What now?

Each human being is in a constant state of becoming.  This includes you.  As you come to sense ongoing changes, you may ask yourself, what are you supposed to do about it?  Are you supposed to sit back and just let things happen?  Would you feel better going against the grain?  Would you be content somwehere in the middle?  Must you really decide at all?

If you take the stance your thoughts exist, period, then you begin to see how you condition yourself to approve or criticize them.  If you do nothing about your thoughts, resist reacting at all, you can stand back and observe how they flow in and out like the tide.  You decide which thoughts you will grasp onto and form into beliefs or let go.

Every thought in your mind has a place.  Each one is a form of energy.  Some thoughts are blocked. If you repress thoughts, this doesn't mean you forget them.  You simply remove them from conscious awareness until you're ready to work with them.  It can be helpful to remind yourself that your thoughts belong to you but they don't define you. 

People allow themselves to meander into murky realms of negative thought when they permit themselves to experience guilt.  The negative imagery you see hides the root causes or underlying feelings.  As you remind yourself guilt was also born as an opposite of compassion, you realize you have alternative ways of perceiving and sensing. 

What you do with free will begins with how you think.   You ask questions and also hold the answers.  What satisfies you next may require you explore motivation differently.

Comments

[Bruno]

Love your post this morning Liara - You have touched on two very important subjects, guilt and free will. Anyone that acts according to another persons will, has lost their own free will and in time will become fragmented/conflicted about their life.

[Liara Covert]

Bruno, your view reinforces a pivotal reason for human contemplation. How often have you asked yourself, "should I or shouldn't I?" We don't always realize why we self-question or what invisible influences affect our self-image and perception. What's next? is a simple invitation to take responsibility for your own thoughts and actions, and nobody else's.

[Shilpan | successsoul.com]

Liara -

Wonderful post. Thoughts are energy waves that hit our brain like a tidal wave and recede before we realize. If we become mindful, we allow wise intentions to manifest our thoughts and thus find peace.

[Liara Covert]

Shilpan, the awareness and recognition of energy is itself a phase in our own personal transformation. Human beings evolve to realize conscious and unconscious change. Opportunities exist for you to actively shape your life. Opportunties also exist to simply participate in events. You always choose your thought patterns. Change is also possible.

[Evita]

What a beautiful post Liara! Thank you for reminding me that not thinking about something does not mean it is gone, but that you supress it ....I know this, but sometimes forget :)

And I completely agree we are not defined by our thoughts, yet so many people believe otherwise and hence are constantly limited throughout their life - that is until they are able to change their beliefs through and with their thoughts.

[Liara Covert]

Evita, people tell me they feel what they do for a living defines them and I would disagree. Identity, like self-image, begins as a state of mind. We put off thinking about things that we aren't ready to deal with or accept. People will often highlight and reinforce reasons for their discomfort. To explore and understand the reasons behind it will set them free.

[Donna L. Faber]

Good morning ... a particularly thought provoking post. I find it difficult to analyze the past, prior to my spiritual awakening, and not feel guilty or bad about some of my behavior. I don't know that I would have learned anything if I didn't have feelings about it. I don't beat myself up over it, but the feelings are there.

[Liara Covert]

Donna, to raise awareness of how you feel is always positive. Learning why raises your awareness to another level. You are the only person who qualifies an experience. You may initially sense it is "good" or "bad" unless you evolve to decide what you learn is meaningful for what it is and doesn't need to be judged. Moving beyond criticism and comparison is a process. Some people believe the emotional journey adds depth to life.