“The Power of Positive Thinking” By Paul Stotts

I want to tell you about one of the most inspiritional books I’ve ever come across. It’s one that has changed my life. It’s not the Bible, but a book that has lead me back to faith and the Bible. It was a book that one of my moms family members recomended. My Great Uncle Uhlig shared in a letter that he went through some rather troubling times many years ago.
Now, my Great Uncle Uhlig is one of the happies most positive people I’ve ever met. He has always been full of compassion and care… troublsome times is something that just didn’t line up with my mental schema of him. Every family reunion that was held at his and my Great Aunt’s house was full of laughter and fun.
Uncle Uhlig in Jan. of 2018 retired from being a family doctor and heart health doctor after practicing medicine in a small town in Kansas for more than 50 years. He has a lot of knowledge, and I’m sure has read a lot of books. When he tells me he has a book he thinks I may like, I immediatly knew it must be something good. He sent the book for me and it opened my eyes in ways that I never imagined a single book would or could.
The book is titled “The Power of Positive Thinking,” by Norman Vincent Peale. It has a publishing date of 1952 and is still popular today. This should tell you a little something about the read. At the time he ordered the book, I didn’t know it was a religious read. My faith in God was waivering at this time. I don’t know that I would have been up to read a book on “faith” at this point in my journey. However, because he recomended it, I knew I needed to read it through.
As I started and contemplated on the idea of “faith,” true and unwaivering faith, I realised this was something that was lacking in my life. I didn’t have faith in the outcome of my future, I didn’t have full “true” faith in God, and I didn’t have faith in myself and the goals I was trying to achieve.
All this started to change as I read through the book “The Power of Positive Thinking.” I realised that faith is PARAMOUNT to accomplishing so much in our life. Without faith, it’s nearly impossible to accomplish any of our goals, our dreams, and purpose in life.
I decided that it was time I give “faith” a try. And I don’t mean half butt faith… I mean going in with my all, real unwaivering faith. The kind that God used to raise the dead, the kind that God used to cure every imaginable desiese.
I made up the choice of going in KNOWING that God will assist me in my journey, KNOWING that my prayers will be answered through HIS will, KNOWING that blessings will abuntantly flow into my life. I started with a short prayer. I asked… “God, please give me some positive activities to work on, give me something positive to fill my time with.”
The prison I’m at has few jobs and many inmates, so it’s been hard for me to get a job. I’ve had a lot of free time on my hands, so this was a good prayer to start with. Literally like two days later is when I was going to a group called “Reaching Out From Within” and was nominated as “Newsletter Editor.”
This all happened so strangely as well… I was nominated for the election by a fellow inmate that didn’t even know my name. He attends the group off and on, but on this day he said I want to elect “that guy,” and pointed to me. I was then voted in and now am taking on that responsibility. What is the chance of being nominated by someone that didn’t even know my name? And let me tell you, there were plenty of other well suited people that could have been nominated as well.
I’m telling you… God is real, he works in our life. I truely believe faith is the main ingrediant to God. When you believe, you shall receive. I don’t think I’ve ever believed like I do today, and it all started with a short book that came at the right time.
I’ve subsuquently decided to do an adult baptism. This March 6th, I am going to be baptised here at the prison. I’ll share more on this in another blog. This is something I’ve never done as an adult, but with my new full faith, I feel it’s something that is pulling on my heart.
I hope this story has inspired you in some way. Please, if your going through a hard time, consider checking out the book “The Power of Now.”
It truely Changed My life.

Paul Stotts
DOC #93319