Struggling to "Get"? Just Know

We live in a world focused on "getting."  Advertisers tell us we have to "get" relationships.  We have to "get" money. We have to "get" slim.  We have to "get healthy."

If you look closely at all of the these messages, they are tied to selling you something.  Because marketers know how to tap into your emotions.  They depend on your "impulse buying," and they depend on you running fear.  And, it works.  How many times have you been remorseful about something you bought that you didn't need? Or you were so frustrated because you couldn't get something?  You felt you had to "get."

The truth of the matter is that you are a Spiritual Being, living in a material world.  You have the power to attract to you anything you desire.  However, it is not about "getting," straining, or trying to create what you want through your mind.  

It's about the opposite.  Letting go and knowing so you can have.  You have already been given the gifts of prosperity, health, happiness, and relationships.  They simply may have not materialized in your life.  

What separates you from these gifts is feeling you don't have them, and you have to get them.

You can visualize what you want until you turn blue.  But, unless you have the feeling of knowing that what you desire is yours, then you will live in fairytale land with just a wish.

So how do you experience that knowing state?

"The Master Key," by Charles Haanel, written in 1912, which we will be soon studying, is about thinking that whatever you desire, you already have.  All of the great new thought teachers, Napoleon Hill, "Think and Grow Rich," Ernest Holmes, "Creative Mind," and James Allen "As a Man Thinketh," knew this spiritual law.  They were all writing about this law in the early 1900s.  Most of us are discovering it now through such books and teachings like, "The Secret."

There is no secret.  Scientist have already discovered that whatever is impressed upon the subconscious mind, it delivers. The mind is creative.  It works every time. If you have doubts about something you would like, it doesn't show up in your life.  If you believe, and know, it shows up.

The conscious mind, what we think about, is the director of the subconscious mind which does not know the difference between real and imagined.  It simply delivers.

We are surrounded by a spiritual substance that is molded according to our beliefs, our thoughts, and it gives to us exactly what we think about.  

So, when you act as if you already have the success, the wealth, the health, the relationships, and feel it deeply with an un-shakeable"knowing," it materializes in your life.

You can think of this magical substance as your God self, that delivers to you what you ask for and know that it is already given.  However, you have to have faith.  You have to know that it is happening.  

See the picture of what you desire, and constantly live every detail knowing it has already happened, without struggling or straining.    Just know.

The mind will fight you and tell you that you have to struggle and strain to "get."  So how do you deal with that energy?  Mindfulness Meditation.  Try to fully focus on whatever you are doing, and release the story of "I don't have."  Instead spend your time feeling you already have.  Be gentle with yourself.  This is a practice. 

 Click Here is new findings :  Mindfulness Training Changes Brain Structure in Eight Weeks- Science Daily

That Doesn't Apply to Me

Have you ever been with someone, and you both see a sad situation, and the person you are with says the famous phrase, "There but for the grace of God goes I"? Or, maybe you have said that yourself when you see someone suffering.  

Whether you have said it, or someone you were with did, it, doesn't matter.  The fact is that phrase is fear-based.  

And, if there is fear present, you may find yourself worried about money, your job,  or walking faster past a homeless or a disabled person fearing you could "catch" what they have. 

Whether you believe in a Higher power or not, if you fear something, you attract it to you.    This is the law of attraction. 

Where did that phrase come from?  Not the Bible as some might expect.  It is widely attributed to John Bradford (1510-1555), an English evangelical preacher.  The word is, Bradford was imprisoned for  allegedly "trying to stir up a mob."  When he saw criminals, fellow inmates being led to the scaffold for punishment for their crimes, he uttered the phrase, "There but for the grace of God goes I." 

In 1955, Bradford  was not beheaded, but instead was burned at the stake alive.

Still want to use his phrase?  

How to Deal with Other's Misfortune.

So, how do you deal with the bad news you hear through others or the media?  Send them love and your good wishes.  Love is the greatest power in the universe, and since we are all connected, like prayers the energy of love connects to  them.  

Don't forget yourself either.    There is a small child inside of each of us who needs comforting, and assurance  when we hear negative news.  Tell yourself it's OK, and send yourself love. It also helps to practice feeling Divine Love surrounding and protecting you always.

Mindfulness

Tune into your feelings and thoughts.  Are you fearing that the misfortune you heard  could happen to you?  Awareness (Mindfulness) of thoughts and emotions helps distance you from them.  But, when they are unchecked these same thoughts and emotions, drive you to do and say destructive things.  Mainly, you beat up yourself or overindulge in drink, shopping and other habits.

Now you have prolonged the fear which became stronger, and you have the residual of substance abuse, or a huge credit card bill to deal with.  The underline fear is still there waiting to be handled.

So mindfully tune into your feelings, and thoughts.  Your awareness is the laser that dissolves and moves away fear.  Just by being aware that you are afraid, lessens the hold.

Use Positive Affirmations, or Scriptures.

You can also use a positive self-help phrase, other than Bradford's fear-based phrase, and most importantly, give yourself love.

When you hear of other's misfortunes, you don't really know exactly what happened in their lives to cause the situation, or what is truthfully going on behind their  problems.   

There have been many media interviews people who have lost jobs.  You may think, "That could happen to me too," and live in fear.  But, what you don't know is that person interviewed may have hated the job they lost.  They later went on, like many people do, to find a better job, or start a business making more money than they dreamed, not to mention being happier. 

So when you see a misfortune, drop your fears and try using this phrase: 

 "That Doesn't Apply to Me."

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Why Is This Happening?

Recently I connected with a lovely lady I will call Beth, who is  co-chair, heading a project to save the beautiful land around Deer Park  from being developed.  Deer Park is a monastery at the top of a mountain near San Diego which was founded by Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen Buddhist Master, Mindfulness Teacher and Peace Activist. 

Our family travels to Deer Park for meditation and retreats, like the thousands who come every year from around the world. 

Last weekend Walter and I went there, and I was reminded of the mission I have joined to help Beth and others preserve the land of refuge for so many people. 

Through a recent email from Beth, she shared with me that U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords who was shot in Arizona, is her personal friend. I could feel her sadness in her email.  

When awful things happen, it's only natural to wonder why?  Our minds search for answers, and when answers don't come that satisfy us, often we turn to  anger and want to blame any and every person. No doubt, you have heard the blame slung around by the Republicans and Democrats sounding off and pointing the fingers over the shooting. 

These types of tragic events lead us to imagine and construct a whole story in our heads of why this has happened.  We all go through our personal tragedies that send our minds spinning with fear. 

Ruminating on "why" is a dangerous, slippery slope which adds kindle to the fire.  First of all, we often don't know right away why something tragic has happened.  Secondly, when we don't have the truth, we imagine stories in our heads which are often far worse than the reality. We obsess about the situation to the point we become furious or very sad.  

Sadness is anger turned inward, because we can't do something about a situation. 

When we ruminate over a "wrong" we help collect more of the same type of negative energy.  Instead we must lift ourselves out of the cesspool of anger and blame, to be the light for ourselves and others.

For example, recently in the news, a family lost their home just before Xmas, but they turned the incident around to see how they could help others.  So the homeless family  when interviewed, said they didn't spend time asking, "Why?" or "Why Me?"  Instead they served  Xmas dinner to help other homeless people at a shelter. 

How do we find peace over these unspeakable tragic acts?

Mindfulness.

Nothing has ever been resolved by anger or sadness.  We must go inside and just be with our feelings.  We must become the parent to those feelings, by first acknowledging that the hurt is there, then comfort those feelings.  Thich Nhat Hanh says to "love them."  Love your feelings the same way a parent would love a child who is crying.

Inside of us is a small child crying and hurt.  It's important that we nurture that child.   

When we send our feelings love, we are turning away from our limited mind.    The mind doesn't know.  Many of us are stuck asking it,  "Why?" or "Why Me?"  

Our webmaster  Randy, who has had four heart attacks, counsels other heart attack patients.  He says "I can't stand it when people feel sorry for themselves and keep asking, 'Why Me?'  I say, Why not you?  Instead, find the strength to just go on."

When we are mindful, and stop torturing the mind, and letting the mind torture us asking 'Why?' , the answers come out of our silence from a deep place of wisdom.  So if you are hurt, afraid and anxious, find immediate comfort and peace over the situation by going inside. Locate in your body where you feel the hurt and fear.   Cradle it with your loving awareness, and watch it dissolve.   

Dropping the stories you concoct in your head and being with your feelings in silence, allows your higher, intuitive self to take over.  You will not only find the answers to any situation, but you will also find the right path to proceed in life with peace and wisdom.

Blessings, love and light to the Arizona victims and their families.  May you find inner peace, healing and love.

Watch this incredibly beautiful video by David Ault:

Let Go of Self-Disapproval!

Last year there was so much talk about the economical crisis, it's only natural to look at our own financial state with despair and fear. This new year, change the old recording. 

 Perhaps we are telling ourselves "I should have not invested in stocks." "I should have saved more money." "I don't make enough money." "I didn't get enough education." "I threw away too much money," or "I charged to much." 

Whether we realize it or not, this type of self-talk is disapproving not only of our financial status, but of ourselves.

Disapproving of self keeps us from loving ourselves.  It's like trying to put fresh, clean water (love) into a cup (you), already filled with muddy water (toxins from disapproving of self).

Now, more than ever, we need to be supportive of ourselves.  Love is the only power that stands up against fear.  "Fear and Love cannot occupy the same place."  In spiritual practices, this is why God is called Love.

We can't depend on others to give us this love, because quite frankly, they're looking for that support and love too.  Even in the closest relationships if another person gives you love, and you are not open to loving yourself, you will still feel unloved.

Here are several ways to stop disapproving of yourself:

Be mindful of your thoughts. 

Many of us aren't aware we are disapproving of ourselves.  Our immediate reaction, is "Yes, I love myself."  However,  if you tune into your thoughts and what you are telling yourself, you'll quickly learn otherwise.  It's shocking to see that we're not only  disapproving of ourselves, but we are using self violence as well.  We beat ourselves up constantly with degrading thoughts.    

What are you saying to yourself?

• I didn't do ____"  "That was so stupid of me." "Why did I say that?"  "I don't know what's wrong with me."  "I'm getting old."  "I'm too young to get respect." "I'm fat." "Why didn't I do _____"       "

Record Your Thoughts for One Day

Write down what you are saying to yourself.  You'll find the same thoughts keep coming up over and over again.  Being Mindful,  is like turning on a light in our heads.  We don't have to do anything, just be aware.  Mindfulness is a laser dissolving negative thoughts which unwatched, become feelings and emotions. 

However, just by being aware of thoughts, change the old patterns.  When you change your thoughts, your world changes.  

Have a healthy and happy New Year.