There is something wonderfully liberating about realizing that we have the spiritual authority to change our minds! Think about that for a moment. We can wake up tomorrow morning, look at an idea we’ve carried around for twenty years, and enthusiastically declare, “Well, that was interesting, but I’ve got a better idea!” And just like that, a whole new experience becomes available to us. Dr. Ernest Holmes gave us that familiar reminder, “Change your thinking, change your life.” But he also wrote, “Principle is not bound by precedent.” Now there’s a statement worth getting excited about! Just because something has always been a certain way in our experience doesn’t mean it must continue that way. In our teaching, we understand that consciousness is creative and that our beliefs influence the choices we make and the experiences we cultivate. Every new realization gives us an opportunity to express more of the Infinite Source that is already within us. And the wonderful thing is, we can appreciate everything yesterday taught us while enthusiastically welcoming a completely different idea today. After all, who decided that personal growth required a lifetime subscription to our old opinions?

As students of Principle, we recognize that our thoughts and feelings establish the quality of energy we bring into our experiences. Esther Hicks said, “The better you feel, the more in alignment you are.” Alignment is that wonderful sense of harmony between what we believe, what we desire, and how we live. We can also find an interesting comparison in physics. Energy is the capacity to do work or produce change. In our spiritual practice, we use the word energy to describe the vitality and intention we bring to our thinking and actions. Physics also tells us that vibration involves repeated motion around an equilibrium position, while resonance occurs when a system responds strongly to a driving frequency near one of its natural frequencies. In our teaching, vibration and resonance describe the qualities of consciousness and the sense of harmony we experience when our thinking agrees with our spiritual understanding. These are useful parallels rather than identical scientific processes. And when we change our perspective, something quite practical happens. We begin noticing different possibilities. We respond to people differently. We make decisions that reflect our new understanding. A situation that seemed complicated yesterday may become remarkably simple today because we’re approaching it with a different state of mind. Sometimes all it takes is one fresh thought to make us wonder why we’ve been making something so difficult!

Paul Selig wrote, “You are the energy field come into form.” That is quite a way to consider who we are! We are individualized expressions of Source with the ability to develop new understandings of ourselves and bring them into our daily lives. Consider someone who has spent years thinking, “I’m just not a people person.” One day, they decide to reconsider that description. They accept an invitation, introduce themselves to someone new, and discover that they actually enjoy the conversation. Before long, their social experiences begin changing because the way they see themselves has changed. There’s an interesting connection here to the physics of resonance. When a physical system receives energy at a frequency close to its natural frequency, its response can become significantly stronger. Our spiritual use of resonance is different, but the comparison is helpful. When our thoughts agree with our intentions and our actions support that agreement, we often experience a greater sense of clarity and momentum. Our new understanding becomes something we actively live. And perhaps the most delightful realization is that we can continue discovering new dimensions of ourselves at any age. Who knows? That quiet person might eventually become the life of the party. Somebody had better warn the neighbors!

So, here’s an option for you. Give yourself the pleasure of exploring a possibility that genuinely excites you. Perhaps there’s an adventure you’ve been considering, a talent you’d enjoy developing, or a dream that’s ready for some fresh attention. Les Brown said, “You have greatness within you.” And what a wonderful truth that is! That greatness is already part of your spiritual identity, waiting for the opportunity to find new expression through your choices and actions. Allow yourself to think beyond what you’ve previously considered possible. Feel the enthusiasm of a new idea taking shape and enjoy the experience of doing something about it. Every day offers another opportunity to discover just how much life has available for us to experience. And here’s a thought worth carrying with you: The moment you give yourself permission to think differently, you give your life permission to unfold differently. So go ahead, change your mind about something wonderful. Your next great adventure might begin with the simple realization, “You know what? I think I’ll give that a try!”