Just recently, I was reading a very good article titled “When Your Back is Against the Wall” by another ezine writer named Anne Stewart. As stated in the title, this article dealt with the uncomfortable position we are in when the difficulties of life hit us hard.  Inevitably, life will hit us. Hard indeed. Of this one thing we can be sure. However, some seem to get the onerous privilege of being pounded by life the way Rocky was in his movies. The good thing for Rocky was that he ended up the winner. Time would heal his bruises from the fight. 

Unfortunately for us, who are in the throes of the battle, with life kicking the living daylights out of us, and with no relent in sight, things do not seem that rosy. I could sit here and write articles all day long about what we should do, how we should react, what methods to employ, on and on, ad infinitum. God knows, I am extremely well-versed in the self-help literature, having read Peale to Hill, Clason to Robbins. What do all these people have to say? The resounding themes ring clear. Yet are all these individuals original thinkers, having devised the panacea for man’s self-actualization ills? The point I want to make is that it is beneficial to read such literature and to garner different perspectives from diverse thinkers. Yet there must be some unifying substance which holds the prevailing self-help philosophies together. Find the glue, and you find the essence. 

 

Having been a student in the self-help arena for many years, I find it rather disconcerting that I have not achieved, through the implementation of such methods, the spectacular levels of success promised from these books and tapes. On the internet, programs are springing up all like ants after an ice cream spill; these make incredible promises of their life-changing powers. I read one the other day about a woman who hit rock bottom and had no where to turn. Most of these stories carry a lot of clout as to the amount of adverse circumstances the individuals go through before stumbling upon the “magic potion.” This potion changes their lives to the point where they are now “demi-celebrities,” with all of their dreams materializing before their very eyes. Sounds great, no? When you scroll down to the bottom of course, after having been reminded a thousand times of the secrets that will be revealed to you in these programs, you then get hit with the fee for admission. Now I am not saying that these people are all lying, and I certainly do not have the time to investigate thoroughly all of these different approaches; however, as much as I am always tempted to “buy in” to one of these programs, I have become more circumspect with time and am less prone to take the bait, so to speak. Some very reputable people in the self-help camp notwithstanding, and of these speakers, writers, lecturers, etc., we must be ever careful before we plunge forward and “buy-in” to one of these programs; only to be disappointed when they do not achieve what is promised. 

The real self-helpers are worthy of their salt.  They are worthy to make a living by doing what they love and helping people in the process. However, we should be chary about believing the promises made by super-hyped programs, which often only serve to make a lot of money for some, leaving the buyers in more dire straits and more hopeless than before. This is a malevolent disservice to humankind.

Therefore, when the promises are so grandiose, so instantly life-changing, we must immediately raise the red flag and come to realize that the claims are probably super-hyped. ‘Tis a pity, since if true, we could all achieve our wildest dreams by investing a relatively small amount of time and money into something whose worth would ultimately far outweigh its cost. Unfortunately, such panaceas do not exist. The only panacea, I believe, is what the author Anne Stewart recommends in her article mentioned heretofore: turn to our Healer, Provider, and Deliverer. Back off the wall one step at a time, and trust that God, the All-Knowing will deliver you. This is the one worthy Source, the “glue” that both holds together and unifies all these self-help themes: “Seek His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”

 

Joe Pagano