While on vacation in Mexico years ago, our family toured a swamp near the ocean that was said to house a 25-foot crocodile. A young, small Mexican man was our guide.

With enthusiasm, he walked my family (and a few others) onto a wooden ramp that sat a foot or so above the muddy water and had a railing made of logs. Walking forward I kept my eyes out in the distance hoping to get a view of this huge reptile.

Initially, I didn't see anything off the ramp other than swampy land--though on the ramp, to my surprise, I noticed a piece of raw chicken lying near my feet. I began to take note of the distance between the log rails, and decided it might be a good idea to grab my smallest child and hold onto him--after all, who knows what a 25-foot crocodile is capable of, especially if he's hungry! It wasn't long before our guide began his speech. He explained a bit about the region, and then turned his focus to the swampy water. I was shocked and very amazed when the guide pointed out that crocodiles were lurking all around us! They blended into the environment so well that to an untrained eye, they could not be easily recognized. Come to find out, just under my feet rested the monster crocodile that I expected to see off in the distance. And the worst part--his lunch (the chicken that the guide brought with him) was sitting right next to me.

Like these crocodiles, dangerous influences can destroy our lives and our families if we aren't aware and protected. There are steps we can take to assure our safety (which I will discuss over the next few weeks).

Most importantly, let's emphasize that we can avoid falling into thought patterns and beliefs that feed the root cause of most dysfunctional patterns--that is-- a lack of knowing our individual worth and our inability to manifest our value due to fear. This is like a 25-foot crocodile that has the potential to do a lot of damage.

Here are some of the internal thoughts that feed this dangerous problem:

· I'm not good enough
· I'm not loveable
· I'm worthless
· I'm powerless
· I never get what I want
· I'm bad because I'm not perfect
· I have no value to society
· I'm a failure

When we feel small inside, we naturally create big egos to cover up our pain. Many may never know our internal suffering ... even we may suppress it and act as though nothing's wrong. Consequently, many in our world are suffering through painful lives, wondering where the destructive behaviors came from and not knowing how to heal them.

We move further away from dangers that threaten our happiness when we have a solid sense of self (not vanity) and we eliminate our deeper fears that we are worthless, less than others, and unloved.

Rebecca's Challenge

For this week's personal development, evaluate your position. Are your negative thoughts placing food for a destructive pattern? If so, take steps to get to the bottom of it. Ask yourself, "Where do these thoughts come from?" "Why do I hold on to them?" "How do they affect the ones I love?" For more help, seek assistance from the five-step process in Healing Your Family History.  

Check Out Healing Your Family History

Essential Oil Tip

Black Pepper is a spice with potent antiviral properties when taken internally. On an emotional level, black pepper is helpful in eliminating the “virus” of negative thinking. It pulls up suppressed emotions so that they can be dealt with honestly, promoting recovery from addiction and encouraging new ways of thought. Black pepper helps us let go of the old and increases our capacity for the new. It may help those who bottle up emotions to release destructive feelings.

With love,
Rebecca Hintze