I don't know about you but when I put on an outfit that doesn't feel right for the day, I take it off and put another outfit. I always express my gratitude for the clothes that I have and always manage to find something in my closet that feels right for the occasion. For those of you who know me personally, you know that I am far from a fashionista but I do pride myself on making a good appearance. So what about if, when our thoughts go down that dark and dreary path of fear, doubt, worry, anger, jealousy, or just feeling down in the dumps, we took a good long hard look in the mirror to see what we are wearing. Rather than tearing down those thoughts with a sense of disgust, what about if we just gently and lovingly examined those feelings and then, when we are ready, change those thoughts to gratitude, joy, appreciation, love, sense of wonder and feeling wonderful about who we are--as easily as changing the clothes which do not feel right.
Yesterday I was blessed to hear Mike Robbins on
Its All About You The topic was authenticity and the title of Mike's book is "Be Yourself, Everybody Else is Already Taken". Mike talked about how important it is to allow ourselves to live fully and to experience every human emotion - the good, the bad and the ugly only he emphasized the fact that it is important to not judge our emotions and label some emotions good and some emotions bad. Fear is one of those emotions that we tend to label as bad. I love many teachings that The Secret has to offer and believe in the law of attraction but I realized that I was torturing myself when I felt fear. Never mind that it was uncomfortable to feel the fear but then I would become afraid of the fear, fearing I would manifest what I was fearing.
Mike reframed fear and if you listen to the show's archive you can hear how he talked not only about fear but the entire range of human emotions and what it means to be our authentic selves. I had an incredible aha moment during the show as I realized that I need to embrace and examine and understand my fears. It is counter intuitive to embrace fear for it seems that I am embracing the very dangers that fear represents but I realized how important it is to separate the feeling of fear which is an internal reaction from the external events which may trigger the fear. Bernie Siegel, MD in his new book Faith Hope and Healing talks about facing the monsters in our closet so they can no longer have power over us.
I had a dream the other night in which I was in a church with candles lit everywhere. I had to climb this huge ladder which was made out of pine wood. In my waking life I am terrified to climb stairs where you can see through to the ground - you know the kind - with open slats. In this dream the rungs of the ladder were thin and when I reached the pinnacle there was only a thin triangle at the top which I had to climb over. I thought to myself that there is no way this structure can support me and everything is going to collapse. But I decided that I had no choice but to climb down and trust. And so step by step, creaky pine by creaky pine rung I made it to the ground. And when I did there was a group of people there to celebrate communion with me. The communion 'wafer' was a piece of a chocolate brownie that just melted in my mouth. Last night I had a dream that I went into a sports shop where they also sold the lottery. I asked the clerk if he were going to auction off any of the sports memorabilia. He said no and I was going to buy a scratch ticket when one of the sales people shook his head no. I then turned to the lead store clerk and said, 'my prayers are always answered even if the answer is not what I expected. Hail Mary full of grace.'
Scripture talks about putting on new clothes in Christ. Life is going to test us, challenge us, present us with events which evoke fear and uncertainty. When we wrap ourselves in the cloak of faith and know deep in our souls that no matter what happens, the Power within us from the Source of the Ever Living God is far greater than any events in the outer world. Wouldn't it be nice if changing thoughts from fear, doubt, worry, anger, jealousy were as easy as changing our clothes -- it can be if we embrace our thoughts, respond with love and compassion and put on new clothes in Christ.
Transform Fear
When things don't 'go your way' and you feel a sense of lack
You might get the feeling God stabbed me in the back.
Your nose pressed to a pane of glass, afraid to live your life
Feeling overwhelmed by guilt, and frightened by your strife.
You look to God and shake your first, "Why do You do this to me?"
"I live in fear and do what's right, why can't You let me be?"
But this is not the way it is - our Creator's filled with love
And God lives deep within you-not a being from above.
God wants you to be filled with joy-your life to be so free
Release the shackles of your past, discover who to be.
The veil of life is drawn away with angels' loving dance
Inviting you to join them, why don't you take a chance?
Believe you are so wonderful - a creative work of art
Chiseled in God's likeness - you're a gift straight from God's heart.
From "New World Greetings:Inspirational Poetry and Musings for a New World"
Be sure to check out the wonderful piece done by 7 News Health Cast which aired on 8/6 and the piece produced by BU Today
To purchase a copy of my book, "New World Greetings:Inspirational Poetry and Musings for a New World" overflowing with love, healing, grace and whimsy and which helps me and others to experience healing and inspiration, visit www.newworldgreetings.com I generously donate 20% of the proceeds to Spaulding Rehab's Polio Fund.
And while you're there, visit my sumptuous samples of customized poetry. Enter a new world of greeting cards and celebrate, commemorate and allow me to create an original poem for that special someone and that special occasion.
Be sure to check out the News and Events tab to see where I will share my journey and gift of poetry this fall!
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