Chapter 8: “The Tool of Thought”

 The idea of “the tool of thought” comes from the opening poem of a brilliant little book titled “As A Man Thinketh” by James Allen (1864-1912), a Christian minister from Ilfracombe, England. Here is that short poem:

“ Mind is the Master power that moulds and makes,

And Man is Mind, and evermore he takes

The Tool of Thought, and, shaping what he wills,

Brings forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills :–

He thinks in secret, and it comes to pass :

Environment is but his looking glass.”

There, in those six short lines, lies the secret to the success or failure of every undertaking of mankind. Earl Nightingale, a radio personality and speaker, summarized it in his famous audio presentation “The Strangest Secret,” thusly:

“We become what we think about most of the time.”

This concept is confirmed repeatedly throughout the Christian Bible and the guiding documents of literally every other major religion on Earth, past and present. It is confirmed over and over and over throughout every walk of life. It is the reason that hypnosis and NLP and positive thinking work.

Considering that knowledge, what do you “think about most of the time” about your health?

If you awaken with a stiff, sore back, do you think “Thank you, Creator of my body, for my perfect back and for the ability to adjust to adversity and heal, becoming even stronger and healthier than before”? Or, does your mind go somewhere like “Uh-oh—I’ve done it to myself now! I knew I was getting too old for that kind of stuff! Now I will probably be laid up for weeks, or months. Maybe for the rest of my life!”?

What about a lump in the breast? A swollen prostate? A diagnosis of lymphoma? Would you allow your mind to interpret such news as a death sentence, or merely as the notification that there is something about your environment and/or behavior that requires some intelligent adjustment?

As a student of hypnotherapy, I was taught that the subconscious mind is very much like our personal Genii. It will give us whatever it is instructed to give us. The way we instruct it is through our predominant thoughts. If we think “I have cancer.” our subconscious responds with “Okay—instruction received. Now making cancer.”

Conversely, if a doctor says “You have cancer” and you respond with the thought “This doctor obviously does not understand my God-given immune and endocrine system. Thank you, God, for my perfectly healthy body!” then the subconscious mind immediately begins turning your thoughts into reality. The more you reinforce the healing, healthy thoughts, the faster your subconscious works to make it so.

Beware, though—doubts are conflicting thoughts that chisel away at constructive thinking. Put all your faith in the wisdom that created you, and the built-in mechanisms for health and longevity.

Honorable medical doctors will be the first to admit their shortcomings. A good friend who is a medical doctor advised me that his place in society is the front-line salesperson for the pharmaceutical industry—not an advocate for healthy bodies. If what he told me is true, would you rather put your faith in your doctor, or the forces that created you, and have sustained you thus far?

Another way of saying it is, worry, doubts and fears are powerful communications to your subconscious to give you exactly what it is that you do not want. When these kinds of thoughts begin to invade your mind, use positive affirmative statements and thoughts to drive them away again, Just a simple “Thank you for my perfect health!” Thank you my perfect _____!” repeated over and over until you begin to “see” what you are saying in your mind’s eye is enough to fuel the desired outcome.

If this seems like “woo-woo,” witchcraft, or magic to you, get real. When we direct our mind in one direction, our mind reflects back to us the benefits of all the stored information that we have accumulated over our lifetime, and the lifetime of our genetic coding. This composite knowledge forms as better decisions—whether we realize it or not—that produce better results.

When Albert Einstein was asked “What is wrong with people today?” he replied “People simply don’t think.” The expanded version of his answer may be “Most people simply don’t think thoughts that benefit them as opposed to thoughts which cause them harm.”

To paraphrase James Allen:

Mind is the God-given Master Power that moulds and makes.

You have a mind, so evermore you are to take

The Tool of Thought for shaping what you will

Bring forth a zillion joys, but pass on the ills.

Think in secret, or think out loud.

Use your mind as your protective shroud.

(Forgive me, James …)

BONUS: As your reward for actually reading this chapter, you may download a free copy of
“As A Man Thinketh” by James Allen from:

http://pathtoyoungness.com/think/