Do We Define Our Lives

Do We Define Our Lives, or Do Our Lives Define Us
Kristen Hurst

Over the last decade or so people have begun to make a shift into accepting a new way of looking at the world that we live in – the belief that is making this impact is that you create your own life and, in some respects, you are in charge of your own destiny. This system of beliefs became known as the “New Age Movement”, however it's really not all that new. The “law of attraction”, as it's also known, has been around perhaps nearly as long as humans have been able to have reasonable thoughts. In fact, there's a quote from Buddha saying, “All that we are is a result of what we have thought.” This law of attraction has only gained popularity recently because of the emergence of books like The Secret into popular culture that seemed to take the world by storm. As with anything that becomes hugely popular, it has varied from being widely accepted to being strongly criticized. There are numerous authors who have written books instructing readers how to “tap into the universe” and use the law of attraction to bring things into your life that you want. Conversely, there are just as many who criticize this new way of thinking as being lazy, selfish, and causing people to not take responsibility for the actual work needed to achieve their goals. Perhaps the biggest criticism of the New Age movement comes unsurprisingly from the Christian community, who claim that the idea of you being in control of your own life takes away from the teachings that are portrayed in the Bible – that God is is ultimately in control and that we should leave things completely up to Him. However, even in books guiding people to understand the law of attraction, they use quotes from the Bible or use the name “God” to describe the force that is helping people achieve their best lives. It's hard not to get caught up in something that claims that we can “attract” great things into our lives with little or no effort, or to get