A Practitioner’s Perspective
by Susan Clark, RScP
So much of life depends on how we look at things, or how we think about things. The quality of our looking or our thinking creates our life. Possibility, beauty, contentment, and creativity may be all around us, but we fail to see them because our looking or our thinking has become repetitive and negative.
I speak frequently about learning to watch your thinking and your thoughts because I absolutely know they create your life. I acknowledge that my thoughts have created mine and as I reflect and look back, I can see the results, both good and bad. This may be one of the wisdom gifts that come with age! What I often fail to fully grasp and understand is how very powerful I can be in changing my thinking, so I can experience more of what I want.
Many years ago, when I was new in this teaching and unsure of my ability to change my thinking, I was at a Center for Spiritual Living weekend retreat outside Atlanta. I heard a speaker give this formula for when he forgot that the Universe or God was for him and never against him. He shared that sometimes he started his day with his morning spiritual practice, beginning his day feeling positive, peaceful, and joyful, anticipating good in all his activities. Then, he’d get a phone call or have an interaction with someone that totally uprooted his thinking. He got angry, upset, and felt betrayed. All his morning spiritual practice flew out the window.
I wrote down his formula, because I could very much relate to being thrown off track during the day, even though I started out centered and claiming my good. It was so helpful to me, so I will share Rev. Paul Gonyea’s formula with you now, as I remember it.
When you are on track for a good day and you’ve done your spiritual practice and feeling centered and you get that phone call or have a disturbing conversation, you suddenly feel pissed, angry, fearful, discouraged and really upset. Here is what he suggested:
Give yourself 5 minutes to get back on track. Take for yourself:
30 seconds to feel angry or afraid, to get your feelings out there and acknowledge them.
30 seconds to make sure you’re ok and safe.
1 minute to whine, to wonder why this has happened to you, to acknowledge what an idiot someone was for making your life so hard.
30 seconds to begin breathing, slowly and consciously, letting your blood pressure return to normal.
30 seconds to remind yourself that God is, Spirit is, The Universe is, and you are not alone.
1 full minute to choose a greater idea about what appears to be happening.
1 minute to say a prayer.
So, in 5 minutes you can get your life and thinking back on track. You can move your energy from a low vibration to a higher vibration. You can remember that the Universe is always for you and never against you.
I carried this formula on an index card for years! Now that we have our phones at hand, I can use it even more often to help me remember that God is always at hand and that I am one with that Divine energy.
YOU have all the power you need to create a life of your dreams. It begins with the ability to change your thinking, because God is always present within you and always FOR you. Give yourself 5 holy minutes to remember these things as often as you need. It works.