What Do YOU Believe?

Little Johnny stood in the water – about to be baptized. In a booming voice, the preacher asked, “Do you believe?” The boy trembled, but managed to respond, “Yes, sir! I believe!”

In a voice even more powerful than before, the preacher intoned, “What do you believe?!” Unsure of what the “right” answer was and not wanting to make a mistake, the little boy answered, “I just believe.”

With that, the preacher took Johnny’s shoulders and pushed the child’s entire body under water.

When the boy came up sputtering, once again, the preacher asked, “Do you believe?!” Again, the boy’s response was, “Yes, sir! I believe!” Once again, the preacher asked, “What do you believe?” Johnny was still unsure of the proper response, so he repeated, “I just believe.”

Once again, the preacher dunked little Johnny completely into the baptismal waters.

When the preacher asked for the third time, “Do you believe?” and “What do you believe?” Johnny knew exactly how to respond. He quickly moved outside of the preacher’s reach & shouted, “I believe you’re trying to drown me!”

A Course in Miracles states, “No belief is neutral. Every one has the power to dictate each decision you make. For a decision is a conclusion based on everything you believe. It is an outcome of belief…”

As we go through out day-to-day activities, it is important that we examine what belief it is that is supporting the decisions that we make.

For example, when you come home from work, perhaps a little tired and frustrated by the day’s happenings, you have the opportunity to decide how you will interact with your family when you walk through the door.

You can decide to put the irritations and aggravations of the work day aside based on the belief that your family and your relationship with your family members is much more important than anything that has gone on at work. With this underlying belief you might ask your spouse or significant other to sit down with you over a cup of tea or a glass of wine and calmly discuss your respective experiences of the day. The stresses of the day are reduced in the give & take of talking and listening to one another.

On the other hand, you may have an unspoken belief that says, “I know they love me, so I can just “let loose” here at home. Why should I have to act like everything was great at work when it was really pretty awful?” If this is your belief, you may find yourself taking out your frustrations on those you love the most.

Life was good for the young Smith family. They had recently moved into their “dream home.” It was much bigger than the condo they had been living and was located on a small lake. The setting was idyllic – much more rural than anywhere they had ever lived before – complete with a well & septic system.

Because they had recently had their third child, the decision was made that Mrs. Smith would be a stay-at-home Mom. It seemed reasonable since, the cost of child care for 3 little ones would practically eat up everything she could earn by working outside the home, anyway.

After a particularly tough day at the office, Jack came home to find his wife & children happily playing on the small, sandy beach in front of their new home. He thought to himself, “Boy, it must be nice to be able to just lay in the sun & play around all day – while I’m busting my butt, putting up with b.s. all day!”

He remembered that they were nearly out of toilet tissue and wondered if Mary had taken the time out of her “busy schedule” to replenish this household necessity. When he asked about it, his wife replied, “Oh yes, I stopped at the corner store on the way to take Suzy to her play date. I plan to go to the big discount store later this week, after you get paid, and stock up on what we usually buy.”

Jack thought to himself, “Everything at the corner store is overpriced! Doesn’t she understand that with 3 kids, a new house, and only one of us working, we’re on a really tight budget?!”

It was more than he could take! Not only was his fuse short, it was lit & the bomb was about to explode! All the stress, strain & frustration of his work day came rushing out.

How could she be so inconsiderate? Didn’t she understand that every penny counted? And besides – they were on a septic system and used paper better suited to that – next thing you know they’d have to spend $1,000s of dollars to have it dug up & replaced!

Within a short time of his arrival at home, the children were crying as Mom & Dad screamed at each other about TOILET PAPER!

As silly as that story may sound, there are situations very similar happening every day.

The difference between ending a stressful day at work by sharing your burdens with a loved one or taking your frustrations out on a loved one is based on the belief behind the decision you make when you walk through the door of your home.

This same principle applies in every area of life – the work place, social situations, your health & physical well being. Every thought we think, every action we take is predicated by the underlying core belief.

Take the time to look at your own beliefs and how they are affecting your life. You may find that there are negative beliefs that are causing you to make decisions that are not in your own best interest.

While changing core beliefs is not a “quick fix” it is something that can be done through self examination and continuous, persistent effort to shift your thinking. Lasting positive change can only come through adjusting your core beliefs to those which support the life you truly wish to live.

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