“Believe your own thought”

March 7, 2011

Today’s Bit of Advice…

“Believe your own thought”

This advice comes from a longer quote of Ralph Waldo Emerson: “To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart is true for all men, that is genius.”

It’s taken me many years to believe my own thoughts and to believe that I should believe my own thoughts.   I was always a passive conformist.  I never wanted to stand out in the crowd so I followed the rules, showed up on time, didn’t bring up controversial topics in discussion groups, and I never colored  my hair pink or purple.

The problem is I thought I wanted to be a conformist.  Turns out I behaved that way because others convinced me I wanted to.  I wasn’t listening to myself.  To my own inner voice.  Or, as many people say, listening to my gut.

Looking back on my younger years, I don’t think I would change too much of it.  I would still follow the rules and show up on time.  I like the color of my hair so I doubt I would have experimented with color.  But I might have allowed myself to speak my mind a bit more.  And I might have trusted myself to go outside my comfort zone more frequently.

A child freely speaks his mind because he doesn’t know better.  My children have certainly said things at time that were embarrassing (to me, not to them).  I remember taking one child out of mass because of noisy behavior.  As we were hustling to the door, said child called out (loudly, in a quiet church), “Don’t spank me Mom!”   Talk about embarrassing!  Children say exactly what they are thinking.

As we get older, society teaches us to think before we speak and that it is better not to express certain sentiments.  We apply the societal filter.  Well, most of us do.  This filter stops us from speaking up for others, from fighting for what we believe in, and from doing the right thing when we think others may not agree.  It is only when you learn to trust the inner voice and believe your own thoughts that you become an adult who speaks his or her mind appropriately.  This isn’t a freedom to say anything at any time, but to say the right things at the right times.

It is okay to be an individual with original thoughts and ideas.  God made each of us to be our own person.  When we conform to the ways of popular culture to fit in better, what are we saying to God?  I didn’t trust your design for me so I have to make it better?

Trust God’s plan for you.  Be proud of your individuality.  Believe your own thought.

I have a mentor who taught me a great lesson about five years ago.  I had been asked to meet an obligation that I felt I did not have the time or resources to meet.  In discussing my dilemma with him he said, “I can’t tell you what to do, but the Holy Spirit can”.  At first I was a bit annoyed by that answer.  I didn’t want to do this task and I was looking for someone to give me permission to say “no” to it.  By telling me to listen to my inner voice, he forced me to make the decision for myself.  In the end, I did listen to what the Holy Spirit had been telling me all along and I decided to do the task.  It was challenging to find the time and resources but the payoff has been well worth it.

Believe your own thought.

I’ll leave you with the words from the song “Believe” from the movie Polar Express.  I love the refrain and think it is worth application in every person’s life.

“Believe in what your heart is saying.

Hear the melody that’s playing.

There’s no time to waste,

There is so much to celebrate.

Believe in what you feel inside,

Give your dreams the wings to fly.

You have everything you need, if you just believe.”

Hope you enjoyed the read.