replacement

photo by:  marcoPapale.com

If I mentioned the song, “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” what would you think of? Have you ever got a song stuck in your head and you could not get it out? You just could not stop singing it no matter how hard you tried? That’s pretty annoying, isn’t it! Do you know the best way to stop that song from repeating itself in your head? Playing another song or songs is probably the best way. There is a powerful lesson contained in this called replacement.

Certainly we can apply this to any area of our lives.  In keeping with our theme of inner peace, when there are things that are in our lives that do not bring about peace, we must do a “house cleaning” and replace them. First, we must recognize what we need to cleanse from our lives, but recognition is not enough. We must take action and purge our lives of the things that are not good and replace them with the things that make for peace.

Let’s apply this concept of replacement to our thoughts.

I think we would probably all agree that negative thinking and inner peace can not coexist.  When one is present the other is absent.

Whether you choose to focus on your thoughts or not, your day will be filled with them. They just do not stop. We have thoughts all day. Most people just aren’t aware of their thoughts most of the time. The problem with that is when we are not aware of our thoughts and consciously choose them then they are often negative in nature.

The good thing is that we can become conscious of our thoughts and we do have a choice of what we think.  We can replace the thoughts that are not beneficial with ones that are.  Let’s look at…

Some signs of negative thinking:

  • Any negative emotion (We’ve all experienced them.)
  • Anger
  • Frustration
  • Sadness
  • Depression
  • Expecting bad things to happen
  • Dwelling in the past
  • Thinking about something you do not like.
  • Thinking about someone you do not like.
  • Thinking of all the times in the past a similar negative event occurred.
  • Thinking about all the times in the future a similar event will likely occur.
  • Thinking about the things you do not like about someone or why you do not like them.
  • Thinking about someone or something you do not like over and over again.
  • Asking “Why?” as in, “Why is this happening to me?”

·

*Note, I find it helpful not to look at these signs as “bad guys,” but as helpful indicators that I need to stop and take a look at what’s bothering me and deal with it and learn from it.  (That itself was a thought replacement.)  It is often helpful to take a deeper look and ask why this is really bothering me (in an effort to grow from it, not wallow in it).  Depending on my HALT condition, I may go ahead and change the thought(s) or I may wait til later when I can think more clearly.  The important thing at this point is that I have recognized that I need to deal with it.  Then I can move on without dwelling on it in a negative fashion.

How do I replace thoughts?

Whenever the time is appropriate, I take a look at my thoughts that are not beneficial to me and replace them with thoughts that are beneficial and accurate.

Example

For instance, if someone said something or some event happened that triggered me to feel sad, I might take a look and see that I was actually hearing a voice, that said, “See, that just confirms that you’ll never be able to do this.”  When in reality it confirms nothing of the sort.  I can mentally do a “house cleaning” and throw that thought out.  An accruate replacement might be, “I’m going to have to do something else to get the results I want.” or “I’m going to have to push hard to get past this obstacle, but I can do it.  Nothing is going to stop me.”

How else can I apply this?

The principle of replacement can be applied to almost anything.  For instance, bad habits… Replace them with good habits.  Are you a snack junkie?  First identify the foods that are not good for you.  Then cleanse your house, car, and office of these things and replace them with fruits and nuts or other healthy snacks.  Maybe you’re a snack junkie for some deeper reason…. Maybe those thoughts need to be identified, purged and replaced.

Are you too busy?  Stop and take a look at what’s making you so busy.  Is it a particular belief that you think you have to always be busy for some reason?  Is it because you haven’t set priorities?  Cleanse your life of beliefs that are not helpful and replace them with ones that are.  Make a list of priorities.  Then make a list of the things that you are currently doing. Circle the things that you are doing that do not match up with your list of priorities.  Throw them out.  (Yes, I know personally that it is very hard to let go of things, but it’s worth it.) Now take a look at all your free time. Replace this time with things that do match your priority list.  (You may choose just to keep some of it as free time for relaxation.)  You’ll feel much more at peace with yourself.

Your turn:

How else do you see that the principle of replacement can be applied?

How have you successfully applied the principles of replacement?


This post was helpful. How can I contribute something in return?

By purchasing from the coffee shop or bookstore. (It’s for a good cause.)