What kind of thoughts do you maintain?

Long before “The Secret” came out, even before James Allen’s “As a Man Thinketh”, the Old Testament taught the world that “as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7).

Our thoughts directly influence our individual happiness as well as define us as human beings. Ultimately, thoughts usher in the level of personal fulfillment that we allow to enter in to our lives. This is to say that we are in the driver’s seat! We are literally what we think—our character is the sum of all of our thoughts.

If we maintain positive thoughts, positivity simply will be a part of us. If we think bad or negative thoughts then guess what…yeah you guessed it…negative, external pressure will bog us down.

“Our life is what our thoughts make it. A man will find that as he alters his thoughts toward things and other people, things and other people will alter towards him.” -James Allen

Growing up, my mother tried to instill in me the concept of positive thinking and its consequential aspect on results—whenever I would say something negative about myself like “I’m so dumb, I can’t figure out this math problem,” she would reply by correcting me and saying that I needed to change my attitude and verbiage. She wouldn’t give up until I gave in to change my approach and say: “I’m smart, and I’m going to figure out this math problem.” Ultimately, by changing my thoughts I was able to change my results. My world view changed! Life changed! I learned that negative thoughts pull us nowhere but “down,” and positive thoughts lift our emotions and inspire us to reach limitless potential.

Begin right now to discipline your mind to think more frequent thoughts of love and confidence, while simultaneously blocking out the filth and rubbish that suffocate capabilities. Life is too short to think about crap…

Mind is the Master power that moulds and makes,

And Man is Mind, and evermore he takes

The tool of Thought, and, shaping what he wills,

Brings forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills: —

He thinks in secret, and it comes to pass:

Environment is but his looking-glass.

-James Allen

Do we view ourselves as creators?…think about the words below….

“You might say, ‘I’m not the creative type. When I sing, I’m always half a tone above or below the note. I cannot draw a line without a ruler. And the only practical use for my homemade bread is as a paperweight or as a doorstop.’

If that is how you feel, think again, and remember that you are children of the most creative Being in the universe. Isn’t it remarkable to think that your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God? Think about it—your spirit body is a masterpiece, created with a beauty, function, and capacity beyond imagination.

But to what end were we created? We were created with the express purpose and potential of experiencing a fullness of joy. Our birthright—and the purpose of our great voyage on this earth—is to seek and experience eternal happiness. One of the ways we find this is by creating things.

You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.” ~Dieter Uchtdorf

….I am an optimist. My belief in human beings is rooted in their capacity to create and beautify the planet. I believe in the immense power of creativity and intelligence backed with love; these forces can make our world a much better place. Today, make a conscious effort to extract the creativity from within your mind and heart to bless the human race.

“Be brave enough to live life creatively. The creative is the place where no one else has ever been. You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. You can’t get there by bus, only by hard work and risk and by not quite knowing what you’re doing. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover will be yourself.“ ~Alan Alda

Live creatively.

How will you harness the creativity within you today to bless the lives of others?

I cannot think of anything more honorable than the building up of the human being. Building character. Building knowledge. Building faith. Building hope. Building skills. There are so many ways we can engage in human development…

“Human development is about much more than the rise or fall of national incomes. It is about creating an environment in which people can develop their full potential and lead productive, creative lives in accord with their needs and interests. People are the real wealth of nations. Development is thus about expanding the choices people have to lead lives that they value. And it is thus about much more than economic growth, which is only a means—if a very important one—of enlarging people’s choices.” - Human Development Reports, United Nations Development Program

Also, do not forget this process is always mutually benefiting. Remember these words by James E. Casey: “While building up others, you will build up yourself.”

Bless you on your journey to build up the human race!

Dear Friends,

Remember that life is a trail dotted with numerous, arduous puddles of tribulation–puddles deep enough to momentarily dampen down and frustrate the weary traveler–yet, puddles never meant to drown a cherished soul.

While on the trail of life, remember to keep walking despite the occasional dampness, insist to enjoy the beauty all around, and love everyone you encounter!

That’s it.

Enjoy the trail!

“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or REJOICE because thorn bushes have roses.”-Abe Lincoln

Friends, for crying out loud let’s REJOICE! We’re alive!!!

If you’re struggling with emotional downs or having a hard time realizing desired happiness, then take a moment and internalize the words of the famous Og Mandino:

If I feel depressed I will sing.
If I feel sad I will laugh.
If I feel ill I will double my labor.
If I feel fear I will plunge ahead.
If I feel uncertain I will raise my voice.
If I feel poverty I will think of wealth to come.
If I feel incompetent I will think of past success.
If I feel insignificant I will remember my goals.
Today I will be the master of my emotions.

May we master our emotions TODAY. Let’s rejoice more and complain less.  Let’s lift up our chins and be positive.  We need to open our eyes and see the beauty all around us. When we see beauty for beauty we forget what is bad.

God bless you on your journey to be happy and serve!

“One of the tragedies we witness almost daily is the tragedy of men with high aim and low achievements. Their motives are noble, their proclaimed ambition is praiseworthy, their capacity is great. But their discipline is weak, they succumb to indolence, appetite robs them of will.” -Gordon B. Hinckley

Recently, I have implemented a new train of thought. I have tried to think about how I would interact in all of my relationships, together with the people who mean the most to me and the everyday encounters with strangers, if I knew I would never see them again. If at midnight our mortal existence, or that of our loved ones was to come to an end, how would we act differently? How would we love if we knew it would be our last chance to show love? Likewise, how would we serve if it would be our last chance for us to serve? Would we get caught in our haste of our busy schedules and not have the time to truly listen, serve, or love one another? It may sound cliché, but we must truly live as though we or they die at midnight—you’ll find you will hug a little more tightly, listen a little more carefully, touch a little more softly, and love a little more passionately.

There’s only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self. –Aldous Huxley

May we look deep inside ourselves to discover the true desire for positive change. Thoreau wrote that “there came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” We must take the leap outside of our confined limits and restraints we place upon ourselves, and blossom into the man or woman we know we must be–our best self!  While embarked on our mortal journey, we cannot afford to decline, procrastinate, or demur giving the world our BEST SELF! It’s time to be the man or woman we know we must be.  Forget New Year’s day. Start now. We must remember that the day for change is today, it’s right now—each and everyday we must be our best self. Our families, friends, society, and the entire human race deserve our best efforts for positive change. They deserve the best YOU!

When studying Chinese characters, one may interpret the general meaning along with receiving a heightened sense of added clarification by simply breaking down the individual characters and examining each character and its relation to the other. One case in point is the Chinese word for crisis: 危機 (wei-ji). The first character in this word, wei, literally means danger. The second means opportunity. So, for reasons of remembering my Chinese vocabulary, I like to think of the definition of crisis as danger + opportunity. Not only does this benefit me in remembering my Chinese vocabulary, it also offers great insight on life: To me, this is a gentle reminder of the opportunity that exists in any unfavorable, arduous situation.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines crisis as “an unstable or crucial time or state of affairs in which a decisive change is impending.” In conjunction, an opportunity is “a favorable juncture of circumstances ; a good chance for advancement or progress.”

Therefore, instead of being bogged down physically and emotionally by the crisis in our lives and in the lives of others throughout the world who are suffering from seemingly insurmountable odds, it is paramount that we turn our focus on the opportunity that lies in every crisis for group and individual growth, learning, and experience. This is to say that challenges and opportunities always come together—you can’t have a challenge without an opportunity wherein to grow, progress, and succeed.

Moreover, we have an option when confronting crisis: We can either completely ignore the crisis in our lives or in the lives of others altogether, which will likely result in added disaster; or we can face the crisis head-on, and do our best to resolve it—this may completely change the situation for the better, especially if one takes the necessary measures to steer clear of future crises.

“Close scrutiny will show that most ‘crisis situations’ are opportunities to either advance, or stay where you are.” -Maxell Maltz

When faced with danger, we may offset that with courage. When faced with doubt, we may offset that with faith. Likewise, when faced with any sort of challenge, we must remember that we have an opportunity to overcome. This not only applies in our personal lives, but in the lives of those we wish to bless and empower.

So, my service-minded friends, may we all turn our attention to the golden opportunity, the silver lining in the clouds offered in every crisis. Remember that with every challenge comes room for unprecedented growth.

Bless you on your journey to serve and alleviate pain! ]]> http://www.theglobaloutreach.org/2009/12/05/%e5%8d%b1%e6%a9%9f-crisis-danger-opportunity/feed/ 0 http://www.theglobaloutreach.org/2009/10/30/the-ripple-effect/ http://www.theglobaloutreach.org/2009/10/30/the-ripple-effect/#comments Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:26:55 +0000 Steven Wrigley http://www.theglobaloutreach.org/?p=336

“Remember there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end.” -Scott Adams

The ripple effect is a beautiful symbol in nature that illustrates the power of service. Just one tiny stone thrown into the ocean creates a ripple effect that spans miles of distance. Similarly, our actions also create ripples in the lives of all of our brothers and sisters. There are consequences to our actions – whether good or bad – for both people we know and people we do not know.

As we strive to bless the lives of others, it is easy to become discouraged as we survey the needs all around us. But take heart. As we strive to improve the lives of others, no matter how great the effort, be it big or small, the effect will be felt. “One must not begin to despair, even though defeated here and there; and even though one sometimes feels a kind of decay, though things go differently from the expected, it is necessary to take heart again and form a new courage. For the great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together. And great things are not something accidental, but must certainly be willed.” –Vincent van Gough

It is vital to remember that anyone can make the difference that can reach to the farthest corners of the earth. You don’t have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world–for the ripple to spread. But you do have to know the few great things that matter, and then be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable difference in the world are not the people who have mastered many things, but who have been mastered by a few great things. If you want your life to count, if you want the ripple effect of the pebbles you drop to become waves that reach the ends of the earth and roll on for centuries and into eternity, you don’t have to have a high IQ; you don’t have to have good looks or riches; you don’t have to come from a fine family or a fine school. You only have to know a few great, majestic, unchanging, obvious, simple, glorious things, and allow them to be instilled in your heart.

Finally, John Heider posed the question: “Do you want to be a positive influence in the world?” If your answer is yes, then you will wish to take note of his suggestion:

“First, get your own life in order. Ground yourself in the single principle so that your behavior is wholesome and effective. If you do that, you will be a powerful influence.

Your behavior influences others through a ripple effect. A ripple effect works because everyone influences everyone else. Powerful people are powerful influences.

If your life works, you influence your family. If your family works, your family influences the community. If your community works, your community influences the nation. If your nation works, your nation influences the world. If your world works, the ripple effect spreads throughout the cosmos.

Remember that your influence begins with you and ripples outward. So be sure that your influence is both potent and wholesome. How do I know that this works? All growth spreads outward from a fertile and potent nucleus. You are a nucleus.”

God bless you on your journey in allowing the ripple effect to influence the lives of others. Begin now, even if it is small, to cast your pebble for the service of others, then witness the vast ripple spread outward to bless numerous lives.

Remember the ripple effect.

If given the proper means to succeed, even under the most desolate, dire , and unfavorable circumstances, a flower may emerge and blossom to reach its most beautiful potential. So can anyone struggling through life’s most grim, poverty-stricken circumstances rise to reach their divine given potential. Poverty acts as a great hindrance and road block to millions. However, even the hardest soil cannot withhold a determined and supported plant from rising to the fullest extent of its capability.

Henry David Thoreau said: “Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders.” The divine given seed is in all of us to be happy and thrive. Yes, life has challenges. But just as all plants must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation, so we as the human family will become stronger in rising up as the winds of life attempt to deter us from happiness. Likewise, we should expect “wonders” in the growth of individuals as we aid them in rising above the elements that normally prevent the blossoming of their dreams and potential.

My great hope is that we focus on the seeds—not the ground from where the seeds hope to emerge. Children everywhere suffer due to political, economical, and geographical problems that they have no say in nor can they even control. Let us do everything within our power to supply the much needed water, sun, nutrients, and tender-care to give these divine seeds within children the chance to blossom to the fullness of their unlimited potential beauty.