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Author
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Topic: the power of negative thinking
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Zeena
Advanced Member
Member # 7223
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posted
haha!
I really enjoyed that, thanks! ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
1 Corinthians 1:26-29
For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.
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Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
Posts: 749 | From: Toronto, Canada-EH! | Registered: Jun 2008
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wahl72
New Member
Member # 7239
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posted
This is a copy of an essay I just finished. Please let me know what yout think
The Power of Negative Thinking
Strange, but when I left the golf course this weekend my spirits were actually up. That doesn’t normally happen. Those who play on a regular basis have a love hate relationship with the sport. Every round starts with hopes of greatness, but each shot is just another painful reminder of our limitations. Perhaps more than any other hobby, golf takes hold of its followers and crushes their soul.
The irony is my emotions improved even though the scorecard stayed the same. It was still riddled with double and triple bogies. I did have one putt for a birdie, a 20-footer that somehow managed to roll 12 feet by the hole. I missed that putt too.
So, you may ask, if my game was still mediocre what was responsible for the attitude adjustment? It’s rather simple- simply brilliant. This round was played with three people who were far worse than me.
You should have seen these duffers. It was like they never picked up a club…well, actually, that was the case with one of them. The other two have wives and haven’t played in years. If given the chance they may redevelop their swing but today they were horrible. Had no business being out on the course, but I couldn’t be happier that they were.
As their shots splashed into the pond, ricocheted off of tress, bounced off Carolina Beach Road (nearly creating a four car pile up) my confidence started to go up. Where have these three men been all my life? Their negatives were becoming my positives.
Normally I am stuck with friends who are far better than me. I used to think that was the only way to improve. Hogwash! You want to get good and in a hurry, surround yourself with people who don’t know what they’re doing. You’ll see the difference in your performance overnight.
I am so pumped by this new found philosophy that it’s going to be put to work in all aspects of my life.
This entire decade of my 30’s I’ve been self conscious about my weight. What If I could dedicate myself to an exercise program? What If I could control my diet? Those questions are no longer going to be asked. Now I’m wondering; where can I find heavier friends? Really- what have my thin friends done for me except make me feel worse about myself? Who needs them?
Those of you who make more money than me, well, your phone calls are going to be unanswered too. Being around all the fancy cars, plasma screened televisions and hearing about your extravagant trips really was getting old. Your replacements are already lining up…it’s an unemployment line-and if they want to be my new lifelong friends they better not get a job.
I’ll miss the deep intellectual conversations that many of you provided, but the truth is having smart friends can be very stressful; living a life always on your toes, just trying to keep up and match wits. Oh, my new friends aren’t going to be stupid, just people who liked the movie more than the book. That’s a pace I can follow…heck, it’s a pace I can lead.
If my Pastor stumbles across this essay he’ll probably kick me out of the church. In a recent sermon he warned about the sin of comparison. “You will always be able to look around and see how much better you are doing than some one else. This leads to pride.” Mike Ashcraft told his congregation, “And you will always be able to find people who are doing better than you. This leads to insecurity.”
My Pastor doesn’t understand. He’s a surfer not a golfer. Surfers don’t get the scorecards with the tiny pencils. Oh, if only they came with an eraser. I could start going to work on getting rid of that human flaw to judge my life’s value based on a few questions; “What do I weigh? How much do you make? What did you shoot?”
In the end the answers to those questions are probably not going to matter, but they do now- at least to me. Somehow I still hold a handicap far greater than any of the other men in my foursome.
Strange, even though their scores were higher, all three left the course with the same high spirits I enjoyed. To them this wasn’t about results, it was about relationships. They just wanted to enjoy an afternoon with “the guys.”
One day, hopefully, that will be enough for me too. I wish it was enough now. It is such a shame that I can’t take a mulligan on the day.
(if you'd like to read other inspirtational essays I've written just log onto http://offthewahl.wordpress.com/
Posts: 3 | From: north carolina | Registered: Jul 2008
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