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By Dr. Ben Lerner
In many ways, the way you look at the world and the people who
live in it has been programmed. Most of us look at events from our
own point of view: A perspective that has been programmed to judge
things in a certain way. That's why, when five eyewitnesses
are interviewed following an accident, you get just as many different
versions of the same incident and no one can agree with who's
at fault. (Does that argument sound familiar?)
These views have caused you to label things. You may call them
good, bad, important, insignificant, fun, boring, safe, dangerous,
"It's me," "It's totally not me,"
worthy, unworthy, popular, unacceptable, right, wrong and the list
goes on and on...
These judgments we're all prone to make are necessary on some
level for reasons of survival and making good decisions. However,
this natural mechanism can also lead to a miserable and defeated
life, judging and alienating all kinds of people, events and opportunities
designed to lead to fulfillment, health and all that God created
you to do.
For example, many classic TV sitcoms had episodes in which a crazy
relative from California came to visit who drove everyone nuts because
they made the stars of the show drink carrot juice, eat oatmeal
for breakfast and exercise. That's why, to this day, I suspect
many people have labeled nutritionists, chiropractors, naturopaths
and massage therapists "quacks." Meanwhile, faulty judgments
are causing these same people to continually suffer from illnesses
that these health care providers could be easily correcting.
Is That Glass Half-Empty or Half-Full?
Labeling has caused people to walk around feeling shamed, defeated
or inadequate because they've judged and named something from
the past, or a characteristic about themselves, as being bad, unacceptable,
unfair, abnormal, incapable, tragic or unrecoverable and, somehow,
that makes them less worthy of blessings than other people on the
planet.
This low self-esteem, poor self-image and mindset you've labeled
unworthy is merely a fantasy. God does not dwell on past performance.
My God is unconditional and loving. He is a past-is-forgotten, "let's
step boldly together into the future kind of force for all that's
good in this world and beyond" kind of God. If you take a minute
to change the label you've put on yourself and past events,
I believe you can almost completely change your life that same minute.
When someone loses a child, they may very well be facing the most
horrific tragedy one can confront in this life. A person going through
this level of stress has every right to a life of depression and
whatever number of drinks or medications is necessary to help them
get through the day. On the other hand, some of the greatest charities,
foundations and support groups in the world today were founded on
heart-breaking misfortune of this nature. These are people who turned
their stress to a mission.
Endless numbers of rape victims, families of alcoholics and drug
users, severe burn sufferers, divorcees, ex-convicts and people
who have gone bankrupt or failed in business have gone on to lead
victorious lives and start incredible movements that help to create
victorious, prosperous lives.
They've done this when they stopped judging and changed the
way they labeled other people and situations. They replaced the
word tragedy with other names:
- Something that can be overcome
- An opportunity
- An education
- A turning point
- A stepping-stone leading in a different direction
- A call from God to help others who have experienced the same
challenge
To call the disastrous events I've listed previously as opportunities
may seem rabid and maniacal to you. Nonetheless, millions have done
just that.
To live in congruency with our natural, God-given nature is to
be an over-comer. An over-comer is a man or woman with a purpose
and who's on a mission. Moses, David, Joseph, Jesus, Paul (the
Apostle not the Beatle), Lincoln, Beethoven, Ray Charles, Helen
Keller, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Martin Luther
King, certain families of 911 victims, and trillions of others you've
heard of and never heard of have turned personal tragedy into triumph.
Not that they haven't lived with searing pain or they haven't
suffered intense moments of loneliness, regret and despair. They've
just chosen not to go quietly into that good night. They've
chosen not to give up without a fight. They've translated failure
into purpose and re-labeled their setbacks into a lifelong mission.
Purpose and mission, such is the story of the over-comer, the un-depressed.
Dr. Ben Lerner, along
with Dr. Greg Loman, owns Teach The World About Chiropractic,
a Chiropractic training company. They have helped build the largest
spinal correction clinics in the history of Chiropractic.
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