Focusing on the internal feelings and beliefs to create the external results. Has your external environment ever controlled you, disappointed you, or made you feel defeated? Is the universe conspiring against me? Is this something that you at times say? With each and every effort does it seem like the universe is plotting against you? Does Everyone tell you that your dream was not to be? Does the world shut down to your plans and every single scheduled item on your plan get cancelled with no reopening timeframe in sight? Are you Acknowledging the feeling of a dream being shattered allowing recognition to letting the outside control you? Are you focusing on everything external you don’t have? Then shift to everything you do have – passion, purpose, mission, and the dream that was nurtured through it all. That is all internal with your absolute control of it. Instead of asking negative questions filled with doubt, start to ask questions fueled by belief in what you could do. If a problem did something that you never thought possible and shut you down, then what could you do that was thought to be impossible? You’ll notice that we didn’t focus on the win in this story – we focused on the process. The reason is that I don’t share this story to impress you. I share it to impress upon you what one small application of mindset can do in your life, business and relationships! Here are some questions that I continue to ask myself to stay focused on my internal guidance system: Who is in control of your goal? You, or the outside world? What do you feel and believe about your goal? How can you utilize that as fuel and turn it in action today?
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If you knew what you were worth, would you settle for anything less?
It’s not uncommon to feel inadequate, whether it’s issues surrounding your career, relationships, or finances. But what if you could overcome the unthinkable by realizing your worth isn’t tied to things, experience, or people but to God. Most religions teach that God is responsible for everything made in this world, and I fully subscribe to this proposition. However, as co-creators, human beings must bear the responsibility for WHAT God makes in our lives. The following story, which I share more fully in You Were Born Rich, illustrates this point: A minister was driving along a remote country road many years ago when he happened upon a beautiful farm. The farm was kept in superb condition. The fences were well cared for. The crops were a radiant green. And the house had a clean, fresh coat of white paint on it. Well-cultivated flower beds encircled the house and stretched along both sides of the long, wide driveway, leading to it from the road. In a neat row along both sides of the driveway were straight lines of tall green poplar trees reaching up to a picturesque blue sky. The lawns surrounding the house were a deep rich green and manicured as any putting green ever was. The entire picture was absolutely breathtaking in its splendor. On the other side of the road, the fields were plowed, and the earth was the deepest black the minister had ever seen, and he was amazed at how the furrows had been plowed in such a way that they stretched out in rows “as straight as clotheslines.” Far off in the distance, the minister could see the farmer sitting up on his tractor. It appeared that the farmer was moving toward the road as he was plowing. The minister pulled his car over to the side of the road, got out of it, and walked toward the fence so he could enjoy the light breeze and admire the beauty of the farm. When the farmer reached where the minister was leaning against the fence, he climbed down from the tractor and slowly walked in the minister’s direction. As the farmer got closer, the minister smiled, raised his arm, and waved, saying, “My good man, God has certainly blessed you with a beautiful farm.” The farmer stopped, pulled out an old red and white polka-dot handkerchief from his pocket with his big, scarred, and calloused hands. He raised his arm and wiped the sweat from his sun-scorched brow. The farmer stood in silence for a moment, looking at the minister, and then he spoke. With a slow, steady voice, he replied, “Yes, Reverend, you’re right. God has blessed me with a beautiful farm, but I just wish you could have seen it when he had it all to himself!” Your future can be anything you want No matter what your past looks like, it doesn’t have to be your future. You are using the mental faculties that everyone has. They are the same faculties used by Steve Jobs, Buddha, and Oprah Winfrey. You might have formed the habit of thinking that people like the ones I just mentioned are different than you and me. But I want you to know the only difference between you and them, or anyone else is only in appearance and accomplishments. The farmer used his facilities to create a picture-perfect farm. While we all live in different physical bodies and use our inherent mental faculties differently, our basic structure is fundamentally the same. I am well aware that many scholars and professionals will tell you that thinking you are capable of wealth, loving relationships, and creating a successful career doing work that you love is a lot of nonsense. But disbelievers have always existed, and they are, in my opinion, little people. For all of the genuinely great leaders are in complete agreement with what I have just explained about your equality with great people of the past and present. Even Jesus tried to tell the world, as he was doing his great work some two thousand years ago, that you too were capable of doing what he was doing. In fact, He even went one step further in saying, “Even greater things are you capable of.” Believe him. He spoke the truth. Own it Despite what Jesus said and what others have said about your capabilities, it still may be difficult for you to believe you are worthy of anything you want to be, do, or have. What can you use to base your worth on? You can get started by defining your value. Ask yourself:
Keep going By now, I hope you’re leaning into the idea that no one else or external circumstances determine your worth. Build on the answers you came up with in the previous exercise by using your mental faculties to create a beautiful image of the kind of life you would love to lead. What do you really want? What kind of relationships do you want? How much money do you want to earn? Like the farmer who turned the raw land that God blessed him with into a beautiful farm that would fit nicely on a postcard, create an image of a life that is absolutely breathtaking in its splendor. You are worth it. How powerful it is to love myself so much that I could get through the storm with faith in the miracle. Even when the sky is dark, there is always a speck of light. That speck of light is more powerful than any darkness. It is all about where you fix your gaze.
It was in that darkness that I chose to focus on the speck of light. As I did, the light became bigger and bigger. Of course I would shift to the dark sky in moments and I would cry. I cried because I didn’t understand, I cried because I was so hurt. I cried because I felt that I had lost something of value. But then I shifted my eyes back to the light. Back to my deep and profound knowing that this was a gift. An embrace of my faith and my belief that I am worthy of the same beautiful love that I give. In the light I could feel the warmth of truth. I could feel a breakthrough on the horizon. I could feel that this pain was a blessing. A part of my journey and part of a bigger plan. My instinct sensed that I was being protected. That I was being loved and cared for by God. So although I was in pain, I could feel His love. Those who leave us are not for us long-term but they do come to teach us. They come to wake up parts of ourselves that we have denied. Parts of ourselves that are essential for our greater purpose. When we can look at life with faith, we can always find that speck of light. If we focus on the darkness, it only gets stronger but it is in the dark that the light is that much greater. The light is that much easier to see. It is our pride that keeps us attuned to what is and what’s wrong and it is in our humility that we can accept and find hope and purpose. It is in our acceptance that we can find healing and in our healing, we begin to understand. We begin to see what we needed to learn. What needed to be awakened inside so it could be reflected to the world. In our story we find freedom. In our honesty we find our purpose. This life isn’t always easy or perhaps it rarely is. However, it can be easier. It can be better. It can be beautiful. When we let go of our own story of how things are supposed to go and allow ourselves to sense the vastness of God’s love, we understand that everything can serve us with a faithful perspective. Who has told you that life ends when your heart stops beating? Who has taught you that love dies? Nothing is ever dead when we realize it is so much more than what we can see. Imagine God didn’t intervene? Imagine I hadn’t gone through that storm. What would I be? What lies would I be living? What pride would I be carrying? Imagine that someone out there is looking in their own storm for light. Imagine they are needing support. And imagine that you are that speck that they catch a glimpse of. The choice is ours. Let the storm make us a part of the already dark sky or let the storm redirect us to the truth. To the light and to our greater purpose. We can’t control what happens, but we can control how we respond. It is amazing to realize that it is up to us. It’s our choice. I choose to love. I choose to be a light, never dimmed by another. What do you choose? |
AuthorMy voice has been your voice even before you were born Archives
August 2022
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