Text of the meditation
Every thought, every act, every habit is the direct outcome of belief. People are saved from error by belief in the supremacy of Truth. They are saved from sin by belief in Holiness or Perfection. They are saved from evil by belief in Good, for every belief is manifested in the life.
It is not necessary to inquire about a person's theological belief, for that is of little or no account; what can it avail a person to believe that Jesus died for them, or that Jesus is God, or that they are "justified by faith," if they continue to live in their lower, sinful nature?
All that is necessary to ask is this: "How does this person live? How do they conduct themselves under trying circumstances?" The answers to these questions will show whether a person believes in the power of evil or in the power of Good. When our belief in a thing ceases, we can no longer cling to it or practise it.
James Allen (1864–1912), Book of Meditations for Every Day in the Year (1913) – public-domain text, gently modernised.
The original 1913 text is in the public domain.