You have to repeat the above affirmation three times before you continue to read the lesson below. Thereafter repeat it last thing at night and first thing in the morning for seven days. During the day and at all times as often as you can, think about it, say it to yourself silently, now you can read on!

There is only one way of getting the best of life, and that is by giving the best you have to life. We, none of us do give our best, because none of us realizes what a limitless potential we have, to give from. What is your idea of the best life has to offer you? I mean life in the now, because the only life you will ever know is ‘life now’. You cannot know life yesterday or life tomorrow. You can recall to mind life as it appeared to you yesterday, and can surmise what life will be tomorrow, but the only life you can really know is life as it is now. So, the first thing is to decide upon your idea as to what you would consider to be the best of life, now for you. Not what would be best for anyone else, nor what anyone else might consider to be best for you. Not that you should ignore others. But first of all to thine self be true, thou canst not then be false to any man.

Psychologists tell us that the three basic of desires of everyone are for: health, happiness and self-expression. That may be a general assumption, but what is your idea about it? Do you accept that if you were healthy, happy and actively giving expression to whatever it is you have a desire to express, that you would then be getting the best of life? And that you would then experience peace of mind? Let us work on that general assumption, because you will find that most of the good things in life come under one or other of those headings. Take the last one first. Are you giving expression to whatever it is you have a desire to express? This is a crucial question, because if you are, the chances are that you will be happy, and if you are happy you are much more likely to be healthy. This all boils down to the first statement: ‘there is only one way of getting the best of life and that is by giving the best you have to life.’ This is a fundamental law of life. You must give to get, and what you give is returned in you experience in good measure, pressed down and running over, it is the law of cause and effect, of action and reaction. I am not thinking at the moment of giving things although the law acts in that direction also. I would like to remind you, in the same word, not other words, re-mind you that you live in your mind. It is what you give mentally that controls your experiences. It is your attitude of mind, that to which you give attention, that terminates in the action in your experience. Attitude, attention, action. What is you attitude towards life? Living is giving. Giving out, that is life at its best, it may sound paradoxical but it is nevertheless quite true that he more you give the more you get. You do not have to fight or struggle to get the best of life; all you have to do is to give your best to life. That is correct attitude. What about attention? If your desire is for the best, then you must give your attention only to the best. Demand the best of yourself; do not be content with half measures. Mediocrity is self inflicted- genius is self-imposed. Be ye perfect – because nestled within you is the seed of perfection. Pay attention to the best ideas that come to your mind and act accordingly.

Another attitude that is such a tremendous help in the art of living, is the attitude of gratitude, think of it as appreciation. Appreciate the good wherever you find it. Appreciate you capabilities; appreciate all your faculties, mental, physical and spiritual. Appreciate what others are and do, and whenever possible voice your appreciation. That has a very lubricating action and can produce harmony in many an unpleasant situation. The more you fine to appreciate in yourself, and the more attention you pay to it, the more you will find to appreciate in others. It is the opposite to condemnation, which is such an unsatisfactory attitude under any circumstances whatsoever. It is destructive and devitalizing; it has no contribution to make expanding and advancing life. Life is always expanding and advancing, so the best contribution you can make to life is focus your attention on all that you can appreciate. In this way advance. This is living, going forward. Life is never static, and never goes backwards, it always advance. When you pay attention to what you can appreciate within yourself, you will not be satisfied with inferior performance. Someone has said: ‘the habit of mind control is built up by the practice of controlled acts.’ The more attention you give to whatever you are doing, the better it will be done, but not only that, you will be developing your power of awareness.

The reason that none of us do give of our best is because we are not aware of the limitless potential that we have to give from, which was my second statement. We are aware that life cannot withhold its best from us. All lack of health, happiness and supply is the result of our approach, and attitude towards life, and our lack of appreciation of it, never because of any lack or limitation in the supply of life itself.

To our words of attitude, attention and action, we have now added approach, appreciation, advancement and awareness. Is there magic in the number seven? Alliteration sometimes helps us to remember, how do you approach the everyday occurrences? With the expectation of good or with a timid apprehension of evil, or what is called bad luck? Life is never against you. Le your attitude to life be one of appreciation, and acceptance of all the good it has to offer. ‘The best is yet to be.’ Know this to be the truth, pay attention only to that which is good, and you will surely, even if slowly, advance to an awareness of the unlimited potential within and all around you, and as you give of your best you will certainly get the best from life.