MENTAL DIET: HOW TO GAIN EMOTIONAL STABILITY (PART 9)

THE GAIN OF IDEAL EMOTION

“You take control of your emotions by taking control of your actions.”

-BRIAN TRACY 

PEACE OF MIND

“You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind (both in inclination and in character) is stayed on You because he commits himself to You, leans on You and hopes confidently in You”

-ISAIAH 26:3

Peace of mind is a mind at ease; it is a calm and well-balanced mind which is a conduit for power. It is in the quietness of mind that effective living is possible. Peace of mind is a mind well ordered in serenity.

There must be mental peace before there can be an unraveling of practical solutions to life’s problems. It is in the state of mental peace that creativity, initiative, and solutions to life’s issues flow through. In the absence of a peaceful mind are emotions out of control.

In the presence of a peaceful mind are emotions under full control. Peace of mind is the reserve of those who live in accordance with their highest values and inner convictions which create the mental condition of peace. When your life maintains equilibrium your mind attains equanimity.

Until peace of mind is in place, enjoying life is out of the way. Success without peace of mind is a fairy tale. The exit of negative emotions is the entrance of peace of mind.

In the state of mental peace, judgment leads to emotions following. In the state of an overheated mind, the emotional reaction leads to judgment ceasing and a crisis erupts. Inner peace or quietness is the connecting link between the human mind and the Divine Mind. Place a high premium on silence.

 Mental peace makes room for mental depth and mental depth gives you access to life’s depth which keeps you on top in the game of life. Unless we cultivate inner peacefulness, we will collapse under the weight of stress and strain. Peace of mind is a conduit for energy.

Tremendous power is made available in the presence of a quiet mind. Peace of mind stimulates the intellect and arouses creativity. Mental peace is the leading way to mental orderliness that produces an organized life. When your center is rooted in peace, harmonious living is guaranteed. An overheated mind creates an overheated life. Inner quietness is your access route to Divine power.

• To gain emotional freedom, you must emotionally detach yourself from negative people and situations to gain mental peace.

• Peace of mind really begins with being at peace with God. The start-up of having peace with God is by believing in Jesus Christ; He died that we may live; He was poor that we may be rich; He bore away our diseases and took away our weaknesses or infirmity; He rose from the dead and He’s alive and has overcome the world for us.

When you rest in God’s unconditional love for you and His saving Grace then you will begin to experience real peace of mind. Develop and maintain peace with God by fellowshipping with Him-talk to Him about everything and seek His help in all that you do. Let Jesus be at the center of your life and let everything else in your life revolve around Him.

• Peace of mind is made possible by healthy self-love; self-respect; self-acceptance; self-worth; and personal growth and development.

• Peace of mind is attainable when you are at peace with people. Forgive offenses easily. Accept people for who they are; everybody cannot be like you. Adapt to people but not susceptible to them and you will adopt mental peace.

• Make peace of mind your overriding pursuit and you will live a healthier, happier, longer, and better life.

To enjoy mental peace, mental poisons must be flushed out of the mind. When you rid the mind of mental poison then you will reap mental peace. Learn to still the thought forces-still your mind.

• Get into moments of solitude and silence; it eases the tenseness of life. Silence is a soothing balm to the soul. Observe moments of silence early in the morning; and at the night. Silence eases the tension of life.

• Get into a quiet place; relax-still your body and mind.  As you still your mind and body, close your eyes and say with sincerity, “I empty my mind of all hatred, doubt, fear, guilt, worry, and all negativity. And let the peace of God which surpasses all human understanding flood my mind and let Love rule my mind.”

• To gain peace of mind, engage in proactive action rather than emotional reaction. When you are busy working on the solution you won’t be sullen with negativity.

•  Mentally picture yourself responding calmly with emotional control in situations that had previously triggered an emotional reaction. Visualize peaceful relaxing scenes; moments of happiness and victories.

When faced with a problem or an upsetting situation, engage in proactive action rather than in an emotional reaction; stay focused on working on the constructive solution to the problem rather than being overwhelmed in a tense emotional state which is destructive.

• Let it go! Let every grievance go, let resentment go, let every injustice go. Let go of every emotional baggage and mental peace will come and abide in you.

 When you live habitually in ways that are contrary to the ways of God, you will never experience the way of mental peace. When you habitually live in harmony with the ways of God, you will live in mental harmony. Where moral rightness dwells; peace of mind reigns. Where moral wrongness dwells peace of mind flees. 

Create silent moments in your life to ease off the stress and strain of life and build up the condition of peace.

• When tension reigns peace of mind is enslaved. Relaxation is the balance between work and rest. It is a period of physical and mental renewal. Practice deep breathing.

• Deep breathing or abdominal breathing aids oxygen circulation in the blood which distributes oxygen to the muscles and this helps muscles to relax, consequently acting as a pain and stress reliever.

Norman Vincent Peale reveals, “One method I employ is to use the words: ‘be still, and know that I am God,” (Psalm 46:10) as a practical physical relaxation formula.

“In bed, ready for a good night’s rest, I get into a comfortable position and then say: “Be still my muscles and know God’s relaxation. Be still, my nerves, and know God’s rest. Be still, my heart, and know God’s quietness. Be still, my body, and know God’s renewal. Be still, my mind, and know God’s peace.” This should be repeated several times.”

POSITIVE EMOTIONS

“When Jesus noticed him lying there (helpless) knowing that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, Do you want to become well? (Are you ready in earnest about getting well)

-JESUS CHRIST (John 5:6).

“But the fruit of the (Holy) Spirit (the work which His presence within accomplishes) is love, joy (gladness) peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness, gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control (self-restraint, continence). Against such, there is no law (that can bring a charge). And those who belong to Christ Jesus (the Messiah) have crucified the flesh (the godless human nature with its passions and appetites and desires.”

-SAINT PAUL (Galatians 5:22-24)

To get rid of negative emotions and transition to developing and integrating positive emotions into your life, self-sabotage must be defeated. Self-sabotage is actions rooted in self-defeating ideas and beliefs. This implies that toxic emotions are rooted in toxic beliefs and toxic thoughts that damage the personality and produce failure in destiny.

Your emotions are the offspring of the way you think and believe. However, you must be ready to let go of ideas, beliefs, and thought pattern that is negative and destructive and produces negative or toxic emotions.

Focus on ideas and beliefs that produce positive emotions. When your mind is immersed in truth, positive emotions will dominate your life. When your mind is saturated with error, negative emotions will deteriorate your life. In the presence of truth, positivity reigns. In the absence of truth, negativity enslaves.

The Word of God (Bible) is Truth. To begin with, get immersed in the teachings of Jesus and you will experience a radical transformation in your life as you will be empowered to overcome negative emotions and manifest positive emotions. 

SELF-MASTERY

Why do kings who held the scepter of authority and power come crumbling down in shame and dishonor? Why do the wealthy who built empires walk the streets as peasants? Why do married couples who walk down the aisle confessing their love for each other eventually get divorced?

Why do people who had unique talents and attained the hall of fame end up with a marred reputation and a life full of crisis? Why do people who had the potential of living a long life suddenly cut off in the midst of their years?

Why do vibrant healthy individuals suddenly get caught up with a dilapidating disease? Why are our prisons filled with convicts who had the potential of becoming great in the world? The questions could be endless. The guaranteed answer is a lack of self-mastery.

Self-mastery or self-control is the ability to take possession of the territory of the mind. It is the ability to deliberately choose the thoughts that dominate your mind and keep out those thoughts that you don’t want to gain entrance into your mind. It is the ability to master or subdue negative emotions while controlling and directing positive emotions.

Emotions are mental states transmitted through feelings. Self-mastery is the balance between reasoning and emotions filtered through moral conscience. Self-mastery is the foremost and highest victory one can ever achieve; whosoever conquers self has nothing else to conquer.

If you can control your thoughts you can control your world. If you can master yourself you can master life in all its facets. Most people fail in life because they allow their thoughts, words, and deeds to run wild, they permit their minds to absorb the falsehood and negativity released by other minds.

An individual with self-mastery controls his or her appetites; food, drink and sex, and also spending habits. Self-mastery does not accommodate hatred, envy, jealousy, fear, revenge, selfishness, greed, and pride. Self-mastery is not servile; it is not emotional and mentally dependent on others. A person with self-mastery does not engage in gossip or idle chatter. Self-mastery readily forgives and does not strike back in kind.

Until you gain control over yourself, you will lose control over your life. When emotions become your boss, you will act first and think afterward (if at all), which leads to a crisis in life. However, when you function with self-mastery you think first and act afterward which produces a great outcome in destiny.

Therefore, self-mastery is deliberately choosing positive and constructive thoughts that harmonize with your dreams and aspirations and making it your dominating pattern of thinking while rejecting all other contrary or negative suggestions.

Self-mastery empowers you to gain control over your emotions; maximizing positive emotions and mastering negative emotions. However, if you want to possess self-mastery you must have an intense desire for it; the greater the depth of your desire the greater the level of self-mastery you will attain.