Change Your Life Tap Into The Power Of Belief

SPLASHING THE COLD, CHLORINATED WATER OVER MY RIGHT SHOULDER ONCE AND THEN OVER MY LEFT SHOULDER TWICE. Flipping my swim cap inside and out exactly three times before putting it on my head. Making sure my goggles were tightened to the exact same measurement on both sides. These were the habits of the provincial-level swimmer I once was. LIKE ANY GOOD ATHLETE, I HAD BUNS OF STEEL, RAZOR SHARP FOCUS AND MY SHARE OF SUPERSTITIONS! I truly believed that if I had the water throwing, cap flipping, and goggle tightening just right, I would win the race before me and shave ample time off my speciality, the 50 meter freestyle. I WAS THE WADE BOGGS OF THE CRESCENT TOWN SWIM TEAM. Now, I didn't eat a big chicken dinner before every game or write the Hebrew letters for the word "Chai" (meaning "life") every time I had to perform athletically like the great American ballplayer did. But I had my fair share of superstitious habits that, I believed, if followed closely would make me push the water harder, hold my breath longer, and hit that time board sooner. WHEN IT COMES TO THE SUPERSTITIOUS BEHAVIOR OF TODAY'S PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES, BOGGS AND I ARE IN GOOD COMPANY. Recently, a spat of athletes including pro basketball player and reality TV star Lamar Odom have taken to wearing colorful silicone bracelets produced by a company called, "Power Balance". Odom is one of many of today's top athletes who believe this rubber jewellery will give them super athletic abilities when worn in training and competition. THE MAKERS OF THESE BRIGHT LITTLE BAUBLES CLAIM THAT ELECTRICAL FREQUENCIES ARE EMITTED BY A MYLAR HOLOGRAM disk embedded within each bracelet. The promise? That these trinkets will "resonate with and respond to the body's natural energy field, maximizing balance, strength and flexibility." THOSE ARE SOME PRETTY BIG CLAIMS! I WOULD IMAGINE IF THEY ARE TRUE THESE LITTLE RUBBER SUCKERS ARE GOING TO BE EVERYWHERE IN NO TIME! We ought to expect to see them on the wrists of everyone from senior citizens struggling with balance to babes learning to walk! Some might say, the Power Balance bracelets have already saturated the market with sales of 2.5 million bracelets in 2009 alone! WHILE THERE IS NO SUBSTANTIAL SCIENTIFIC PROOF FOR THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THESE BRACELETS, what there is proof of, and what may be behind the power of these bright bracelets, is what scientist's call the placebo effect. What is the placebo effect? It's simple. The placebo effect refers to the phenomenon in which some people experience some type of benefit after the administration of a placebo, a substance with no known medical effects, such as sterile water, saline solution, or a sugar pill. SCIENTISTS USE PLACEBO'S ALL THE TIMEIN CASE STUDIES TO PROVE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF MEDICATIONS. To do this, they will covertly give one group of volunteers placebos and another group of volunteers the actual medication they are studying. More often than not, the placebo-laden participants will claim to derive the benefits of the medication in question. Scientists then compare just how much relief each group is claiming to be getting in order to determine the efficacy of the medicine being studied. SO WHAT'S HAPPENING WHEN A PLACEBO CAUSES AN INDIVIDUAL TO BELIEVE SHE OR HE HAS BEEN TREATED WITH AN EFFECTIVE MEDICATION because they are experiencing relief from uncomfortable symptoms. Anne Harrington, a professor for the history of Science at Harvard and a specialist on this subject notes that, "A person's belief that they have been given a pain reliever can actually cause the pituitary to release the endorphins which are the brain's natural painkillers." In other words, a placebo is a fake treatment that can produce a real response. OKAY, SO IS IT JUST ME OR IS IT NOTABLE THAT IN THE FIELD OF SCIENCE, THE MECCA OF LOGIC AND RATIONAL INQUIRY, THE POWER OF BELIEF HAS COME TO BE DEPENDED UPON TO DETERMINE SCIENTIFIC CONCLUSIONS. It seems the connection between belief and what becomes our reality is undeniable even in scientific circles! Whether we call it superstition, the placebo effect, spiritual mumbo jumbo, there is no denying the power of belief. Science cannot explain it, psychology cannot pinpoint it, and I, for one, cannot get enough of it! I AM CONFIDENT THAT HUMAN BEINGS ARE CREATED WITH THE INNATE SENSE THAT THERE IS SOMETHING MORE TO BELIEVE IN, SOMETHING THAT CAN PROVIDE ANSWERS FOR US WHEN WE NEED THEM. Dr. Tor Wager, a professor of psychology at the University of Colorado who specializes in neuroscience says, "We are hardwired to look for patterns and causes for events." She notes that this behavior was evident in our hunter-gatherer forbears. If they saw a group of Iberomesornis birds (these now extinct birds looked like sparrows but with really sharp teeth!) rush out of some bushes and up into the sky a few meters away from where they were standing, our cavemen relatives would likely get out of the vicinity because a predator could be looming. Even our stone age relatives sought to connect the dots and believe in things they might not see or initially understand. EVERY HUMAN BEING ON THE PLANET KNOWS THAT BELIEF IS INEXTRICABLY LINKED TO THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE. When we believe in something, good or bad, it has a way of creeping into our lives and taking over. What comes to pass, what comes to be for our lives, this all depends on what we choose to believe in, what we choose to believe about our lives. Put the power of belief to good use and there are often amazing results. "I believe that I will finish school and work as a teacher like I have always dreamed. I believe that this marriage will last and we will have a good family life. I believe that I will live a long and healthy life." Put the power of belief to bad use and it can often capsize our lives. "I don't believe I am smart enough to accomplish my dreams. I don't believe that relationships work out. I don't believe I have the ability to live in a healthy manner." NOW I KNOW THAT LIFE THROWS US CURVE BALLS AND SOMETIMES, NO MATTER WHAT WE CHOOSE TO BELIEVE ON, WE CANNOT DO ANYTHING ABOUT THINGS like unforeseen financial struggles, illness, betrayal, natural disasters, etc. Why do things like this happen, and often to the best of us? Why is the refrain of that old song, "Only the Good Die Young!" so ominously true in the world? THERE REALLY ISN'T ONE PERSON WHO CAN OFFER A DEFINITIVE ANSWER TO THE MYSTERIOUS TRAGEDIES OF THIS WORLD. But there are many who can attest to the power of belief despite the darkness that rattles each of us on an ongoing basis. It's been my experience that if you go where the shadows of evil loom worst in the world, you will find people who's souls burn so bright with hope and belief that the darkness seems to lose it's grip. THOSE WHO WORK WITH THE POOR AND ABUSED, THOSE WHO RESCUE SEX TRADE WORKERS, THOSE WHO HELP DOWNTRODDEN FAMILIES. These people choose to believe in good and guess what, goodness comes to surround them. What we believe for ourselves, for our lives, for the world, will generally come to pass. Not always, but often enough that we should sit up and take notice. CHOOSING TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE POWER OF ONE'S BELIEF, MEANS CHOOSING TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE KIND OF BELIEF THAT ONE IS PRONE TO AND MAKING ANY NECESSARY CHANGES. It is important that we choose to believe in the best outcome to our situations. Why? Well, if science is right, if our lives are evidence enough, if what the Bible says is true, then believing in good things actually brings good things to pass.Even if we face tragedy or wrongdoing, our choice to believe, to have good faith, despite our circumstances will lead to a good outcome. THERE IS SO MUCH EVIDENCE FOR THE FACT THAT HUMANS HAVE AN INNATE ABILITY TO BELIEVE THAT IS SO STRONG THAT IT CAN ACTUALLY SWAY THEIR REALITY. While some capitalize on this, (ahem, "The Secret"), the reality is that this gift is not to be used to believe ourselves into power, prominence or prosperity. If that were the case, the world would not be able to sustain the 7 billion mansions, Mercedes, and manicured lawns we would all demand. I know, I am assuming the entire world is as shallow as I am! The power of our belief is clearly not something we are meant to use for pure self-gratification. So, no matter how bad I want that flock of purple ponies and how much I believe they will be waiting for me in the back yard of my semi detached house, they are not likely to show up! WHAT IS THE POWER OF BELIEF MEANT FOR YOU ASK? Well, I think it is meant to lead us to the source of why we desire to believe in the first place. The creator of the universe, the original arbiter of good, created each one of us with the power of belief embedded within our DNA so that eventually we would come to believe in Him, come to know Him, come back to Him. If you were a parent and you had to send your newborn child away to be raised elsewhere, wouldn't you give them something, a trinket, a book, a map, that would lead them home to you again because you love them so much? Wouldn't you want them to one day come to you and understand that you are their parent? Why would you do this? Because, you would want them to know themselves in light of your love. You would want them to know they are treasured, that they have unique giftings, and that there is a great plan for their lives! THE HUMAN TENDENCY TO BELIEVE AND THE POWER OF SUCH BELIEF IS THE CALLING CARD OF THE DIVINE, reminding us that God has made each of us in love, that He has gifted us with unique abilities and that He has a distinct plan for each of our lives. The key to unlocking these realities of love, gifting, and purpose for our lives is to unlock our belief in the one who created us. Then, as we believe in our creator, we come to believe in all that He has planned for us and guess what, those plans can actually come to fruition. SOUL FOOD FOR THE JOURNEY:"YOU'LL DO BEST BY FILLING YOUR MINDS AND MEDITATING ON THINGS TRUE, NOBLE, REPUTABLE, AUTHENTIC, COMPELLING, GRACIOUS-THE BEST, NOT THE WORST; THE BEAUTIFUL, NOT THE UGLY; THINGS TO PRAISE, NOT THINGS TO CURSEDO THAT, AND GOD, WHO MAKES EVERYTHING WORK TOGETHER, WILL WORK YOU INTO HIS MOST EXCELLENT HARMONIES (Phil 4:8, The Message)"