By Vic and Lisa Johnson
“No person can be confronted with a difficulty which he has not the strength to meet and
subdue. Every difficulty can be overcome if rightly dealt with. Anxiety is, therefore,
unnecessary. The task which cannot be overcome ceases to be a difficulty and becomes an
impossibility, and there’s only one way of dealing with an impossibility, namely to submit to
it.” – Byways of Blessedness
Most people who read these meditations on James Allen’s work probably think that I write
them for others. The truth is, I write them for me. I need them as much or more than the folks I
write for.
Several days ago, when I started this, I was confronted with a difficulty that I allowed to fill me
with a great deal of anxiety.
It’s not a new difficulty or even a totally unexpected one, but I was faced with a decision that
will have long term ramifications, one of those kinds of decisions that we’d rather not make.
One of those decisions that makes you want to pull the covers up over your head in the
morning.
James Allen’s words are so incredibly penetrating on this subject because he’s basically saying
there’s no problem we should be anxious about. We can either solve it or it’s impossible to
solve.
Kind of reminds you of the Serenity Prayer, doesn’t it? God grant me the serenity to accept the
things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the
difference.
I once heard Rita Davenport give some great advice on handling most of the problems in our
life. If money can fix it, it’s not a problem. What great advice!
Well, that’s great, you say, but I don’t have the money to fix it so I’ve got a problem. Wrong
thinking!
Because the truth is, you’re only one idea away from obtaining whatever amount of money you
might need.
So instead of focusing on the money you don’t have, which will almost surely result in you
attracting more lack into your life, focus on ideas, ideas and more ideas.
As Bob Proctor says, you’re either living in the problem or you’re living in the solution. So start
living in the solution.
There’s also another great reason not to be anxious about the difficulty you’re facing today. It
contains a lesson, and once you master it, you’ll be much stronger and wiser.
My long time hero, Emmet Fox wrote, it is the law that any difficulties that can come to you at
any time, no matter what they are, must be exactly what you need most at the moment to
enable you to take the next step forward by overcoming them.
The only real misfortune, the only real tragedy comes when we suffer without learning the
lesson.
And that’s worth thinking about.