Thinking is the key to destiny. Every success in life – whether in science and technology, business, or personal success—begins with someone thinking. However, there are laws that govern thinking, which any thinker needs to understand just as the chemist or physicist needs to understand the laws of chemistry and physics respectively. Today, let us consider one of the laws of thinking known as the Law of Substitution.
This Law states that the only way to get rid of a certain thought is to substitute another one for it. In other words, you cannot dismiss a thought directly. The only way you can dismiss a thought is to think another thought to replace it. It sounds so simple and commonsensical, but we hardly apply it.
In the physical realm for example, you can drop a book or any object by simply opening your hand to release it. Not so with thought. If you want to dismiss, say a negative thought, you cannot just instantly erase it from your mind. The only way to get rid of it is to think of something positive and constructive.
Let us illustrate this. If I say to you, ‘Don’t think about your hometown.’ Of course, that is what you instantly think about. Now that you are thinking about your hometown, suppose your favorite TV or radio program starts, you instantly forget about your hometown as your attention and thought shifts to your favorite program.
You may ask. ‘But I am sometimes overwhelmed with negative thoughts, what do I do’? True, negative thoughts may be so much that we struggle to overcome them. This is often the source of worries, anxieties, and depression at times, but now that you know the law of substitution, simply apply it, and this is the way.
Turn your attention to something completely different, refusing steadfastly to think of, discuss, repeat, or rework the negativity. Then, after you have gotten away and forgotten about it for some time, if necessary, you may revisit it, this time clear-eyed with confidence, and on your own terms, not with anxiety or worry. You are now positioned to pray about it to secure a solution.
‘But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil…’ Matt 5:39
We shall be looking at the Law of Circulation in the next posting.
Remain blessed brethren.