Silence the Negativity! (1)

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Is it just me or are there times in life when a cloud of negativity hangs around and just won't dissipate? Think about it; how many times have seemingly unrelated events led you to the brink of depression and left you feeling blue? How often have you had a bright idea, and immediately, a voice in your head lists all the things that could possibly go wrong? How many times have you tried to take a step forward but the negative thoughts in your head kept you glued to the same spot, making you feel the full effect of stagnancy? I guess we have all experienced this at some point in our lives. 

Negativity is mostly the result of past experiences that have multiplied into bits and pieces of fear which culminate monstrously to stagnate our minds, and cause us to fixate on the possible negatives, rather than the possible positives. Sometimes negativity is a result of fear born from our observation of other people's experiences; I saw a movie where two people fell out of a theme park ride and plunged to their deaths, and since then, I maintained a healthy distance from theme parks. Many psychologists will call it some kind of phobia, but the truth is the phobia or fear makes me focus on the negative what-ifs. Most times, it is a combination of both our experiences and those of others. It doesn't help if these negative events occur in succession; the most likely human outcome is to adjust to a pessimistic mind set which is often difficult to recondition. 

Negativity is an elephant many of us do not like to confront. In fact, we believe if we acknowledge it's there, it might take the shape of a man or a woman and actually start camping out on our sofas, or even sharing our beds with us. Here's the thing we need to understand. If it's there in your mind, that is as real as it gets. It will affect your actions without you knowing it, and it will affect your decisions, your relationships and even your success as an individual. The best way to deal with negativity is to acknowledge its existence and silence it without even second-guessing yourself. 

Recently, I started an exercise where I acknowledge negative thoughts; I feel them coming and I accept the force with which they are arriving, and just when they are about to set up their tents and camp beds, I tell myself loudly that I am not what these thoughts suggest, nor am I what my mind is trying to make me believe. This is because I have learned that Satan loves to dramatize things and exaggerate them. How else will he confound the children of God if he does not make them feel like they are falling off a cliff?

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