THOUGHT AND CHARACTER
THE aphorism, “As a man thinketh in his heart so is he,” not only embraces the whole of a man’s being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance of his life. A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts.
Have you ever thought that you are the creator of your circumstances? Is everything within you and outside of you a direct result of what you think? Who you are is the sum total of all of the thoughts that you have thought up to this point. With honest reflection you will start to see the truth of this unfolding in your life. As you reflect on past experiences you will start to see that this golden thread of truth has shaped your reality.
As the plant springs from, and could not be without, the seed, so every act of a man springs from the hidden seeds of thought, and could not have appeared without them. This applies equally to those acts called “spontaneous” and “unpremeditated” as to those, which are deliberately executed.
James Allen is teaching the law of the harvest, as ye sow, so shall ye reap. Jeremiah 1:19. Your spontaneous actions, and actions that you took without so called “thinking about it”, were brought into your life with the thoughts that you have thought up to this point in your life.
Act is the blossom of thought, and joy and suffering are its fruits; thus does a man garner in the sweet and bitter fruitage of his own husbandry.
You may or may not see yourself as the creator of your circumstances, but what does it hurt to imagine that you are? Would that not further purify your thoughts, you actions, and everything else that will help you to accomplish your desired goals in life?
“Thought in the mind hath made us, What we are By thought was wrought and built. If a man’s mind Hath evil thoughts, pain comes on him as comes The wheel the ox behind….
God has given us the power to create. Our thoughts and the power of our imagination give us the power to create what we will. But be mindful of your thoughts, just like the law of gravity does not deviate, so the laws of the mind are true and unchanging. Your environment by universal law must reflect your thoughts. Everything outside of you is a mirror of what is inside of you. Jesus taught us to not worry about the mote in your brother’s eye, when you have a beam in your own. He was pointing out the fact that, you notice the mote in your brother’s eye because it is a reflection of what is going on inside of you!
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to a better understanding of ourselves.”
-Carl Jung
..If one endure In purity of thought, joy follows him As his own shadow—sure.”
What a wonderful thought, by cleaning your mind joy will follow you, even as surely as your own shadow.
Man is a growth by law, and not a creation by artifice, and cause and effect is as absolute and undeviating in the hidden realm of thought as in the world of visible and material things. A noble and Godlike character is not a thing of favor or chance, but is the natural result of continued effort in right thinking, the effect of long-cherished association with Godlike thoughts. An ignoble and bestial character, by the same process, is the result of the continued harboring of groveling thoughts.
Good people are not good by chance. If people are good and positive it is because they have created that habit of thought. Maxwell Maltz once said, “happiness is a habit of thought.” It stands to reason that the other side is true as well.
Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. – Abraham Lincoln.
Man is made or unmade by himself; in the armoury of thought he forges the weapons by which he destroys himself; he also fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace. By the right choice and true application of thought, man ascends to the Divine Perfection; by the abuse and wrong application of thought, he descends below the level of the beast. Between these two extremes are all the grades of character, and man is their maker and master.
Of all the beautiful truths pertaining to the soul which have been restored and brought to light in this age, none is more gladdening or fruitful of divine promise and confidence than this—that man is the master of thought, the molder of character, and the maker and shaper of condition, environment, and destiny.
God truly blessed man with one of his greatest attributes, the power to create. Every aspect of our lives we create. We create the world that we want to live in, through our consistent thoughts. Heaven stands ready to assist the man who will use these powers in a constructive way. Is it not written, Ask and ye shall receive. In my line of work, I have the opportunity to work with many people on their financial situation. One poem that I often quote to my students is as follows:
I bargained with Life for a penny,
And Life would pay no more,
However I begged at evening
When I counted my scanty store;
For Life is a just employer,
He gives you what you ask,
But once you have set the wages,
Why, you must bear the task.
I worked for a menial’s hire,
Only to learn, dismayed,
That any wage I had asked of Life,
Life would have paid.
-Jessie Belle Rittenhouse
After I quote this to my students, I often ask, “What have you specifically asked of life when it comes to money?” The most common responses are Nothing, or, “to get by.” And they prove to themselves, as they reflect on their lives, the validity of the poem, for they have received exactly what they have asked for, and not a penny more.
As a being of Power, Intelligence, and Love, and the lord of his own thoughts, man holds the key to every situation, and contains within himself that transforming and regenerative agency by which he may make himself what he wills.
Man is always the master, even in his weaker and most abandoned state; but in his weakness and degradation he is the foolish master who misgoverns his “household.” When he begins to reflect upon his condition, and to search diligently for the Law upon which his being is established, he then becomes the wise master, directing his energies with intelligence, and fashioning his thoughts to fruitful issues. Such is the conscious master, and man can only thus become by discovering within himself the laws of thought; which discovery is totally a matter of application, self analysis, and experience.
The hope of this book is that you may discover that you are the master of your life. When you find yourself at a low point, remember, to lift your circumstances, you must first lift your thoughts, then by universal law your circumstances must change. Breaking the cycle of negative thinking can be a bit challenging. I am a big believer in having a coach. A coach is operating in a separate belief system, and therefore can point out the beliefs that you are holding onto that may be limiting you. Once you have discovered a limiting belief, which is often subconscious, then you must learn to clear old belief patterns to make room for new more empowering beliefs.
What is a limiting belief you may ask? A limiting belief is ANY belief that in anyway holds you back. Remember that God does not want his children to put limits on themselves.
“…With God all things are possible…” Mathew 19-26
Only by much searching and mining, are gold and diamonds obtained, and man can find every truth connected with his being, if he will dig deep into the mine of his soul; and that he is the maker of his character, the molder of his life, and the builder of his destiny, he may unerringly prove, if he will watch, control, and alter his thoughts, tracing their effects upon himself, upon others, and upon his life and circumstances, linking cause and effect by patient practice and investigation, and utilizing his every experience, even to the most trivial, everyday occurrence, as a means of obtaining that knowledge of himself which is Understanding, Wisdom, Power. In this direction, as in no other, is the law absolute that “He that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened;” for only by patience, practice, and ceaseless importunity can a man enter the Door of the Temple of Knowledge.
Many know this beautiful law intellectually. People say, “I get it, I understand how this all works.” My response to that is this, “If you are not living the life of your dreams then you do not get it.” You must want it so badly that you are willing to make the necessary sacrifices of time and energy to uncover this secret. You can learn more and get the book at www.AdamSecrets.com
No comments yet.