Why Do I Suffer?

 Why Do I Suffer?

Now, we could argue, “Even if I see that God doesn't prevent war because He allows us free will to incite war, I don't see why He allows me to suffer mental and physical problems. My free will certainly doesn't will that I suffer”.

The reply to this argument is contained in a post under the Science label: “The Power of Positive and Negative Thinking”. When the mind detects a problem, it tends to focus on the problem. Even considering various medications and operations is a way of keeping the mind on the problem. However, the problem tends to feed on the fear and worry. They are counterproductive thoughts.

The power of negative thinking works on a global basis as well as a personal basis. The many natural disasters – hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, volcano eruptions, tidal waves, etc. result from all the negative thoughts that fill our minds. It is not only a matter of our personal feelings – the pains, the grievances, hurt feelings, thoughts of revenge, etc., but also concerns over weather, wars, potential for wars, epidemics. These worries are fed constantly by the news media. The weatherman knows he will get a larger audience if he can predict a major storm. The newscaster can assure a large audience if he drives his audience into a panic with predictions of impending war, economic collapse, etc. Such news keeps our minds filled with the thoughts that engender harmful events.

Joel Goldsmith was a 20th Century mystic and faith healer. He understood this power of negative thinking. And it led to an unconventional healing style. A patient might enter his office with a remark like, "I have a severe case of the flu" (or some such illness) - to which Goldsmith would likely reply, "No you haven't!" No preparatory words of compassion, or assurances of God's love, but a direct attempt to dislodge the mental acceptance of the illness. And it worked. Goldsmith understood that positive focused thoughts could accomplish great things, but negative thoughts could engender disasters.

He had many revelations, but the one that revolutionized my thinking was his view of spiritual power. He said, “There is no power but God's power.” The more I thought about this revelation, the more I realized that it provided the solutions to many problems that troubled me. In some later posts, we'll try to examine more closely this source of power, but first let's attempt to discover just how powerful is this potential that exists in each. Goldsmith felt that it is tremendous. He once said, “Once you convince the subconscious of something, it will move heaven and earth to bring it about”.

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