One of the most destructive foibles of human nature is the tendency to lock ourselves into rigid patterns of thinking, ruts of responding, and unalterable avenues of acting.  It was this way of thinking that caused Jesus to condemn the Pharisees, admonishing them about straining at a gnat and swallowing a camel.  The most common pattern into which we humans tend to move is what I call a negative cycle.  I doubt if there’s anything more devastating to daily living, to our effective functioning, to creative and growing relationships, and nothing is more dramatically counter to the Christian spirit and style than to be ensnarled in a negative cycle.  On every level of life, it is easy to surrender to the negative forces that sap our energy and drag us down. 

At a conference for ministers, gr…