The Secret

How many of you have heard of The Secret? This thought process has only become known to me in the past couple of months and it just so happened to be featured on Oprah yesterday, so it's fairly fresh in my mind. For those of you who do not know what the secret is, here is what it essentially is:

"People around the world have been talking about a movie so powerful that it can change the course of your life. This movie, The Secret, was created by Australian Rhonda Byrne, and she says that if you follow its philosophy, you can create the life you want—whether that means getting out of debt, finding a more fulfilling job or even falling in love... Rhonda defines The Secret as the law of attraction, which is the principle that "like attracts like." Rhonda calls it "the most powerful law in the universe," and says it is working all the time. "What we do is we attract into our lives the things we want, and that is based on what we're thinking and feeling," Rhonda says. The principle explains that we create our own circumstances by the choices we make in life. And the choices we make are fueled by our thoughts—which means our thoughts are the most powerful things we have here on earth."

So, what do you think? Do our thoughts and attitudes affect and influence what happens in our lives? As I was watching the show I found myself teetering from side to side. I believe that our attitudes and thoughts can change our outlook on life and can influence how we deal with situations and events that occur in our lives. I believe there are energies that move through us and around us because we are chemical beings and that when we behave in a negative or positive manner, those feelings and energies radiate from us and can affect those around us. That being said, I do have a problem with some of the new age thinking in that because we want or desire something in our lives we get it because we have thought positively about it. That doesn't sit right with me. Can we really control falling in love? If that was the case, then I would have a husband or boyfriend already (haha). I wish "getting the life you want" was as simple as thinking positively about reaching that goal.

I recently spoke with a friend of mine who is at a crossroads in her life. She's not quite sure where her path will take her and what her career is going to be for the next however many years. The idea of thinking positively about situations and and decisions have come up numerous times in our conversations. I think because we were both imagining the good that can come out of whatever she chooses to do with her life has made a difference in the way she has looked at her situation and has allowed her to be more receptive and open to the windows and doors God has and will continue to open in her life. It's going to be neat to watch where her tunnel takes her. So in that way, I believe that this positive thinking philosophy can play a huge role in our lives. If we continually choose to be negative and pessimistic about situations, then our choices and our lives will reflect our attitudes and we will not be happy.

There was a time in my life where I was at rock bottom. It was the lowest of all lows. I was at that rock bottom for probably 4 -5 years and I was severly depressed. There were days when I would not come out of my room and there were times where the only place I could be taken care of was in a hospital. I didn't have too many good things to say about me, about my life and the people in it at that time, however, since then I have made numerous choices in my life where I have needed to shake off the shit that was poured on me and step up and think about the positive things in my life, even if there were only a few of them (that one's for you Sandra).
God has continually poured out his love and grace to me as I have walked away from that time in my life and has allowed me to now extend grace to those people in my life who need it and to myself. Being able to not only dwell on the negative experiences in my life has allowed me to look beyond myself and in the end has allowed me to become a better person. I think that if we only look at ourselves we will never be satisified because we are human and we are sinful beings. It is only when we look beyond ourselves that we can see the glimpses of God in our surroundings and the people we interact with. Only then I think will we see the image of God revealed in us.

So yes, I believe that thinking positively and constantly making choices to not only look for the bad can influence how our lives turn out. Does that mean we will have everything we always wanted? Nope. Far from it, but I believe that it allows us to be more content with where we are in life and I believe God will bless that.
So what are your thoughts on this? I would be curious to hear people's opinions.