“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

Give us a moment. Use that power that you have, and it is multiplied. Use the freedom that you have, and it is multiplied. You are, Joseph, now, able to see many of Ruburt’s negative concepts, but you are blind still to many of your own. The feeling and belief in freedom must come before its physical manifestation, and this regardless of any beliefs to the contrary.

As a result then of other beliefs Ruburt withdrew from the challenges of physical activity. Simply deciding on a conscious level to reenter that arena, in his present state, shows in itself a change of belief, for before he did not want to try, and considered it a threat to his work.

To some extent he still does. But he is beginning to understand, and is willing to enter that arena. He wants to enter it, and there is the important change in belief that has occurred. He is still frightened, and will be worried lest he become too involved in it, but he is willing to handle that on a conscious level now, which is another important change in beliefs.

Before he did not believe he could handle that consciously, so it is important. Not that you go camping or not go camping, but that you realize the freedoms that you have; use them, encourage any physical ideas of that nature that he has, and do not make him feel inadequate to try.

This, you see, is connected with the trailer idea, and I am telling you because you still do not understand the importance of belief and imagination combined. He has gone ahead despite, in this case, your negative interpretation, and seen himself under certain conditions traveling in a trailer, writing, granted, but in front of strangers in a bathing suit or shorts, and he does not want to look like a bony witch. So already in his mind he is gaining weight, seeing himself fairly agile—but he felt this was in spite of your attitudes, not with your enthusiasm or understanding.

He felt that in your world and interpretation his ideas were Pollyanna, but I tell you that is practical creativity—and it can wipe out many negative beliefs, more in a moment than you can realize.

The times that Ruburt managed rather considerable improvements even in the face of strong negative beliefs, were times when he managed to convince himself against all objective evidence that there was nothing wrong with him physically but habitual stiffness. That belief minimized the seeming impediments, allowed greater physical freedom that in its turn by contrast began to lessen the preliminary negative beliefs. That was the summer of which we have spoken, and the conditions did not continue for the reasons given.

He did not believe he could consciously discipline himself as he thought you did. When this became entwined with your way of life and financial conditions, he dug in deeper. At the same time he did not want you to spend anymore time away from your own work. He cut out more and more stimuli toward distraction.

(11:30.) Give us time. A strong impeding belief is the one that the body could not any longer perform no matter what he did, and this largely was the result of a concentration upon negative aspects.

It served a purpose, showing him what his body was capable of, and raises the question of why he was not using it. In all this I must tell you however that you both do still concentrate upon the negative element, and ignore the power of anticipation and its values in changing beliefs.

Now. The resistances are two. The most important one is that Ruburt must make a conscious effort not only to alter his habits but to handle what he thinks of now as distractions by conscious effort, the changing of a pattern, rather than by unconscious limitations on the body. So of course a dilemma is implied.

Beside this, when beginning such a venture, time must be allowed for the waking-sleep patterns to be adopted. The eating patterns also, and he will want to eat more. But such change represents at his level of behavior a definite attempt to substitute conscious alterations to seek the same ends.

Some resistance then can be expected. The method is important in that it is one alternate way, represents a conscious effort at solving the problem in a different way, and provides less stress while the preliminary beliefs are worked on. I will give you more on the preliminary beliefs. The important thing about them however is that Ruburt thought they were a proper method of achieving certain ends. He now realizes they were not; with your help other alternates can be used. Working together here (in Apartment 5) in the day is also one.

It also provides Ruburt however with constant stress, as he becomes consciously aware of other distractions, in his terms—physical wishes to do things that come in conflict with his staying at his table.