Yesterday, I read one of the most powerful questions I’ve come across in a while (apparently, Byron Katie used to ask this of people during her seminars):
What is the thought that kicks you out of heaven?
I find this question brilliant for two reasons:
The first being that the question implies that you would be in heaven if you hadn’t had that thought. It assumes that your natural state is one of well-being until you get entangled in your thoughts, which is something completely agree with.
The second reason I love this question is because it forces you to identify the ONE thought that affects your life the most. We all probably have more than one that affects our lives in a non-beneficial way, but not all our thoughts affect us equally; there is always the one that presents itself more often than the rest, one that overshadows our natural state of well-being much more than our other thoughts. Which thought affects you the most?
I asked myself that question and it was easy to identify the thought that kicks me out of heaven: “I may lose my financial security.” This thought has been around in my head lately, but I hadn’t identified it so clearly before. I can see now how it’s been affecting my life, my moods, and my actions. And, thanks to that question, I’m now more aware of its influence. Now I can see it overshadowing my well-being. I know it will still hang around for a while, but I can decide whether or not I want it to affect my mood and my actions. I know that thought will show up several times per day, but every single time it does, I get to decide whether I want it to affect my life or not.
Now it’s your turn: what is the thought that kicks you out of heaven?