Responding to Negativity

In our daily routines of interacting with our cohabitants of this physical plane we experience pleasant and unpleasant encounters.There are numbers of things we don't like and they're not the same for all of us. Activities that some of us find entertaining or enjoyable may be unpleasant to someone else. The things that someone else enjoys we may find repellent. We're all different, possessing varying degrees of knowledge, experience, physical, mental and Spiritual gifts. Yet we all share a commonality in that we all are living here temporarily, learning and fulfilling a purpose.

We are beings of emotion and personality and as long as we inhabit this earth we will encounter things we don't like. Our responses to these encounters are key to our development as spirit beings. We have the ability to control our responses. Our response to to any event will affect ourselves and others. When we're being directed by our ego and thinking short term we often respond to others harshly, rudely and in a generally uncaring manner. In that mode we're quick to judge others and often ridicule them. In more tense encounters emotions like hate and rage can flare up. We may be looking to retaliate with force to protect our ego. I've found those types of responses to be detrimental to our growth as Spirit beings, leading only to increased ego and unneeded focus on base emotions such as pride, anger and selfishness.

Although it's not always easy, the better way to address a negative encounter is with a loving response. That's not to say that we're going to immediately hug anyone who has a harsh word with us. A loving response can manifest in many different ways. Perhaps the simplest is to not respond at all to a negative encounter. Yes as human creatures we have a survival instinct and we also get wounded emotionally and physically and it takes time for those wounds to heal. But loving and forgiveness are the catalysts for our healing, strenghtening and growth. In my experiences I've found that if I don't forgive someone for a perceived wrong, I'm hurting myself not them. If I'm planning a revenge I never intend on carrying out I'm damaging myself and my own growth.

The ability to forgive after a negative encounter is a tool at our disposal to release the negative within ourselves and grow stronger in Spirit. If I find myself being drawn into thoughts of anger, pride or  vengeance as a response to an encounter with someone, I redirect my thoughts to my purpose. If I focus on my purpose and think long term I realize that I can move on and forgive. If I focus on what I can do and not what I can't do I have purpose. If I focus on what I have and not on what I don't have I find fulfillment. If I recall all the mistakes in my life and how I've hurt other people, I'm able to forgive. Jesus was executed on a cross, surely an encounter none of us would want to endure. Although He possessed the power and authority the change the situation and eliminate his captors with a mere thought, he chose to forgive. In His own words "Father forgive them for they don't know what they're doing". It's not likely that anyone of us will be in that same situation and looking through that filter our encounters are mostly trivial. Can we respond lovingly in a negative situation? Of course..it's simply a matter of choice.