Let me always hold on to the steady light of hope.
In the current state of uncertainty as to what I will be doing today, it seems that the natural state of the human spirit — that is joy, truth and beauty — has been misplaced. Sometimes it feels like we have moved very far away from that state.
This situation should be a signal to us that the art of thinking has become submerged. The understanding of how our thoughts, evident through our words and actions, affect everything we experience has become blurred.
This connection between what I am thinking and what I am feeling seems to have been forgotten and the very ‘art’ of living has somehow been lost. At the heart of every human being there is the understanding that there is a core of powerful, positive, spiritual energy. A simple practical experiment may be of help here.
Sit quietly and create a memory of a brilliant sunset, a host of daffodils in spring, or some other beautiful memory of your choice. Hold this image in your mind and experience it. The feelings emerged are not artificial. They are real.
You have simply re-created an image, in your own mind, that has triggered certain feelings and emotions which are absolutely real. You don’t even have to work very hard at it. This is just to show how powerful thoughts can be and how imagery and visualization work in relation to feelings and emotions. It does not mean that I should spend my day dreaming of past beautiful scenes; it illustrates how it evokes in me a feeling of peacefulness.
With this feeling I can respond to the external situations, however challenging they may be, and allow a sense of creativity in my attitude towards them. For when I have decided what type of thoughts to have, then within my own being I may begin to create those feelings that I would like to have. We all know the uncertainty of the present time and we cannot change these external events; however, I do have the freedom as to how I think about them and how I respond to them and thus separate my inner life from my outer life.
For in training my mind to create and sustain peaceful and hopeful thoughts I can more clearly decide on how to respond to whatever situation I am experiencing.
No doubt a clear hopeful mind is more likely to overcome worries and make clear decisions, and less likely to lose hold on the steady light of hope.
- -Sister Jacqueline Russell of Brahma Kumaris Centre for Spiritual Learning
