My passion, from the beginning of my calling, revolved around one goal: making people whole through a meaningful relationship with God! Jesus stated His purpose when He said, I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly. (John 10:10) Or, as it is translated in The New Living Translation, My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.  The Amplified Bible says of this quality of life, that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows.) And finally, as The Message Bible so warmly states it, so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.

Very early in my pursuit to help people I saw two patterns the seemed to be the norm for Christian living: repeat or repent! That’s right! It became pretty obvious that people either cycled through their problems repeatedly or when they reached the breaking point they experienced God in some phenomenal way that freed them from the cycle of defeat.

Sadly, I have witnessed thousands of believers who regularly reached the place of  breakdown do something destructive they thought would salve the pain or distract them from the problem when, in fact, it only adds to the weight of emotional undertow that pulls them down with the next wave! One of the most painful experiences of my life has been watching people repeat this cycle.

Repetition is one of the many ways the heart develops beliefs.  There can be many reasons a person refuses to deal with life’s issues. Regardless of the reason, in the end they eventually come to believe they can’t! This repetition of avoiding resolution, falling into a destructive pattern and things getting worse, serves to convince us that problems don’t get solved and life only gets worse. It undermines our God-given sense of dignity and worth.

Maybe more destructive than anything, it robs us of hope! When the Bible speaks of hope, it is talking about the confident expectation of good! Hope is the emotional breeding ground that gives rise to faith, vision, creativity, and almost every healthy internal drive! In fact, God is identified as the God of hope! (Rom 15:13) If we are hearing the voice of God, we always have hope.

The apostle Paul said hope that is based in the finished work of Jesus, the gift of righteousness through Him, and the power of grace that works in us, is never ashamed. (Rom 5:1-5) The only way our hope would never bring shame would be if it always produced a good outcome; and that’s exactly what we can have in Christ EVERY TIME!

We are either abounding in hope or we are waiting for the next big breakdown. Each new challenge is either turning into a new victory that fuels our confidence in the next struggle or it causes us to live in the expectation of destruction, i.e., condemnation.

God wired us to have breakthroughs to greater victory in every situation. That’s right! Your brain is wired to take you to repentance every time you struggle. This occurs on every level of your being: spirit, soul, and body! This is about your whole self!

When you face life’s challenges with the intention of a healthy outcome, everything in you works to bring it to pass. The Spirit of God will lead, your thought processes will move you in the right direction, and your brain will even rebuild itself to facilitate the end you fully intend to live.

With the advent of neuro-plasticity we realize that the brain is probably the most flexible and adaptable organ in the human body. It’s not that it simply facilitates new thought; it literally rebuilds itself to create neuro-pathways that facilitate the end you have in mind. It can make you more capable of feeling pain, both emotional and physical. It can make you see the worst in every situation and person. It can make you a pessimist or an optimist. On the other hand, it will rebuild itself so you are able to find joy in every situation. It can bring you optimal health and energy. In other words, it can facilitate the quality of life that you expect, intend, and believe for!

Do you find yourself walking through life on egg shells, just waiting for the next breakdown, or do you confidently expect that every day will get better? Do you awaken every morning with the sense of dread, or the adventure of a new, exciting day? Do negative feelings rob you of emotional and physical energy, or are you supercharged to live life to its fullest?

Do you come through the struggles of life having learned new lessons, having leapt forward in personal and spiritual growth, or is every struggle a new setback? Do you emerge from life’s battles a better person or a bitter person? Do you repeat your cycles, or do you repent to live on new plateaus of faith and virtue?

To some this sounds impossible, a pipedream. But this is why we came to Jesus. We came to experience a better life, to escape the pain and destruction of the past. We got saved to solve our problems. Trusting and following the Spirit of God in your heart will lead you into your world as it should be!

The problem is not really complicated; it is merely the beliefs of your heart. The heart is the real you, the source of your deep thoughts and self perception. The heart is the residence of all core beliefs that drive our life independent, and sometimes despite, our conscious decisions.

Proverbs 17:20 describes a heart that cannot find good. In the original language it speaks of a crooked heart, one that has been “bent out of shape” by life’s pressures. A heart that has been broken and wounded can’t find good, it can only find more pain. That’s the reason we endlessly repeat our cycles of pain and destruction. Our own heart keeps bringing us back to the pain we so desperately seek to avoid. Unless we solve the problem at the root (the heart,) it will only be a matter of time until the next big breakdown.

I developed a program called Heart Physics to help people get in touch with the love of God in their heart. Thousands of people have given testimony to incredible transformation that occurs by creating a Christ-consciousness: an abiding awareness of Christ in their heart! After all, Christ in you is the hope of glory. Apart from an abiding awareness of Christ in our heart, Christianity can be a powerless religion instead of a living, life-changing reality.

You are wired to know and feel the love of God. This is supposed to be your root emotion from which all conscious and unconscious thought emerges. When love is your root, life works as it should!  Studies have shown that people who believe in a loving God are healthier, have better immune function, survive illnesses, have a longer life span, most certainly enjoy more positive emotions, and experience more loving relationships! How much more the benefits for those who know how to experience God at a heart level!

Heart Physics is a biblically based meditation program designed to write the truth of God’s love on your heart. Someone once asked me if Heart Physics was just “another formula.” I thought it was a valid question considering all the formulas that have been feverishly and foolishly “slammed down our throats” over the years.

Heart Physics is not a formula; it is a path, a tool, a resource! Formulas are basically a form of works righteousness. Works righteousness is when we believe that doing enough of something will allow us to attain a goal. The problem is that dead works alienate us from the grace (power and ability) of God. They leave us to do what we can as well as we can do it. When our strength, tenacity, dedication, or self-discipline fails we fall from our goal.

A path is a process or exercise that leads you to a state! You know that what you are doing merely facilitates a desired state; it does not earn a goal. As insignificant as this difference may seem, there is a subtle power that few grasp! The paradox of a goal versus a state, a pathway versus earning, is expressed in Heb 4:11, Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest. (KJV) This type labor means to be diligent and make haste!

You can’t get to the goal of rest by labor and haste. But using the process of faith you can reach the state of rest. Entering a state is like walking into a city. Once inside you participate in all that exists in that place! All you do to partake is abide, just don’t leave.

When we enter a goal by works, the moment we stop doing the works we lose the goal or standing! When we reach a state by following a path, the path becomes insignificant when we enter the state. In works we cling to the works, in a pathway our goal is to depart from the path and leave it behind.

In the early 80’s I developed a tool called The Prayer Organizer. It is a powerful tool designed to help develop a life of prayer. But I always warn readers not to get stuck on this process. This is just a tool that helps you find your way into a life of prayer. In time you will use this tool less and less as prayer becomes a lifestyle instead of a discipline.

There is an ancient saying, “The path is not the mountain.” The path is the way we get to the mountain. It only has value while we make the journey. Once we arrive at our destination it is no longer essential. There are many things the Bible suggests as processes to transformation. None of the things we do actually changes us; it is a personal encounter with the person and power of God that brings life-long transformation. But these things the Bible tells us to do: pray, meditate, read, worship, and other activities, must all be processes where we connect to the living God, never substitutes for true intimacy.

If even a shred of hope or inspiration has emerged from reading this, take the first step. Don’t wait! Anything you do to respond to the inspiration of God, (usually experienced as a glimmer of hope) will cause you to experience grace (God’s power and ability.) Like the pathway to the mountain, all you can take is one step at a time. But one step taken in faith (immovable trust) will facilitate your capacity to experience the love and goodness of God beyond your present capacity!

God is good and life can be, as well. Instead of a breakdown, you can look forward to being built up!