A Three-Legged Dog

I was in a veterinarian's office and met a woman with one very lively dog. He wagged, shook, panted, licked, and just radiated joy the way only happy dogs can. He was so spirited that it was a few minutes before I noticed the atrophied hind leg. Funny thing, he didn't seem to notice it either. He didn't care that he only had three legs. I don't even think he knew the difference. He was too busy having fun. In Lesson Twelve of his book Prosperity, "Overcoming the Thought of Lack," Charles Fillmore writes: The mind of humanity is like the net catching every kind of idea, and it is our privilege and duty under the divine law to separate those that are good from those that are not good. In this process the currents of unselfish, spiritual love flowing through the soul act as great eliminators, freeing the consciousness of thoughts of hate, lack, and poverty, and giving the substance of Spirit free access into the consciousness and affairs. That dog could easily have spent his life limping and looking sorrowful, and no one would have thought any the worse of him. Quite the opposite, we'd have taken special care of him. But what a mistake that would have been! Maybe he didn't have the Westminster Dog Show in his future, but that didn't stop him from running, playing, and living a full doggie life. It doesn't take much for us to dwell on what's missing. Something not so good happens, and it occupies our whole thinking - never mind that the good stuff is still there. One day of rain ruins our whole week on the tropical island. The garden isn't landscaped the way we want it, so we forget how well we decorated the living room. Our eyes aren't the most beautiful, and we don't see our gift for compassion. Fillmore explains that while we're focusing on our shortcomings, we don't allow the Spirit the opportunity to give. Not being able to pay the bills is overwhelming. If your mind is a net, it will certainly catch that poverty idea. But it's up to you to strain that out and only capture the ones that build, not the ones that destroy. If you clog the net with the negative stuff, there's nowhere for the positive to flow in. It won't happen by accident, nor is it somehow ordained. You get to choose. And you let the good stuff flow through by choosing to think thoughts of love, gratitude, and generosity. You know the phrase "garbage in, garbage out"? It works both ways. Good stuff in, good stuff out.