How do you view the world? Do you feel as if everything and everyone is on your side? Do you marvel at the good luck you have? If your answer is “yes”, perhaps it’s because you have a spiritual practice. Perhaps your commitment has served to change your perspective one everything.

If your answer is “no”, perhaps your view of the world is shrouded by the stress you’re dealing with.

I heard that a news reporter once asked Albert Einstein, “What is the most important question facing humanity today?”

Einstein replied, “I think the most important question is this: Is the universe a friendly place? This is the first and most basic question all people must answer for themselves.”

Einstein might have been talking about the known all the solar systems, galaxies, and all heavenly bodies, or, he could have been suggesting that we take a look at the fundamental way we view the world. We either see the world as a place that supports us, or, as a place that doesn’t.

During these unsettling times, you could see the world as a challenging, unfriendly place. However, it probably hasn’t always seemed that way for you. As a child, you might have glimpsed and lived in a magical, wonderful world.

But then, as you matured into adulthood, your perspective may have changed. It may have changed without you even realizing it had. It probably wasn’t a conscious choice, but instead, this change in perspective could have evolved slowly and become a habitual way of meeting the world. It could be due to stress. This perspective might have sneaked up on you. But it probably isn’t the way you want to live.

The good news is that you can make this world a friendly place again. I know, because I have. It’s because I know a secret. It’s this: What I look for, I will find. If I look for wonder and beauty, I’ll find it. If I look for conflict and something to complain about, I can find that, too. And I am the only one who can decide what I am going to look for. I know when I am seeing the world as something other than friendly because my body tells me. It’s giving me a clue. I get to make a choice. So do you.

Let’s look for a friendly universe. I’ll join you.