Friday Favourites: An Attitude of Gratitude

Each day I wake with the intention to hold an attitude of gratitude, and to focus on appreciation and thanks-giving for all the blessings in my life. Of course, some days this is easier than others! And there’s no mistaking that the times when it feels the hardest to do are the times when I could use it the most. So when I’m in need of some inspiration to get me back on my own gratitude track, I have some trusty sources to turn to. Here are three of my current favourites.

My Everyday Magic A dear, sweet, wonderful friend of mine recently started this blog to focus on the magic that is a part of every day, for each of us. You can go here to get inspired by other people’s everyday magic, and to enrich your life by taking some time to post your own. While you’re there, be sure to check out the pictures and stories of Kate making her way in the world as the Sparkle Fairy! If there was ever a woman that could inject a feeling of magic into the world, this is her!

Wise Ways of Women Forums This is a law of attraction inspired forum I have been hosting for about two and a half years now. The people that hang out there are some of the most beautiful spirits I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. It’s a place to uplift and be uplifted - and there’s a whole forum devoted to awesome appreciation! I don’t know of a better way to get back into a gratitude groove than to go to WWoW and catch the vibe of thankfulness from my dear sisters scattered across the globe.

#gratitude on Twitter A search on Twitter for the #gratitude hashtag will get you page and pages (and pages!) of tweets from people that are grateful. Personal experiences, words of thanks to each other, amazing gratitude quotes… If there’s reason to appreciate it, you’ll find a tweet about it. This is a super fun way to dip into a world ripe with an attitude of gratitude.

Do you have a favourite resource that helps inspire an attitude of gratitude? Please leave a comment below and let us know about it!

If you’re interested in reading more about gratitude, you can check out my recent Suite101.com articles: Gratitude Journals and the Law of Attraction: How Giving Thanks and Appreciation Creates Joy and Well-Being, How to Choose a Gratitude Journal: Tips for Journaling Thoughts of Thankfulness and Appreciation and Inspiring Quotes of Gratitude and Thanksgiving: Great Quotes on Appreciation and Giving Thanks to Inspire and Uplift.

Friday Favourites: Inspirational Messages

Every day I open my email to messages that uplift, inspire, motivate and leave me feeling and exuding love! Following are some of my favourites. I hope they inspire you as well!

Notes from the Universe by Mike Dooley never fail to lift me up and make me smile. These short, sweet and often humourous tidbits remind us of our beautiful, creative and divine nature. A must read!

Neale Donald Walsh sends out beautiful messages each day, starting with the line “On this day of your life, I believe God wants you to know…” It is amazing how often the message truly is the perfect piece of wisdom for the day!

The Daily Groove from Scott Noelle is a must-read for any parent looking to co-create a peaceful, loving and fun family life. Scott’s messages offer practical suggestions and advice for parents in bite-sized pieces. Awesome stuff!

Last, but certainly not least, you might want to sign up for the Envision Joy newsletter. Our first issue is coming soon, and we intend to follow that with our own daily dose of inspirational messages. Watch this space for more information on our joyous plans!

What inspirational emails do you receive in your inbox? Please leave a comment below with any additonal suggestions!

Healing Image℠: The Vortex of Abundance

This image has been infused with Money Reiki energy to assist with opening us up to our natural flow of abundance. Focus gently on the image as you read the affirmations below. Allow the energy to flow through you and integrate into your being.

I step into the vortex of my abundance. I feel the money energy all around me and open to the flow that is right now moving into my physical experience. I allow financial prosperity to manifest in my life, and I feel the appreciation for my fulfilled desires.

This beautiful painting, titled The Vortex, was created by Michelle Pier of Aura Art Creations. Visit Michelle’s site for more information on having a painting custom made for you.

Abraham-Hicks on the Vortex

“When you’re in the vortex, you’re in this magical swirl of all things working out for you. And there are so many people who have discovered what that is, and they are people who have learned to talk about what they want, and not about what they don’t want. They are people who have learned to praise rather than criticize. They are people who have learned to be optimistic rather than pessimistic. They are people who have trained themselves, thought by thought, into the vortex.” - Abraham

This video was excerpted from the DVD The Vortex: Where Law of Attraction Assembles All Cooperative Relationships, a companion to the newest book by Esther and Jerry Hicks. You can pick up a copy of the book at Amazon.com, or keep reading below to find out more about the Hay House promotional offer with great deals on this and related products.

Esther and Jerry Hicks, authors of the 2008 #1 New York Times Best Seller, Money and the Law of Attraction, have just produced their newest and most powerful book to date, The Vortex: Where the Law of Attraction Assembles All Cooperative Relationships. This new book will leave you feeling free and clear, as the impossible task of sorting out all of the complicated moving parts of the relationships in your life lifts up off of you. As you read the 22 flawed premises that are at the core of the confusion you feel, you will discover a new point of attraction, and every relationship you have will improve. It feels so good to understand. And that understanding will change your point of attraction so dramatically that every relationship that you desire will flow easily to you. Order The Vortex now! In The Vortex, Abraham describes the powerful spiraling energy center, our Vortex, that contains all of the relationship requests that have emanated from us and all of the components called forth by the Law of Attraction to meet our requests. Who feeds the creative Vortex that spins out our life experience? We do. As Abraham reminds us: “All things that happen in your experience come because of the requests that you are sending out with your thoughts . . . You have the power to evoke from others the relationships that you desire . . . If you simply imagine your life as you want it to be, all cooperative components will be summoned. And even more important, all components that are summoned will cooperate. It is Law.” You have the power to evoke from others a relationship that is in harmony with the freedom, and the growth, and the joy that you seek. It all begins with greater awareness of who-you-are and a deeper understanding of your own personal Guidance System that will return you to alignment with Source. As Abraham says, “For by your finding agreement with the power that flows forth from within you, the harmony that you seek on all other levels and all other subjects—and within all others—will then (and only then) be possible.” It is Abraham’s desire to help you remember the art of alignment first—then action. Alignment first—then conversation. Alignment first—then interaction. Alignment first—then anything else. Your relationships will all fall easily into alignment once you tend to this fundamental primary relationship first. Order The Vortex and learn how to achieve the harmony you desire at all levels, in all of your relationships. In celebration of the release of The Vortex, if you order now, you’ll receive a FREE 2-hour workshop download by Abraham-Hicks immediately upon purchase! Click here to view all specials >>

Discovering What You Want

Behind every desire is the core feeling we believe the dream will bring with it, so it can be very enlightening, and infinitely beneficial, to recognize and acknowledge the quality behind a desire. Here’s a process to help you identify what it is you are truly hoping for through the manifestation of your goals.

Get specific about your desire. Write out a description of your desire, including specifics around how it will make you feel to manifest this for yourself. Include all of your senses in your description, as this will engage your body in the feeling place of having your desire manifested and help you clarify what it is you truly want.

What quality will your desire bring? Read through your description and think about the essence of feeling behind the manifestation. Is it love? peace? accomplishment? confidence? harmony? What feeling is it you are hoping your desire will help you to achieve?

Recognize where you already have it. Once you’ve made note of the quality behind your desire, spend some time thinking about where you already experience those feelings in your life. Spend some time appreciating where you already have what you hope to manifest, and think of ways you might increase the frequency of those experiences in your life.

Consider the options. Think about the other ways in which you can have the feelings you are hoping to manifest with your desire. What other things could you do to bring those feelings into your life?

The more you can allow yourself to experience the feelings of your desire, the more you attune yourself to that frequency of vibration. The more attuned you are, the easier it is for the Universe to bring you more that matches that frequency. So have fun feeling your way around your desires, and watch the magic unfold!

We’d love to hear how this process works for you! Please feel free to leave a comment or drop us an email.

Guest Post: Seven Ways to Awaken Your Intuition and Activate Your Psychic Powers by Diana Rankin

Developing your intuition is a healthy way to take charge of your life and use your own inner psychic powers to guide your life to greater happiness and fulfillment. Following are seven ways to awaken your intuition and activate your psychic powers. Each is designed to help you get past the brain patterns you’ve created with your normal thinking. These methods mix up your thinking process in order to help you reach deeper of your intuition and find your psychic powers.

1. Open to Spirit and develop an awareness of your own inner world through meditation, prayer, and a loving desire to live a life of service to all living beings and the planet. You’ll be amazed at the richness and joy you’ll experience as you tap into your inner world. Children are especially adept at exploring their inner worlds, so take your child-or your inner child-on an exploration of the wonders of meditation and deep prayer.

Begin with the intent that you wish to explore the place of love within you. Use a guided meditation CD, music, or meditative breathing. As relaxation spreads throughout your body, allow yourself to experience the love that you are, the truth of who you are. Begin deep prayer work by thanking Spirit for your life and that which is in your life, then relax and ask that it be revealed to you the ways you can be of service to life and live a greater, more expanded and exalted life.

2. Build up the pathways between the left and right brain hemispheres with easy-to-do-crossover exercises. Cross the right hand over the front of your body and tap the left foot seven or eight times. Then, cross the left hand over the front of your body and tap the right foot seven or eight times. Repeat the exercises, but this time cross your hand over the back of your body.

Practice doing things with your non-dominate hand, such as opening doors, brushing your hair or teeth, or even writing. In addition to opening more pathways in your brain for intuition, you’re also creating more brain power for problem solving and critical thinking skills.

3. Heighten the awareness of each of your five senses. Intuition may be called the sixth sense, but if our five senses are dull, we can’t expect the sixth sense to be sharp. Our lives offer an endless playground for our five senses. Mix up your five senses. Begin by holding an object, any object, such as a stone or piece of cloth. Become intimate with that object. Look at it until you can see it with your eyes closed. Then ask yourself what the object tastes like. Use your imagination. You don’t actually have to put the object into your mouth and taste it.

Once you’ve gone through all five senses, mix it up and ask yourself questions such as: What color is the taste? or What does the object’s sound feel like? Then go to the next level and ask yourself questions such as: If this object could speak, what wisdom about my life would it tell me?

4. Become aware of the whispers from Spirit by becoming more aware of life in each moment. Be open to receiving information and guidance to help make your life better. Nature is a wonderful teacher for intuition. Pay attention to the animals that cross your path and the winged ones who grab your attention. If you live in the center of the Midwest and a flock of seagulls dip and dive all around you, listen. Are they asking you to let go of your worries and soar with them?

Nature is alive with stone people, cloud people, tree people, and a myriad of others who speak to us all the time. We only need to listen.

5. Journal and dialogue with that which is greater than you: God, Goddess, a spirit guide, an angel, the highest self of someone you love and trust who has passed over. Choose a regular time to meet. Following morning meditation is ideal. Use your favorite blank journal, and just start writing, or if you’re a visual learner, draw. It doesn’t matter what you write, just write, or draw, and keep on going for about three pages. It usually takes about three pages to get pass the objections in your mind that keeps you from accessing your deeper nature.

You’ll feel the shift, and once you do, write a question, then write the answer. Don’t judge the answer as you write, just write down the words that come to you. This is a subtle process. Don’t expect shouts. Trust what comes. Later, go back and read what you wrote. You’ll be amazed at the wisdom that comes through your inner world.

6. Play intuitive games with yourself and others. Before getting into line at the bank or market, ask yourself which line is the quickest. Gather a group of photographs of different people that are all the same size, turn them upside down, and then guess whose picture is on the other side of each photograph. Use your intuition to stay safe. I live in deer country. Every time I feel the deer near, I slow down. Sure enough, deer will be around the next corner or over the next hill.

7. Let go of control and surrender to that part of yourself that is connected to Spirit. None of us are in control of life, but we are in charge of our lives. We can choose to experience life to its fullest. Or not. We can choose to be grateful for what we have. Or not. We can choose to live a life of service to our own lives and to all humanity. Or not.

Trying to hold control is like trying to stop a river from flowing. Taking charge of your life is becoming the master of your own destiny, flowing with the river and laughing all the way, and allowing your intuition to guide you to a greater, more fulfilling life.

These steps to awaken to your deeper intuition and activate your psychic powers take time and practice. Be patient and loving with yourself. Tapping into your intuition comes in its own time, but comes only after you take the steps toward your own greater self.

Diana Rankin, author of 23 Days, A Celtic Journey, is a gifted psychic medium, international speaker, and radio personality. For a private reading by phone or in person, or for information on workshop, seminars, or speaking to your group, please contact Diana at 937-593-6500, or http://www.dianarankin.com. To read her latest book, while she is writing it, go to http://dianarankin.blogspot.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Diana_Rankin

Healing Image: Celestite for Intuition

This image has been infused with Celestite energy to assist with opening the third eye and crown chakras and enhance intuitive connection. Focus gently on the image as you read the affirmations below. Allow the energy to flow through you and integrate into your being.

I open my heart and mind to the messages of Spirit. I embrace the power of my natural intuition, and allow myself to be guided by this internal inspiration. I turn inward with trust, aware that everything I need to know is accessible to me at all times.

This beautiful painting was created by Michelle Pier of Aura Art Creations. Visit Michelle’s site for more information on having a painting custom made for you.

Guest Post: 7 Key Practices to Expand Your Awareness and Improve Your Intuition by Meredith Self

The core ability of highly intuitive people is awareness. Aware of what you are experiencing. Aware of a sensation, impression, vibe or gut instinct. Aware of your body. Aware of others. Aware of your nature. Aware of the flow of life around you. Aware of choices. Aware of suffering. Aware of truth. Aware of ways to serve yourself and others.

Awareness is a state of mind where you can experience what is happening and act on it. People ask me what is the key to become more intuitive, to master intuition…discipline your mind to be more aware.

7 Key Practices to Expand Your Awareness

Describe everything sensually. Use all your sense to experience what happens to you externally and internally. Notice textures, density, temperature, heaviness, color, vividness of what is around you. Use all your senses. Take time to describe what you experience with this vivid imagery. Doing something like wine tasting, coffee tasting, art viewing, music listening can all help with this.

Cross senses. Notice how a texture tastes. Notice how a sound feels. Notice how a sky feels to you. Notice how an emotion smells to you. The more you vividly sensualize, the more you vividly experience, the more your awareness expands. This sensualization is a gateway to move information between subconscious and conscious parts of the brain.

Notice what you notice. At any given time your mind is processing an extraordinary number of details, yet you only consciously notice some of them. The key to awareness is not necessarily being able to notice more, but simply to notice what gets your attention. By tuning your intention and subconscious to notice resources for your trip, you will notice resources. By tuning your intention to notice people who will make good friends, you will find them. Note, that if you intention is to notice why no one likes you, you will see only that; so focus your intention. When asking an intuitive question, notice every detail because it is relevant.

Find something new. Intend to notice something new about someone you’ve known a long time, or a place you’ve been many times. Intend to notice details you wouldn’t usually see. Ask new details to pop for you. It’s fun.

Be present in the moment. If you are replaying the past or worrying about the future, you are not as aware of what is happening in the moment because your attention is elsewhere. Bring you attention to the moment and you will notice more and have more energy to make choices now.

Concentrate. If you are easily distracted you will be less aware of what is happening, so practice highly concentrating your attention for short periods of time. When you are doing the dishes, practice being aware of the dishes and nothing else. Notice what distracts you. Notice what environment is most conducive to your concentration. Practice concentrating in a conversation to really hear what someone is saying without interjecting.

Practice. The greatest masters have mastered practice. They know the discipline of practice. Discipline yourself to remember to be aware and gently bring your attention back to awareness over and over. Choose consciously what you wish to be aware of (healthy body, honest self-expression, fulfilling career, peace within…) and you will find limitless resources and wisdom arise in your awareness.

Copyright © 2009, Meredith Self. All Rights Reserved

Meredith Self - spark intuition * ignite creativity * transform patterns
For consultations, mentoring, workshops and to receive email intui-tips: http://www.sparkintuition.com
meredith@sparkintuition.com / 703.980.0889
Read day-to-day stories of living intuitively: Tales of a Suburban Psychic Blog

Meredith Self is a spirited intuitive consultant, teacher, healer and author committed to joyful and practical intuitive living using all of our senses. Meredith is a Certified Six Sensory™ Leader and Teacher trained by Sonia Choquette Ph.D., and a Reiki Master, with more than 20 years of consulting and teaching experience with gifted-and-talented teaching, business management consulting, and private intuitive consulting. She is the creator of a Guided Visualizations for Intuitive Clarity CD, co-author of the joyful children’s book Bob-Winging It, and is creating a Parenting Oracle Deck-Spark Intuition to be published in 2009. Meredith empowers individuals through consulting, mentoring and workshops to experience their highest potential using practical, healing and transformative tools to cultivate intuition and express one’s true essence.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Meredith_Self

Book Review: Trust Your Vibes by Sonia Choquette

If you are looking for a book that talks about the value of intuition, discusses why it pays to listen to your intuition, and explains how to improve your intuition through practical and easy-to-understand processes, then I highly recommend Trust Your Vibes: Secret Tools for Six-Sensory Living by Sonia Choquette.

This book is full of interesting anecdotes and practical advice. Sonia teaches through examples from her own life, and from the experiences of her clients. She presents the idea of living your life guided by your intuition in a way that not only makes it sound like the most reasonable thing in the world (which it is!), but also in a way that is completely accessible to anyone hoping to move forward toward this type of ’six-sensory’ existence.

Here are two excerpts addressing some of the ‘psychic secrets’ Sonia reveals throughout the book:

Secret 14: Write It Down “…Recording your vibes is the most direct physical way to march your mind across the bridge from an ego-based, five-sensory reality to a spirit-based, six-sensory one. Like a diver on a treasure hunt, each newly seized message from your psychic sense will help build a platform of reason on which to stand. You’ll no longer just have a feeling–you’ll have verification that your vibes are legitimate guides that help you in life…”

Secret 28: Laughing Matters “…Some people can’t distinguish between the ego and the sixth sense. Here’s the difference: Your spirit is relaxed, forgiving, and laughs a lot, especially at you and your own antics; and your ego is critical and controlling and rarely laughs at anything, especially itself. The soul gently requests and trusts, while the ego demands and is suspicious. The soul is light and easy and loves adventures; the ego can be harsh and heavy and gets stuck in the mud…”

If I were to recommend one book to help foster and gain insight into intuition, then Trust Your Vibes would likely be it.

If you’ve read Trust Your Vibes, I’d love to hear what you thought of it! Please do leave a comment below or drop me an email.

Trusting in our Process

One of the most important things we can do to help improve our manifesting experience is to build a relationship of trust within ourselves. Trust that things always work out, trust in the flow, trust in our natural abilities, trust in the Universe’s desire and ability to support us… When we have faith in the process and our place within it, we sit in a space of positive expectation, allowing room for magic and miracles to happen! This exercise is about recognizing where we have experienced a deep level of trust in our lives so that we can tap into that feeling in other areas.

Consider past manifestations. Make a list of things that you imagined, wanted, and then received in your life. This list might include things you have consciously manifested, or it may include mostly things that unfolded for you without your deliberate intent. It doesn’t matter how actively you pursued the manifestation, or how big or small the item or experience was. (If you have difficultly coming up with a list of your own past experiences, feel free to borrow from the experiences of others around you.)

What was the level of trust? Take a look at your list and consider what level of trust you had that you were going to receive each thing. Did you just know you were going to get that raise? Were you absolutely confident that the boy would want to go out with you? Were you sure you were going to win that contest?

Look at your current desire. Think about a current desire you are hoping to manifest. What’s your level of trust and expectation of success? Recognize where your trust is strong, and where you might need a boost. You might want to use EFT to tap on any areas where you feel a great deal of resistance.

Demonstrate your trust. Think about what action you could take right now to demonstrate your trust, and faith in your success? This might mean sharing your plans with others (be sure they’re people that will be supportive!), doing some research for your new web site, contacting a travel agent to inquire about that vacation, test driving your new car… think about the steps you would take if you absolutely trusted that your desire is manifesting, and consider moving forward with some of them!

We’d love to hear about how this process works for you! Please do leave a comment or send us an email to share any insights you have.

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