Criticism

One thing, I really have a problem with is criticism. Oh, I can do the criticism. That I can do. It is too easy (but that's not today's point!) Receiving it, well that's another story. Therefore, today, from now on, I thought I need to take it like a mature, grown person. I don't want it to bother me so much. How do I do that? Well I started reading up on the subject and this is what I gathered.
This is what criticism does to you.

• Criticism is nothing more that an observation made by another person, one that we do not necessarily agree with.


• Criticism is directed at our actions and the way we think.


• Criticism makes us defensive and wanting to justify our actions. It makes us want to point the finger and so on...


• Our defense mechanism takes an enormous amount of mental energy, which usually leaves us angry, hurt, and with negative feelings towards the other person.

Anamchara - Beyond Positive Thinking

Anamchara - Beyond Positive Thinking

One of the most well known books ever written on success is James Allan's "As a man thinketh."
This book advocates thinking in a positive manner in order to create the life you dream of having. It suggests all you have to do is change your internal dialogue and you can begin to adopt a successful mindset. After an unspecified times you, will then "has it all."
For some this approach has undoubtedly worked.
For many others it has manifestly not done so. There are more books written and read on positive thinking than on most any other subject. This has made some difference to people's lives but real change has not manifested for too many others.
I think this is because the writing of James Allen has been understood only at a surface level. In his wonderful book "As a man thinketh," he writes: -
"As a man thinketh in his heart so is he, not only embraces the whole of a mans being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance."
Note the language.
It is a form of language you do not hear in today's personal growth market. I think this is why it is not so well understood. James Allen clearly states, "As a man thinketh in his heart?" He is, to my mind, talking about clearly making an emotional connection with one's heart.
This is where all positive change begins.
The heart speaks to one's being and not only to the intellect. The intellect is only a part of the wholeness of our humanity. Thinking positive thoughts can go some way to creating a wonderful experience of what it means to be alive. However, being alive is not just an intellectual experience. It is a when fully allowed a free flowing experience of delight.
The heart knows things that the head can never imagine.
The heart embraces the imagination. James Allen uses the word "embrace" in the above passage. The mind does not embrace. It rationalizes. The mind operates in a linear fashion. It moves from point A to point B. An embrace is something that encircles you. A circle is complete it is not something that is partial. A circle is more holistic.
James Allen goes on to say that this "thinketh of the heart" is so comprehensive it affects all conditions and circumstances. It is in effect transformative. It changes ones relationship to life and living.
I personally think James Allan would have been better naming his wonderful book "As a man feels." This I think would guide many others to the experience of "embracing a man's being. It would more clearly focus one on the free flow of feeling within the body allied to ones purpose and values.
This connection with your purpose and values at the heart level raises passion. This is the real power that will "reach out to every condition and circumstance." This will be a warmer and more powerful experience than the cool application of simply repeating positive words and phrases.
Remember you are already forever enough no matter how much positive thinking you may apply to your being. Remember that the Blessing is already here and you are it.
Tony Cuckson is an Anam Cara. This Celtic term means "Soul Friend." He specializes in providing insight for the spiritual journey, Blessings for YOU, words of wisdom and finding inner peace. Visitors to Irish Blessings Matter website and Tony's Blog get the opportunity to develop a purpose driven life through articles, newsletters and other programs.

Contemptable Temptation

Let's look at the lesson we should all pay attention to in the Bible, the flight of the Israelites from Egypt. Was their escape through the Red Sea merely an exploit by God or was there some other significance to this act?
1 Cor. 10:1-2; Paul says that our forefathers were all under and protected by the cloud (God's presence) that went before them, and everyone of them passed safely through the Red Sea. Exod. 23:21, 14:22,29; says each one of them allowed themselves to be baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. This baptism is very significant because it now meant they were obligated to the law, to Moses, to the covenant. They were consecrated and set apart to the service of God.
Today our own baptism in water obligates us to our covenant with Christ. This submersion and emersion symbolizes our consecration from death into eternal life. It is our resurrection from sin and death.
During their journey, God provided them all with the same spiritual food and water which came from the Rock, a foreshadowing of Christ. Today we eat the same spiritual food which comes from the Word of God. 1 Cor. 10:5,6 says that when those who fell away from the truth by lusting after their carnal desires perished. This still holds true today. Once we take hold of the truth, we are then held accountable to keep the truth and never tempt God by doubting Him. Once He makes a promise He is obligated to keep it and so are we!
To doubt and fear is in itself a sin. Why? It's a lack of faith. Rom. 14:23 says that anything not done in faith is a sin. That's a pretty steep accusation. What do you doubt and fear in your life?
These Israelites began to fall away and perish because of all the complaining and doubts they had. Even though God had just brought them through a sea, it still wasn't enough to get their trust in God. This consequently led to their demise, their spiritual death which separated them from God. God is holy and righteous and therefore He cannot fellowship with ungodly behavior. (1 Cor. 10:10,11)
When we fall away from the nourishment in the Word, we too become malnutrition and face temptation and the contempt of sinning. This is why Paul warns us that no man should be fooled into thinking that he is above being tempted, even when you are strong in the Word. It's just human nature to be tempted by sin. This is not a sin in itself, it's only a sin when we give into the temptation. As a Christian the best defense to this is to know ahead of time how it will be handled.
Adam and Eve established man's sinful nature and as a result we all have it. (Gen. 4) God spoke to Cain after his reverential offering. Imagine, having God Himself speak to you about your behavior and you act like a spoiled child and tell Him to "talk to the hand"!!! This is disobedience in the biggest way. Cain disregarded God's worthiness by giving Him only what he felt like giving Him and not offering Him the best of what he had. We are selfish like that today in giving God what is left over. But since God is ruler over all, He demands that we give Him our first fruits, the best of us, the best of whatever we have, it all belongs to Him. We wouldn't have any of it weren't for Him anyway. But we are a selfish breed of people.
Abel on the other hand honored God with his first fruits. He made atonement for his sins by giving God the best with a right heart. God doesn't care about the amount, he looks at the motive in which we give, He looks at our hearts. God was pleased with Abel's offering, but Cain's on the other hand was an insult to Him. God came down and told him face to face that he had a choice to either do good or to give into the sin that would always be crouching at the door. God knew that after Adam and Eve's temptation, we would all be facing the same temptations but we have a choice to either open the door and let it in, or keep it locked and walk away. Temptation must be mastered.
God said He would give us the strength to master it if we so choose. He will give us the strength to make the right decision because He promises to never leave us nor forsake us. This is wonderful news, but Cain chose not to heed the good news. Just like a spoiled child, he probably sat there with his arms crossed in disrespect. And we wonder where our children get this attitude today? Cain's bad attitude was a sin of self-righteousness, pride and no regard for God's advice. Instead he deliberately turned around and murdered his brother out of his emotions. These emotions of anger, rage, and jealousy are all carnal which lead to an inevitable death. His heart was corrupted with sin, therefore committing a contemptible act of murder. He broke the first law of "Thou Shall Not Kill", which God later made into one of the 10 Commandments for us to follow today. As a result of his disobedience, God cursed him with spiritual and eternal death, because Cain never atoned for his sin. In other words, he reaped just what he sowed.
1 Jn. 3:12 tells us not to be like Cain who took his nature and motivation from the evil one. His motives were wicked and malicious while his brother's were righteous.
Jude 1:11 says, "Woe" to those who run riotously in the way of Cain. He abandoned himself for the sake of his own gain.
There is no way around God, we cannot continue to be stubborn and think that He won't deal with us. It's time we wake up and realize that we are "not all that and a bag of chips." We do have a choice, God gave us that freedom, but the consequences are also ours to bear. We can either resist the temptation or not. What's important is not to be fooled into thinking that we can do it on our own. No one can withstand the temptation of sin without God's help. He promises to be faithful to His Word and His compassionate nature. He is very patient with us. We can turn around at any time no matter what we've done if we confess our sins and admit that we can not do this without Him by accepting His one and only Son Jesus Christ as our intercessor. Don't let the enemy lie to you by thinking you are not worthy. The truth is, no one is worthy. Jesus paid for when He hung on the cross and took all our sins as a ransom for our lives that price. He was the only One worthy because He Himself was without sin.
Once you are saved by grace, God will give you the strength and patience to bear up under the pressures of the outside world, which is carnal. However, He doesn't promise it to be an easy journey, there will be struggles and many trials, but He will equip us with the knowledge to fight it. When we say, "The devil made me do it" is only self-deception. Even the devil can't make us do the wrong thing, he's not that powerful. We give him too much credit. Everything is a free will choice, don't ever assume otherwise or blame anyone or anything else for your responsibility.
Just how are we supposed to do the right thing? It's simple, we are to get rooted and grounded in God's Word. He has a whole book of instructions. Just like the Israelites who were fed on the "Rock", it's still the same "Rock" today. We are to feast on the Bread of Life, which is Christ. He is also the "Living Water". When we eat and drink this, we will never go hungry or thirsty again. We are guaranteed a place in the Lamb's Book of Life. Is your name written in it?
To merely read the Bible is not sufficient, you must understand it or it will not fulfill your hunger. God's Word must feed us spiritually so that it will create in us a new way of living. The battlefield is in our minds and our minds are what guide us and tell us what to do. As a man thinketh, so he is. What kinds of thoughts are running through your head today? Consequently, if we have wrong motives then we are obviously being starved to death, literally. Ask yourself if you are spiritually fed or do you still hunger for more?
Remember when Paul said that the wages of sin is death? The choice is up to you. Do you long for eternity in heaven or hell? Choose one because they are both real.
If you're not sure of your salvation, getting honest with God today and ask Him to forgive your sins, even the ones you are not aware of. He knows your heart and will reveal them to you. Take Jesus as your Lord and Savior and tell Him you can't do this on your own. If this confession is from a pure heart, God will honor your request and you will soon start seeing a difference in your life. It's amazing how free you will be once you realize that you now have an eternal life in heaven and will inherit all that God has for you.
Vivian Gordon is called to be a prayer warrior. She is led to intercede for those who need healing in their lives. She is also called into the ministry of teaching God's Word and to reach out to those who are lost or have fallen away. As a child of God, she has been chosen because she was once lost but now has been found and is a new creature in Christ. She dedicates her life to Him and crucifies her flesh everyday.

Small Steps Great Strides

Small Steps, Great Strides
Sacred space, sacred time
Believe in your personal power, retrieve if lost
Explore, enhance creativity to allow flow of positive energy
Don't get stuck in a rut, seek out a form of support system
Assess, evaluate your attitude, believe in the power of positive affirmation
Value your gifts, your talents, count your blessings
Think once, think twice, think again before making major decisions.
Know your capabilities and limitations, your strengths and weaknesses
Don't let problems get you down- are you missing the cause
Listen to your Inner Voice, your intiution, nurture your Spirit, learn to be in harmony with Nature and the elements Learn psychic protection, grounding, balancing , centering, clearing- find out how.
Give yourself time to meditate, a quiet time to get rechargedUse your imagination to overcome limitations of our mundane existence.
Find creative ways to face life's dilemmas.
GIVE YOURSELF A PAT ON THE BACK, ACKNOWLDGE YOUR SUCCESS ,LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES
Assets that are helpful
Good physical health, strength and vitality
Have good relationships with family, siblings and friends
Have had caring and responsible parent/s
Having had parent/s who provided a model of love and respect
Coming from life-affirming family that had capacity for joy
Coming from a family who co-operated with one another
Family background that permitted free expression of emotionsStrong gender identification
Acknowledge sexual feelings
History of productive functioning.