All material contained in this document are subject to the copyright laws of the United States of America and all International laws.Copyright © 2008, 2009 Rev. Robert (Bobby) Keating
It is illegal to copy and redistribute this material without the express approval of the holder of the copyright.
Table of Contents
Preface – A Warning Page 4
1) Identify yourself
a.) Who am I?
b.) What is my position?
2) Identify your objective
a.) Contrast
b.) clarity
3) Focus
a.) Diligent Bible Study
b.) The power of prayer
c.) The concentration of prayer energy d.) Positive affirmation in prayer
4) Allowing your prayers to be answered a.) The biggest mistake
b.) Words
Putting this all together
A Warning
Quite some time ago I was introduced to the Law of Attraction, a wealth building program that promotes the idea that we can attract whatever we want in this universe and repel those things that we do not want in our lives. The Movie The Secret is credited with propelling this idea or system of thought into the mainstream of human experience.
The actual beginning of this modern day concept of the Law of Attraction is attributed to a gentleman who lived in the 1800. His name was Wallace D. Wattles. He wrote a book called The Science of Getting Rich – The Proven Mental Program to a Life of Wealth.‘ His primary motivation for his book and his system is to get rich.‘ If you were to read this book you would see that Mr. Wallace was under the same impression that most secular humanist are, still today. He was familiar with the myth that you must be poor to be pious. He was taught and was familiar with the teachings of the church authorities‘ that wealth breeds sin. He summarily rejects this idea but, instead of researching the truth, he dismisses all of the truth and attributes good things to an Intelligent Substances‘ which is ALL. He attributes this as a Living Substance‘ that not only is ALL but lives in All of us.
I wonder, if Mr. Wallace had taken the time to understand the true nature of ALL (God), would he have come to the same conclusion. This is my greatest contention with the majority of Christian teaching, then and now. We are taught that God wants us to be poor and not to be tempted with material things. I do not know where this is substantiated in Scripture. The Holy Bible I read tells me the exact opposite. God wants us to prosper as our souls prosper. He wants us to seek Him first. He wants us to diligently study His Holy Word in order that we might be good stewards of all that He gives us.
Often people say that Jesus said It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. This is true. Jesus said that. We must however realize that He was referring to the rich young man who was in love with his wealth.
Refer to Matthew 19:17-25 (New American Standard Bible)17And He said to him, "Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments."
18Then he said to Him, "Which ones?" And Jesus said, "YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER; YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY; YOU SHALL NOT STEAL; YOU SHALL NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS;
19HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER; and YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."20 The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?"
21Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
22But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.
24"Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
25When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, "Then who can be saved?"
The rich young man was more in love with his wealth than he was with God. He had asked Jesus how he could have eternal life. Jesus told him to sell all of his possessions and give it all to the poor. The rich young man did not realize that Scripture tells us that everything we give will be returned to us and multiplied. The rich young man did not realize that by obeying Christ he would have actually become even wealthier.
When we look only for wealth, we actually lose more than we could ever gain. When we seek first the Kingdom of Heaven (God), we gain more than we could ever want. The rich young man in this account was not familiar with the Law of God or the Law of Attraction. Unfortunately neither was Mr. Wallace. In his book, he attributes all of the truly godly qualities of our Creator to a less intrusive metaphysical concept. He was working under the same misconception that most Christians work under. That is the misconception that God does not want us to prosper.
Ask yourself a question. How can poor Christians do the work of spreading the Gospel and helping others? It is a clear fact that, in this world in which we live, you must have money and resources to be able to reach others. God could very easily cause a loaf of bread to miraculously appear in front of a hungry child. According to what I have learned in His Holy Word, He wants you and me to put the bread in front of the hungry child to bring Him the honor and the glory. If you do not have the money to pay for the bread, where will it come from?
Mr. Wallace has taken what the Bible says and has secularized it to appeal to those whose opinion of Christianity has been jaded by those who want to control Christians. He has presented a viable and workable theory. He simply, as have many, left out the most important element of the theory. He left out God.
After having done a great deal of research, I have determined that this does work to some degree as it stands. The good news is that it takes on an entirely different level of success when the fundamentals of this process are given the correct perspective.
This is information that everyone, Christian or non-Christian, needs to explore. I want to shed some very relevant light on this process that will enable thousands of people to reach the level of success that God intends for His beloved creation, mankind.
It is my desire and intention to introduce this analysis and application to both Christian believers and those who are not Christians. Many of you have seen the numerous offerings of this system (simply do a search for The Law of Attraction‘ on Google or Yahoo or any of the search engines and directories) and have dismissed it as hoodoo or neo-pagan claptrap. I want to dispel those ideas and demonstrate that this concept‘ is neither paganistic in its origin nor spiritual hoodoo in its derivation. Every segment of this system is biblically based and, without trepidation, I submit that it works on a level that most people could not even imagine.
There have been literally thousands who have realized a great deal of success by applying what is being offered. As it is, though, most Christians have a discernable problem adhering to the principles that are promoted by the mainstream. I want to show everyone the absolutes involved and the truth that makes this system work. This will not only produce amazing results in your position in life but it will also deepen your faith to a level that most Christians have not even considered.
In order to truly understand the biblical principles that come into play, we must realize that, although inadvertently, most Christians (I would even say, the majority of Christians) have been taught near truths, not necessarily wrong but purposefully misleading. Much of this is through innocently believing ideas that have been passed down from the early formation of the organized church.‘
There are some basic biblical concepts that have been taught with a slant that does not necessarily make them false in every instance but they lead people, believers and non-believers, to wrong conclusions. Of course, there are also some damaging misconceptions being perpetuated by otherwise well meaning Christians.
I have discovered that Christians can often be their own worst enemy. Too many who were called to believe have been summarily dismissed and discouraged by those who are supposed to be sharing the Gospel. (More on this later.)
Before we get into the meat and potatoes‘ of this analysis, we need to look closely at who we are, where we are and why we are. We must understand God‘s purpose for creating this physical universe. I believe in the omniscience of God. I believe that He is all powerful. I believe that He, with simple spoken words, created everything that is. If you do not believe this, don‘t worry. Bear with me and continue reading.
First of all we need to think about God‘s purpose for creating a physical universe. Jesus told us in John 4:24 (NKJV) that God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. This clearly means that God is a spiritual being, living in a spiritual kingdom. This also tells us that we have the capability to commune with Him through our spiritual being. This also tells us that He has absolutely one purpose for creating a physical world, a world filled with everything that we know to be beautiful and useful, all of the bounty and resources that any physical creation would or could need or want. The Genesis account of creation notes that everything that was created was good‘ in God‘s eyes. When a perfect God expresses His pleasure in His creation, it must be pretty close to perfect. The important thing that relates to us, human beings, is that He created this entire world before He created mankind. He created this physical world as a habitat for His physical creation, mankind.
When we are able to grasp the concept that God created this physical world and everything in it for us, we can then understand that He wanted (and wants) us to enjoy all of it. He created all of the land, sea, sky, animals, gold, silver, diamonds, etc. for me and for you. It is mankind‘s disobedience that caused us to relinquish dominion‘ over everything that exists in this physical world. But, He had a plan for that as well. He caused His Holy Word to become physical flesh in order to give us a way back to Him and to restore, to those who love Him, dominion‘ over every good thing that exists.
We will begin the analysis of The Law of Attraction in a Christian perspective by looking at the major premises that drive this system. To substantiate the validity of this system for Christians, I will use scripture from the Holy Bible (Old and New Testaments) to clarify the concepts in terms that are sound Christian principles. Once you understand how this works for a Christian, I will delve into the practical application of these biblical principles.
The Reality of The Law of AttractionWhether we choose to believe it or not, the Law of Attraction is at work in your life at this very moment. This is the nature of a law, natural or manmade. If you have ever been stopped by a policeman and were told that you broke a law, you may understand this. You may not have been aware of that particular law that you are accused of breaking. In the eyes of the law enforcement officer it makes no difference whether you were aware that the law existed or not. Ignorance of the law is no excuse. Ignorance of the law of attraction is no excuse either.
We may not want to accept the fact that every good thing and every bad thing that happens in our life happens with our permission. Christians have been taught to blame the devil for every bad thing that happens to them. This is a great cop out! By blaming every misfortune that befalls you on an outside force, beyond your control, you do not have to assume responsibility for the results. This, even though a pitiful situation, is a common and everyday experience.
The devil made me do it! I was a victim of circumstance. These are merely excuses that people like to give for their failures and misfortunes. This is also very untrue. Humans love to find someone or something to blame for the circumstances in their lives. It is unfortunate that these excuses are often validated by good‘ ministers who reinforce the victim mindset. These circumstances are in direct relationship to our mindset.‘
Is it not true that Jesus defeated the devil? Is it not true that Jesus not only forgave our sins but also gave us dominion over the devil and the world? Are we not told in the Bible that all we have to do is resist the devil and tell him to leave? Satan is a defeated foe. He no longer has dominion over Christian believers. He only has permission to do the things that you allow him to do in your life. His advantage is that most Christians do not want‘ to believe this because believing this will take away their excuses for failure. Believing that the devil can only do to you what you allow him to do places full responsibility for your circumstances on you. For most, that‘s a bitter pill to swallow.
Whether you accept it or not, you attract everything that is in your life and you repel those things that are not in your life. Face the facts. Accept responsibility for your own actions (voluntary and involuntary.) If you read closely the section on Words‘, you will see that every word you speak, think, write, read and hear is a powerful force in forging your life. When you read the section on Mindset‘ you will see that the strongholds that you have built are a result of your developed mental attitudes toward yourself and the world (your reality) in which you live. This is a good place to interject a warning to parents. The words that you speak over and to your children not only affect the circumstances in their lives but they also affect their perception of themselves, their mindset.‘ If you tell a child often enough that he is stupid, he will believe you and act stupidly. Tell him that he is worthless and that is the way the he will perceive himself to be. Tell a child that he is a good person, show him the example in your actions and he will develop that attitude. Children need, crave, the approval of their parents in order to develop a healthy attitude toward themselves. Often when we pass along the negative treatment that we received as a child, we perpetuate these generational curses.
What is important here is that we realize that what we say, what we think, and the manner in which we act and react determines what we attract to our lives.
Science can be defined as a systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation. Science is therefore an attempt at explaining the laws‘ and theories‘ that give definition to the functioning of the physical‘ or material‘ world in which we live. The scientific laws are ideas and concepts that can be proven through a systematic regimen of observation and comparison that proves that the expected outcome will always be generated.
When we apply this attitude, the scientific attitude, to concepts that we find in the Law of Attraction, we can see that the premises of this law meet the scientific criteria that are set forth for any law. There has been extensive study of the effect of physical laws on psychological responses in the world. This gives a psychological foundation for positive thinking‘ and the development of the Law of Attraction.
Science teaches us that there is matter and that there is energy. If we look at the composition of matter we can break it down to its atomic structure. All matter is composed of atoms. Every atom has a nucleus (protons and neutrons) and electrons which orbit around the nucleus. All electrons orbit the nucleus of the atom in a prescribed orbit‘ or energy level in order to maintain the stability of the atom. Electrons can be compelled to assume a higher orbit by the addition of some energy source.‘ They can be compelled to assume a lower energy level or orbit when they emit or give off energy. When atoms are aligned they create a motive‘ force or vibration. An example of this is the aligning of atoms in a piece of metal to cause it to become magnetic.‘ This creation of positive (+) and negative (-) poles is a fact of nature or science.
Whether you are familiar with this law‘ or not, every atom of your being adheres to it. Science, by its definition, has also shown to us that if there are physical laws that can be observed and quantified, there are probably similar laws‘ in other areas that exist even though, at present, they cannot be quantified.
The vibrations of each atom are in accordance with the physical laws that govern this physical world. They have definite effects, both positive and negative, on everything that exists. This is a fascinating fact. For me, science in itself proves that there is a magnificent Creator who planned for every possible thing that could ever exist. The mere creation of matter and energy is an amazing thing. The ability to create this matter and energy and to create the laws that will govern all matter and energy shows the absolute nature of Almighty God. God not only created all of the matter and energy that exists but He also put laws into effect that would cause them to work in harmony.
Everything that exists vibrates. If something exists on the physical level, it is composed of atoms. Every atom is composed of electrons, neutrons and protons. The relationship of the atomic‘ components generates a vibration.
Words that you speak are created by your vocal cords vibrating. Radio signals are generated on a spectrum of vibrations. Electricity vibrates by the disruption of electrons on an atomic level. The power to create and the power to destroy are a generation of vibrations.
In the 1980‘s the term vibe‘ was coined to describe a felling. Good vibrations and bad vibrations were the designations used to describe the feelings that one receives from another or emanates from itself. I am sure that each person reading this has encountered someone and gotten the feeling‘ that the person was trustworthy or not. We humans and all animals can sense‘ the vibrations that are emanated by others.
Have you ever met an individual at a party or a meeting or a simple introduction by a friend and had the feeling that that person was not who he portrayed himself to be. I surely have. There was a certain vibe‘ that they person gave off that caused alarms to go off in your head. Now I know that the next example is something that no one has ever experienced. Have you ever heard a politician speak and deep within your heart you knew that they were not being truthful?
What we have to realize about science is that it can only define things in the physical world. Since the physical world has its roots in the spiritual world, so does science. Science however is not an end in itself. Science simply shows the immense power of God. He not only created everything that exists from absolutely nothing but he also created a set of physical laws which govern the disposition of everything physical. What we, as Christians, must understand is that even though the physical laws do not govern the spiritual world, the spiritual laws do govern the physical world.
Unfortunately science can only concern itself with the physical existence of matter and energy. It is a subset of the laws which govern all existence. These are God‘s Spiritual laws.In consideration of the Law of Attraction, the physical laws of matter and energy do apply. A piece of metal can be affected on an atomic level to render it magnetic‘ by aligning its atomic structure. Does this scientific law apply only to metal? As it applies to the Law of Attraction, we as human beings can also become magnetic.‘ Even though you may not realize it, you are magnetic. The polarity in your body can affect a watch or even a TV set.
Some of you may remember, back in the old days, every TV set had rabbit ears,‘ an antenna that resembled the shape of rabbits ears. When the signal would get fuzzy or snowy, often simply touching the antenna with your hand would further tune the reception. There are many other examples of this. Just think about it. Rub your feet on a carpet and touch your finger tip to a metal object.
You can also magnetize yourself to attract things that you want and too often things that you do not want. This is the purpose for this study. When you study the Holy Scripture diligently and put certain principles into motion, you will align your spiritual being with the spiritual being of the Holy Spirit of the Creator of all that is. You will then be able to attract those things into your life that you want and to repel those things which you do not want. This spiritual magnetization is a gift from God.
The Biblical ViewAll of us, to some degree, have experienced the outcomes of some endeavor. It may have been horrible or just bad, or maybe mediocre or all right, or really good or great or absolutely fantastic. To some degree, in my short 50 something years, I have experienced all of these outcomes. If you take a close look at some of the most successful people in history, you‘ll learn that they also have experienced the entire spectrum of outcomes such as these. However, if you look at the area of their greatest endeavor, you‘ll clearly see that all, without exception, win their goals by using one principle or skill that Solomon purports to be of the greatest necessity. When you study the success training Bible study at the Christian Success Institute, you‘ll read that same concept (skill) repeated time and time again. When you study the lives of our founding fathers, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and others or study the lives of John D. Rockefeller, Henry Ford, Sam Walton, Walt Disney, Bill Gates and many others you‘ll see this skill used without fail. This skill is so incredibly powerful that hardly any achievement is ever reached or accomplished without its use.
This skill, of which Solomon was convinced, is not a difficult skill to learn; yet very few learn it. The difficulty lies in its application. With all of the advertising and marketing done today, we are programmed to expect instant gratification.‘ We want what we want and we want it now in abundance. We try things for a little while but if we cannot get the maximum return with the least effort, we give up and move on. This is precisely why there is so much money made by get rich quick scam artist. People today want to sit on the coach and have a magic business that just pours money into their bank account with as little effort as possible. Instant gratification with as little effort as possible is no different than playing a lottery and it is very rarely rewarding.
This skill that has been the one key to success for many is, as Solomon puts it, diligence‘. The dictionary defines diligence as - constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken; persistent exertion of body or mind. Often we are told that diligence is equivalent to hard work‘, but this is not necessarily true. Solomon helps us understand that diligence is working smarter not harder‘. I have a friend who is extremely successful and he always told me that success comes from working smarter and not harder. There are many out there in this world who work hard all of their lives but never succeed.
Diligence is not a natural trait of human beings. Our natural drive is to get as much as we can, as quickly as we can with as little effort as possible. Diligence is an acquired or learned skill that takes perseverance‘, dedication‘ and motivation.‘
In order for us to fully understand what Solomon‘s concept of diligence was we must look at his reference point. Solomon was involved in mining. His choice of a word that has been translated diligent‘ has its roots in mining. He even admonishes us to seek wisdom and understand as though we were looking for gold or silver (again a mining reference).
In Proverbs 20:11 (NIV) Solomon tells us. Even a child is known by his actions, by whether his conduct is pure and right.
We see than diligence is not simply perseverance‘, dedication‘ and motivation.‘ It is also initiated by what is 'pure and right.' When we take the example of mining, we can understand pure‘. We dig and dig and dig until we find a nugget of ore. We take that ore and apply heat until all of the impurities are burned away leaving the pure gold or silver. We can apply this to our study of success. We diligently study until we find that nugget of wisdom. By apply the heat that is generated by situations in our life, we burn away all that does not have a use until we are left with the pure nugget of wisdom that will give us the result that we need.
Diligence, therefore, is a learnable skill that is comprised of creative persistence, a worksmarter‘ effort that is rightly planned and performed in an efficient, effective and timely manner that results in a pure and high quality of excellence.
Don‘t let self-doubt enter in. At this point you may be thinking that you do not possess the qualities that are necessary to be a creative and persistent person. You do have these qualities. They are raw and possibly well hidden beneath the rubble of your life but they can be mined and refined simply by a little effort. Your enemy in this physical world does not want you to succeed. Your success is 'to the glory of God' and the ruler of this world does not want you to bring glory to Christ. He will be diligent in his efforts to discourage you. Be persistent and motivated by the purest of motivations – developing a closer relationship with Christ in order to learn and bring God glory through Christ.
Always remember that you are a member of the royal family of the King of Kings. You are a special creation of the Creator of the Universe. You were creates on purpose and with a purpose. Almighty God loves you dearly and not only wants you to succeed in life but also has given you the method and means. All you need to do is study to show yourself approved in the eyes of God.‘
Let‘s take a close look at some of the outcomes or rewards that you will realize by developing diligence.‘ It is natural for human being to seek the path of least resistance. It is our nature to go with the flow‘ and not to swim upstream‘. Solomon understood that we need to be motivated to take a path that is not as easy as the one that we have pursued. He tells us that being truly diligent will bring us priceless rewards, while a lack of diligence will result in devastating consequences. Following is a list of some of the rewards that Solomon has listed for us as a motivation to become diligent. Before we begin with Solomon‘s list, let me interject that the truest reward is a deep and personal relationship with Christ. That is the best reward that you will ever need and should ever want. As you continue through this success training you will begin to realize the absolute truth of this.
The di
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