YOU are powerful!

I am reading a couple different books right now, and as I read I'm noticing a common thread among them all...the power of positive thinking. We each have the power to control our thoughts, whether we choose to exert that power or not is up to us.  

"The Magic of Believing" is a small little book written in 1948 by Claude M. Bristol and it has had quite an impact on my daily life. I'm only about half way through the book, but I'm already seeing a change in myself since I began to implement his ideas. The whole idea of the book is that our thoughts actually carry an energy, so we need to continuously make sure our thoughts are positive, therefore creating positive outcomes in our lives. He gives many examples of the validity of his theory, and he also goes into a lot of scientific detail that I don't completely understand, but overall I grasped the concept. Think positively, and positive things will happen. Since I started his book I have felt more alive and been more successful than ever! I've been getting up earlier, being more productive, excelling in the work place, eating better, exercising more. And it's all happening because I've changed the way I think.

The second book I've been reading is "How Successful People Think" by John C. Maxwell. Now this book is nice because he writes with lots of bullet points and lists. His book feels more like, follow-these-steps-and-you'll-be-successful. Once again, a good portion of his book focuses on how your thinking determines your success, no matter what you're trying to be successful at. The third book is called "The Power of Positive Thinking" and I've only just started that one.

Each person has the power to determine how happy, how successful, how healthy and how wealthy they will be. It's all in your attitude and your thinking! I truly believe that. Everyone has insecurities and doubts, that's natural. But we each have the power to turn those insecurities into strengths and doubts into faith! YOU have the power to choose... Only you can change your thinking. It's difficult to be accountable for your thinking when no one can read your thoughts. But your words come from your thoughts, and chances are if you're being negative out loud then whatever is going on in your head is probably much worse. Find someone who will keep you accountable for the things you say. Let the people you're close to know that you don't want to speak negatively anymore. To train yourself to only speak positively you can try the rubber band trick. Wear a rubber band on your wrist and every time you say or think something negative snap yourself. That will condition your brain to associate pain with negative thinking. If you're finding that your friends aren't supporting you in being positive, then maybe you should evaluate your friendships. Do your friends encourage you to be negative? Do they have your best interests at heart? You are who you hang out with, so be careful who you spend the majority of your time with. 

The verse "be transformed by the renewing of your mind" is one that I've been thinking about a lot lately. We must constantly be telling our minds how to think. We can't just let our thoughts run wild, because we all know that's what gets us into trouble (especially those of us with anxiety!). We have to tell our subconscious mind how to think. If you want a promotion at work, you need to repeat in your head, "I'm going to get it. I have what it takes. I am qualified. They're going to promote me." There is power of life and death in the tongue, and the same goes for thoughts. What you think, will be. "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength," is a lovely little verse that I repeat over and over when I'm feeling a little unsure about something. 

I just want everyone who reads this to be aware of the fact that their thoughts have more power than they realize. Train yourself to envision things working out in every area of your life, and they will. And also, read "The Magic of Believing" and "The Power of Positive Thinking." Your life will be forever changed. 

Faith.Hope.Love.
Chelsea Rae

If you're going through hell, keep on going

These are life lessons that I have learned and things I try to live by. I’m looking forward to this list growing and changing as I get older, but I hope you can benefit from what I've learned in my life thus far. 


1. Get the negative people out of your life

Negativity breeds negativity. Don’t allow people to bring you down. Life is 90% attitude and 10% circumstance. You have the power to choose your attitude every morning.


2. “Act as if”

If you want to be a manager or leader at your job or otherwise, you need to act as if you are one already. Carry yourself as a manager would. Be early, stay late, be focused, take initiative, set goals, communicate with your leaders, set an example, be a leader.


3. Don’t let things get behind you

Know what events are coming up and start preparing way in advance. 


4. Take care of yourself

Get enough sleep every night, eat well, drink lots of water. More than that, you need to take care of yourself spiritually and emotionally. Don’t let your job become your relationship. Make time for the important people in your life and make time for God. He obviously made time for you when he created you and then died for you.


5. Have a plan

Where do you want to be in a year? 2 years? 5? Work from back to front. Plan out how you’re going to get where you’re going down to the month. “If you fail to plan you plan to fail.”


6. Be financially responsible

Budget your money, set a goal for how much you want to have in savings in 1 year, 5 years, 10 years and create a plan on how you’re going to do that. 


7. Stay on good terms with everyone you encounter, don’t make enemies

The more people you have on your side, the better. One key to being successful is networking. It’s not what you know, it’s who you know. The more people you know and who know you, the better.


8. Be a leader in all things

In fashion, in speech, in action, in the way you treat others, in lifestyle. Don’t conform to what everyone around you is doing. Set the bar high for yourself and don’t let other people dissuade you. You are different, you are unique, you have been called to a higher standard. You are not ordinary.


9. Be trustworthy

Reputation is everything. People are judgmental and a bad reputation will spread much faster than a good one. 


10. Talk yourself up

Sometimes there won’t be anyone to encourage you. You will only have yourself. Look in the mirror and tell yourself how awesome you are. 


11. Be balanced

It’s easy to be a workaholic. Make sure you make time for yourself and do things that fill you up and give you joy.


12. Always strive to be better

Everyone has negative qualities, and you have the power to change those qualities. If you’re not growing, you’re dying. Don’t settle for mediocrity, and don’t settle in relationships. Friendship or romantic. You have the power to choose the people who are in your life.



13. Stay humble

Humility will take you very far. While you need to believe that you’re awesome and that you’re going places, you also need to acknowledge that everything you have is a gift from God. Humility will bring you more respect from peers, friends, coworkers, and authority figures than pride will.


14. Know what you believe (morally and otherwise) and stick to it

Don’t be wishy-washy, that ruins your credibility. Keep your standards and morals high, even if people around you have lowered theirs. People are watching you, even if you don’t realize it, and if you slip and take the easy road just one time, that could ruin everything you’ve been working for. 


15. Don’t take yourself or life too seriously.

No one likes a person who has a stick up their ass. Know how and when to have fun. Learn how to laugh at yourself. It puts everyone around you at ease.


16. Be honest

Honesty is the best policy, always. 


17. Seek advice

Don’t pretend like you can do everything on your own. Find someone older than you who is in a position or place you want to be, and ask them how they got there. Be willing to learn. Have an open mind.


18. Love everyone

Don’t be a hater. Treat others how you want to be treated. Allow yourself to care about people, not just about things. 


After reading this through again, I am so motivated to do all of these things even more than I do them now! I really hope this encouraged and motivated you!

Faith.Hope.Love.
Chelsea Rae

Sometimes I don't know what I believe. And that's okay.

I'm forewarning you all that this post is very honest and may be a little offensive to some. I may not be 100% theologically correct in this particular post, but keep in mind these are my thoughts and ideas. They change all the time. Bear with me.

So, I think everyone just needs to start being more honest with themselves. God does not expect us to know all the answers. I'm tired of people trying to give the impression of perfection. It takes SO much effort to seem like you have it all together!

It's okay to say, "I don't know." Sometimes, that is an acceptable answer. For example, people talk about marriage equality a lot. "Do you support same sex marriage?" It's okay to say, "I don't know." You don't always need to have an opinion or a point of view. If you can't explain why you do or don't believe something, then don't take a side! Just be open minded, research the topic, and form your opinion as you live your life.

Some Christians try to preach black and white. There are no "gray areas" so to speak. I disagree. I think there are plenty of gray areas and we each have to use our best judgement to determine what we believe.

I stumbled upon this amazing website, deeperstory.com, and I encourage you to check it out.

As a person, whether you are Christian, Buddhist, Mormon, Atheist, etc--I challenge you to question your belief system. Play the devil's advocate. Why do you believe what you believe? When did you first believe it to be true? Ask questions, do some research. Dare to dissect your belief system down to its very core. That  takes guts.

If we're talking honestly, which we are, I will admit that I have disdained the organized Christian church for some time. Not necessarily one specific church or sect of Christianity, just the way we do church these days. I want more. I feel that modern day church doesn't line up with what Jesus preached during his lifetime. I understand that Jesus commanded us meet and fellowship with each other regularly, but I don't see why going to church every week is the way we're supposed to do that.

I have so much more on my mind, but I'm getting sleepy. I will write more soon. Thanks for reading. =)

Faith.Hope.Love.
Chelsea Rae