Spiritual Solutions

(Note: This is the fourth lesson adapted from the series “Steady in the Wind,” by Ann Strong, of www.thrivingcoaches.com . Ann kindly gave me permissioin to adapt and use parts of the lessons in my blog and newsletter. I believe you will find much value in applying the twelve life principles covered in this course. Enjoy!

Welcome to Lesson Four: Commitment

Please listen to the audio first by clicking on the link below, and then let’s read the lesson together.

Lesson Four: Commitment

In this lesson, we will cover commitment, which helps us keep the faith even when the wind blows strongly - even it seems to be an ill wind.

Commitment will help carry you through the times when you don’t see your vision coming into reality. Sadly, people often let go of their dreams, stop short of their visions, just shy of success, without ever realizing they have come so close. Commitment helps you hang on through that time to realizing your dreams and seeing your visions come into reality.

Imagine the commitment of the gardener. She tills her soil and plants her seeds. Then, she waters the seeds and keeps the weeds out of the garden. She may need to plant more seeds if she notices the birds ate some or the wind carried many away. She then tends those seeds.

What would happen if she had no commitment to her garden? If she only watered when she felt like it or only pulled weeds occasionally? What if she noticed many of her seeds had been dug up by an animal, but she didn’t bother to replant that area? Without consistent commitment, her garden would produce meagerly or not at all. So, too, that happens with whatever figurative seeds we plant.

Commitment helps carry us through all the stages of a garden. Even when we see only dirt, commitment to the gardening process and to the harvest gives us faith. Our vision helps remind us why we have made a commitment to this particular garden. We most easily keep our commitments when we believe in ourselves, our ideas and the bigger picture of our visions.

HOW COMMITMENT APPLIES TO LIVING STEADY IN THE WIND

Because you cannot grow a lush garden if you keep digging up the seeds to see what they are doing, commitment helps carry you through all the stages of a garden. Commitment gives you faith in the process and the restraint to keep from digging up the seeds.

WHAT WILL YOU COMMIT TO?

Whata can you or will you commit to? To a relationship? To a particular project you are interested in? To going to church on a regular basis? To tithing 10% of your gross income? To attending a class? To stop smoking? To more exercise? To flossing your teeth every day? To paying off all your debt? To your marriage? To your family? What will be your commitment? You get to choose.

For those who need help or healing or guidance, Psalm 37 says, “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will bring it to pass.”

There are some key words in this passage. “Lord” refers to the law of your being; it is both the divine potential of you and the law of mind-action that controls its expression.

Another is “trust.” Put your faith in the law and in the ultimate manifestation of that which you desire.

Another key word is “commit.” This word has nearly lost its meaning in our time.

The question is, “Have you made a commitment to the law of your being, to Truth, to the concept of righteous thinking and living? Or is Truth something that you heed only occasionally, and then lay aside because it is inconvenient for you to do something about it? Commitment is truly an “all or nothing” law.

EXAMPLE OF COMMITMENT

In July of 2001, Ann Strong decided to refinance her house. Her refinanced loan didn’t close until February 15, 2002.

She says, “Talk about commitment! The more-than-seven-month process made a record for my mortgage broker. I never understood what all the fuss was about. I just knew I wanted to refinance my house and I really liked this particular loan product, so I hung in there.

“Three days before the first scheduled closing, the lender told my broker they had decided not to fund the loan because they don’t finance one-bedroom condos. I actually own a one-bedroom town home. They don’t have a policy on one-bedroom town homes, so they decided to lump it in with condos.

“From day one, they knew the exact nature of my property, and at the last minute, someone made an arbitrary call. My broker tried to reason with them. They declined.

“Lender number two took three months to determine my property didn’t appraise for enough. (By then, September 11 had taken its toll.) They wanted me to bring thousands to the closing table. I said, ‘Let’s go with lender number three.’ My broker did not want to hear those words. He had told me about lender number three as a worst, worst, worst case scenario back-up. He had never personally closed a loan with this lender. (He now has!) His colleagues had used them, but didn’t like them because they had a reputation for backing out of loans at the last minute for no reason!

“Almost three months later, they did close my loan at an excellent rate with no money due at closing. My broker will be the first to tell you he was stunned. He gave me a $395 credit on one of his fees out of gratitude for my persistence. I’ll tell you, I kept the faith because I had a commitment to refinancing.”

PRACTICE COMMITMENT THIS WEEK

What is your commitment to something of your own choosing?

When you notice yourself getting distracted or feeling unsure about the seeds you’ve planted, how can you bring yourself back to your commitment?

Record evidence in your journal that supports your commitment.

CONTINUE PRACTICING COMMANDING THIS WEEK AND BEYOND

What have you chosen to command or claim? Are you recording evidence in your journal? What is showing up for you?

CONTINUE PRACTICING VISIONING THIS WEEK

Write out and track at least one vision this week.

CONTINUE PRACTICING DEEP LISTENING

Are you integrating both deep listening within and deep listening to others into your natural, regular routine?

CONTINUE PRACTICING YOUR OBSERVER ROLE

Is observation becoming a natural part of your life and work?

Next week, you will receive Lesson Five: Awareness.

Until then, have fun with commitment, commanding, visioning, listening deeply and observing.

God is Blessing You, Right Now!

Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham

——————————————————————————

Rev. Alan Rowbotham, a Unity minister for over thirty-six years, invites you to enjoy more articles and/or subscribe to this free inspirational newsletter, “Spiritual Solutions,” at www.spiritualsolutionsblog.com

If you wish, you can go directly to the blog at http://spiritualsolutionsblog.com/blog/

If you would like to receive “Rich Words,” featuring weekday inspirational quotes, you can subscribe at www.alanrowbotham.com

I have also been asked how you can donate to “Spiritual Solutions.” If you go to www.alanrowbotham.com you’ll see an item in the right-hand column that says, “Send a Love Offering.” Just click on that link and it will take you to a form you can use for your donation. Thank you! I am very grateful for your generosity.

———————————————————————————

Previous in series Next in series

(Note: This is the third lesson adapted from the series “Steady in
the Wind,” by Ann Strong, of www.thrivingcoaches.com. Ann kindly
gave me permission to adapt and use parts of the lessons in my blog
and newsletter. I believe you will find much value in applying the
twelve life principles covered in this course. Enjoy!)

WELCOME TO:
Lesson Three: Commanding

Please listen to the audio first by clicking on the link below, and
then let’s read the lesson together.

Lesson Three: Commanding

In this lesson, we will cover commanding, or claiming, decreeing,
and the power of the word, which involves setting a certain
standard for ourselves. You might use commanding or claiming with
establishing personal boundaries or determining business priorities
or your relationship with God or health or success, etc.

Commanding is NOT:
- Demanding things of other people.
- Insisting God do certain things for us.
- Treating ourselves badly.

Commanding IS:
- Clarity.
- Expectancy.
- Holding firm.
- Collecting evidence.

CLARITY
When commanding, you have clarity - knowing something holds
fundamental importance for you. You don’t waiver, settle or get
confused. You simply, clearly and matter-of-factly hold a certain
standard.

EXPECTANCY
When commanding, you hold absolute positive expectancy for your
desired outcome.

HOLDING FIRM
When commanding, you do not stop short of whatever you choose to
command or claim.

COLLECTING EVIDENCE
When commanding, you collect large and small pieces of evidence
that what you have commanded is on its way until you have whatever
you commanded. This is also known as “pressing your claim.”

HOW COMMANDING APPLIES TO
LIVING STEADY IN THE WIND
When you use commanding or claiming to set and hold a certain
standard in your life or work, the wind becomes irrelevant. “Wind,
what wind?”

EXCEPTION NOTE
Occasionally, as with visioning, you may command or claim something
with sincere clarity and expectancy, holding firmly and collecting
evidence and still not get what you command or claim.

This happens because we most often ask for what we want from our
personality self and it may not always serve our highest interest.
We then don’t get what we want because our Higher Self intervened.

This rarely happens with commanding, because commanding or claiming
seems to come from a deep place within us. Commanding may naturally
come from our Higher Self.

CLAIMING YOUR GOOD
In Isaiah 45:11 we read, “Concerning the work of my hands, command
ye me.”

In other words, the resource is within us, but we’ve got to claim
it, command it.

If it is success we desire, we can claim it by affirming something
like this: “I am a radiant, all-wise, all-loving, all-conquering
child of God. Infinite wisdom guides me; Divine love prospers me;
and I am successful in all that I undertake.” This is claiming our
good.

If it is health we desire, we can know: “The life in me is God in
me. This life is perfect, whole, and harmonious. I am well and
strong and vital.”

No matter what the desire or need may be, we need to claim this
good as ours. If we don’t lay claim to it, it is likely that we
will be claiming something less, something limiting.

Claim your inheritance, claim your wholeness, claim that you are
one with success! This prayer of affirmation is staking our claim.

WHAT ARE YOU CLAIMING?
What are you claiming? “Claim your good and press your claim.” As
children of God we have a rich inheritance of good and our good is
seeking us as we are seeking it.

All we need to do is stake our claim, mentally of course, and then
press our claim by working for right and positive attitudes of
expectancy through which the good may manifest in our lives. 

This concept points up something of the unique nature of humankind
- the power of claiming. One of the things we discover as we enter
into a deeper study of ourselves in relationship to Truth is that
most of us have a sense of inferiority to the extent that we are so
much quicker to claim error for ourselves than good. “Just my
luck,” we say, or “Everything happens to me,” or “Just when things
are going good for me, something always goes wrong.”

It is Job who says, “You shall decree a thing and it shall be
established.” To decree is to decide and to determine by law. So,
the question is what are you decreeing? What are you claiming?

Words backed by feeling are the most powerful force in the
universe. Speak words of health and happiness. Thank God for their
fulfillment. Pause a moment every now and then to say and feel,
“The presence and power of God in me is accomplished through the
perfection of my speech, the truthfulness of my words.”

PRESSING YOUR CLAIM
How do we then press our claim? Even though we have affirmed the
Truth and claimed our good, we still have to contend with the
claim-jumpers of negative thoughts. Through reshaping our thinking
and speaking to conform to that which we have affirmed, we press
the claim.

Let’s be very careful as to what we claim as our own for the
chances are excellent that sooner or later we will possess that
very thing. Stoutly affirm the Truth about yourself; claim it as
God’s gift to you and press your claim.

As you faithfully practice affirming the Truth, you will be given
definite evidence of the response of the law of creation to you.
Claim it. You will find that the character and quality of the
things and conditions in your life are slowly but surely being
altered for the better.

AN EXAMPLE OF COMMANDING
Ann Strong gives an example of her first experience with
commanding, which happened in the spring of 1986. She was living in
a suburb of Philadelphia and needed to move.

She decided to move into Center City Philly, even though she didn’t
know a soul there. A Denver native, she didn’t know much about big
cities. She rented an expensive, delightful, little apartment that
seemed to be in a relatively safe part of the city. Then she
learned about parking.

Parking in the city was extremely tight. She said she could rent a
space in a garage a couple of blocks from her apartment, but it
would have cost $100-$125 a month.

On the other hand, she could get an inexpensive resident parking
sticker and park on the street in a designated area of several
blocks close and not-so-close to her apartment.

She said, “I thought the parking sticker option issued straight
from heaven. Turns out the parking authority did not in any way
resemble heaven, but I did get my sticker!”

People from the suburbs told her horror stories of driving around
for hours on a Saturday night, unable to find a parking space
anywhere in the designated area. They told her to get a safe space
in a garage.

Right then and there she issued her first command (without having
any idea that’s what she was doing). She said to herself: “I have
this parking sticker. I will always find a good space quickly, less
than two blocks from my house. I will always feel safe. I will do
my part by paying attention.”

“And,” she says, “I did. I always got a great parking space. I
amazed my friends - the suburban ones, the new ones I made in the
city and the ones who came to visit. Then I got a reputation as
someone with incredible parking karma.

“Today, still known for my unfailing parking karma, I enjoy good
parking wherever I go.” She said that her grandma, who knows
nothing of karma, has commented several times over the years, “Ann,
you always get the best parking.”

What works for parking also works in many and varied circumstances.
Don’t limit yourself.

PRACTICE COMMANDING
THIS WEEK AND BEYOND
Commanding doesn’t take place in a week. However, you can begin
this week.
   - Review some of your major successes, looking for evidence of
     commanding or claiming.
   - Can you find an aspect of your life or work in which you used
     commanding?
   - Look at your current life and work situation. Where would you
     like to use commanding? Begin.

CONTINUE PRACTICING VISIONING
Write out and track at least one vision this week.

CONTINUE PRACTICING DEEP LISTENING
At least once this week, set aside time for deep listening within
and at least once this week, practice deep listening with another.
Begin to integrate both into your natural, regular routine.

CONTINUE PRACTICING YOUR OBSERVER ROLE
Two or three times this week, continue consciously observing
yourself as you talk with others and record your observations in
your evidence journal. Is observation becoming a natural part of
your life and work?

Next week, you will receive Lesson Four: Commitment. Until then
have fun commanding or claiming, visioning, listening deeply and
observing.

God is Blessing You, Right Now!

Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham
——————————————————————–
Rev. Alan Rowbotham, a Unity minister for over thirty-six years,
invites you to enjoy more articles and/or subscribe to his free
inspirational newsletter, “Spiritual Solutions,” at
www.spiritualsolutionsblog.com

You can go directly to the blog, at
http://spiritualsolutionsblog.com/blog/

Feel free to share this article in its entirety with a friend. You
may also reproduce and publish this article if you also include
this reference box. Thank you!

If you’d like to receive “Rich Words,” featuring weekday
inspirational quotes, you can subscribe at
www.alanrowbotham.com

I have also been asked how you can donate to “Spiritual Solutions.”
If you go to www.alanrowbotham.com you’ll see an item in the
right-hand column that says, “Send a Love Offering.” Just click on
that link and it will take you to a form you can use for your
donation. Thank you - I am very grateful for your generosity!
——————————————————————–

Previous in series Next in series

WELCOME TO:
Lesson Two: Visioning

(Note: This is the second lesson adapted from the series “Steady in the Wind,” by Ann Strong, www.thrivingcoaches.com, about the application of twelve life principles.)
 

Please listen to the audio first by clicking on the link below, and then come right back here as we read the lesson together.

http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WgtmvjMQ

Lesson Two: Visioning

In this lesson, we will cover visioning to support us in having more of what we want and less of what we don’t want in our lives.

Visioning allows us to live proactively rather than reactively. It also gives us the opportunity to work more consciously with All That Is (Indwelling Christ, Your God-Self, the Christ Mind, Your Higher Self, etc.), tapping into all Universal forces, both seen and unseen.

Visioning can especially serve us when a situation in our lives doesn’t feel good or doesn’t seem like what we want.

TO CREATE A VISION FOR SOMETHING YOU WANT IN YOUR LIFE

The best time to create a vision is when something isn’t going your way. Start there. Look squarely at the situation and begin to determine what you would like ideally. Do not censor yourself because what you want seems impossible, selfish, or unrealistic.

So you begin to think about what you would want ideally. You decide what you would like your outcome to be. Immediately, you notice the voices in your head saying, “Yeah right! How will that ever happen?” Just tell the voices to stop. Then, continue visioning.

Now, write a short story about exactly how you will feel, what it tastes like, sounds like, looks like, etc.

Write your story as if your vision has already happened. Make it really juicy, with as many details as possible. Make it come to life for you, as though you are in the midst of a movie of your life. Use phrases and concepts that feel powerful and motivating to you. Have fun with it and let it feel great as you experience it in mind in advance.

THE PURPOSE OF VISIONING

The purpose of visioning is to get your mind off what you don’t want (your current situation) and onto what you do want (your vision). It is true that whatever we focus upon expands. Since you do not want more of the situation you don’t want, you need to focus on what you do want so that it can expand.

You may want to read your vision every morning. You may want to keep it with you and read it on an “as-needed” basis. You may want to create an affirmation to support it. You may want to re-write it as you think of more details.

CREATE A TREASURE MAP

You may want to create a treasure-map, an image book, an I Am map, or a vision board. These are all similar in nature. Basically you will glue or paste pictures and words that represent you, your surroundings and possessions as you want them to be, as a collage onto a poster board or a series of smaller collages on individual blank pages of a homemade book.

If you decide to do this, make it a fun project. Gather a whole bunch of magazines, catalogs, and so on, and then cut out words and pictures that represent your goals and dreams for your life. In selecting the pictures to cut out, reach far beyond your present concepts of yourself and your world.

As well as outer “things” you might desire, remember to let those pages or your overall collage describe your positive inner qualities, such as your emerging self-confidence, your warm and loving nature, your femininity or masculinity. With representative pictures depict yourself as an effective and caring spouse, parent, or friend.

It is a good idea to have at the center of your collage a picture which represents your spirituality or the Source of All Good. (In fact, the stated purpose of an “I Am map” is to create a new you, based on the image of your I Am that you desire to hold for yourself,  such as “I Am prosperous,” or “I Am healthy,” or “I Am a wonderful and unique expression of God.”)

Let your unfolding spiritual nature express itself as it creates a description of the desirable visible outer part of you, so your concept of life can undergo a dramatic transformation. This will be true for your physical appearance, your clothing style, your surroundings and everything else in your world.

I recently came across an amazing tool that you can use to create a virtual “vision board” on your computer. You can include personal pictures, affirmations, and power words, and select your own background. You can incorporate mp3 music and voice recordings which, if you wish, will play anytime your vision board comes up.

There’s a special poster creation program which allows you to copy your images and text onto a poster on your screen, which can then be taken to a print shop. These are just a few of the many features of this great tool. You can even display images on your mobile phone or Ipod.

I went ahead and got a copy of the system for myself, and I highly recommend that you take a look at their site. The vision board also comes with some great bonuses, which in themselves are more than worth the investment.

Check it out at Vision Board

Whichever method you choose, be sure to take a few moments each day to review the images and affirmations you have put together. As you look at the pictures and read the words, feel that you are this person now and that everything has already come into your life.

Feel that your vision is an accomplished fact, even if it isn’t so yet. For it to become you and part of your life your vision board or treasure map needs to be a present-tense experience, not a future one. Feel it now!

Focusing your attention on your vision board, image book, or treasure map daily causes the Law of Mind Action and the Law of Attraction to work for you. Be sure to join your conceptions with feelings of gratitude, excitement, and a sense of already having accomplished these inner and outer goals. Create abundance and prosperity in your life!

KEEPING YOUR FOCUS ON YOUR VISION

If you notice yourself thinking about what you don’t want or how you’ll never get what you want, then STOP. Read your vision, look at your vision board or treasure map, and refocus your attention.

If, for some reason, you cannot get excited about your vision at a particular time, at least distract yourself from focusing on what you don’t want. Instead of thinking about the slow economy or whatever, take some time to do something that will make you feel good. Take a brisk walk, call a friend, sit in the sun sipping lemonade, make twenty entries in your gratitude journal or play with your pet.

Then, when you feel happy and centered again, get back to work. Do not let yourself spiral deep into the story of what you don’t want.

Visioning helps hold us steady in the wind because we know we have connected to the highest part of ourselves and that we can create our lives rather than live as victims of the wind, however and wherever it blows.

Whenever you ask for something, remember to ask for “This or something better.” Also, pay attention not only to what you want but also pay attention to why. We always want things for some kind of internal experience, such as feeling more secure, more appreciated, more loved, etc. There are many paths to the internal experiences we desire. You may even get the internal experience without getting the outer thing you think you want.

PRACTICE VISIONING THIS WEEK

Begin to integrate visioning into your daily life.
- Practice writing visions for “problems” big or small.
- Record how your visions unfold in your evidence journal.
- Continue to focus on and track your visions over the next weeks and months.

CONTINUE PRACTICING DEEP LISTENING

At least once this week, set aside time for listening within and at least once this week, practice deep listening with another. Begin to integrate both into your natural, regular routine.

CONTINUE PRACTICING YOUR OBSERVER ROLE

Two or three times this week, consciously observe yourself and record your observations in your evidence journal. Begin to view your relationship with observing as a natural part of your life and work.
Next week, you will receive Lesson Three: Commanding.
Until then have fun visioning, listening deeply and observing.

God is Blessing You, Right Now!

Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham
————————————————————————
Rev. Alan Rowbotham, a Unity minister for over thirty-six years, invites you to enjoy more articles and/or subscribe to his free inspirational newsletter, Spiritual Solutions or you can go directly to
Blog

Feel free to share this article in its entirety with a friend. You may also reproduce and publish this article if you also include this reference box. Thank you!

If you’d like to receive “Rich Words,” featuring weekday inspirational quotes, you can subscribe at
Rev. Alan Rowbotham

Special thanks to those of you who have sent tithes or love offerings for “Spiritual Solutions.” I am very grateful for your generosity.
————————————————————————

Previous in series Next in series

Ann Strong, of www.thrivingcoaches.com kindly gave me permission to adapt and use parts of her email seminar, “Steady in the Wind,” for my Spiritual Solutions blog and newsletter. I believe you will enjoy this series and find much value in applying the twelve life principles covered in this course.

WELCOME TO:
Lesson One: Deep Listening

Please listen to the audio first by clicking on the link below, then come right back to read the message text.

http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WxGDp3MQ

Lesson One: Deep Listening

In this lesson, we will cover two kinds of listening - listening within and listening to others.

LISTENING WITHIN

When listening within, we listen to something known by many different names: our God-Self, Higher Self, Holy Spirit, Indwelling Christ, Heart, Body’s Innate Wisdom, Eternal Knowing, Infinite Wisdom, Divine Connection, All That Is.

Whatever you feel most comfortable calling that which you listen to when listening within, know that it can serve as a powerful force in your life.

We are all invisibly connected to this God-Self, or All That Is, as well as to one another. When we take time to consciously become quiet and listen to that connection, we learn from a mighty flow of life force. We may “hear” through a whisper, intuition, inspiration, or some kind of calling.

The more we practice, the more we know the difference between listening to this connection and listening to the many voices in our head. If we consistently ask to hear and practice discerning, we will soon feel confident we know the difference.

TO LISTEN WITHIN MORE DEEPLY

Set aside time, even if it’s just a few minutes a day, to practice listening within. Many people find it most valuable to set aside 20-30 minutes first thing in the morning and/or last thing at night to listen in a traditional meditation style, by sitting quietly with eyes closed, breathing softly and deeply. Others find that listening while engaging in a contemplative activity, such as walking alone or gardening or chopping vegetables, also works well for them.
Whichever works best for you, commit to at least a few minutes a day and expect to hear.

You may want to use a formal routine. Breathe in and out for 30 seconds or so to find your natural breathing rhythm. Then ask the voices in your head to be quiet. Be in the silence to hear the answer to a question you pose. And finally, close with gratitude.

LISTENING TO OTHERS

When we deeply listen to others we hear what is REALLY being said, rather than that just what their words convey. To deeply listen to another, we need to be fully present, without distractions. The more we practice being fully present and listening deeply, the more we will really hear and give the huge gift of our presence.

TO LISTEN TO OTHERS MORE DEEPLY

Begin with making a conscious commitment to being fully present before a conversation. If you feel rushed because you only have a few minutes, tell the person before you begin how much time you have and then fully give them that time.

Make sure you finish on time to honor your boundary and take care of yourself. If you feel you haven’t finished the conversation in that time, schedule more time to talk later; that is another way to demonstrate your commitment to being fully present.

As you listen, pay attention beneath the words to what’s not being said and what feelings are involved. In addition, if you pay attention to tone and body language, you’ll tune in to a more complete picture.

If you mirror back what you heard and what you suspect you heard, you can verify what you’re hearing and validate the person you’re listening to. More often than not, people don’t really feel heard. All too often, we feel distracted, give advice, or plan our reply. To mirror, simply repeat back almost word for word what you believe you heard. Then ask if that’s correct. Also ask if there’s more.

If you want to confirm what you heard underneath the words or through body language, check it out. “I hear something in your tone. Do you feel unhappy about this?” “I’m curious about . . .” “You seem really excited. Do you want to do this?”

LISTENING DEEPLY AND LIVING STEADY IN THE WIND

Listening deeply helps hold us “steady in the wind” because we know we are connected to All That Is. Either through listening within or listening to others, we have access to whatever information we need. Regardless of which way the wind is blowing, we feel confident we will make good decisions.
When we consistently listen within, we know that the wind can’t harm us because we have tuned into the highest frequency of All That Is. Listening within also helps us know instinctively how to support a particular person in a specific situation.

Listening to others more deeply supports us in being very available to others by truly listening to their problems and desires. We also then help them make their own wise decisions. When we deeply hear another, we connect with them. If we want to enjoy a great life, it’s imperative that we make good connections with people.

AN EXAMPLE OF LISTENING WITHIN

Ann Strong said that the name of this e-course, “Steady in the Wind,” just “came” to her after she had asked for guidance about it. If she had named the course without listening within, she said she would probably have called it something uninspiring like, “Making More Sales in Tough Times” or “Taking Better Care of Yourself to Bring in More Clients.” She says, “Thank goodness I asked for help!”

PRACTICE DEEP LISTENING THIS WEEK

Begin to integrate deep listening into your daily life.
    Take a few minutes each day to listen within.
    Record your “answers” in your evidence journal.
    Each day, pick one or two conversations to practice deep listening.
    Record the results of this deep listening in your evidence journal.

Next week, you will receive Lesson Two: Visioning.
Until then have fun observing, and enjoy the many fruits of deep listening.

God is Blessing You, Right Now!

Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham
————————————————————
Rev. Alan Rowbotham, a Unity minister for over thirty-six years, invites you to enjoy more articles and/or subscribe to his free inspirational newsletter, “Spiritual Solutions,” at www.spiritualsolutionsblog.com

You can go directly to the blog, at
http://spiritualsolutionsblog.com/blog/

If you’d like to receive “Rich Words,” featuring weekday inspirational quotes, you can subscribe at
www.alanrowbotham.com
————————————————————

Next in series

Many different aspects of prayer are summed up in this sixth and final article of our series on Prayer, in these words of Jesus:

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest; take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

I’d like to recognize, too, that as we progress in our spiritual life there are often phases we don’t understand or that are particularly challenging to us.

The words that Jesus used, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest,” is our first call to prayer. We sense that there is something more, that we can find some relief from our burdens. That’s often how we first come to God; we come to God out of our need. Our purpose in praying is to be relieved of our burden, to find a sense of direction, and to be healed of that which troubles us.

When we pray we find a measure of relief, of rest and peace of mind; we experience a letting go, a sense of relaxation in God’s presence. That’s really our first introduction to the life of prayer and to the spiritual life; we may continue with it for a long, long time.

Then we begin to go deeper.

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