How Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives

As a man who lived during two world wars, the Communist takeover, and the NATO bombs of 1999, Elder Thaddeus was one of the most renowned spiritual guides of Serbia during the twentieth century who, despite the suffering he and many others suffered, was a man who focused his ministry around selfless love. Despite all Elder Thaddeus had gone through, he had taught, counseled, and prayed for anyone who came to him in sorrow or in pain. Now, at this moment in time, the knowledge of this man makes me step back and question: how many people today would do the same?

Elder Thaddeus was a holy man. He was a man who taught the importance of humility, peace, and love. He was a man who knew that no matter how dark the world could be, faith will deliver a broken soul into the light. He never lost faith in God, and strived to ensure his heart was left open through prayer for only hope can pull a person from the darkest of nights.

A few years ago, I would have read the first page of the forward. I would read it, set it aside, and never return. Now, less than a year from my thirtieth birthday, the things Elder Thaddeus speaks of in this book are clearer to me now than they would have been a decade ago.

The Teachings Of Elder Thaddeus

The second portion of the book is where my interest was really caught. I'm what some might consider a deep thinker, and I spend too much time in my own thoughts than in the "real world." On a good day, I live inside my head. On a bad day, my mind is a prison I cannot escape.

Then I read the very first of Elder Thaddeus's teachings:

"Our life depends on the kind of thoughts we nurture. If our thoughts are peaceful, calm, meek, and kind, then that is what our life is like. If our attention is turned to the circumstances in which we live, we are drawn into a whirlpool of thoughts and can have neither peace nor tranquility."

This is followed by this passage:

"Everything, both good and evil, comes from our thoughts. Our thoughts become reality. Even today we can see that all of creation, everything that exists on the earth and in the cosmos, is nothing but Divine thought made material in time and space."

There is a great deal more to that second passage, but those three sentences caught my attention. My mind kept circling back to what I had read, my mind whirling to make sense of what was suddenly presented to it with only the subtle request to let the teachings sink into my brain.

After a bit, those words began to make sense.

The Nature Of Our Thoughts

As I was growing up, one thing my grandmother, a woman who took on the job of raising my sister and me when she was fifty, stressed repeatedly was one simple thing: we should strive to start the day with good thoughts. By beginning our day with positive thoughts and emotions, we were taking an active role in the way the rest of the day would go (in most cases).

Our thoughts are powerful.

As an example, think of a painful memory from your life. Draw the events to your mind, let them rest in your thoughts, and then turn your awareness to how you feel. What do you feel? Sorrow? Pain? A broken heart? Apathy?

That memory was brought up by a thought. It could be a direct response to what I had just written. It could be by reading the work of another, a scene in a movie, or a particular part of a series that makes your blood boil.

Emotion is a byproduct of thought, and thought is a byproduct of humanity that is attempting to fill the void we all know as silence.

In the same vein of thought, I was also told, growing up, to never go to bed angry. I should make sure I am at peace when I go to sleep. Growing up, I learned that the things we think or feel, right before bed, tend to weasel their way into our dreams (regardless if we remember them or not).

I could be angry that I got into trouble for not doing my homework, and the words that set that anger alight came from words that first began as a thought. All words begin as a thought, intentional or not.

Which really drives a lot of what Elder Thaddeus said home.

Seeking Peace Instead Of Chaos

If each of us began our day with the intention to nurture peace, calm, and humility, how would things be? If we approach our world and the people in it with love instead of unease or distrust, what sort of world would slowly grow from the seeds we would begin to plant in those who are left in shock by the gentleness of our hearts?

I am at a point where I have had to make a concise decision to let go of the emotions that were causing me harm. I have released my hold on the anger and resentment I have carried, even against those who have made me feel small and insignificant. I let go for the sake of my heart, for the peace of my mind, because I know that holding onto those emotions and thoughts bring me nothing but pain, sorrow, and anger.

In light of a few paragraphs of a book recommended to me, I have begun to realize that, if my thoughts really do manifest in my life, shouldn't I do all I can to nurture thoughts that will bring me peace? If my thoughts can shape the way my day will go, should I not focus on thoughts that are gentle and warm? If the things I think shape my reality, then why would I ever think of things that would breed anger, distrust, and hate?

In The End, Our Thoughts Are Ours Alone

One last lesson I'd like to share is one that changed the way I viewed a lot of my life. A lesson that let me shake the weight that had settled heavily on my shoulders, a lesson that allowed me to rise even when I wanted to do nothing more than curl up and never emerge from my cocoon.

In life, we have control over nothing but our actions and reactions.

All else is out of our hands.

We are beings whose world is shaped by our understanding of the world, by our thoughts, our actions, and our reactions. In light of that, we should do all we can to ensure the path ahead of us is clear. And I, for one, am a woman who believes we should do all we can to create a world where all of us live in peace instead of fear, hate, or despair.

And that world begins with a thought.