Our thoughts collect to become our beliefs. When we create negative thoughts or allow them to take hold of our minds, we begin to become selectively perceptive about what we choose to see. When our thoughts are negative about ourselves and others, that’s what we tend to notice as we unconsciously block-out all of the good that is going on for ourselves, others and throughout the world.
When our thoughts are positive, we tend to become acutely aware of all the good that exists in ourselves and in others.
I liken our minds to beautifully healthy, fertile soil in which we can deliberately plant healthy positive seeds of thought much like we choose to deliberately plant certain vegetables or flowers in our gardens. If we’re not intentional about what we allow to grow in our gardens, our neglect will cause weeds and toxic waste to infiltrate and contaminate that beautiful space. I grew up with a fantastic mother who enjoyed spending time in her garden. My mother knew that it was critical to extract the few bad weeds because if she didn’t (or didn’t have her children do it), in time they would take over the entire garden.
It’s easy for us to visually see a couple of weeds among beautiful flowers. We’re aware that the weeds do not belong. The next best practice is to become just as aware of the negative thoughts – weeds – that you’re not paying any attention to that are polluting your once organically pure mind. Negative thoughts are the invisible weeds that can overrun our once positive minds.
With weeds that we notice in our gardens, we sometimes might think, “there are only a few and I’m tired, I’ll get to them next week”. Negative thoughts, much like weeds, tend to multiply quickly and spread like weeds. In the garden they might start in a particular section and then end up spreading to the entire garden. If we don’t eliminate the negative thought or replace it immediately with a constructive thought, the negativity going on in one area of our life can quickly spread and contaminate the other areas.
If we allow negative thoughts to remain and spread, the result can be a downward spiral in our lives in which everything seems to be contaminated and going in the wrong direction.
If you’ve found yourself in this predicament where several things seem to be going in the wrong direction and you’re feeling overwhelmed and like the situation is impossible, please know that nothing is impossible. Any garden can be weeded, re-seeded, fertilized, watered and fed. It will take time, but it is possible.
At my ripe-old-age of 48, I have lots of friends, customers and family members who are dealing with several problems simultaneously. They’re questioning things like
“How will I support my family’s financial needs – education and retirement – in the future?”
“Why isn’t my marriage as good as I thought that it would be? Did I make a mistake?”
“Why am I unhappy and feel unfulfilled at the profession that I’ve had for 25 years?”
“How do I get hold of the weight or alcohol problem that’s taken over my body?”
“What am I going to do with the rest of my life?”
“I’m unappreciated and do not feel respected at work, but what can I do about it?”
Any one of thoughts can be troubling. When we have two or more of them at the same time, feelings of despair can begin to take root if we’re not careful.
We are careful. That’s just how we are.
If the garden of your mind has been overtaken by weeds, it’s time to get into the garden and start weeding and fertilizing. Dirty, muddy knees is a sign of a weed-free garden. Smiles and bright shining eyes are signs of weed-free minds.
1. Weed and reseed – Start paying careful attention to your thoughts. The negative ones (weeds) were either created by you erroneously or you allowed someone else’s incorrect thoughts and beliefs to enter and corrupt your mind. If the thought no longer serves you and your mind, extract it and decide to replace it with a healthy seed of thought. As an example, if you had a weed-like thought such as, “I’m unappreciated and lacking respect at work”, that’s what you’ll keep on getting if you keep repeating that same thought. Remember, our thoughts collect to form our beliefs. Extract that thought and replace it with something similar to, “I respect and appreciate myself at work because I always give an effort of 100%”. Just weeding out all of the negative thoughts will make you feel better. Your garden will be weed-free by pulling out each negative thought one weed at a time. When you start reseeding your mind with what you do want kind of thoughts, that is the direction your life will take.
2. Sunshine – The weeds in our minds were created with our thoughts or the thoughts of others. Creation of God-inspired thought occurs in the gaps which exist between our thoughts. If it’s time for you to allow the mind of God to shed some light and warmth into your mind, start taking a few minutes each day to begin the practice of meditation. One of the goals of meditation is to silence our overworking minds enough to eliminate our thoughts and create space for God’s thoughts in our minds. When our minds are full of entirely our thoughts (many of which were weeds), we do not allow any space for God’s thought to enter and take root. In step one, you’re weeding out the dark weeds from the soil of your mind. In step two, we’re allowing the warm sunshine of God’s loving mind to co-create with our own minds.
3. Fertilize and water – The addition of nutrients, nutritious food and clean water are essential for the growth of healthy seed. They’re essential for the development of the healthiest of minds. Add spiritual food and water with the addition of scriptural and spiritual reading into your daily routine. This is the intentional act of providing nutritious food and water for your mind much like we feed our stomach at least 3 times per day. God’s words fill your mind with faith and hope which will create tremendously positive strength and resolve in your mind.
You might be thinking, “But you don’t understand, my life is way beyond repair! There are too many bad things going on in my life simultaneously that I didn’t cause and there’s no way that I can fix all of these things at the same time!”
I agree with you 100%. I need help too. When I am attempting to create and live the ideal life on my own, I am nowhere near as good as I am when I’ve invited God into my mind and life. The recipe above prescribes God’s sunshine and life-giving nutrients to seep into your mind to support, nourish and bring peace to the heavenly garden in your mind.
The big secret is that you and I do not have to deal with our problems alone. The answer to every single problem that you and I are dealing with currently exists, but is currently hidden with weeds. Eliminate the weeds and create room for growth.
This recipe requires faith. The beautiful thing about faith is that it can be created in an instant with one or two positive thoughts. I believe that there is a creator of this world in which we live and someone or something that provides intelligence, life and order to humans and the entire universe. I invite the presence of God to be with me in my thoughts today and every day forward for the rest of my life.
“But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” —Matthew 19:26
Eliminate the word impossible from your life. Replace it with this affirmation:
When my thoughts and actions are aligned with God’s, I know that nothing is im-possible and everything is-possible.
