Letting go of worry…

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“What if we knew for certain that everything we’re worried about today will work out fine?

What if.. .we had a guarantee that the problem bothering us would be worked out in the most perfect way, and at the best possible time? Furthermore, what if we knew that three years from now we’d be grateful for that problem, and its solution?

What if. . .we knew that even our worst fear would work out for the best?

What if. . .we had a guarantee that everything that’s happening, and has happened, in our life was meant to be, planned just for us, and in our best interest?

What if. . .we had a guarantee that the people we love are experiencing exactly what they need in order to become who they’re intended to become? Further, what if we had a guarantee that others can be responsible for themselves, and we don’t have to control or take responsibility for them?

What if. . .we knew the future was going to be good, and we would have an abundance of resources and guidance to handle whatever comes our way?

What if. . .we knew everything was okay, and we didn’t have to worry about a thing? What would we do then? We’d be free to let go and enjoy life.

Today, I will know that I don’t have to worry about anything. If I do worry, I will do it with the understanding that I am choosing worry, and it is not necessary.” Source: November 28: Letting Go of Worry | Language of Letting Go

Crank it!!!

November 28, 2011 0

It’s Safe To Be Yourself!

via thedailylove.com

And seriously, what good is it to win something when you’re pretending to be someone else?

November 28, 2011 0

The Four Agreements!

Be Impeccable With Your Word: Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

Don’t Take Anything Personally: Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

Don’t Make Assumptions: Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

Always Do Your Best: Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.

via thedailylove.com

November 28, 2011 0

3 mental mistakes that keep you stuck

Good stuff from psychologist Gemma Stone…

Our minds are programmed to keep us away from dangerous things like tigers.

This can be a good thing in some situations, but when it comes to getting stuff done, it can really complicate matters. Especially if you’re not living in the jungle.

There are basically two kinds of mistakes we can make when it comes to the tiger.

The first mistake is to think there’s a tiger in the bush and there really isn’t. This causes unnecessary anxiety.

The second mistake is to think that there isn’t a tiger in the bush and there really is. This causes death.

Because of the severity consequences of each of these mistakes your mind would prefer that you always make the first mistake in order to avoid the consequence of ever making second mistake.

In order to keep us alive (avoiding tigers) our brains trick us into making three mistakes:

Overestimating threats

Underestimating opportunities

Underestimating resources

When you think about it, this is a great way to keep us alive, but it’s a lousy way to live.

via gemmastone.org

Follow the ‘via’ link above to hear the rest of Gemma’s thoughts on the topic…

November 27, 2011 0

Getting ahead…

“Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. That is why some people with mediocre talent, but with great inner drive, go much further than people with vastly superior talent.”

– Sophia Loren, is an iconic Italian actress.

via thedailylove.com

November 26, 2011 0

Your Stuff Doesn’t Define You, LOVE DOES!

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November 25, 2011 0

Balance

Seek balance.
Balance emotions with reason.
Combine detachment with doing our part.
Balance giving with receiving.
Alternate work with play, business with personal activities.
Balance tending to our spiritual needs with tending to our other needs.
Juggle responsibilities to others with responsibilities to ourselves.
Balance caring about others with caring about ourselves. Whenever possible, let’s be good to others, but be good to ourselves too.
Some of us have to make up for lost time.

Link: http://melodybeattie.com/meditations/?p=762 (sent via Shareaholic)

November 25, 2011 0

The most important Thanksgiving activity

“Eating delicious food and enjoying your time with family tend to be the focus for Thanksgiving, and that’s fantastic (especially if you’re making a healthy meal) yet the central activity of the day shouldn’t be forgotten: Thanks-giving = Giving thanks. On this wonderful holy day, remember to take the time to meditate on gratitude. Sometimes our minds play tricks on us, especially if we’re going through difficult times emotionally or financially, and we find it hard to identify things to be thankful for. If that’s the case for you, check out our article A Different Kind of Thanks for a new perspective on situations that may be blessings in disguise. If you feel the gratitude and see plenty to be grateful for in your life but don’t know where to start with your thankful thoughts, check out An Exercise in Gratitude. You’ll see that practicing gratitude is a very powerful tool of creation, and that you can use it at any time with anything from the simplest stuff in your life to the grandest of wonders. You can do either of these Thanks-Giving activities quietly on your own or out loud as a group meditation, maybe after dinner and before games and movies. You can also do either as a prayer before the meal. Gratitude, like courage, is contagious, and you’ll find that sharing a sincere moment of thanks creates a common feeling and sets the tone for an even more satisfying gathering.” Source: Silvie+Maryl | Upgrading Minds, Transforming Lives

November 23, 2011 0

An exercise in gratitude

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“The thought and feeling of gratitude are among the most powerful tools of creation. Thinking about the things in your life that you are grateful for having not only makes you appreciate them more – it also sends out a message of “have” versus “lack” into the Universe. And since you attract what you are, you activate the mechanism that allows you to have that which you desire and are thankful for. Gratitude is most powerful when followed by action – when thought and deed are aligned – so showing your gratitude brings even more of this ‘have’ energy to you. Thinking, feeling, and acting thankful every day doesn’t take much – just awareness of what you’re already doing and connecting these to the thought and feeling of gratitude. Here are some examples:

I’m grateful for my fully functioning body, and I show it by walking in joy.

I’m grateful for my creativity, and I show it by coming up with new recipes in the kitchen.

I’m grateful for my family, and I show it by telling them that I love them whenever I can.

I’m grateful for this beautiful planet and I show it by recycling.

I’m thankful for my desire to help others, and I show it by sharing valuable information for a healthy lifestyle.

I’m thankful for my need to be who I am and say what I think, and I show it by “telling it like it is” and speaking/writing/standing for the bottom line.

I’m thankful for the sun, and I show it by closing my eyes and feeling the sun’s rays for a second every morning that I open my curtains to a clear day.

I’m thankful for knowing that I am connected to every single soul on this planet and beyond, and I show it by smiling at everyone I meet and treating them with the Golden Rule: do unto others as you would have done unto you.

As you can see, you can practice gratefulness with the smallest thing or the most profound ideas. I challenge you to, right now, think of something or someone for which you are thankful, and show it. Share it with us here too, because nothing spreads the joy and power of gratitude like sharing it with others. What are you grateful for?” Source: Silvie+Maryl | Upgrading Minds, Transforming Lives

November 23, 2011 2

The No New Gifts Holiday Challenge

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Are you ready to participate in the mad shopping frenzy that we partake in every year, not only on Black Friday but all holiday season long?

Are you ready for an incredible burst of spending, for racking up credit card debt, for the stress of buying things for everyone on your list?

Are you ready to consume an insane amount of resources, to have a huge impact on the environment, to work long hours to pay for all that?

Yep, it’s the holiday season again, and with it comes the worst season for consumerism ever.

I say, let’s opt out.

My family and I are issuing a challenge to all my wonderful readers, to the world: The No New Gifts Holiday Challenge.

via zenhabits.net

I think Leo is on to something here — follow the ‘via’ link to read the rest of the article…

November 23, 2011 1

You Know What To Do

You Know What to Do

You’re fat. You know what to do. There’s not really a new book that will change it. It’s you who will change it.

You’re unemployed. That’s temporary, even if temporary is stretching into 14 months. You know what you need, even if that means education, a move, a change of circumstances. But I promise you that you know.

You’re broke. Money exchanges hands every day. More money than we’ll ever earn in a lifetime flows all around you. You can find ways to have some of it. You know some of those ways. Very few books or speeches will amaze you and set you on a path to claim them all.

Then Why Do We Read and Overstudy?

Because we’re afraid, because we’re procrastinating, because we feel many emotions that “seem” like uncertainty, but are more often good old fashioned lack of self-esteem. Because we’ve tried and failed one too many times and we’re upset with ourselves for this. Because we listen to our Inner Critic and we believe that He or She is right (is yours a male or female?).

via chrisbrogan.com

Why do I read and overstudy? Because I’m not confident I’m good enough yet the things I read resonate with what I already believe. How short a distance would it be from consuming to producing with what I already know?

November 23, 2011 0

THIS Is The Opportunity Of Your Life Time!

Great thoughts from Mastin Kipp…

We have an opportunity in this moment to go beyond all the conditioned thoughts of the world, our friends, family and the like and step into a world that WE create from the inside out. We have an opportunity to heal from past wounds – now seeing them for what they truly were – lessons in growth and Grace showing us how to become more of who we really are. We have an opportunity to gain certainty that the future will be better than the past by living our Faith that The Uni-verse is FOR us and never against us. We have an opportunity to shine brightly, which will help to guide out Path as well as help others shine.

None of this can happen without a fundamental shift in our minds – from fear to Love, from blame to gratitude.

In the US – tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Many people from all walks of life – different religions, political beliefs, skin color and financial tiers will all come together for the common purpose of family, community and gratitude. We tend to hyper focus our thoughts on the things we are grateful for this time of year and it’s truly beautiful. But the real beauty, the true Thanksgiving is not about eating turkey, tofurkey and seeing your family for possibly for first time this year. Thanksgiving is something that lives in our hearts.

When we give Thanks for the Giving of our lives, we step out of lack and into abundance. We didn’t create this Uni-verse. We didn’t even create the air that we breathe. How many things around you do you get benefit from that you didn’t have to create for yourself?

If we want to live our dreams, if we want to have real Love in our lives, if we want to get to the end of our lives and have truly LIVED – Gratitude will get us there. Gratitude comes from an internal awareness that you are already whole. It comes from the internal knowing that the more you know, the more you realize that you don’t know – and so we are grateful for ALL experiences in our lives, because they have come to teach us. Being grateful means having the capacity to look around and see abundance – no matter what the minds of humanity proclaim. There is abundant sun, air, water and food for most of us. We – in the Western world – live more abundantly that 2/3 of the planet that live on less than $2/day.

Being grateful means stopping and getting out of your own story and helping someone in need. Nothing brings us joy like being of service to others. And it’s a pattern interrupt that takes us out of the drama of our lives, our story, our problems and puts the focus on others.

Being grateful is the first step towards being truly rich. We can manifest lives of magic if we give the events of our lives an empowering meaning filled with gratitude – today and every day. This is a journey my friend. Let us carry this Holiday spirit that we feel with us through the Holidays and make gratitude a way of life.

Do you have the spiritual power and ability to be grateful for it ALL, every day and carry that with you through your whole walk on this planet? We need you to be as grateful, loving and turned on as possible, because, my friend, THAT is how the world will change!

via thedailylove.com

November 23, 2011 0

Just for today…

“Just for today I will not be afraid of anything. If my mind is clouded with nameless dreads, I will track them down and expose their unreality. I will remind myself that God is in charge of me and mine and that I have only to accept the protection and guidance. What happened yesterday need not trouble me today.

This is a brand new shining day and I have it in my power to make it a good one just by the way I think about it and what I do with it.”

via 12stepsthinkaboutit.org. Sigh…

November 23, 2011 2

Be GRATEFUL for IT ALL!

via thedailylove.com

November 22, 2011 0

Crossed fingers and coercion

I first became aware of the international ‘sign of coercion’ when I saw this picture in 2005…

Here’s the backstory;

“The picture shows that this soldier has been thru Survival School and learned his lessons well. He’s giving the sign of “coercion” with his left hand. These hand signs are taught in survival school to be used by POW’s as a method of posing messages back to our intelligence services who may view the photo or video. This guy was obviously being coerced into shaking hands with Hillary Clinton. It’s ironic how little she knew that he would so inform us about the photo—perhaps because she’s never understood our military to begin with.” Source: Picture of a U.S. soldier shaking hands with Hillary Clinton but not happy about it-Truth!

All of this to explain my current Facebook profile picture. I lost a bet to my son’s girlfriend’s father last year when the Packers lost to the Lions 0-7. He was kind enough to purchase the hat for the picture, so at least it didn’t cost me anything except my pride and a few hundred Facebook friends in Green Bay…

As good as the Lions are playing this season, I think we’ll still end up having the last laugh in February. In the meantime, I’ve got a great hat that actually fits — hard for me to come by — that I can use for mucking the stalls, etc., when I’m working on the farm…

November 21, 2011 0

FAIL Nation: Taking The Family For A Drive FAIL

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November 21, 2011 0

Turn up the self love!

Some good thoughts from Laura Fenamore this morning…

“We all spend so much time thinking about our relationships with others that we forget our relationships to our own selves. Before we can find love without, we must find love within.

Self-love first, True Love second.

We ought to be our own best friends, but all too often we end up being our own worst critics. We develop a negative voice, the one that berates us when we mess up at work, the one that critiques our reflections as we pass by a store window. That voice is so present, so ubiquitous, we may not even realize that we don’t have to listen to it. With that little guy or gal talking in our ears, it’s no wonder so many of us have trouble walking the path of self-love.” Source; Turn Down Your Negative Voice – Turn Up Self-Love!

She goes on to say…

“And so I taught self-love to myself. Love, both of ourselves and others, isn’t just a sense of peace and bliss, though that is where it may end up eventually. At the beginning, it’s a deep sense of desire and drive. I’d like to share with you three inspirational practices I used as I learned to walk the path of heart.

1. Accept Who You Are Now

Accepting yourself, warts and all, puts you in charge of your destiny. On my own journey, I began to see that while my negative voice as a part of me – the wounded part of me – it was not me. I ultimately learned is that I never would escape negativity by ignoring it or making myself wrong for my feelings. I first had to accept that yes, I am depressed, but that is not who I am. It is simply where I am in this moment, whether that moment is an hour or a year.

2. Affirm, Affirm, Affirm Again

Affirmations are a great way to work from the outside in – remind yourself how loveable you are, and eventually you’ll start believing it, too. Write yourself an affirmation.

• Make it about yourself – “I” statements only.

• Be positive – instead of “I don’t give up on my goals,” say “I stay focused on my goals.”

• Use the present tense – because you already are wonderful! Use the boldest, most positive phrasing you can muster.

• Be precise, be specific – list particular qualities about yourself that you love.

3. Quiet Your Negative Self-Talk

Negative self-talk takes many forms; it can be personally attacking thoughts (“You’re an idiot!”), complaints about your situation and the people in it (blaming others disempowers us), or silent judgments (“Is he/she better looking than I am?”). These thoughts reinforce our negative perceptions of ourselves and make it impossible for self-love to take hold. While we may not be able to turn off our negative voices, we can definitely turn them down.

Tune into that voice, and identify and write down seven negative thoughts you have about yourself in the next week. The next time you find yourself thinking that negative thought (“You screwed up this project!”), gently replace it with an affirmation.

Stick with it! Self-love is about being gentle and firm. Let go of the excuses and the stories about your lack of worth. Love requires us to stretch and to grow – not so that we may become someone worth loving (which we all already are), but rather so we can become someone who can love others and ourselvesgreatly and unconditionally.” Source; Turn Down Your Negative Voice – Turn Up Self-Love!

I hope this blesses you, too…

November 21, 2011 1

Create Your Day!!

via thedailylove.com

November 21, 2011 0

Financial fears

Various Federal Reserve Notes, c.1995. Only th... — Image via Wikipedia

The following is from Melody Beattie’s ‘The Language of Letting Go’…

“I sat in the car, looking at the sign on the door of the food shelf office: “Closed until Friday.” It was Wednesday. I had two hungry children and myself; I had no money. I laid my head on the steering wheel. I couldn’t take it anymore. I had been so strong, so brave, so trusting for so long. I was a single parent with two children, recently divorced. I had worked so courageously at being grateful for what I had, while setting financial goals and working at believing I deserved the best. I had put up with so much poverty, so much deprivation. Daily, I worked the Eleventh Step. I worked so hard at praying for knowledge of God’s will for me only, and the power to carry it through. I believed I was doing what I needed to do in my life. I wasn’t lollygagging. I was doing my best, working my hardest. And there just wasn’t enough money. Life had been a struggle in many ways, but the financial struggle seemed endless. Money isn’t everything, but it takes money to solve certain problems. I was sick of “letting go” and “letting go” and “letting go.” I was sick of “acting as if” I had enough money. I was tired of having to work so hard daily at letting go of the pain and fear about not having enough. I was tired of working so hard at being happy without having enough. Actually, most of the time I was happy. I had found my soul in poverty. But now that I had my soul and my self, I wanted some money too. While I sat in the car trying to compose myself, I heard God speak to me in that silent, still voice that whispers gently to our souls. “You don’t ever have to worry about money again, child. Not unless you want to. I told you that I would take care of you. And I will.” Great, I thought. Thanks a lot. I believe you. I trust you. But look around. I have no money. I have no food. And the food shelf is closed. You’ve let me down. Again I heard His voice in my soul: “You don’t have to worry about money again. You don’t have to be afraid. I promised to meet all your needs.” I went home, called a friend, and asked to borrow some money. I hated borrowing, but I had no choice. My breakdown in the car was a release, but it didn’t solve a thing—that day. There was no check in the mailbox. But I got food for the day. And the next day. And the next. Within six months, my income doubled. Within nine months, it tripled. Since that day, I have had hard times, but I have never had to go without—not for more than a moment in time. Now, I have enough. Sometimes I still worry about money because that seems to be habitual. But now I know I don’t have to, and I know I never did. God, help me work hard at what I believe is right for me in my life today, and I’ll trust You for the rest. Help me let go of my fears about money. Help me turn that area over to You, God. Take away the blocks and barriers in my life to financial success.”

Beattie, Melody (2009-12-15). The Language of Letting Go (Hazelden Meditation Series) (pp. 336-337). Hazelden. Kindle Edition.

November 21, 2011 0

My daily prayer

Psalm 51:10-12 NIV

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.