A Great Investment

"I could see changes coming so I invested in myself."

• David Remington
  

A Great Investment

There are lots of things that impact us from day to day. Some things impact us physically and some things impact us mentally. There are things we have control over and there are other things that seem to have control over us. But how do you tell the difference? After all, it appears as if most things happen to us, or around us, and all we can do is react after the fact, but I've found that that's not the case.

My daughter called me the other day and talked with me about having her wisdom teeth removed. "We spent a lot of money getting my teeth straightened and I don't want them to be ruined." She said.

So, we made arrangements for fly her out to our home in Utah and have Dr. David Remington, our orthodontist, remove them. I was pleased to have the chance to sit and talk with him for a while. We're good friends and I always learn a lot from our conversations.

I asked him how things were going in his business. I've always been impressed with the way he's operated his practice. When I was his client and he was straightening my teeth it was amazing for me to see how busy his office was. But, now things were different.

"Braces are a luxury." He said. "When the economy changed I could see that I'd be in trouble if I didn't make some adjustments to my business. So, I made an investment in myself. I updated some of my skills and knowledge; now I offer a whole line of new products and services so my business is good." He has been impacted by a changed economy but what he did through foresight has made a huge, positive impact.

So how do you tell if something has complete control over you? It's easy. You simply make a decision that it won't. Then you implement your plan to exercise your free will. We're all impacted by things that we can't control, but we can always control our reaction to what's happening around us. What you decide will have a huge impact on you as well as on those around you. Make an investment in yourself today. There is no greater investment!

Making Assumptions

"To 'change his future' is the inalienable right of freedom loving individuals."

- Neville Goddard

Making Assumptions

I woke up early last Wednesday and looked out the window. There was the snow Allison predicted would come. Shaking my head, I turned and walked away just in time to hear one of my dogs provide me with a whimpering request to go outside into the confetti falling from the sky. When I opened the door for her, the cold made me shiver a bit. But, I knew the shiver was caused by more than just the cold. I had a lot of business to complete this day and I knew that the icy roads would not greet me as a friend.

Still, the shivering seemed to awaken my senses and I remembered one of my favorite Neville Goddard quotes, "What you see when you look at something depends not so much on what is there as on the assumption you make when you look." I looked out the window again and saw something different. The snow was still there, but my relationship with the snow was changed.

Most people believe that what they see in the "reality of the external world" because they don't know how to focus and condense the powers of their mind to see something different. Strangely enough my experience with the snow showed me once again that it isn't difficult for anyone to change their view and awaken to a whole new sense of adventure as well as a new future that is easily available to them.

I've found the following steps to be very helpful in changing my future and creating a life full of self fulfilled freedom; they take very little effort and an application of imagination. If you'll simply try them, you'll find that your old world will vanish as you simply turn your attention away from it.

First, you have only to concentrate on what you want within yourself. See it! Give it reality in your mind. Make it an objective fact and then focus your attention on it until your desire appears to have achieved the distinctiveness and feeling of reality. When you've done that, then the form of your thought will have all the sensory vividness and form of reality. It will become a visible fact in your life.

Second, if you assume you are what you want to be, your desire is instantly fulfilled and, in fulfillment, you won't be longing any more. Believing and being are one. Your dream and the new you have become one and the same. In other words, what you have dreamed yourself to be can never be so far off as even to be near. That's because nearness implies a separation! Your dream isn't something you work for. It's something you already possess. It's assuming the feeling that you are already what you dream.

Finally, give thanks for the gift you've received. Since you haven't worked for what you've become, it's a true gift! And, if you choose, every day can be a gift whether the view out of your window is clear and warm or cold and snowy.

As Allison and I drove along, I smiled to myself knowing that although the day had started with my false belief that the roads would not greet me as a friend, the day I created gave me roads that led to fortune and renewed friendships. I had assumed a day filled with joy and success, lived as if it had already happened, and ended my day with deep gratitude for a wonderful day. May I assume you'll do the same from now on?

Sweet Adversity

"Self Pity is the worst possible disease that can affect mankind."

• John Huntsman
  

Sweet Adversity

I walked down the aisle near my office in the middle of the afternoon, just as the sun was beginning to wane. Just before I got to my office door I came across a colleague who also seemed to have the brightness of her eyes fading at the same pace as the sun. I stopped and spoke with her.

"What's wrong?" I queried.

"It's just been a long day. It seems as if every transaction is so hard these days." She said.

"I know." I said. "But the great thing is that over the past three years we've had the chance to become much better at what we do."

"You're right." She replied. "I think we've learned more in that time than most people learn their whole career."

I smiled and turned to walk away thinking, "isn't it nice to be able to change the way you think and instantly feel better?" And, I was reminded of something just as important.

When I look back on my life it is clear to me that I've grown most when facing challenges. But, it's just lately that I've begun to see adversity as a friend rather than a foe. Perhaps that's why I was so inspired when John Huntsman said, of his mother, "She died very young of cancer and her mother before her died of cancer. But on my mother's tombstone in a little Utah town are etched these words by Shakespeare: Sweet are the uses of adversity."

If you're like me, there are times when you've felt alone; perhaps in your own heart, in your job, or family. And, you know that you'll be tested and retested by adversity again and again as long as you live. But, you can bounce back if you can keep telling yourself, I know I can make it, I know I can make it. Then without hesitation go out and do something for someone else and put your arm around them. If you'll do that then you'll be able to defeat self pity, you won't feel sorry for yourself. You'll be doing just the opposite, you'll be feeling love, and you'll have God's feelings with you at all times.

All From One Seed

"Seeds from Tooele Valley Nursery"

• Wade Anderson
  

All From One Seed

I spent a lot of time this last summer keeping up with my friend Jeff Geer. I loved talking with him on a regular basis because of his excitement. He's one of the most avid gardeners I know. In fact, his wife Linda said, "I think he's torn every plant in our yard out and has replaced it with a vegetable."

When I'd talk with Jeff his whole face would light up as he'd tell me of how his plants were growing large and producing much more food than he ever imagined. "I love coming home at night and walking outside into my back yard. I grab some of this and some of that and then walk into my kitchen and make a fresh salad for dinner! I don't even have to go to the grocery store much anymore."

I've been thinking about this for the past week or so because another friend, Wade Anderson, was kind enough to give me some vegetable seeds. He knows I'll store them carefully over the winter and then put them in the ground this spring. I love getting the seeds for two reasons. First, they'll provide us with fresh food to eat and to share over the spring, summer and fall. Second, they remind me of the real meaning of the "Law of the Harvest."

I love the Law of the Harvest. You know, it's that little saying you've heard over and over again, "You reap what you sow." But it's much more than that! Its real meaning is, "What you do comes back to you multiplied."

When you think about what can come to life as a result of one little seed, it's truly amazing! One small tomato seed can produce many more tomatoes and hundreds of more seeds. But don't forget, this applies to more than just gardening.

It applies to everything we do in life. It's a law you and I should keep in mind all of the time. Every word and every action is like a small seed that can produce many more actions and many more seeds. And, it works both ways. You can produce seeds to produce both good and bad results in your life. I don't know about you, but I prefer to have tasty vegetables growing in my garden. The weeds just don't make me happy at all.

We can all be happy if we simply keep the Law of the Harvest in mind. Just live its tenets: First, make sure you're starting with the seeds you want to grow. Second, place them in the environment where they'll have the best chance to grow well. Third, cultivate them on a regular basis. Fourth, harvest them when they're at their very best. Finally make sure to enjoy your harvest with as many senses as possible so you'll get the most satisfaction you can.