Touted as the book that reveals the answers to achieving everything you have ever wanted, Rhonda Byrne’s “the Secret” attempts to uncover the mystery to attaining unlimited prosperity in every aspect of your life: love, wealth, health and beyond.  Acclaimed as a must read by some celebrities who swear by it, it is understandable why “The Secret” is a bestseller.  Let’s face it, who wouldn’t want to know the secret to unleashing victory in every aspect of one’s life.

Curious about this ‘secret’, I went to Barnes and Noble in search of the book.  I was not alone in my quest because it was sold out.  Furthermore, when the book was in stock, copies were only kept at the register because it had become one of those books that were frequently stolen. Imagine! People in such dire need of finding the secret to life’s unlimited joy, that they feel compelled to steal it.  After perusing a copy that I was fortunate to find, I realized that this much talked about secret, was no secret at all!

Byrne’s secret to an infinitely successful life is through a “Believe it, Receive it, Be Thankful” approach to life that must dominate our way of thinking, our attitude and our behavior.  The heart of her message emphasizes that the thoughts we harbor and the words we say, influence our feelings and our actions and ultimately, the outcome of our lives. She claims that whatever we want in life, we must attract it to us by positively focusing our thoughts and directing our attitudes and actions toward achieving it.  In the midst of doing this, she stresses the importance of always giving thanks if we want to receive our desires.  Hmmm, it all sounds very familiar, doesn’t it? Now where have I heard that before?

Matthew 21:21-23  – Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Mark 11:24 - Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 – give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Psssssst…….The secret is no secret. It has been proclaimed for over 2,000 years and assembled in a book that is free and accessible to all. It is the blueprint on which this blessed country was built; contains words of life that breathe fire into our hearts and give us the spirit of victory we need to overcome life’s toughest challenges.

Byrne’s core concepts are accurate in that we are called to remain positive, believing that God will fulfill His promises in spite of the circumstances that surround us.  Her key points, though not a revelation, are truthful HOWEVER………… the governing message throughout the book is very misleading because she excludes God and makes us gods in full control of everything that happens in our lives.

Her message is a self-centered, self-deifying doctrine that puts us at the center of our universe. We are gods and the “Universe” does what we want it to do as long as we send it the positive energy that is needed.  Do you want to fall in love? Focus on it, and you will find the man (or woman) of your dreams.  Are you tired of having financial problems? Think about money and visualize seven figure digits in your bank account and you could be the next Donald Trump.  It’s all within your reach because it’s all within your control and only you, stand in the way of achieving your desires.

Excerpts from Byrne’s ‘The Secret’

“You are God in a physical body. You are Spirit in the flesh. You are Eternal Life expressing itself as You. You are a cosmic being. You are all power. You are all wisdom. You are all intelligence. You are perfection. You are magnificence. You are the creator, and you are creating the creation of You on this planet” (page 164) (Note the” Y” in You is capitalized to emphasize that you are god)

“You get to fill the blackboard of your life with whatever you want” (page 184)

“…the secret is within you the more you use the power within you, the more you will draw it to you” (page 182)

The earth turns on its orbit for You. The oceans ebb and flow for You. The birds sing for You. The sun rises and it sets for You.  The stars come out for You. None of it can exist, without You. You are the master of the universe.” (page 183)

“You are God in a physical body?” – What Blasphemy! You! You! You! It’s all about you. Even on the cover of her book, the writing that stands out states, “You have the key.” You are basically the solution to every problem in your life.  Where does a message like this leave God? Unfortunately it leaves Him out. Your Creator; now a Spectator. Where does a message like this leave you? (Matthew 16:26: For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul)

The fallacy of this message is that regardless of what you believe in, “you” are not in control. Things happen and regardless of what you do or how well you do it, you will never fully control the outcome. Good things happen to bad people and bad things happen to good people. Good things happen to people with bad thoughts and bad things happen to people with good thoughts.

Matthew 5:45: “…for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust”

We live in a fallen world and bad things will happen in spite of our best efforts.  The beauty of this is that it compels us to recognize that we need God and we need the sacrifice He made for us on the cross. Fighting the good fight builds our faith and allows God to show His glory through us. It gives us a testimony and in so doing, saves more people by bringing them into the Light which ultimately leads them to everlasting life. In the end, regardless of the bad things that happen in spite of our ‘goodness’ ”we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

Some of you may ask “If all the answers to our many questions can be found in the Bible, why are there still so many that search; that look to people like Ms. Byrne for guidance?”  For some, the contents of the bible are a mystery because their meaning can sometimes be difficult to interpret. As such, the understanding that is needed to successfully apply its life principles, is lost.  The real secret lies in being able to gain that understanding and in so doing, to unlock the bible’s deepest treasures.  There is only one way to achieve this, and that is through a personal relationship with the only One that holds the key – our God, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:2-4: “My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments.”

Are you still searching? If you are, I pray that you will come to Him.  He eagerly awaits you and in His presence, you will find that He is the only answer to all your questions .

This article is a viewpoint on “The Secret”, a book by author Rhonda Byrne

Rhonda Byrne, The Secret (New York: Atria Books, 2006) 198 pages

As a single woman quickly approaching 40, it is easy to become dismayed by the gloomy statistics which indicate that marriage over 40 is near impossible. One controversial article in a 1986 issue of Newsweek touted that it was far more probable for a woman over 40 to be killed in a terrorist attack than ever get married (The Early Show, CBS News, May 31, 2006).  While some recent statistics now show that the odds have increased to 40% in our favor, there is still a sense of dread that you may fall in the 60% that will be doomed to living a single life.

After my divorce in 2007, I found myself consumed with this matter.  There were times that I allowed this day dream of finding and building a life with ‘Mr. Right’ to consume me.  It dominated my thoughts and in many ways made me overly anxious.  For the first time in my life, I was hearing the tick tock of the clock, clamoring in my head – not the biological clock, but the matrimony clock.  It took a convicting sermon that I heard to snap me out of this funk. I was so caught up with what I did not have that I completely overlooked what I did have.  I already had Mr. Right! He was there all along; loving me with an unconditional and absolute love and yearning to fill that void in my life, if I would just let Him.

Now I’m sure some of you may be thinking “Come on Kaleb, it is true that Jesus can be many things, but what about the physical love that as women, we also desire?” True, but we must take comfort in the fact that our Lord can fulfill these longings as well.  He is eager to meet our needs and wants but in order of us to receive His best, we must be trusting and willing to wait on Him.   As our Creator, Jesus knows the desires of our hearts – He put them there for a reason! We should surrender these desires to Him, trust Him to fulfill them in His own time and in His own way. Our desires can become idols if we obsess over them and allow them to control our thoughts instead of using that time to delight in Him and spend quality time with Him.  We tend to hold onto these desires tightly with a fear that if we let them go, we may never ever have them.  It is only in giving them to Him that we can truly allow Jesus to work freely in our lives to bring them to pass.  One of God’s promises that reassures me, is noted in Psalm 37.

Psalm 37: 4-5: Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will bring it to pass.

While my desires still remain, Jesus filled that void in my life on July 1^st, 2007 when I put my dreams at His feet.  I know that He is working and will fulfill my desire for a spouse of His choosing and in His good timing.  Furthermore, I know that His best for me will be fulfilled.  I must admit that it is difficult to sign over a blank check for your life to the Lord because you never know what He may fill in.  I do take comfort that He has loved me like no other has – He is the only man that has sacrificed His life for mine and in spite of what I have done or may do, His love knows no boundaries and He will never leave me nor forsake me.  In the meantime He has used me, in my singleness, to be a witness to others.  I can’t tell you how many times I have received questions from men and women alike, that ask “Don’t you get lonely? Don’t you want to get married? How do you do it?” These questions open doors to share my faith and to share Jesus’ amazing love.

Hebrews 10:23: Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.

For those of you who are single, please share how God is working in your singleness to accomplish His will. Please submit your comments in the comment box below.

Source
Marriage after 40? Not Impossible, Daniel Schorn, The Early Show, CBS News, May 31, 2006



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Three years ago my life changed when I relinquished control to God.  Until that time, I was overwhelmed, discouraged, confused and tired. My marriage had failed; I had a very demanding job which consumed me and negatively affected the balance in my life.  More importantly, as a working professional, I struggled with the demands of motherhood – and in my case they were especially stringent because my son had special needs, was struggling in school and at home, adapting to a single parent household. All this was happening amidst the noise of life’s smaller trials – all culminating to make one stressed out woman.

Spiritually, I was also struggling to find God’s will for my life.  Having a purpose driven life was important to me and at that time I did feel like I was living a reactive life instead of a proactive life.  I had a plan for my life; I had goals to accomplish that plan; yet I still felt that my life was out of focus.  I was at a crossroads and felt a sense of urgency in my spirit. I had also been filling my life at that time with anything I could hear or read on Finding and Fulfilling God’s Purpose. I learned that the key to inner peace and truly finding and living God’s will was to let go and to let Him truly take control. As our creator, He knows what is best for us and He calls us to surrender to Him.

The new year is always a time for self evaluation. Questions like   – Am I on the right path?; Where am I going?; Where will I be in X number of years?; How will I get there?, flood our minds.  Some choose to make their own way by placing their faith in a well thought-out plan that they have carved for themselves; others live casually, reacting to things as they come up, in their own way and then there are the rare few that choose to place their  trust, cares and desires in the One that knows all – Jesus Christ.

Three years ago I made a life altering decision to surrender full control of my life to Jesus Christ.  Today, He is in control of my life and is orchestrating all the events in my life (the good and the bad), ALL for my good – because I love Him and I genuinely seek to fulfill His will for my life.  There have been some bad things but there have been many good things that show me He is at work in my life.  Above all, the one fruit that has grown and flourished in my life is peace.  It is a peace that passes my own understanding and has given me a newness of life.  It resonates strongly within me because I can rest in Him, knowing that He knows all and has everything under His control.

Psalm 37: 4-7: Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him.

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Today I lost the battle because my armor failed me

I failed the test because the test failed me

I am at war with my body but it is my body that antagonizes me

I keep going around the same mountain because this mountain pursues me

I failed the test again but….

To be true…..it wasn’t the test that failed me

I failed me…..

By succumbing to sin and granting it power over me

I failed me….

By believing Satan’s lies and allowing him to entrap me

I failed me….

By not trusting God beyond what I could see

I failed me….

By silencing my spirit and applauding my flesh to victory

I failed me….

By choosing the path I thought, was easy

Today I lost the battle because I chose to fight it alone

Victory could have been mine, had I just taken it to His throne

© Copyright A.K.Browne, All Rights Reserved.