Today he was talking about getting what you want, and how you have to envision it.  He mentioned getting out of debt, bringing your family back together, and being healthy again as things you might want.

For a biblical example, he spoke of Abraham whom God granted a son to after 20 years of wishing.  He then told a tale of a Miss America who came in 1st runner up in a Miss Florida pageant twice before moving to Alabama (lol) and winning Miss America.  The punchline of the ancedote is when a report asks her if she was nervous recieving the crown.  Miss America responds:

“No, because I’ve received the crown thousands of times in my dreams.”

Infact, his message is not unlike the one told in The Secret (I haven’t read it), which obstinately tells you that you can have whatever you want if you dream about it and envision it and make goal boards and things like that.

Kind of crazy.   Except that I completely believe in all of it.  100%.  No joke.

I believe that unless you believe, you won’t ever get what you want.  That envisioning success and dreaming is an integral part of everything.  Unless you envision yourself as successful, then you will never be successful.  If you say and believe you are a loser… well then… you will be one.  Why would you even try to change?

It’s actually the same philosophy espoused in Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle, which recommends neuro-linguistic programming and dreaming to picture yourself as a winner.

It’s actually the same thing as when basketball coaches tell you to envision you making the shot, before you make a free throw.

Basically, it’s hope on a personal level.

But difference between religion, The Secret and Body Building is what they recommend you do next.  Envisioning yourself as what you want to be is just half of it… creating the environment to do so, building habits, making yourself accountable is the other half.

So I think that’s where religion and possibly The Secret (again, haven’t read it) fail.  Joel Osteen said that you can succeed regardless of your talent and abilities.  But Tom Venuto of BFFM says that you can build those things.  Religion says God gives to you, I say that you give it to you.