30 Day Course on Faith - Day 6

 Help Thou Mine Unbelief - Part 1 of 2

 In the Bible we learn of a father who brings his son to Jesus to be healed of an evil spirit.

“Jesus said unto him, If you canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” ~Mark 9:23-24

Often we are not getting the results we want because we don’t truly believe.  This is when we turn to God and ask Him to help our unbelief.  Jesus did help the man’s unbelief and healed his son – and he will help our unbelief, too! 

You may be saying, “But I do believe – so why isn’t it happening?”  To answer this question, we need to talk about how our mind works.  We have our conscious mind and our sub-conscious mind:

The Conscious Mind is the part of our mind that we are aware of.  Everything we see, observe, smell, taste, hear, feel is received as data in the conscious mind.  The conscious mind is only responsible for 2-4% of the results that we experience.  So the conscious mind decides your goal, but it doesn't accomplish it!

The Sub-conscious Mind is the part of our mind that has unlimited potential.  This is where we store our feelings, beliefs and programming.  The sub-conscious mind is responsible for 96-98% of our results!!!

The * below represents how far 4% will take us -- we are still very short of our goals!  (Willpower is a function of the conscious mind and because that will only take us 4% of the way towards our goal we end up feeling extremely frustrated when we try to use willpower to achieve our goals!)

___*________________________________________________________________________________________________

This is one of my favorite quotes by James Allen, author of "As a Man Thinketh." Men do not attract that which they want (which is determined in the conscious mind), but that which they are (which comes from the subconscious mind).  When we change our beliefs, programming, and habits, then we will have the outer conditions that we desire!  To read more about becoming, read here.

The body is where our behaviors and health conditions manifest; it is also where we take action and create new habits!

SO...

  Thoughts (Conscious Mind)

+ Feelings (Sub-Conscious Mind)

+ Action/Habits (Body)

--------------------------

= Results

The filter allows you to reject an idea before it reaches the sub-conscious mind.  Between the ages of 0-8, there was no filter so we believed everything we observed, heard, experienced, etc.  Unfortunately, if you are average then 75-80% of that was negative, and we carry that negative programming into our adult years.

How do you know what your subconscious programming is?  By the results you are currently getting.  You may believe something in your conscious mind, but if you are not getting the results you desire then you probably have some false beliefs in your subconscious mind that are holding you back.

There are two ways to change that programming in the subconscious mind: impact and repetition. Impact is when something huge and unexpected happens in your life and completely changes your paradigm; we really don't have any control over it.
 
Repetition, on the other hand, is a tool we can all use! As we repeat affirmations, we are in effect strengthening those "muscles" in our brain and we are literally creating new neural pathways in the brain that will help us create new beliefs.  New beliefs will bring us new results.

Remember:  Repetition can work for us or against us!!!  If you are constantly reinforcing the false belief, then you are strengthening that belief.  For example if you say the affirmation, "I am thin, fit and full of energy," but then every time you look in the mirror you comment on how bad you look, and every time you put on an outfit you comment on how fat it makes you look, you are strengthening the belief that you look bad and are fat -- not that you are thin, fit and full of energy. (If you're into sports at all, think of it this way: You have to play offense AND defense to win a game. If you score a lot of points, but let the other team score a lot more points then you still don't win the game -- even though you scored a lot of points!!!)

Repetition helps ME develop the belief and gratitude I need to help me get new results! It doesn't mean I doubt that Christ will help me; it means I recognize that my personal belief is a huge part of my faith.  And if I don’t believe, then the faith becomes without effect.

Tomorrow in Part 2 we will learn more about the Stickman.

To learn more about this, watch this video.

Daily Challenge: Every day for 30 days in a row, I want you to say the following out loud at least 10 times each day!!!  Be sure to say it cheerfully and enthusiastically!  This scripture is found in Philippians 4:13:

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” 

You've now completed this challenge six days in a row - Be sure to congratulate yourself for a job well done!