The Goodness That is YOU

Reminder:  If you've been keeping a Gratitude Journal now is a good time to update it.  Who blessed your life this week?  What events lifted your heart?  What did you see, hear or read that inspired you?  There are so many reasons to be grateful!  

A new post will be published each Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

         Someone asked me the other day if I was feeling a little sentimental.  I replied, "No, I don't think so."  Then he referenced my blogs from earlier this week.  I laughed.  Guess I got caught strolling down memory lane.  But there's nothing wrong with a little exercise that brings you back into contact with the great people and experiences you've known.  However, to spare you from my nostalgia, I will address a different kind of topic today--the blessing of being POSITIVE.
         I've commented more than once that there is so much good in the world that it isn't difficult to find many reasons for being grateful.  But what about the good IN YOU, that goodness that IS YOU?  I sometimes think, if we could just understand how really awesome we are, we would be absolutely EXCITED about life and about all our possibilities for affecting the world around us in marvelous ways.  I don't mean that in a "Look at me.  Look how wonderful I am" way.  In fact, the very thought of how special we are is extremely humbling.
         We all came from God.  Having come from our great Creator, we also contain a bit of divinity.  Though much of that divine light may be dimmed by this moral life, that light is still within us, and we can, given enough thought and effort, access it.  But how do we do that?
          My formula:

• First, believe in the goodness that is you.  Believe that you are a bit of divinity, placed here upon this earth to do good and to be an influence that uplifts and helps others.  Believe that humbly and with thanksgiving.
• Second, spend a little time each day just sitting quietly and letting that belief sink into your soul. Ponder what it means and how you can use it for good.  Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "None of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone."  You must take time to be still and listen for the quiet whisperings of the Spirit--the spirit of God speaking to that bit of divinity within you.  
• Third, choose a quotation, scripture, or inspired thought that you can easily memorize that sums up that belief.  Here are a few suggestions, but any positive message will do if it reminds you that you are capable and of value:

If we all did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.  Thomas Edison

What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man that thou visitest him?  For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour."  (Psalms 8:4-5  KJV)

If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.  Vincent Van Gogh

Prepare your mind to receive the best that life has to offer.  Ernest Holmes

• Forth and last, go out and DO.  Act upon the belief that you have an important purpose in life and the power to accomplish that purpose.

         If that all seems a little heady or too "out there", believe me, there is absolutely nothing wrong with putting a positive spin on life.  There are certainly enough negative messages in the world.  Contemplating the goodness within ourselves, and the goodness we can achieve, will help to counter those messages.  Whether our purpose is to be the best parent, the best doctor, the best grocery store clerk or the best friend we can be, each of us can go about the world spreading the light of kindness and genuine concern for others.  
         We are extraordinary and unique, you and I.  We have the potential to bless the world in so many enriching and wonderful ways. We each have great capabilities and the power to achieve much good.  Wouldn't it be incredible if, together, we caused the light of that belief to shine so brilliantly that even those who doubt their value could begin to see it clearly? 


TODAY'S INSPIRING QUOTATION:  There is a basic law that like attracts like. Negative thinking definitely attracts negative results. Conversely, if a person habitually thinks optimistically and hopefully, his positive thinking sets in motion creative forces -- and success instead of eluding him flows toward him.    Norman Vincent Peale