANTs are psychologically corrosive and neurologically costly. Negative thought patterns activate the brain’s stress response, keep cortisol elevated, and over time wear grooves in the neural pathways that make those patterns more automatic and harder to interrupt.
The good news is that awareness is the first intervention. When you notice an ANT, you can stop and ask a simple but powerful question: is this thought actually true? Not just whether it feels true, but whether you can verify it as fact.
2 Corinthians 10:5 instructs believers to “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” That requires active attention to what is running through your mind. Questioning automatic negative thoughts is exactly that: taking captive what would otherwise run unchecked, and redirecting it toward truth.
This is a practice, and like any practice, it builds the brain over time. Every ANT you catch and replace with a truer thought is a small act of neurological renovation.
Gratitude Is Still One of the Best Brain Investments You Can Make
I wrote about this in a previous edition and it bears returning to, because the research keeps accumulating.
Consistent gratitude practice increases serotonin and dopamine production. It shifts the brain’s default scan from threat-detection to noticing provision. It strengthens activity in the prefrontal cortex and builds resilience against anxiety.
Philippians 4:6-7 connects gratitude directly to peace: “present your requests to God ‘with thanksgiving,’ and the peace of God will guard your heart and mind.” The thanksgiving is not incidental, it is part of the mechanism.
A few minutes each morning to name what is good, what is true, and what God has provided is one of the simplest and most evidence-based things you can do for your brain. Do not underestimate it because it sounds small.
Technology, Used Wisely, Can Support Your Brain Health
This might surprise people, but not all technology is working against your brain. Some of it, used with intention and discernment, actively supports brain health.
Apps and tools that guide you through scripture-based meditation, sitting quietly with a passage, letting it settle into your mind and spirit, support the kind of focused stillness that calms the stress response and strengthens the brain’s capacity for clear thinking.
Psalm 1:2 describes the person whose delight is in the law of the Lord and who meditates on it day and night. That practice is an active, brain-healthy discipline. Learning tools and platforms that engage the brain in new skills support neuroplasticity.
Connection through technology, real and meaningful conversation with people who matter to you, supports the emotional and social brain in ways that protect against cognitive decline.
The key word is “wisely.” Passive scrolling through algorithmically curated anxiety content does the opposite of all of this. The same phone that can deliver a ten-minute guided meditation or a meaningful conversation with a friend can also keep your nervous system in a low-grade threat response for hours if you let it.
Technology is a tool. And like any tool, its effect depends entirely on who is wielding it and for what purpose.
Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” In biblical language, the “heart” encompasses the mind, will, and emotions. Guarding it means being intentional about what you let in, what you dwell on, and what you allow to shape your inner world.
That is wisdom that applies directly to your technology habits.
Putting It Together
Your brain is not just a biological organ. It is the seat of your thoughts, your relationships, your creativity, your faith, your calling. Caring for it is good stewardship. Here is a simple starting framework:
Move your body consistently. Even thirty minutes of walking several times a week changes what is happening in your brain.
Be mindful of sugar and processed foods. What you eat shapes the neurological environment you think, feel, and decide from every day.
Practice gratitude daily.
Name what is good. Train your brain to scan for provision rather than threat.
Catch your ANTs. When a negative thought arrives automatically, slow down, question it, and replace it with what is actually true.
Use technology with intention. Let it serve your brain health rather than undermine it. Be specific about what you consume, when, and why.
None of these require a perfect streak or a dramatic overhaul. They require consistency over time, which is exactly how the brain changes.
A Gentle Invitation
If you’re finding that knowledge alone isn’t enough, that you understand these practices in theory but struggle to make them stick in the middle of real life, that is exactly where coaching comes in.
I work with people who are ready to close the gap between what they know and how they actually live. If you would like support in building the kind of brain-healthy, faith-grounded, purposeful life you were designed for, I’d love to talk with you.
Visit PathlightCoaching.com to learn more and reach out.
I’d love to hear from you: Which of these five areas do you most want to strengthen right now? Movement, nutrition, gratitude, thought habits, or technology boundaries? Share in the comments.
Christi Wharton | Pathlight Coaching Accredited Mental Health Coach | Master Christian Life Coach | Brain Health Coach
The Purposeful Path is a newsletter about living with wisdom, peace, and purpose. If this encourages you, pass it along to someone who needs it.