How to Think Positively Without Ignoring Reality
John Cunningham is a friend of mine and a brother in Christ, and he can help you with financial decisions and future planning.
The Positive Thinker
Play the original Excel Still More episode here without leaving the article.
The principle
And when you can sustain maximum effort in anything, something you want to pursue, a relationship you want to change, whatever it might be, your chances of success go through the roof because you have set yourself free from mental barriers, self-inflicted sanctions that keeps you from getting where you want to be or where you need to be. Now, as we move on today and you start thinking of specific things in your life where you have mentally held yourself back, you may be tempted to say, Yes, but there are circumstances around me that are in the way.
That would be a tough sell for me because that just sounds like a broken soundtrack inside of you telling yourself why circumstances are keeping you from change.
The deeper lesson
And if you look around in your own life at the most optimistic, joyful people, most of them have been through a great deal of challenge and trial. That's not true of everyone you know that is at peace, but there are plenty of cases for me to make a point to you that I want you to remember that attitude is always more important than environment.
How you see yourself, especially in Jesus, what you're capable of, your ability to stand your ground, to move forward in advance, or even to turn around and go back, is shaped and fueled from the inside out.
What it changes
That the quiz that I had given them on paper was difficult, but that kind of math leads to practically unsolvable equations like the ones I put on the board. So that mathematician years later on the airplane is telling the other man, Positivity thinking changed everything.
If I had known it wasn't solvable, if I'd been told that not even Einstein could solve it, I probably wouldn't have even tried.
Live it today
The positive thinker, number one, sees opportunity where others see impossibility, says not yet, when others say never, tries another way rather than giving up, optimizes every opportunity, and then finally realizes there is a big picture. We could fill a whole episode with this, but he ends by talking about his faith in God and his love for the people in his life and how mathematics was important, but it was never his life.
And as we conclude today, look at all of the challenges and goals and aspirations you have before you this week.
Take the idea with you.
- 01Where do I see the problem or opportunity described in “How to Think Positively Without Ignoring Reality” in my own life?
- 02What Scripture or spiritual principle in this study most needs my attention?
- 03What one specific change can I make this week to put this teaching into practice?
Prefer listening?
The original episode player is available near the top of this article, so you can listen without leaving the page.