We're Radios

I was struck the other day by the analogy that our bodies are like radios. Why? Because we are energy-sensing beings. Daily we receive input from hundreds of sources. This happens automatically without us doing much to make it happen, but what we too often fail to realize is that like a radio we can choose which reception we want to tune into and which we don't.

The other thing we fail to realize is that unlike a radio, we also broadcast to those around us. Obviously when we talk we are broadcasting, but we also broadcast energy into the environment that influences those around us. Realizing this helps us become more conscious of the energy we are emitting and the influence we have on other people.

So tune yourself to the sources that empower and strengthen you, and then the power that flows from you will automatically be positive. It will strengthen and empower those around you.

Mantras

It's all done with words!

In traditional Hindu teachings mantras are used to invoke and bring about spiritual transformation. A mantra according to Hinduism is “a mystical formula of invocation or incantation.” The Hindu word mantra means “sacred Counsel” and comes from the word manyate which means “he thinks.”  We, in the Western world, have adopted the word to mean “a word or phrase that is repeated often or that expresses someone's basic beliefs.” For example, I read the statement the other day, “This businessman’s mantra is, ‘Bigger is better’.”

Whether we recognize it or not we all have mantras or habitual ways of thinking that guide our actions. That’s why it is powerful to analyze our actions and determine if those habitual ways of thinking are bringing us closer to God or keeping us from Him. It is also powerful to put our healthy ways of thinking into sentences or mantras that we can repeat over and over to ourselves to solidify and help us remember what we really want to be and do.

As I’ve so often said here, words have power, especially the words we repeat and use to guide our lives.  By selecting and often repeating to yourself a simple mantra such as,

“I behave in any situation like a child of God”  

you help yourself stay on the straight and narrow path that will take you back to Him.

Say "YES!"

The universal stance of triumph.

As I've been studying words and paying attention to how words affect me, I've noticed something very interesting about the simple word yes. If I'm discouraged or just feeling a little down in the mouth, if I say the word, "Yes!" with enthusiasm and conviction I feel immediate empowerment.

In addition, if I raise my arms up in a victory stance like you see runners do as they cross the finish line in first place, there is an added boost of power. I can't explain it, but I can feel it. It is immediate and it is real. It doesn't matter if I'm feeling or thinking anything wonderful or if I'm feeling or thinking negative things. Saying YES and raising my arms in a power stance makes the negative go away and enhances the positive.

I know it sounds too simple to be true, but it works. Try it right now and tell me how you feel.

YES!

A New Kind of Word Game

I believe life should be fun and that means even the difficult things like changing life-long habits. So as we work toward Living in Truth one of the things we can do to is to make efforts to change into a game.

One example that comes to mind is a game that can be used when we are changing our language from negative power sapping words to positive empowering words. What you do is enlist the help of someone who is around you a lot and ask them to listen to what you say. When they hear you use negative and low energy words they then call out, "Swap!" Your job is to immediately swap the negative word with a positive high energy word and repeat what you just said.

You can also do this yourself if no one is around to help you. As soon as you notice you've said something negative instead of beating yourself up over it or telling yourself how you never are able to do what you've committed to do, simply laugh and cry out, "Swap!" and then restate what you just said with the new positive word.

It works, and it is fun!

Empowered

We’re now entering the week of giving thanks! Thanksgiving is my very favorite holiday—good food, good company, lots of love, and a reminder to be thankful.
I was talking to D2 today and she told me how she has been using the Truth Tool gratitude and playing the “But thanks. . . “ game all week and how it has made her feel so good. She told me several experiences and then exclaimed, “Giving thanks changes you!” I couldn’t agree more.

Thanksgiving is a great time to remember all that we have to be thankful for. It is also a great time to practice using the Gratitude Truth Tool. Instead of thinking, “Yikes, I have to cook dinner for twenty people!” give thanks and say, “Wow, I’ve got twenty people to love and who love me. How blessed I am.” Then notice what happens inside you. It isn’t just about a warm fuzzy feeling that comes. It is about the energy and empowerment that surges through you when you give thanks. Sincerely giving thanks is like plugging yourself into an energy source. It invigorates. It uplifts. It encourages. So give thanks and reap the benefits!

Empowerment

As I told you yesterday, I’ve been re-reading an author I love, William George Jordan, because of the way he lifts and encourages me. Let me share the first paragraph of his book The Kingship of Self-Control:

“Man has two creators,--his God and himself. His first creator furnishes him the raw material of his life and the laws in conformity with which he can make that life what he will. His second creator, --himself, --has marvelous powers he rarely realizes. It is what a man makes of himself that counts.”

Helping us achieving this second creation is what Living in Truth is all about, and as Jordan explains we have more marvelous powers than we realize to help us accomplish the task. Learning to trust in those powers and to not give up is important. Too often we excuse ourselves by saying, “I can’t do that!” before we’ve even tried. But as we step forward, trying our best, and expecting the best the very powers of heaven come to our aid. Miracles happen. We find ourselves doing and being more than we dreamed possible.

Pay close attention as you move forward in Truth and you will know of the powers that are aiding you.

Thanks for the "Radiation"

I start each day with a brisk walk along the Provo River with two friends. It begins my day right as I soak in the beautiful natural surroundings, listen to the birds and the rushing water, and enjoy the company of two amazing women. But one of my favorite things is that on the way back home we stop on a bridge for a morning meditation. First we face down stream and I think about jettisoning all the negative things that have accumulated in me and watching them float away downstream. I mentally rid myself of all the bad baggage and spend a few moments thinking about my Savior—the one who heals me. After that we turn around and face upstream. Then I think about being filled with good and positive things. I imagine that the water rushing toward me is flowing through me to cleanse and purify me—that it comes from the Fountain of Living Waters, Jesus Christ. It is a wonderful time that I look forward to every day. But this morning was extra special.

Usually as we walk onto the bridge, we space ourselves over about thirty feet of the bridge and then meditate, but this morning for some reason we ended up almost elbow to elbow in the middle of the bridge with me between my friends. As I meditated besides feeling the usual strength from the thoughts I was surprised by an empowering feeling coming from both sides of me. It was a radiation of love and goodness that seeped into me from my friends and it was so strong I could actually feel it warming me like sunlight.

It made me wonder how often others have influenced me in this way simply because of what they are. I think in the next life we are going to be surprised to find out how much other people actually helped us and encouraged us just by their presence. It is a very real thing, but since it is unseen it too often goes unnoticed. I am so grateful for my many friends and others who over the years have shared their goodness and love with me through the radiation of their character. Thank you! I love you all!

This Good Earth!

I am looking out the front window of Kirsha’s house at a lemon hanging from a branch on a lemon tree. It is almost fully yellow—a bright sunny yellow—with just a touch of green on the bottom. The fronds of a palm tree across the street branch out in amazing symmetry and every where I look there is a different shade of green. I called home and heard that there is snow on the ground in Utah. A cold, white world back home. A temperate, green world here. But it is all beautiful!

This trip has reminded me how beautiful this world is and that I need to slow down and let the beauty sink in. Stopping to look and enjoy the sight, like I am now, I actually feel a surge of enthusiasm and joy trickle through me. It fills me with super-powers!

Besides that, it is almost like I can hear my Father in Heaven chuckling as He says, “Yes, Sherrie, I created this for you. So enjoy! Enjoy!”