Saturday, October 26, 2013

Business of Belief ... having faith in God's Power

by Dale Shumaker
www.spiritsavvy.net
4spirit@gmail.com

The Business of Belief by Tom Asacker is about understanding belief, what it is and how it is created.

Those who inspire and move others practice the business of belief. Here are some key thoughts in the Business of Belief. It is much like a compilation of proverbs on belief and what you can do.


 What They Know
Belief starts with our choices. We believe so then we choose. They are many times no more than our assumptions. Belief is opinion, so our opinion becomes our reality. Our beliefs make the work convincingly real to us. Our unique perspective on things form our belief about what is around us; it drives our decisions.

 Everything is inherently without meaning. Except for the meaning we create. We think in stories and stories steer our lives. We ultimately expect to find meaning in our lives by editing our stories, by freely mixing and  matching our decisions to create a narrative authentic to us.and others. Our minds crave control, so we direct our stories so we can feel safe. We want guided control along with freedom to create our own meaning, our own story; we want the illusion of control. 

People believe in things as long as there's a reason and evidence to  believe them. For entrepreneurs and other risk takers desire fuels belief, especially in their ability to control their destiny, and through thoughtful and determined action. Desire drives belief which motivates people to seek out information and act in certain ways that help them attain those desires. What we believe is what we desire, and what we desire is ultimately what we do. 

What They Do
The essential first step to changing people's behavior is to understand their perspectives and embrace their dreams and beliefs. Everything else flows naturally from there. It takes having an intuitive sense for the reality in which people live. Great designers design new beliefs. 
People are drawn across the bridge to belief by their anticipation of a better experience and a better life.  

Effective leaders ignite people's imaginations. If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more you are a leader. Simplify the belief process by eliminating difficulties and competing options on our attention. 

Belief is a result of experience and repetition, both within and without, which makes our actions feel familiar and safe. We teach belief by believing in others, and they in turn increase belief themselves. It's behavior rather than understanding that best influences our beliefs. We must not only know we are on the right path in life, but we must feel and be affected by it. Your best argument is always yourself, your exuberance, your vitality, your passion, your belief. The person most confident in himself gains the confidence of others. Be willing to express confidence with boldness and passion. 

Learn to control emotional impulses, when to speak or not, when to respond to an email or not. Conceal the how, and keep that a mystery.  People despise reality, but love what appears to be true. Make us feel comfortable, invested, and in complete control... a blend of passion, creativity, self-awareness and impulse control. So when the task is accomplished people will say, we did it ourselves. 

What You Can Do
We must believe everything we think, and question the validity of our lazy assumptions. We must break the happy trance of our present beliefs and create new thinking. Insanity may be doing the same thing over and over again and expecting the same results. If it ain't broke yet, it may be time to fix it. Watch and really wonder. Question and fully explore. Be driven by curiosity and passion. Have the wisdom and courage to follow your heart. You are not your history. Forget what you have done; forget what others are doing. What are you passionate about, now go do that. That's who you are. 

We are moved by our perceptions, by our immediate concerns and desires.
Made the choice first and allow that choice to direct your thoughts, inform your instincts, your feelings, your perceptions. Those who surpass a reality, begin with belief. Driven by a sense of purpose.

 In baseball the batters response to seeing a pitch and his physical response is about 450 milliseconds. Whereas, a major league pitcher's throw from hand to catcher is about 400 milliseconds. So how can a batter hit a ball as the speed exceeds the batters ability to see(perception), feel, think(cognition) and swing(decision and action). Instead of allowing perception, their present reality, to drive their actions, they begin with belief. Belief surpasses natural ability.

Breakthrough thinking is about belief, then a person's perception. Conviction then action, heart then head. Seeing isn't believing, believing is seeing. Act as if you already have it. Your actions will convince your mind. Influence your attitude by controlling your actions. Change your behavior and your behavior will change your mind.

 You never change things by fighting your existing reality. To change something build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete. To change your beliefs change your behavior. Comfort is an illusion, a fantasy that imagines freedom from pain and suffering if only we stay still and avoid change. Say no to short-term comforting activities and say yes to fear, passion and leadership.  A single dream is more powerful than a thousand realities. Reality is for wimps.

More from Tom Asacker: 

The Scriptures tell us to put our faith and trust in God. We can believe the promises He has for us in the Bible and put our hope and trust in His Promises
By making this the basis of our belief we rely on God's Power beyond our own. So our faith combined with faith in God and counting on His Spirit at work, we can live very hope-filled lives. We can expect results beyond our own abilities and skills.

When we combine our faith with the faith of others, it compounds again. In Leviticus is says five will chase a hundred and a hundred will chase ten thousand (Leviticus 26:8). Jesus said where two or three agree or work in unity of minds and Spirit, we can expect what we believe for and agreeing together it will happen (Matthew 18:19).

So then no matter how bleak our circumstances may be, or how big the vision is we have, God can turn the most difficult circumstance around or make the biggest dream come true. It's believing in the One who makes everything, the One whose power is unmatchable by anything.  God tells Isaiah that you will not be called the city of desolation, but the city of God's Delight (Isaiah 62:4). The city will change from desolation to joy and laughter in the streets.

God is faithful and you can count on Him and He will turn ruins into prosperity. The Lord is Good and His faithfulness endures forever (Jeremiah 33:10-12).

With belief in God, who's goodness lasts always, His Spirit can take complete failure and loss and transform it into a joy, happiness, and abundance of every kind.

 His Spirit will open our graves and take what was dead and dried up, and turn it into life. He will take where hope has vanished, and rebirth new life of greater proportions than ever before. The Spirit of God will come alive in us and we will have a whole new, a completely whole life. Then you will know the Lord has done this and He has done what He said (Ezekiel 37:11-14).

When His Spirit resides in us, and we believe as teams, we can see big dreams fulfilled. What others see as pipe dreams, God's Inspired vision of grand ideas are possible for those who believe.

 It centers around our faith, unbending belief in God's Spirit at work in our lives. He constantly watches over us and everything He says in the Bible is true.

 We can count on every promise He has made in His Word. Every day read the Bible until you find a promise that seems to leap out at you... note it and recite it to yourself throughout the day. Do this everyday.  Faith, belief as solid as steel will encompass you.

Jesus summed it up, "Anything is possible if a person believes." (Mark 9:23) "Where two or three agree, what you ask will be done for you." (Matt. 18:19) Nothing is too big, too hard, too complicated for God.

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