LESSON XVII. IDEALS DEVELOPED BY CONCENTRATION

Through our paltry stir and strife, Glows the wished Ideal, Andlonging molds in clay, what life Carves in the marblereal.--Lowell.

We often hear people spoken of as idealists. The fact is we areall idealists to a certain extent, and upon the ideals we picturedepends our ultimate success. You must have the mental image ifyou are to produce the material thing. Everything is firstcreated in the mind. When you control your thoughts you become acreator. You receive divine ideas and shape them to yourindividual needs. All things of this world are to you just whatyou think they are. Your happiness and success depend upon yourideals.

You are responsible for every condition you go through, eitherconsciously or unconsciously. The next step you take determinesthe succeeding step. Remember this; it is a valuable lesson. Byconcentrating on each step as you go along, you can save a lot ofwaste steps and will be able to choose a straight path instead ofa roundabout road.

Concentrate Upon Your Ideals and They Will Become MaterialActualities. Through concentration we work out our ideals inphysical life. Your future depends upon the ideals you areforming now. Your past ideals are determining your present.Therefore, if you want a bright future, you must begin to preparefor it today.

If persons could only realize that they can only injurethemselves, that when they are apparently injuring others theyare really injuring themselves, what a different world this wouldbe!

We say a man is as changeable as the weather. What is meant ishis ideals change. Every time you change your ideal you thinkdifferently. You become like a rudderless boat on an ocean.Therefore realize the importance of holding to your ideal untilit becomes a reality.

You get up in the morning determined that nothing will make youlose your temper. This is your ideal of a person of real strengthand poise. Something takes place that upsets you completely andyou lose your temper. For the time being you forget your ideal.If you had just thought a second of what a well-poised personimplies you would not have become angry. You lose your poise whenyou forget your ideal. Each time we allow our ideals to beshattered we also weaken our will-power. Holding to your idealsdevelops will-power. Don't forget this.

Why do so many men fail? Because they don't hold to their idealuntil it becomes a mental habit. When they concentrate on it tothe exclusion of all other things it becomes a reality.

"I am that which I think myself to be."

Ideals are reflected to us from the unseen spirit. The laws ofmatter and spirit are not the same. One can be broken, but notthe other. To the extent that ideals are kept is your futureassured.

It was never intended that man should suffer. He has brought itupon himself by disobeying the laws of nature. He knows them socannot plead ignorance. Why does he break them? Because he doesnot pay attention to those ideals flashed to him from theInfinite Spirit.

Life is but one continuous unfoldment, and you can be happy everystep of the way or miserable, as you please; it all depends uponhow we entertain those silent whisperings that come from we knownot where. We cannot hear them with mortal ear, but from thesilence they come as if they were dreams, not to you or me alone,but to everyone. In this way the grandest thoughts come to us, touse or abuse. So search not in treasured volumes for noblethoughts, but within, and bright and glowing vision will come tobe realized now and hereafter.

You must give some hours to concentrated, consistent, persistentthought. You must study yourself and your weaknesses.

No man gets over a fence by wishing himself on the other side. Hemust climb.

No man gets out of the rut of dull, tiresome, monotonous life bymerely wishing himself out of the rut. He must climb.

If you are standing still, or going backward, there is somethingwrong. You are the man to find out what is wrong.

Don't think that you are neglected, or not understood, or notappreciated.

Such thoughts are the thoughts of failure.

Think hard about the fact that men who have got what you envy gotit by working for it.

Don't pity yourself, criticise yourself.

You know that the only thing in the world that you have got tocount upon is yourself.