Are You The Victim of Your Own Self-Talk?

Is you life just a series of “self-fulfilling prophecies”? I am sure you know what this means, but if not, it refers to our ability to imagine that an event will happen to us and then we watch as it unfolds just as we imagined.

Usually when people think of self-fulfilling prophecies they refer to all of the bad things that occur in their lives.

This is because we worry so much about what it will be like when they do finally occur and this just sends out a message that we are expecting the accident, the illness, the lay-off at work, or the breakup in our relationship. And what happens, but what we expect.

I read somewhere that worry is just like praying for something we don’t want to happen.

So, if worrying is a good way to make something occur that you don’t want, then what can we use to make things occur that you do want?

The New Testament encourages us to think on things that are good, lovely, honest, pure and which cause a good report. It says for us to let these images fill our minds and hearts instead of those of gloom, doom and despair.

Often, before they occur, the subjects of our self-fulfilling prophecies show up and occupy our thoughts and they drift down and find expression in the things we say. We find ourselves talking about the things that we are worried about.

So what have you been talking about this past week? Have you found yourself saying any of the following statements?

  • This is the worst week of my life.
  • I expect this will never work out.
  • I can’t imagine how this will ever change or get better.
  • These all result in things not working and maybe even getting worse.

So how do we change this?

How do we make things happen differently in our lives?

One technique that I like to us is self-talk. Many people refer to this as using an affirmation. You might notice that the root of affirmation is “affirm” – to agree to, to say yes to.

Using affirmation is all about saying yes to what do want to happen in our lives instead of what we don’t want.

It changes our focus to one of allowing he good instead of resisting what we don’t desire. This helps us to cultivate good, positive and life-affirming and enhancing expectations.

So here are just a few affirmations that I love to use. Please feel free to leave you comments about any of these and also, if you have affirmations that you use, share them with all of us.

  • I am grateful for all that I have.
  • I am a vessel through which good flows.
  • I am a beloved child of God and I don’t inherit sickness.
  • I attract only good into my life by expecting only good.

Use these affirmations frequently and say them with conviction. Let yourself begin to feel what it is like for these words to be true. And as you do, this will keep you focused on the good,positive and life-enhancing expectations that you wish to manifest in your life.

And my friends, you will attract it!

Available

Several years ago, I went to a White Stone service at church. I hadn’t ever been to one before and was excited to see what might happen. (This is based on the scripture in Revelations 2:17 where God gives to us a white stone with a new name written on it. )

Click here to read my post describing the service and here to read my blog post of my reaction after the service.)

After I received my stone, I heard the following word in my heart — available.
I’ve had this stone sitting by my computer ever since. But unfortunately that’s all it is — just a stone with a word written on it sitting by my computer.

But now, in this year 2017, I’m making an intention to allow the word I was given — available — to enter into my heart and life.

  • I intend to make myself available to God, Spirit, the Universe or whatever name we want to call it.
  • I intend to be available to gratitude and thanksgiving.I intend to be available to give and receive all the blessings that life has to offer both to and through me.
  • I intend to discover new ways to minister. I went to seminary and then began the Fort Worth Church Project. This means of ministry ended in 2012. Since then I’ve been floundering — but NOW I want to be available and open to new ways to reach out and share the message of my heart.

Available — I think it’s frightening to me to really be available. Afraid that it might have made me something I didn’t want to be. Or it might have taken away something I didn’t want to lose.

But now I believe that it’s going to take me and expand everything wonderful about myself and my life. Maybe things will leave, or be sifted out. But now I think I’m ready because if they can be sifted out then maybe they don’t need to be a part of my life anymore.

Maybe you’re ready now to make a new beginning in your life too.You don’t need a physical white stone to do this. Just hold out your hands and imagine Life placing a beautiful white stone in your hands with a wonderful new name or word written on it. Allow Spirit to whisper in your heart this wonderful word that’s to guide your life now. (If you want you can share this word with us and we can hold your intention with you.)

I’ll be sharing with you my intentions, my messages and my blessings this year through this blog. Feel free to share yours also.

Thanks Living

I am reading the most amazing book by one of my favorite spiritual writers, Pam Grout. The book is Thank and Grow Rich. The title is an update on the title of Napoleon Hill’s book, Think and Grow Rich.
Too often we think but not about the right things. We think from our old limited beliefs in lack and want and we wonder why we don’t increase in life. Maybe it’s time to try something new — upping our thinking to thankfulness.
There are lots of places in the various scriptures of world faiths that encourage being thankful as the best way to think. Here are just a couple of my favorite ones:
1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 5:20 Always giving thanks to God for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
To help us get started in our new thanks living way of thinking I want to share the following post from Pam’s website where she describes her new A.A. 2.0 program of creating a new life by giving thanks.
“My name is Pam G. and, as of today, I am launching a brand new chapter of A.A. Unlike Version 1.0, my A.A. stands for Amazing Awesomeness and it only has two steps.
“Step #1: Admit that…..”Something amazingly awesome is going to happen to me today.”  First thing every morning, before throwing off your covers, before leaping out of bed (and it doesn’t take long in this program before participants do leap out of bed with joy and expectation), before firing up the old Mr. Coffee, proclaim to the world that something unexpected, exciting and amazingly awesome is going to happen to you today. It takes what, three, four seconds? Yet it’s one of the most important things you will ever do. The first few minutes of every morning pre-paves the next 24 hours with positive expectations. It sets up a powerful intention, a forecast on which you can focus.
“And it never fails to come true.”
Step #2: Come to believe…..in blessings and miracles. Pretend you’re a private investigator assigned the task of finding all the beauty and largesse in the world. The dominant paradigm might suggest otherwise, but practiced with regularity, this ritual will force you to see things in a whole different way. Instead of looking for problems, be on the hunt for new blessings. Take on the mission each day of reporting back with at least three pieces of amazing awesomeness, three blessings that are different than the day before. I often liken myself to Lewis or Clark, scouting important new territory.
“Because we get out of life whatever we focus on, practicing these simple two steps has the power to override and overturn the accepted paradigm.
“Like Bill W.’s A.A, that has reformed the lives of millions, this new program (A.A. 2.0) can transform a “nameless squad of empty glass thinkers.”

Now It’s Our Turn
I invite others to join me in posting their blessings daily. Be sure to share different things you are thankful for each day. By expecting and looking for a different, more kinder reality, we can, together in one jubilantly mighty whoop, uplift and lighten this tired old world.
I am posting this to my blog and I will begin that day doing step 1. I will post my first sharing of 3  blessings to Facebook on Monday, June 11th. I hope my list will inspire you to share 3 things each day that you are thankful for.

Christ In You — Your Hope And your Glory

I’m writing this post on the 4th Day of the 12 days of Christmas. It’s still the Christmas season. And as I am writing I’m thinking back on those days leading up to Christmas, the days we call the Advent Season.

Advents Past

As a child, I didn’t know much about Advent since the church I attended didn’t celebrate it. We just went right to our Christmas celebration…

But when we finally added it to our church year, I realized that it’s a very important and necessary part of life. You see, if you’re having a baby it takes time for the baby to be conceived, then developed and finally born. There’s a long 9 month period of preparation.

This is also true of the spiritual life.

Advents Present

When our church finally started celebrating Advent and had an Advent wreath, we always lit the 4 outer candles first and then on Christmas Eve we lit the middle Christ candle. And that’s how my spiritual life seemed to go at that time. I was always preparing and waiting for something — new birth — to happen sometime in the future.

But now, we’re going to Unity and I’ve realized something different that really makes sense to me and feels right in my heart. At Unity, we light the Christ candle on the 1st Sunday of Advent along with the usual 1st candle.

So why’s this important?

Too often we believe that spiritual awakening or new birth is something that either happens only once or that it’s something that’ll happen sometime in the future. And really both are true, just not the whole truth.

The Christ Spirit, that’s represented by the Christ candle is always in each of us. It never leaves us nor forsakes us. But too often, we just choose to forget who we really are as a child of God. But each time that we make the choice to remember that wonderful presence, it comes alive within our lives and we’re reborn.

So whenever you’re reading this post remember that this is the day and now’s the time that you can remember and experience the wonderful birthing of the Christ Spirit in your life. Remember Christ is here NOW both with us and in us.

Christ in you, Your Hope and Your Glory!!!

I hope that you’ve enjoyed this post and all the previous ones. And if you’re new to this blog, be sure and to read back through the past ones. If you’ve been reading them along then invite a friends to subscribe and read them.

And be sure and watch for posts this year as I explore a wonderful book by Charles Fillmore on the twelve spiritual powers in each of us called The Twelve Powers.
You might want to get a copy of this book by clicking the link so that you can read along and join in our discussion.

Have a blessed New Year. Namaste!!

A New Humanity

The Bible, as well as most spiritual writing and traditions, offers the message that we are on a journey of growing  —  of evolving — and of becoming more than we presently are. They all hold forth the promise of an evolving humanity. This is also the message of the wonderful book by Charles Fillmore, The Twelve Powers, that I am beginning to discuss in this post and will be discussing the chapters in future posts during the year.

Before I go any further, here are the 12 powers.

1. Faith
2. Strength
3. Discernment or wisdom
4. Love
5. Power
6. Imagination
7. Understanding
8. Will
9. Order
10. Zeal
11. Elimination or release
12. Life

I’m so excited and inspired today as I think that as good and wonderful as my life and humanity are right now that there’s even more and greater advancements awaiting us both individually and collectively as we realize and unfold as the children of God that we already are.

You see children are already fully human at birth but they’ve not yet fully grown and developed to be what they’ll be at 20, 30 or even 80 or 90. A child, as great and wonderful as it is, has the potential of growing and developing into so much more. And this same thing is true of humanity.

As humanity has grown and evolved there been those times when it seems as if a leap has happened and humanity has made a great jump forward in both consciousness and experience.

The 100th Monkey

These leaps are often referred to as “the 100th monkey effect.” These are those times when a critical number of individuals have taken on a new task or a new way of thinking which in turn effects a change in the other members of the group. A tipping point is reached and a leap is made. The groups then becomes more than they previously were.

Paul, in the New Testament, refers to this as creation waiting for the revealing of the Children of God.

Fillmore says that Jesus came to the realization that he was fully human and fully divine. He also says that we should let that same mind be in us — you and me– that was in Jesus. And when we do then we’ll also realize that not only are we fully human but that we’re children of God and therefore have that same spark of divinity in us which was in Jesus.

Jesus realized that humanity was destined to grown and evolve because he told us to “do the same works that I do” and then he added, “you shall even do greater works than I do.” Now I don’t know about you but to me that’s a mouthful.

That to me can only mean that Jesus didn’t see himself as the pinnacle of human evolution nor did he see himself as the ‘the great exception’. These are ideas that Christianity developed and told us we should accept.

Those words of his say to me that he’s there to show the way and to help me to follow his example. Jesus says to “follow me,  as together we grow and evolve and become more fully human as we are more fully divine.”

And this can only be accomplished as we allow our minds to be renewed and transformed so that we can believe the truth about ourselves — that we are a wonderful, deeply loved and totally accepted child of God.

We can then let that spark of divinity within begin to expand and to release those 12 powers that Fillmore discusses in his book.

These powers are already present in each of us and they’re utilized all the time. Sometimes we use them in the most wonderful divine ways and as we do the world and our lives open up and miracles occur. But unfortunately at other times we use them in very human ways and we feel life and our world begins to close in and things begin to not work out.

This year I’ll be discussing each of the 12 powers and will look at ways to release them and use them in our lives in ways that will elevate and cause life to expand.

Final Thoughts

As humanity begins to consciously release and use these powers we’ll truly begin to create a new heaven and a new earth. We’ll create a world that is possible rather than a world that’s inevitable.

If you haven’t done so, get a copy of the book by clicking here.
Then begin reading it.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments regarding the new humanity and the world that’s possible. Please share them below so that we can all benefit from your wisdom.

Who Do You Listen To?

Everyday there are a myriad of voices clamoring and seeking our attention. There are the voice in our own mind. Voices come to us from the television and radio, newspapers and magazines. And then there are the voices of our family, friends, and even strangers that we encounter daily on our journey through life. All of these voices have a message or messages which they’re seeking to impart to our lives. And each of these messages maybe be valid or true.

But they maybe not or at least maybe not the whole truth.

There’s another source or voice that seeks to speak to us and this voice is always valid and true. But this is the voice that so many of us neither access or listen to frequently.

This is the voice of our own heart.

It’s the voice we can only access as we enter the silence.

“Be Still and know” scripture reminds us.

All of the spiritual teachers and leaders have come to know the value of the silence.

Jesus left the crowds and went to the mountains alone to pray and meditate.

Buddha remained under the Bodhi tree meditating until he was enlightened — till his heart lit up.

My Meditation Adventure

I’ve been engaging in a 21 day meditation adventure using various mantras. Each day as I meditated and chanted the mantra for the day, I felt my mind quieting and my heart opening up. Fear and worry were released and peace and love filled my being. And I was guided to right action during my day.

But unfortunately, like so many others, I often feel just too busy to take even five minutes out of my day to just sit quietly and listen to this still inner voice.

It is on days like that when I try to remind myself that Gandhi said that he usually meditated for an hour each morning (an hour and not just the five or 10 minutes I try to do). But when he knew that he was going to be really busy and had much work to accomplish in the day, he then increased his meditation time to 2 hours. He knew that if he took time and listened in silence that he’d be guided, not by his own thoughts and ideas but by that Mind or Presence that see and knows all.

This week, I encourage you to give yourself permission to spend just 10 or 15 minutes in silence, even before you begin the tasks of the day. And while there, if thoughts present themselves clambering for your attention, just offer them love, set them aside for now and listen to the stillness. And as you do, you’ll become aware of a Presence — the presence of God, Spirit — and this presence will speak to you in a still small voice — and it’ll offer guidance and direction that will enable you to achieve great things.

Listen to your heart.

Follow what it says and you won’t be sorry you did.

In my last few posts I shared with you 4 other suggestions for creating a tremendous life.

Choose happiness.

Change you words, change your world.

Dare to be who you really are.

Live to give.

Now I’ve given you my last suggestions — listen to your heart.

Listen to your heart for it is here that God will speak to you and help to guide and direct you. As you listen, this will make each moment count and your life will be tremendous.

If you missed any of these suggestions, stop right now and click on each link above and read the posts.

Also, think of a friend that you think would benefit from any or all of these suggestions and share these post with them and also encourage them to subscribe so they’ll not miss any future posts.

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Which Sea Are You?

In my last post I said that next I would share my 5th suggestion for having a tremendous life. I am going to save that till next time as I have a few more thoughts that I feel inspired to share about giving.

And if you have not read my previous post on the subject of having a tremendous life, you might want to do so now.

You might be wondering what the title “Which Sea Are You?” has to do with this subject. So let me explain,

Often in the past when I was asked at various churches to talk about giving, I would share some information I had gathered about the 2 seas that are in the land of Israel. Then I would ask the people to decide which one of the seas they wanted their life to be like.

 The Two Seas

The first sea is the Dead Sea. This sea has an inlet, the Jordan River, but there is no outlet as water does not flow out of the Dead Sea.

And so, the sea is just as the name suggests — dead, not life-giving.

The other sea is the Sea of Galilee which lies in the northern part of Israel. There is water flowing into it from the mountains and then the Jordan River carries water out of it to the south. Inlet and Outlet — Receiving and Giving — Circulation.

The Sea of Galilee is known metaphysically as the sea of vitality, the sea of life.

It is reported that there are large number of many species of fish that live in the Sea of Galilee. There is an abundance of life because it circulates — it receives and it gives.

Live To Give And Receive

On a little different note, I have read that if you discern a lack or need or want in your life, then one of the best ways to get it flowing is to cause someone else to have this need or want met in their life.

If you need a smile in your life, give someone a smile.

If you need love in your life, find someone that needs love and give them some love.

If you need money in your wallet, find someone that needs some money and help them to have it.

This opens up the river of circulation in your own life and causes an outflow from you and since Nature — God — the Universe abhors a vacuum, it then causes an inflow into your life to fill the vacancy.

Give and it is given to you.

Ask and you shall receive.

Live to give.

Please share this post with as many people that you know who need some encouragement. Also, remember to subscribe so you will get each of these posts delivered right to you inbox. And the subscription is totally FREE. Never miss another one by subscribing today.

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Inlets AND Outlets

In my last post, I mentioned that I have 5 suggestions for making your life tremendous. Let me mention again the first 3 ideas that I shared.

Choose Happiness

Change Your Words, Change Your World

Dare To Be Who You Really Are

As you might have noticed, these 3 suggestions are things you do inside yourself, your inside work. And they begin to move out from you as you speak words that are positive, life-affirming and encouraging.

If you need help working on the inside, in your mind and heart, check out the items below that deal with meditation and going within. For if you are not willing to go within — into the silent loving space in your heart where you can quiet your mind — then you really will go without. You will seek peace and happiness in other people, things or events outside yourself and you will not find the peace, love and happiness you desire. You will go with out.

Having said all of that, now let’s see what my next suggestion is for creating a tremendous life.

Live To Give

Giving is one of the most talked about activities but it is also one of the most misunderstood activities in which we engage.

Too often, we think of giving as a linear activity and as one of subtraction. We give someone something that they want or need and we see ourselves as being depleted in that item — whether it is love, money or some other material item. We gave something away and now we have less.

The good news I want to share with you now is that there is not a word of truth in that explanation — unless you choose that this is the truth and how it is.

I have found a different way of looking at giving that has made all the difference in my own life. You too might want to try this way of looking at your giving and see how it changes your life.

The Law of Circulation

I now see giving as the physical manifestation of the Law of Circulation. All of life is built on circulation, coming and going, in and out, giving and receiving.

Often we give something to another. We give money to organizations or people. We give old clothes and stuff to charities. We give and give. But too often this just leaves us feeling depleted and used up.

Too many people I know feel good about giving but if someone tried to give them something, well they just don’t feel worthy to receive. It makes them feel, as one person I know says, “wimpy.” But wimpy is just another way of saying unworthy.

Life though has to circulate. It has to come in and go out. It has to flow.

A pond that just has an outlet with no inlet will soon dry up. But a lake that has a river flowing in and one flowing out has a very good chance of being full as it takes water in and gives water out. It also has a good chance of being full of fish and other life.

Ralph Waldo Emerson says that “everyone is the inlet and may become the outlet of God.”

Allow yourself to think and meditate on this idea. Ask Spirit to show you why you feel unworthy to receive. Then allow yourself to show love to that feeling of unworthiness and allow it to be released.

Become both an inlet and an outlet of all God’s blessings as you allow yourself to bless others by letting them be a giver and a receiver also.

In this way the river of life continues to flow both to and through us.

Think on these things and also be sure and share this post with your friends and encourage them to get a free subscription to this blog.

Watch for my next post where I will share my final life changing suggestion with you.

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New Intentions Create A New Life

Well, here we are halfway though February. Most people have probably already abandoned their New Year’s resolutions. And this is often a source of guilt in our lives.

But instead of feeling guilty, maybe this is a really good time to set a new intention to have a wonderful life this year.

Let me share with you some suggestions for having a tremendous life this year and every year. I am going to share 5 suggestions, 3 in this post and 2 in my next one. So be sure and watch for the next post. You can get it in your inbox by using the subscribe button.

Here are my life changing suggestions.

Choose Happiness

Often we act as if happiness is something that comes to us from things or people outside ourselves. But there is just not a bit of truth to this idea.

Happiness is a choice.

Happiness is an inside job. It starts inside and works its way out into our world.

We can choose to be happy in spite of all the “stuff” that is going on around us. We can go into that inner space of silence and allow the peace, joy and happiness to well up in our lives. Then, as we do, we can be changed. We can be happy.

Maybe nothing has changed in our exterior world but we have been changed inside. And as we are, then we are the change we wish to see in our world and the world looks different to us.

Being negative is not going to change anything and it will just end up making your life miserable. So let yourself be happy and positive and see how your experience of the world changes.

Change Your Words, Change Your World

We begin inside by changing our thoughts and making a new choice to be happy. Then we let our thoughts change the words we speak.

So speak to the situations in your life and say positive, life affirming words to them.

This principle is found in the Bible where it says, “Let the weak say ‘I am strong.’”

And as you begin to think positive and happy thoughts and you then say positive and happy words you will find your mental computer beginning to be reprogrammed.

Dare To Be Who You Really Are

You are a unique creation and a child of God created in God’s image.

Allow yourself to offer to your world the unique gifts and talents that only you have to offer. If you don’t, then who will?

Be the love that you are.

Be the success that you are.

Be the abundance that you are.

Be the beloved child of God that you are.

And how do you do this?

Choose to be happy. Speak positively and choose your words carefully. And as you do these things, you will be who you truly are.

Check back and see what my last 2 suggestions are for creating a tremendous life. And be sure and share this post with someone you know that needs a boost in creating a tremendous life for themselves.

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A New Word Brings A New Beginning and A New Epiphany

In my last post I shared about Epiphany Sunday and a couple of incidents where I had an epiphany – an “ah-ha” moment. I also told you that in my next post I would share some about the story of Moses and his moment of awareness and also about the word I got for my white stone. If you did not read my last post, you might want to do so before reading the rest of this one.

Moses and the Bush

I always loved the story of Moses and the burning bush. There he was out in the desert and he goes round a boulder and right in front of him is a bush that is on fire. Now the story says that the bush, while being on fire, is not burned up.

Too often, I think, we see this as the most wonderful and miraculous part of the story but I am beginning to understand that the thing we really should see as wonderful and miraculous is what happens next.

Our of the bush, a voice speaks and tells Moses to take his shoes off because he is standing on holy ground. This causes Moses to ask a question we need to ask – “who are you?”

And the voice tells him, “I am that I am.”

You see, ‘I am’ is the most wonderful name for the divine, for God. And it is a name we use so often in our daily conversation without even realizing its significance.

But how do we used the divine name in vain?

We use it in vain when we follow those words with anything that is unlike the true nature of God, things like too old, not smart enough, too poor.

My New Word

I mentioned in my last post that we were given a white stone at church and told that Spirit would reveal to us a new word to place on the stone. This would be a word of encouragement and inspiration from Spirit that would guide our lives.

So what word was I given?

The new word I was given was “available.”

As I thought about this word – available – I realized that while I thought I was available to God, I was really caught up in my own plans and ideas about my life and my purpose. And because of this, I had closed myself off from anything NEW that God might be wanting me to be available to and for. This helped me to see that there were things in my life that needed to end as new things began.

I remember some wise words I was given, “you don’t need to see or understand the whole journey you are on, you only need to be willing and available to take the next step that is right in front of you.”

And the next step that I seem to see in front of me is to share my message and thoughts with people and at the present time, this will be through my blog. This was something I had neglected for too long but now I realize that a blog on the internet has the potential of reaching multitudes of people as they read it and then share it with others.

And so I am taking this step and as I continue to meditate, read, write and trust that God is really in control then I know that I will see the next right step for me and I believe that I will take it as I continue on this wonderful spiritual journey called life.

Share this post with people that need some encouragement. And take time and share your thoughts, comments or any epiphanies that you have had.

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