Friday, October 20, 2017

I've got a personal question for you...

Good morning...

I had a personal question that I wanted to ask you...

I hope you don't mind. You don't have to answer to me directly, but take it as a deep inner reflection and carry it with you today.  Of course, if you feel compelled to share it with someone, more power to you.  But this is for you

What thoughts do you allow to haunt and harrass you? 

And why are you torturing yourself with your thoughts in the first place?

I received an email with some wisdom from the late Wayne Dyer (an excerpt taken from 10 Secrets for Success & Inner Peace) and it was a powerful reminder to take inventory of the thoughts we not only allow in, but the ones we attach to and continue to fan the flames.

He said, "Every single thought you have can be assessed in terms of whether it strengthens or weakens you. In fact, there’s a simple muscle test you can do to try out any thought that you’re having in the present moment. It works like this: Hold your arm out to your side, and have someone else attempt to push your arm down while you resist. Think of telling a lie, and notice how much weaker you are than if you think of a truth. This can be done for any thought that elicits an emotional reaction."

Do your thoughts empower you or weaken you?

Dyer continues, "In a book titled Power vs. Force, David R. Hawkins, M.D., Ph.D., elaborates on this method and provides a map of consciousness to show you how every thought computes to either weaken or strengthen you. Authentic wisdom is the ability to monitor yourself at all times to determine your relative state of weakness or strength, and to shift out of those thoughts that weaken you. In this way, you keep yourself in an upbeat, higher state of consciousness, and you prevent your thoughts from weakening every single organ of your body. When you use your mind to empower you, you’re appealing to that which uplifts and raises your spirits." 

I spent much of my adult life bombarded by thoughts, allowing them to take the steering wheel and drive me insane. In college, I would wait until last minute to work on projects or focus on class, put enormous pressure on myself, then crack and crumble under the weight of the impossible tasks I left for myself. Many times I wanted to "start over," by signing out and starting the semester over next round! This is a great irony as I was a natural-born Student. I love learning! And was always academically advanced in my younger years. As I graduated college (with honors, mind you) and moved onto the "real world," I would often participate in the same pattern of waiting until last minute then caving under pressure. I would have about one mini-meltdown a month (if I was lucky, if not more). I would feel unfit, not enough, overwhelmed and just plain old bad. I would cry, ask "why me?" and have a tantrum of sorts. I was not only believing my thoughts but allowing them to weaken me, big time.

This was all totally self-imposed, though I wasn't aware I had control over it at the time. Let's face it, none of us wants to feel bad. We just aren't aware we have a choice! Or that it's easier than we think to shift perception. Honestly, it can be done in a nanosecond but takes time and patience to become habit.

Byron Katie said, in her book "Loving What Is: Four Questions That Can Change Your Life," “A thought is harmless unless we believe it. It’s not our thoughts, but our attachment to our thoughts, that causes suffering. Attaching to a thought means believing that it’s true, without inquiring. A belief is a thought that we’ve been attaching to, often for years.” 

When I began a meditation practice (finally gave it a try after years of hearing about it and being nudged and guided to give it a whirl), I started to understand that we are not our thoughts. Meditation helps release stress from the body, quiet the mind, and teaches us to observe our thoughts with out judmgent or attachment. We slowly come to the understanding that thoughts are unlimited in supply, and we do not have to believe them, attach to them, judge them, hide from them, resist them or act on them. We don't really need to pay them any mind at all! We can just watch as they pass by, one by one, like clouds in the sky.  This art of non-attachment and neutral observation allows us to stay standing in our power, not become weakened by these illusionary bullies. Bullies we appoint!

In the email passage I received, Dyer continued, "Power urges you to live and perform at your own highest level, and it is compassionate. Force, on the other hand, involves movement. This is unlike power, which is a standing field that never moves against anything. Because force is in motion, it always creates a counter-force. That counter-force constantly consumes, and must be fed, energy. Rather than being compassionate, force is associated with judgment, competition, and controlling others. For example, in an athletic event, your thoughts are on overpowering your opponent, being better than another, and playing and winning at any cost. The entire muscular structure of your body is actually weakened, because thoughts of force weaken you.

On the other hand, if in the midst of an athletic event you can keep your thoughts on performing at your highest capacity, on using your inner strength to muster the energy to be as efficient as it’s possible for you to be, and to have great respect for your God-given abilities, you will actually be empowering yourself. A thought of force requires a counter-force, and a battle that weakens; while a thought of power strengthens you, since no counter-force is called into play to consume your energy. Power thoughts energize you, since they make no demands on you."

Energy flows where attention goes. Thoughts become things. These are both quotes you may have heard floating around.. and they're true. What we focus on ultimately determines our quality of life, and the stress we put on our bodies. Too much stress eventually becomes dis-ease and illness. Intangible things like thoughts can and do have physical effects and manifestations.

So, I'll ask you, again... why are you torturing yourself when you have a choice to remain unbridled?  Seems like a silly thing to do once we know we have a choice in the matter.

We came here to experience love and joy in its purest form. It's about time we ditched the old patterns that don't serve us, focus on what does, on what feels good, and stand in our own power and magnificence. You deserve to be happy. We all do. And it's so much easier than you may "think."

Today, when you feel uncomfortable or stressed by a thought, try just letting it be there. Relax the body, one muscle at a time, take a few deep breaths and see how you feel if you turn the thought around or just don't give it any weight. Do you believe that if you ignore the thought something bad will happen? It's just a thought! If it's important (or pesky) it will come back. You'll have ample opportunity to practice. There's nothing to lose, and so much (sanity and peace) to gain.

See your uncomfortable thoughts as neutral today, do not judge or resist or attach. Just observe the thoughts are there. And move on, shifting your focus onto something positive.  You can even try turning the thought around to make it something you are grateful for.

For example, "My house is a mess." Yes, it is a mess. This may be true. But... I'm so grateful that I have a house that can be messy. I have shelter, warmth and a place for my family to grow. The mess means we live in the house! We play, we sleep, we eat, we enjoy the space it provides. Perhaps you can even be grateful that your body allows you to clean the mess... you have limbs, energy and a capable body. It may feel strange at first, but this simple shift in focus moves you to a whole new vibration and frequency, and over time, will improve the quality of your life in a huge way.

Give it a try...Unless you want to remain stuck, imprisoned by your own thoughts! But, I don't think you do ;)

“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” — William Shakespeare


“Bring yourself back into the pleasures of being human by slowing down and noticing the beauty that is surrounding you now.” Excerpt From Rise Sister Rise, Rebecca Campbell #risesisterrise #rebeccacampbell #beautyisallaroundus #lifeisbeautiful #slowdown #presence #gratitude #baskinitsglory #human #meditation #mindfulness #bethelove #quietthemind #enjoy #greatoutdoors #wednesdaywisdom