If you interact with other people, chances are that you’ll come across someone who is having a bad day. They may be grumpy, critical, depressed, or angry, and want to give you a large dose of why they feel justified being in such a poor mood.
But guess what? You don’t have to go where they want to take you. You don’t have to become a part of their turmoil.
You can exercise your God-given dominion to retain peace of mind and not be disturbed by errors that other people are entertaining.
God’s man stays in a positive mood and reflects the kindly disposition of divine Mind. He looks for the good, sees the good, and acts on the good.
If faced with dark attitudes, it’s wise to remember that negativity is not a natural disposition of man and does not have the power of God to sustain it. It can be overcome and replaced with love, patience, understanding, compassion and a bright outlook.
To stay out of other people’s storms, know God’s presence. Know the one Mind of Love as the only Mind. Know that you are never under the mental influence of another person. Know that you can disagree with evil and agree with good. Know that you can face any mental turbulence with courage, confidence, dominion and poise and that you can assert what is right and face down the wrong.
“Be still, and know that I am God!” (Psalm 46:10, NLT), the Psalmist reminds us. It’s always peaceful with God.
When in the presence of an upset person, align with God’s harmonious outlook and pray to dissolve the anguished thought with spiritual truth. Both of you will benefit.
Wonderful insight Evan, thank you.
Another helpful citation for me is,
“Rise in the strength of Spirit to resist all that is unlike good”
Rising in Love and knowing Mind’s strength is with us = power indeed ♡
Dear Evan,
I’m so grateful for all your ‘posts’. This morning I have been feeling a bit ‘down’ about various things, and so I immediately applied your good advice about aligning with God’s harmonious outlook, and already feel more joyful!
Thanks also to Shelagh – your comment is also helpful.
Appreciated – and much needed!
Thanks Evan as always – a great start to the week.
wonderful message to wake up to on a Monday!
Thanks. I have several friends in the midst of a need for change. It’s very good to be reminded of these wonderful truths, for others and for myself. Many years ago someone I knew insisted on telling me over and over of their problems, and was very negative about getting out of them. I felt I had to listen. A practitioner friend commented to me that I wouldn’t want or need to sit while someone regularly spread out their garbage, saying things like “See this orange peel? Look at these leftover potato chips!”
Another friend commented that, in difficult or negative circumstances, one can quietly pray in thought what Mary Baker Eddy described as “the scientific statement of being” in her book Science and Health, page 468. I find praying this sincerely (without looking zoned out in the conversation!) always brings a change. Sometimes I find a gentle and natural way to change the subject, or sometimes someone else changes the subject. And sometimes the person stops talking negatively! Truth heals.
Great post today Evan. We must in order to stay above the fray and be that which we are for others to see and be uplifted.
thank you! I sometimes feel helpless when another affirms the presence of sickness, unhappiness or pain. This show me the way to hold firm to the exclusive presence of good.
Good morning Evan and group. Very good article and interesting comments. Today’s topic reminded me of what Mrs. Eddy had said: “You wear the panoply of Love and human hatred (error, bad thoughts, animal magnetism, the idea of being separated from God etc) can not reach you.” It is a concept of Divine Protection, a magnificent shield of any intrusive idea or thought. Excellent week for all and I say goodbye to the golden text of the biblical lesson of this week “God is our refuge and strength, our early help in the tribulations.”
Oh.. Lord…
I am surrounded
by your love
on all sides…
This is why
I love…
This is how
I love too
You have shown
me the way…
I return to
Never ending
Love unfolding
Reminds me of the two friends meeting one morning, “Did you wake up grumpy this morning?”
“No, I let him sleep.” I find when with someone determined to self-describe in negative terms I can say ” Hmm… I don’t see you that way.” Smiles help.
thank you for this….it made me smile!!!!!
This grumpy venting of problems is screaming to be healed, corrected, blessed! Recognize the Christ in him as able to bring him peace. Love that neighbor! Rejoice in this knowledge!
Thank you, Evan, for the thoughts you shared. The were just what I needed.
So helpful!!!
Barb
A rising tide lifts ALL ships
Thanks, Evan! We find this so helpful in dealing with one who always seems to be “on the attack,” blustery and critical. We are working to see the innocent, pure, peaceful, and loving child of God who is right there instead of what our mortal eyes see. Thanks for the encouraging words. We all live in the kingdom of heaven now!
Thank you Evan for another wonderful inspiring article. You are so right on that we don’t have to buy into other people’s issues but we can and do have a healing effect by what we are thinking. I often start out by acknowledging that “Harmony is the fact” then I listen for what God is saying.
I also appreciate reading comments from others.
It helps to turn off the
Tell- lie- vision
Thank you Evan. Great reminder. Curran , I found your comments in second paragraph very helpful too.
Thank You Evans for this practical advice and handling aggressive nature in human situation. Once I had to face an aggressively angry situation with a person yelling at me. I stop andvquietly prayed “I can never be separated from God’s Love”, right at that moment she stopped yelling and her voice fade away and she walked off. I am so grateful to witness the Power of God’s Love and Presence right there protecting both of us being carried away in that “illusion”. Few days later with continuous prayer forgiving both ourselves our relationship remain loving, caring and better. We are all blessed in God’s control and ever-present care as God’s precious Children.
Everyone on your blog is so alert to correct the false picture. “Be still and know that I am God”
“Be still and know”. “Be still”. ” Be” This wonderful help was given years ago & it’s still just as wonderful
I love that Shirley! Thanks.
I just so appreciated today’s blog and comments.
I find that knowing my God-given dominion over all mortal thinking does help to handle error’s clamour.
Expressing Love is so powerful.
so good to read comments from a different group of readers. love to all.
Thank you Evan and everyone who commented. Helpful. (=
Someone once said to me “never step into someone else’s dream”. I’ve always found that very helpful. Thanks to everyone for your comments.
Hi Evan. I have a question to ask here, If your friend is truly troubled and wishes to share with you her trials, isn’t it our duty as a good friend to give her a patient listening and guide her if needed? After all just as we share our joys with our friends, at times we even share whats bothering us.. Isn’t it?
Yes, of course, you can always lend a listening ear, but that doesn’t mean your thinking has to go into a pit of despair. You can keep your thought up high with Truth and Love so that you are a genuine healing help to them.
Hello Nergish! You’ve raised a very good point. What we are expected to do is … to understand the subtle difference between helping a friend in need, and getting caught up in the situation ourselves. Here are excerpts from an article, “Why do good people suffer?” by Richard C. Haw:
~ Good people are liable to feel more strongly the sufferings of others and absorb their emotional experiences.
~ An individual became desperately ill with not one, but five serious diseases, two being incurable.
~ A Christian Science practitioner was asked to take her case. Through prayer, it came to her that the woman’s problem was not really physical, but was due to her extreme sensitivity to, and sympathy for, the sufferings and misfortunes of others.
~ The practitioner spoke to her of God’s impartial and universal love for all His children. She explained that there are two kinds of sympathy, one in which we enter the pit ourselves to comfort the sufferer, which means there are two in the pit. The other is where the comforter remains outside, but lets down a rope to help the victim out.
~ The practitioner showed that there is a rope which is able to rescue. The rope is the Christ … it heals and saves.
This is so helpful. Thanks.
Thank you Evan for the spiritual clarification of Nergish`question, very inspiring!
Thank you Shireen for the very pictorial and interesting and metaphysical excerpts from Richard C. Haw`s article.
Yes, very helpful!
Thanks so much Shireen you have answered my query so well. I am so grateful to you. Can I please have your e mail id. I would love to have you as my friend.
Thanks, so kind of you Evan for answering my query. Now I do understand better.