Open Arms Church is launching groups across the region focused on the key to peak happiness, thinking and health.
The groups, which will be held in Bradford, St. Marys, Port Allegany and Keating Summit, will cover the book “How to Switch On Your Brain” by Dr. Carolyn Leaf, and run from the beginning of February to the end of April.
“I truly believe that learning and applying what is in this book would transform every single person’s life and through them, their family and community,” said Pastor Mike McAvoy. “At times the book can be technical, but it is always practical.”
McAvoy said that Leaf is not only a Christian but a leading neuroscientist.
“Whether you are a spiritual person or not, you cannot argue with the science,” he said. “Imagine a life and community where people did not live as victims, but took responsibility for their own life and well-being. Imagine how this would affect families, neighborhoods, and workplaces. Imagine people taking responsibility instead of making excuses, and think and act in ways that are constructive for their own benefit and the benefit of those around them.”
In this book, participants will learn how to live above the circumstances that they find themselves in, McAvoy said.
“We will learn that we do not have to be victims, and while we cannot control our circumstances we always control our response,” he said. “The hard pill to swallow is that we are our own biggest problem. By what we think and how we think about things, we are shaping the life we’re living in every area of our lives; relationships, careers, health, our sense of peace and fulfillment, etc.”
He said that people will learn that it is not only important what one thinks about, but how one thinks about those things.
“We are not responsible for what happens to us, but we are responsible for how we react and respond to life,” he said. “We are responsible for the choices that we make to move forward as a victor or a victim. There are far too many examples of people who have overcome and found victory to say that it isn’t possible.”
McAvoy said that these testimonies of victory prove that people are simply making excuses to avoid the hard work of taking responsibility and doing the right things to truly be free and whole.
“I believe this is so important and so relevant to the people of our community, that we are putting our money where our mouth is and offering to provide the book for free to every person who is willing to commit to participating in a group,” he said.
Books will be distributed to participants at the first group meeting.
Register for a group at www.openarmsgroups.com or contact Open Arms connections coordinators Alex Davis at 814-806-2301 or Heather Postlewait at 814-558-2643.
