Believe

I saw a greeting card some years ago - I'm sure you have too - it's been a perennial favourite since it made its first appearance. The message consisted of one simple word: "Believe."

What we believe is ultimately what we experience in life. So, yes - believe! Believe in magic and magic will drop into your life every day. Believe in love and you will love and be loved. Believe in joy and it shall dog your footsteps.

The Buddha said, "What we think we become." But what creates our thoughts? What determines those thoughts? Some thoughts we consciously control - but so few, really. It is our unconscious thoughts that tend to be the boss and those stem from our beliefs. I believe that we are wise to focus on the things we believe in and change those beliefs if they aren't working for us. Then, watch those results come pouring in.

So I was musing this morning about my beliefs. What are the beliefs that serve me well? I believe that all people are basically good and that given what they know, they are doing the best they can. I believe the world is beautiful, miraculously so, and that we have the power to preserve its beauty - and that we will. I believe that love is the driving force of life. I believe that all sentient beings have feelings, thoughts and emotions and are worthy of respect. I believe in friendship and I believe that people merit our trust. I believe that laughter is healthy and can create world peace and I believe our bodies were made to be healthy and strong and to last a hundred years or more.

I believe in bliss and in the eternity or the soul and that abundance and happiness are our natural states. I believe we are our brothers' and sisters' keepers. I believe in justice, truth and fair play.

I realize this list could go on and on. I believe in goodness. And I believe that I have beliefs that don't serve me well. My limiting beliefs steer thoughts that give me results that are less than spectacular. If I want to uncover what those beliefs are, I only need to look at my results. I am financially comfortable but not as abundant as I want to be. The good news about that is that I'm getting at the root cause of that and it's changing. I grew up with the belief that in order to attract money, I had to work hard. And that is exactly what has occurred in my life. No more. Lately, more and more, I am attracting money by working with ease and, most especially, by not working at all. In fact, soon I'll be paid by the government , specifically not to work. I like this system a lot. I have noticed myself telling myself and Abby how very rich we are.

Result two - still single and still without a relationship. My beliefs about that? I have a list longer than my proverbial arm. It started in my teens when my belief was that all men wanted was sex (and I had a lot of evidence to back that up) and continued in my thirties when I believed that "there are no good men out there - all the good ones are taken." Trust me, I had a lot of evidence supporting that belief. I suspect, actually, that I deliberately looked for evidence. We would often rather be right about our beliefs than change them. What do I hear myself saying now? "At my age, it's really hard to find someone." "I can't find a man to keep up with me and to be really active." "Do I really even want to be bothered?" Yes, the list goes on.

What I need to believe is that there are tons of men out there who are active, happy, healthy and attractive who are just dying to meet me and who I would be madly happy to have a relationship with. Can I believe that? Yes, if I can find evidence and yes, I am gathering it - tiny bit by tiny bit. But that's the secret to changing beliefs - look for evidence to back up a new belief - that's what will lend it credence and make it solid. You need to cast aside doubts and proof tends to do that.

In the end, changing beliefs is all about the scientific method but I don't think it works to find evidence first - decide what you want to believe, then look for evidence - then your thoughts will change and as your thoughts change, so do your actions. The result? Well, the results you want, obviously. Just believe.