by Guy Finley
Key Lesson: Who you really are can't be "interrupted" by a thought, or some dark emotional state, anymore than a passing rain cloud disturbs the open sky through which it passes.
The Courage to Be Free of Negative States
Your original Self doesn't come loaded with worry, regret, fear, resentment, or, for that matter, any other self-limiting states that can grow where darkness gathers.
Self-limiting thoughts or feelings have power over us only when we are tricked into believing that we need something we don't. When we let this happen, we begin to look at familiar negative thoughts and feelings as old friends; and though we want to be free of them, we still call on their powers to help us. We look to them to guide us, as when we walk and talk with worried thoughts, or when we embrace angry emotions for their short-term strength. But truth tells otherwise.
In and of themselves, negative states provide us with nothing of value. Instead, they make victims of all those who seek their counsel. A short example will help prove this last important point and reveal how we are deceived into acting against our own best interests.
When life falls apart, or threatens to come unglued, it seems almost natural to carry around some desperate, stressed, or depressed emotional state. But why cling to something that makes us ache? The answer is surprising, but evident, once we're aware of what's actually taking place within us.
Negative states tell us that we must feel as we do.
In some strange and unseen way, the weight of a dark worry serves as proof that we have "no option" other than to buckle beneath it... to fall down, feel betrayed, or prepare for a fight.
To awaken, reclaim, and possess the courage we need to be free, we must remember this great and timeless truth: Real life can no more act to pull us down than the rising sun can burden the spring flowers that wait to bathe in its nourishing light.
This article is excerpted from The Courage to Be Free (pages 27-29).
Guy Finley is the best-selling author of The Secret of Letting Go, The Essential Laws of Fearless Living, and 35 other works that have sold over a million copies in 18 languages worldwide. His work has been featured on hundreds of radio and TV networks including NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, NPR, and PBS. Guy has spent the last 30 years showing individuals the authentic path to a higher life filled with happiness, success, and true love. Finley lives and teaches in Merlin, Oregon where he is Director of non-profit Life of Learning Foundation. http://www.guyfinley.org/
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PURCHASE paperback book, Whose Stuff Is This? Finding Freedom from the Thoughts, Feelings, and Energy of Those Around You at http://tinyurl.com/EmpathAmazon. The e-book version is now available for Kindle, iPhone, iPad, and other digital reading devices.
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