By Paula Neal Mooney
Did anyone catch what the ladies of The View said about The Secret?
Us east-coast-time viewers were pre-empted by President Bush’s speech today.
My TiVo was poised to play their views of The Secret when W cut in.
Googling "The Secret on The View" has gotten me little, as has going to The View’s website. No secret there.
Anyhoo, this all comes in God’s perfect timing as it were, since The Secret has been on my mind since I first saw it on Oprah.
You may remember when I asked my readers, “Is The Secret Anti-Christian?” and got a boatload of good responses from The Secret supporters and detractors.
I still haven’t seen the DVD, nor watched The Secret fully online. Therefore when this reviewer for this sponsored post ordered a $75 review on my blog about The Official Secret Seminar, my first knee-jerk instinct was to turn it down.
Instead, I accepted it, wearily wondering to myself: Am I selling my soul for $48.75?
But I watched and prayed, watched and prayed for the Lord to speak to me, as He always does. The other day I was in Barnes & Noble and – oh miracle of miracles! – my young children entertained themselves for so long listening to Kidz Bop music and the like, that I was able to read nearly the entire The Secret book.
Leery at first, I soon was grinning like an idiot as the biblical truths therein really resonated with me:
• To act as if we already have the blessing we’ve prayed for…
• To give, and it shall be given unto us…
• To enter into God’s gates with thanksgiving…
• Speak in the positive -- call those things that be not as if they already are…
I decided to put a couple of The Secret tips into practice. I had a $97.42 Amex bill due, that I didn’t know how I was going to pay. (Note, that $4,375.75 I’ve earned online has already paid plenty-o-bills.)
Normally, I would carry the bill around open in my purse as a reminder that, “This need to be paid!” This time, as The Secret teaches, I prepared and acted as if I already had the money to pay it.
For me, instead of placing my faith in fear, it became a demonstration of putting “feet to my faith” in Jehovah Jireh, my Provider, and showing Him that I trusted Him to take care of it.
I wrote out the check, put it in the envelope and sealed it up. Stuck a stamp on it. Then calling on my tither’s rights, I stuck the bill in my Bible and rested it on Malachi 3:10:
"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it."
Lo and behold, that same day my husband transferred more money into my account unexpectedly and sooner than normal. I hadn’t told him anything about the bill due.
So my bill was paid. Maybe I was too harsh on The Secret to begin with, but I’m still keeping my eyes open for what God wants to do with its popularity.
I mulled over buying The Secret DVD in Barnes & Noble. "Give me a sign," I prayed again to the Lord, acting as a modern-day Gideon. I look up directly at a sign that read, "Try it before you buy it."
God, you are good, I chuckled beneath my breath. But in calling around to my local video stores, I found out that neither Hollywood Video nor Blockbuster even carried The Secret. So maybe the real secret is their money-making distribution deal...
I’m a mature enough Christian to know that the Lord is not the magic genie depicted in some The Secret promos, but I also know that He uses the foolish things of this world to confound the wise.
Whatever The Secret teachers are teaching, may they also stress the all-important John 3:16 and mightily uphold John 14:6:
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’ ”
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Tags: the secret the view ,Christian ,miracles ,rosie ,joy
Comments
Great take on a story. I'm glad there turned out to be some redeeming qualities in The Secret...LOL...maybe in reality they will discover...the secret is in the Bible.
After all, everything their espousing comes from the WORD!
Amen, Bonnie, amen!
Malachi 3:10:
"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it."
I think I just found another favorite Bible verse!
Thank you for making me aware of the Secret some time ago. I bought the audio book after your first blog entry about the DVD, partly, to test your question, “Is The Secret anti-Christian?” Perhaps, we should thank God you missed whatever was said on the View today about The Secret. Judging by that journalist’s comments, your most recent blog entry concerning The Secret has already been used divinely via your virtual ministry.
I asked my mentor and Christian friend who recommends various books to me your question, “is The Secret anti-Christian?” At that time, around a month ago, she told me that she has the DVD and that the books by Napoleon Hill of Think & Grow Rich fame did not sell well at first because there were “too many” biblical references. She told me that Napoleon Hill’s books were revised without as many biblical references and published again for commercial reasons with great success. According to her, The Secret was arguably published such that the references from the “hip” versions of the Bible were included with those of other doctrines for commercial reasons.
I don't think The Secret contradicts the Bible, except Donald Neal Walsh (he's only talking for 1 minute in the DVD, and at the end, don't focus on him) who I believe to be posessed by the Devil (if you read his blasphematory book about his so-called "conversation with God" you'd understand me). That man said that God was also the devil, BLASPHEMY and CRAZYNESS! The Devil is HIS god. He says we won't be judged for our actions.
Back to the DVD, if we look at the similarities between the Bible and the DVD:
Ask = Prayers
Believe = Faith
Receive = Blessings
Your wish is my commend (The Genie) = Ask and Ye shall receive (God)
God said we were created in His image so we have the power of creation. We can create our lives and our universe (condition, people around us) just like He created life and the Universe. The Bible also says "As A Man Thinketh So Is He", that's what the DVD says that we become what we think about.
I agree with you on the fact that we can't ask "The Universe" (I think you talked about it in your "Anti-Christian" post) because "The Universe" is just a creation of God like we are, so asking to "The Universe" is like asking to a bird or a flower, another creation. If we were created in His image, He has a name too, so we have to call Him by His name.
I think they use "the Universe" to reach a maximum of people no matter what they believe in.
You know what Paula? I think The Secret is not negative to those who are enlightened enough (like you), you just take the messages that resonate with you and leave the rest alone. There are three or four false prophets in this DVD and we shouldn't let the false ones kill the overall message of the true and good ones. The overall message is to be a positive individual so that it can extend, and to be grateful to be alive. And like I told you, behind that angelic face, Donald Walshe is the devil (but he only speaks for 1 minute anyway). I don't know about Michael Beckwith, I need to "study him" a bit more, but I know Lisa Nichols is a good Christian and she speaks the truth, in my opinion. They also talk about Mother Theresa and quote Martin Luther King, christians!
Lastly, DO NOT show it to kids unless you know your arguments and can explain your views to them properly. Make them aware that we are here to serve God and not the other way around. The DVD kind of make it seem like the "universe" or God is our slave and servant, which is really not the case. God will bless you and give you abundance in all areas of your life, but only if you live by His word and stay "connected" (pray) to Him in the name of Jesus (at least, that's what I believe). If Jesus who was perfect prayed constantly, imagine how lost we are without this connection.
Sorry for this long post!
God bless you Paula!
Peace & blessings!