Spiritual Growth Question – What is Inside of You?

I have never been one to make New Year’s Resolutions. In fact I have thought they were a useless waste of time. As the clock keeps ticking and I get a bit older, and after having experienced a difficult year in 2007, I have, for the first time made a number of resolutions. The goal being to rethink my internal spirtuality and motivation, and to pay more attention to my health, as well as to become vegetarian primarily for personal moral reasons but also for good health. I will be coming up with some detailed thoughts of my own, but in the meantime, I thought I would print a great “nuts and bolts” guide to spirituality in a nutshell written by Richard Blackstone :

Your spiritual growth is a process of going within. Most spirituality information prioritizes what is inside of you rather than what is exterior to you. So your first concern about your spiritual growth is whether you are choosing to go within for answers to your innermost questions.When you are living unconsciously you are making choices all the time that are mainly concerned with the world that is outside of your physical body. Everything in life is a matter of choice.

Now, you may think that you are not choosing. You may think that what you do in life is automatic, but that is because you have conditioned yourself to believe that way. You have conditioned yourself to keep choosing the same reactions to similar stimuli. You have forgotten that you have free will to choose any state of being no matter what confronts you in life.

If you come upon a situation that has caused you to be sad in the past, then you will probably choose to be sad if you come upon a similar situation in the present. But it is your choice to be sad. It may be made automatically, but it is a choice. When you are walking in awareness you may consciously choose to be happy. If you consciously choose to be happy in a sad situation, you will do different things then what you would do if you choose to be sad. It is entirely your choice.

It all depends on what is inside of you that you choose to bring forth and deal with in the present situation. What you choose to bring forth will be a state of beingness. What you end up doing will depend on which state of beingness you call forth.

If you are sleepwalking you will just think that you are doing something about your present situation, but as you begin to live life more consciously you start to understand that yes, you are doing something, but the something you are doing is determined by who you have chosen to be in the present moment.

When you make your choices unconsciously you have no idea what state of being you are demonstrating. You just know you are doing something to react to the situation in front of you. What will you choose to react with? Once again, it depends on what is inside of you.

What is inside of you?

I want you to think of an orange. If you cut this orange open and squeeze it really hard, what comes out? Orange juice, right? And why is that? Well, that is what is inside of an orange. You are not going to get lemon juice or motor oil; you are going to get orange juice.

Now, let us take this analogy and apply it to ourselves. If somebody squeezes you really hard, that is, they confront you or antagonize you in some way, what is going to come out of you?

Typically, if you are a sleepwalker, what is going to come out of you is anger, confrontation and fear. Why is that? Well, that is what is inside of you. Right at the surface of your feelings are the reactionary qualities that allow you to bring forth those aspects of yourself that reflect who you define yourself to be.

Most of our conditioning has caused us to bring forth those aspects of our beingness that we have been told are the appropriate responses to certain given stimuli. And because we have been told that these are the right and appropriate responses for a given situation, we dutifully fulfill everybody’s expectations by regurgitating those responses as a reaction to whatever we have been confronted with.

My question is two-fold. First, “Where is the free will in that?” Second, “Does that serve you?”

My second question is answered by the first. You only serve yourself by exercising your God-given free will. Of course, the key to all of this is to make these choices consciously instead of unconsciously. And how do we do this consciously?

You must be conscious.

Remember, our beingness creates our doingness. Only by being conscious can you do things consciously.

So here is another big Ah-haaaaa. In order for you to understand what serves you and what does not serve you, you must be conscious of who you are being as you encounter the people, events and experiences of your life.

Say “Ah-haaaaa.”

Richard Blackstone is an award winning author and international speaker on Love, Oneness & Creation. Journey into discovery of Self by reading this FREE report; “The 3 Simple Immutable Laws of the Universe” at: http://www.NutsandBoltsSpirituality.com

Is Boredom The Culprit?

I “suffer” from boredom. At times it is barely recognizable, and at other times it seems to consume me altogether. I have always felt that bordeom was somehow “forced” upon me; meaning having to fulfill certain obligations, to take part in activities in which I have no interest, or to empty mindedly stare at the television set.  In fact, just today, I was so bored that I looked up the definition of boredom on the internet. I can tell you with no doubt that I was taken aback by the definition: “Boredom is a chosen state of mind brought on by laziness and the firm belief that others are in charge of the supposedly afflicted person’s own entertainment.”

I was startled after having read this definition which when broken down states that if I am bored, then I have chosen to be bored. I needed to spend a bit of time digesting that. I have always felt that states of boredom were because I was doing things repetitively or that life itself had become tedious and thereby boring.

Reading, that by definition, boredom is a chosen state of mind actually makes sense. Despite daily obligations to family, work, and community, I am still, afterall, the master of my own destiny. Thus if I am finding tedium in my routine, then it is upon my shoulders to find interest in what I am doing, to make time for my interests, or to shift my situation altogether if I have “chosen” to be bored by my life.

The next revelation in the definition of boredom actually rendered me angry and defensive. “boredom is brought on by laziness.” Who, me lazy? How insulting! Yet in reflection, the phrase rings true. If I am bored with my duties then it is up to me to find interest in them and to find contentedness thereby. it is also up to me to make room in my life for more of my direct interests. Indeed, it seems, boredom is brought on by laziness.

The final “dose” of the definition of boredom really “charged me up.” By stating in the definition that boredom is the belief that others are in charge of my entertainment would thereby imply it is entirely up to me to change my personal thinking patterns rather than giving the responsibility of my own contentment to others.

It seems then, in order to overcome boredom, we must first delare that we are in charge of our own lives and interests. Secondly, that it is up to us as individuals to take pleasure in that which we have chosen as our life patterns. If we are displeased with these patterns, then it is up to us to change the paterns.

Boredom, by definition it seems, is the rallying call to take carge of our own lives, interests, and actions. Never blame others for our situation, but merely for us as individuals to change rather than to blame. It seemingly further implies we should never take for granted one moment of our lives and that it is up to us to “supercharge” our own lives by being passionate about our current routine as well as those things we want to, and thereby should do. One need, it seems, never to be bored again.

A Happy New Years Eve And Healthy 2008

I hope that everyone has a safe and happy New Year’s Eve and a wonderful 2008. The following article by Carole Fawcett  is a great way to start anew in 2008:

We all enjoy life so much more when we are feeling happy and fulfilled. I believe that we will live longer and stronger if our personal purpose is joy. Happiness is not bought nor is it given. It is something we must reach out for and create in our own lives. It has no monetary value, but the value it does have is priceless.The road to happiness can be taken by starting with the following 5 things:

1. Do not take anything personally.

Remember that everyone walks around with emotional baggage of some sort. Their response to you is coloured by this baggage and has nothing whatsoever to do with you. Their frustration or anger is something that is unfinished within them. Their impatience is frequently impatience with themselves. Their inability to love is likely an inability to love themselves.

2. Deal with the things that bother you.

Do not hold on to grudges or bad feelings about anyone. It only poisons your own soul and your own body. So, if it means speaking to someone and trying to work things out, do so. If you are in a job that you dislike, start to look for ways to find another job that you do like. Do not stay in unhealthy relationships. Walk away from anything that creates angst or pain. Work toward getting rid of all the stressful and negative situations in your life.

3. Practice gratitude and forgiveness daily.

Get up in the morning being mindful of what it is you are grateful for. State it out loud. Forgive yourself and others for both your own and their imperfections. Our world is not perfect and will never be until we, as individuals, achieve our own state of personal happiness. This will then radiate and spread to the rest of the world.

4. Help others whenever the opportunity arises. Love humankind.

Helping others takes the focus off our own challenges. We seem to spend a lot of time in our society focused on our own wants and needs. If we learn how to reach out to others, it will help to put our own issues into perspective.

5. Laugh as often as possible.

Laughter is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Laughter sets off a chemical process in your body that is beneficial to your well being. These chemicals immediately start to diffuse the stress your body may be feeling. Laughter is contagious and spreads feelings of happiness. Laughter begets laughter.

Remember, don’t take anything personally, get rid of your baggage, be grateful and forgive others, help others and laugh as much as possible each day.

So, start with those five things and be conscious of them daily. I am almost certain that you will notice a big change in your life within a short period of time.

As a dear friend of mine says “happiness is a by-product of living a good life.”

Carole Fawcett is “The Happiness Coach” and provides stress management workshops, keynotes and laughter circles to business and individuals. Carole is a member of the Professional Writers Association of Canada, and the Professional Photographers Association of British Columbia. Carole believes that if you are not having fun on your journey through life then you need to make some changes. For more information see http://www.afunnybusiness.ca

Stop Making Resolutions, Start Making Plans

Below, is a great article written by  Dave Ferguson   which, I think, is helpful for all of us getting ready to start the new year:

Why do we keep wishing people ‘Happy New Year’? Will wishing make it so?We make resolutions, but all we seem to be thinking about is what we did wrong during the past year and resolve to do the opposite. I will lose ten pounds (because I gained ten). I will exercise more (because I haven’t been exercising). I will watch less TV (because I couldn’t find anything better to do). In each case the resolution seems more like a punishment and we find it difficult to be motivated by a cure that’s worse than the disease.

If you want the coming year to be a great one, start it off with a different mindset. I want you to begin by imagining yourself on New Year’s Eve, 2008. Imagine being truly content in your life and all its aspects – business, finance, health, relationships, and reputation – whatever it is that will make you truly content. It might take ten minutes or it might take thirty, but create a vision that is real for you. See it and feel it. Got it? Now, let’s make it happen.

That vision is your destination. Since you know where you are now, all you need is a plan to traverse the distance. This is the point at which most people throw up their hands and say, “That’s too much work!” They’re content with resolutions. We, however, imagine the path to our vision. We can see that it won’t be easy, but we begin to formulate the steps we can take each day, each week, and each month to move us closer to our goals. Those steps become plans, each plan having its own goals. Now, the truly hard part: write it down. This is the process of affirming what you want and how you are going to go about getting it. Writing it down moves it from imagination to reality. Now we can focus on our path, our goals, and our vision. We have left the past behind. Because we are focused we will begin to notice the countless opportunities in life that align with our goals and we will take action to integrate them into our plans. It’s energizing. It’s rewarding. It’s an entirely different mindset.

Enjoy the journey. May your vision guide you and sustain you in the coming year.

Dave Ferguson is a coach and the owner of Lake County Business Coaching, Inc., a coaching firm dedicated to helping people in business to improve their performance and their results, to realize their dreams by achieving their goals. More information is available at http://www.LakeCountyBusinessCoaching.com

Who I Am Is Enough

On days when I find I don’t have the time to sit down, ponder and reflect online, I always try to find some writing by someone who I would like to share with. I recently came across this article by Loren Gelberg-goff:

This is your gentle reminder of your ongoing work on your self-esteem, and positive self-image. Everyday we have opportunities to bring in positive thoughts and messages about ourselves and our lives; We just have to learn how to be conscious and aware of these opportunities.The purpose of this message is to bring to you an affirmation and meditation that you can utilize throughout the week so that your thoughts, your energy and ultimately, your feelings about yourself become more positive and your life will reflect these changes.

This article focuses on the core message from which everything else grows:

“Who I am is enough!”

Take in a slow deep breath as you make this statement, and slowly release it, and let the message settle in to your system.

Take another deep breath and say the phrase again , slowly, and out loud. Hear the words; “Who I am is enough”.

Take a deep breath again and feel where in your body the message gets blocked or stuck. Ask yourself: “Do I believe this statement without any ifs, ands or buts?”

If the answer is no, then take an extra moment to reflect on what it means to be enough…

“What is enough?” Do you know?

What’s enough food?; Enough sleep?; Enough time?; Enough love?; Enough energy?; If you do say this statement and believe it without any “ifs, ands or buts”, then allow the warm feeling to settle in as you consciously and lovingly remind yourself of who you are.

Breathe in and out slowly and deeply and repeat the statement

“Who I am is enough.”

Really allow yourself to sit with the feelings that go through you and what it means to let yourself believe this message.

This is where everyone must begin, because somewhere, at sometime, or times, in your life you knew that you really were enough and you still are today!

Sit with this… connect with the positive feelings these memories bring back. If nothing emerges right away, repeat the message:

“Who I am is enough” throughout your day, throughout your week. No judgments, no criticisms, just a deep abiding awareness that a shift is occurring in your life, and you are open to it. Take a deep breath… and allow that breath to fill you completely. “Who I am is Enough!”

As simple as these words are, they are really very meaningful and powerful. Within each of us exists the knowledge and belief that we really are enough. It’s time now to shed the messages that have been absorbed over the years that have undermined the truth “Who I Am Is Enough”, and live according to the belief that you really are enough just by being you. As always, I wish you all the best!

Loren Gelberg-Goff loren@wellfromwithin.com journey to self-esteem and self-empowerment to live authentically self-esteem.For more information about our services and self-esteem products for your journey to self-esteem, visit http://www.WellfromWithin.com

Positive Thinking – Don’t Underestimate The Tremendous Power Of Positive Thinking

This is a great article of inspiration by By Abhishek Agarwal

It is very clear that each of us human beings is made unique. We all feel different given the same situations in life. With every situation that we face, we have emotions that are attached to it. We cannot really control the inflow of these emotions, which can be positive or negative in nature. We can however have control over how we react to our emotions, and that is what maturity is all about.Some of us allow our emotions to take control of our actions, instead of it being the other way round. This will only result in negative actions every time you have a negative emotion and positive actions when you have a positive emotion. We should never let emotions rule our lives in this way, because then we just don’t know what is coming next in life.

With such a character, prolonged negative emotions will result in constant failure, and you may soon find yourself in a rut in life. People say you need a lucky break to get out of this situation in life, but then life is not always that good to people. We may need to make our own breaks, and what better way to do so than to tune in to positive thinking?

Many of us do not realize the power of positive thinking until our mature years. Especially when you are in trouble, positive thinking is what can get you back on your feet. Did you ever realize it may be you yourself that is causing destruction in your life? If you let negative emotions take control of your actions, then it is you who are to blame and nobody else, for your every failure.

You need to start reacting differently to those emotions. You need to tell those emotions that you are in control, and not any emotion is in control of your actions. We cannot change our environment neither can we change people who cause us pain. We can however change our outlook and our reactions to these people and things.

You cannot resign your life to fate. You need to understand that you have made decisions in the past, which affected the course of events in your life. Remember, there is no psychologist or counselor who can do your thinking for you. It is you who finally has to overcome the enemy within, that ties you down and forces you into a rut in life – and that enemy is negative emotions. Think positive, and look on the bright side of mishaps when they do occur in your life. When you start thinking positively you will see success in every area of your life.

Abhishek is a self-proclaimed Personality Development Guru and has written several books on this topic! Visit his website www.Positive-You.com and Download his FREE Personality Development Report and discover some amazing self-improvement tips for FREE. Become the best you can become and reclaim your life! But hurry, only limited Free copies available!

Had Some Setbacks? Learn To Bounce Back

We all have moments in our lives when some form of negative thoughts creep into our mind. But if you are plagued by worries and gloomy thoughts, chances are, you are thinking more about the future than about the present. With so many things bad thoughts floating in our mind, it is easy to forget what is important in the here and now, and this affects your ability to take action. It is difficult to move forward if you think like this. The Bible offers us many words of encouragement, “Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Take the trouble of today as it comes.”Some of us imagine the failure that will come and focus of it. This causes us to ponder over our situation, and this leads to tunnel vision. By worrying too much, a problem or potential problem become bigger than it is and we fail to consider other things, even possible solutions. The only way to stave off such thoughts is to develop confidence in your own abilities. One way about this is to begin learning to recognize that your own strategies are effective and sound.

By worrying too much, a problem or potential problem become bigger than it is and we fail to consider other things, even possible solutions. The only way to stave off such thoughts is to develop confidence in your own abilities. One way about this is to begin learning to recognize that own strategies are effective and sound.

To start, understand that you do not have a monopoly on failures. All of us have experiences coping with failures. Try to remember exactly how you managed to deal with failing an exam, not getting that job or breaking up with your ex-girlfriend or boyfriend. You’ll come to realize that it was not the end of the world-however sad or depressed you were at that point in time. Go through in your mind how you dealt with past experiences, and write them down on a piece of paper. Chances are, you have your own personal blueprint on how to deal with such events.

Learn to accept failures without being too critical about them or yourself. It would also help if you take even the smallest success as a reason to be happy. If you think that you might not be able to cope with something – for instance, an examination, a job interview, an important project- overcome you self doubts by writing down 10 reasons why you will be successful with the situation, in spite of the hurdles you have to overcome. If you have a phobia of studying or taking examinations for example, learn how you can improve your study skills or invest in some memory training material or memory techniques that will help improve your memory. If you are shy or fear meeting people, try to rationalize your fears and emotions and come to realize that the vast majority of people are kind and understanding. If you suffer from anxiety attacks in a crowded place or in high places, try to adopt some relaxation techniques that will help you to keep calm in many situations.

Remember, when you fall down, you should help yourself get up again and dust yourself off. You have done so as a child and will do so as you get older.

It helps to know that no one is ever successful a hundred percent of the time and all of us have to discover our own strengths. If Einstein (1879 to 1955) had allowed himself to be discouraged by the mediocre grades he got at school, he could never become the great physicist that he is.

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