GIVING UP YOUR PREFERENCES

by Dr. Lawrence Wilson

If you submit your will to that of the Creator, one of the problems is that the “higher Will of God” will conflict, at times, with your wants and preferences. In fact, this is an important reason that more people do not submit their will to that of the higher Will or Creator. This article discusses this important problem.

WHAT IS MEANT BY “YOUR PREFERENCES”?

Preferences are items that you prefer or favor. Everyone has certain things they like, and others they just do not enjoy or resonate with. This applies to foods, persons, places, activities, music, colors, homes, cars, types of work, and everything else.

ARE YOU JUST YOUR PREFERENCES?

Many people believe that they are defined by their preferences. People say things like “I just like dogs, or hamburgers, or beer, or whatever. It is just who I am”. It is true that we are all deeply conditioned by our upbringing, culture, language and other things. As a result, our preferences can seem very important to us, and they play an important role in determining whom we choose to be our mates, our friends, where we live and so on.

However, I do not believe they are our true identity, which is much more than one’s preferences.

PREFERENCES CAN KEEP YOU ALIVE

Healthful preferences, such as preferring fresh foods, may allow us to survive in the physical world. Unhealthy or maladaptive preferences generally lead to an early death. These may include preferences for recreational drugs, conventional medical care, dangerous thrills, and “exciting”, but dysfunctional relationships.

PREFERENCES CAN LOCK YOU INTO A SMALL WORLD

Following only our preferences, however, tends to lock one into a particular world of experience that is limited and limiting. Anything that is limiting, in this way, may help us survive for a time, but leads to death, eventually, because we are unable to adapt and grow very much to overcome obstacles to life.

Allowing yourself to break free of your preferences, in this case, is important for health and healing to occur. Nutritional balancing, for example, helps people break free of fears of enemas, sauna therapy, vitamin therapy, and more.

A PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

A number of years ago, I had an amazing experience living in a remote Indian village in Mexico for six months. I was sent there by my medical school to do service after finishing medical school. When I first arrived, I thought I would not survive for very long. It was primitive, and did not meet my preferences, to say the least.

The people lived in thatched-roof mud huts with their chickens, pigs, goats and other animals. There were no bathrooms, and children often relieved themselves along the rough dirt paths of the village. No one spoke English, and there were no telephones, no radio, no television, or most other things I was accustomed to. We drank water from the same well with the animals, though we boiled the water. The people were suspicious of modern medical care, so I was viewed with suspicion. I had a number of harrowing experiences and narrow escapes, with no one to call upon for help.

Amazingly, I did survive, though I would not recommend it to others. The experience opened me up in unusual ways, and was good preparation for later experiences that would force me again to move beyond my preferences in order to grow again in maturity and understanding.

FOLLOWING THE CURRENT OF LIFE ALWAYS REQUIRES LETTING GO OF SOME PREFERENCES

There is a current of life, which means that life moves us along, pushes us, at times, and can guide and steer us. A nutritional balancing program often pushes a person more into this current. However, to move with the current absolutely requires letting go of our preferences, at times. This can be very scary, and one can experience great anxiety and perhaps loss when one is asked to let go a preference.

Knowing when this is a positive thing, as opposed to simply anxiety because one is moving in the wrong direction, can be difficult. At times, a calcium/magnesium ratio greater than about 13.5 to 14 on a hair mineral analysis is an indicator that a letting go of something – a lifestyle factor, attitude, preference or habit – is needed. It is fascinating that this would show up on a hair mineral test, but it can.

One of the most difficult “preferences” to let go of is one’s conditioning or programming, which may also be called one’s brainwashing. This can be subtle, or some people know it is simply a very powerful fear or suggestion that has been implanted in the mind in a way that “locks” it in. Yet, to be fully integrated and functional, sometimes one must push past the anxiety and fear to let go of this type of “preference”, as well.

This short article is related to the concept and the article, Thy Will Be Done.

Courses | About Dr. Wilson | The Free Basic Program