Empowerment and Control

Welcome to Practicing Truth. Unfortunately, you're going to have to deal with my voice; I'm still a bit under the weather.

But first, let me credit the music. Control by Zoe Wees. Thank you for stopping by. I hope you take what I say as food for thought. Have a fabulous day!

You are in control of the decisions you make at every moment in time. Deciding what will and will not happen and who will and will not be in your life. No matter the relationship, the situation, or the amount of someone else's influence, yours is the final word.

Now, don't mishear me. I'm not saying that you control everything that happens in your life. You don't. But you are in control of the decisions you make. And it's the decisions you make that determine the quality of your life.

So, why doesn't it seem that way? Why does it seem that you mainly cater to someone else's needs and desires? That you tend to someone else's life more than you tend to your own? Think about their needs before your own?

Well, let's examine that. But first, I want to clarify that I'm not talking about a parent's responsibility for their child. I'm talking about the responsibilities we take on when we enter relationships. And I also want you to understand that I'm speaking from a Western societal perspective. Where the rights of men and women are, at least in theory, equal. Along with the opportunity to create the life one desires.

So, why doesn't it seem that we control our lives? That the needs of others seem to burden us more than our own?

Primarily, and many of you might disagree, it is because our parents, primary caregivers, social systems, and religious institutions have taught most of us we must cede control of our lives to that other than ourselves. To the needs of our society. The deity we believe in. The religion that worships that deity, and many others.

So, first, our parents or primary caregivers teach us what their parents or primary caregivers taught them. What they believe. Then they take us to the places that inculcated their beliefs and allow them to indoctrinate us with what will become ours.

Places that caution us to not be selfish and to first consider the needs of others. Rarely explaining that to be selfish is not wrong, but to be concerned with one's self-interest. That it's the conceited love of self that we must avoid.

Places that teach us to fall to our knees when we need help. That we are not in control. Their god is! We're just along for the ride. And over time, we accept what they're saying; and, later, teach it to our children as well.

But we don't have to ask God for anything! God has already provided everything we will ever need, including the ability to control ourselves!

Empowerment and control of your life begin with recognizing that no matter the stimuli, the final decision to do or not do is yours. And that regardless of the consequences, you never relinquish the power to say yes or no.

However, to become empowered, you must first know who you are. What you stand for. And to know that, you must establish principles. Solid principles that you live by. No matter what.

Empowerment is knowing the truth. Therefore, you must seek and accept the truth no matter where you find it. No matter its bearer. No matter its bearer's agenda. The truth is the truth, regardless of who says it. Consequently, then, when the truth is contrary to what others have taught you, the truth must win!

When you know who you are and have established the principles you live by, you can more easily determine the type of people you want to allow to share your life. People who complement and positively add to your life. People who hold many of the same values. Who act in your best interest and help strengthen you. This is empowerment. This is within your control. They are based on the decisions you make. And you are always in control of those.

Thanks for listening.

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