Welcome to our new Sunday Morning Service by Dr. Dean A. Banks, D.D. Every week Dr. Dean will be engaging subjects that are pertinent to your growth and expansion into recognition of; respect to; and communication with your inner spirit. Please feel free to comment or suggest topics for review. May the Divine always bless you and your families! ~Dean A. Banks, D.D.

SUNDAY MORNING SERVICE WITH
DR. DEAN A. BANKS, D.D.

"SCRIPTING YOUR LIFE"

SEPTEMBER 24

Much of what occurs to us every day is a result of automatic emotional responses known as fight or flight. New thoughts are compared with past experience in microseconds and our bodies react from emotional signals that move us towards or away from stimuli. We are programmed with internal scripts that command our actions. But where do these scripts come from? Are they just accepted reactions that we prefer or do we have the power to reprogram these responses? Much debate has ensued over whether we have control over our emotions or not.

The basic plan for a play is the script. It is a series of directions and dialogue for actors, stage hands, musicians and the lighting crew to use to coordinate the observed action onstage. Without a script there would be many miscues, or the worst, chaos. The playwright decides what action and dialogue takes place at the appropriate time. It is a coordinated effort between the implementers of the play to follow the directions of the playwright. When all actions and dialogue are executed on cue, the play’s performance is seamless. The audience gets involved in the action and doesn’t even realize that they are witnessing a play. It is automatic. Our emotional responses are so scripted that we follow their cues automatically without challenge in crisis situations. By employing scientific analysis of emotional scripts and employing conscious relaxation techniques, we can reprogram our automatic emotional responses to be more effective in actualizing our goals and desires.

In order to understand our emotional responses, we must dig down deep into the core of the basic emotions. Many theorists have identified what they deem as basic emotions. These basic (primary) emotions are combined, or layered to produce secondary emotions. In order to identify the root emotion, we must peel off the layers through the process of conscious relaxation. What is conscious relaxation? It is a state where we are completely conscious of our breath and bodily functions while releasing our conscious control of our thoughts; or what is commonly referred to as meditation. It is a state where we do not generate commands, but listen to the echoes in our minds and bodies. It is the time where we make ourselves a priority in order to relax our system enough to release any built up stress that is caused by our thoughts and emotional reactions to these thoughts. Recognizing and observing facts concerning our lives can only be accurate in a less stressful state. Stress masks our ability to discern between fact and opinion.

After meditation our minds are clearer. It is the time when we can reflect on our behaviors and jot them down. Making a list throughout the day of our emotional reactions is the beginning of changing the automatic script of our behaviors. List all of the emotions and emotional reactions that you experience during the course of your day. Don’t analyze them; just list them. Analysis will take place later. Build this list over the course of weeks and months until you have a good sample of your behaviors. Make sure that you take note to similar behaviors in different situations. This data will help you get a clearer picture of your root emotions. Why is this important? Because an understanding of what motivates you will help you get a clearer picture of your deepest desires. What YOU feel you were created to accomplish in life.

A good scientific analysis of your listed behaviors requires that you identify key questions to be answered by your data. If you are going to solve the problem of reprogramming your emotional reactions, the questions you ask yourself must yield the correct answers from the data you have collected. Be thorough in your observations and leave no stone unturned. Your ego is quite clever in protecting your sore spots. Don’t let it fool you into believing that certain observations of your behaviors are not relevant. Every reaction you display is relevant. It will help you pinpoint what emotions trigger these reactions.

Research what others have done in identifying their emotional reactions. See what methods they have employed to identify and isolate deep seated emotions. Ask yourself what is it you really need to know about yourself. Make sure that you use reliable sources that employ scientific methods that observe the facts and don’t espouse opinions. Determine the sources of the data that others have used in obtaining their conclusions. Ask how the data was obtained, was the experiment conducted scientifically and it has been duplicated by others with the same results. Ask yourself if you would have obtained the same conclusions if you had conducted the experiment. In order for you to feel comfortable or even confident with others’ data and conclusions you must believe it to be accurate. If there are any trepidations concerning their accuracy, then discard them immediately. It will not serve your ultimate purpose of obtaining accurate conclusions about your behaviors.

Correct scientific analysis requires that we identify the questions that reveal the answers we are seeking, as well as pinpointing the problems we are seeking to solve. Gathering and organizing information about our behaviors requires effective research and focused evaluation of the data that we gather. By utilizing methods that replicate the way our brains function, we can map out the processes that take place in our minds. Illustrating and interpreting these processes through mapping, tabling and modeling can reveal the source emotions that trigger our emotional reactions. The next article will discuss these various techniques for the reader to use in determining their emotional scripts. By rewriting your life script you can change the daily outcome of your life to proceed toward the actualization of your individual potential.

Excerpted from the book "Spiritual Growth: Articles Of Expectation." Please click here to order the book:

https://www.createspace.com/3691279

©2017 Dean A. Banks, D.D. All Rights Reserved.