Talking to the Angels

A tiny baby's smile while sleeping is often referred to as 'talking to the angels' and maybe it's true. Who are these angels that entertain our newborns? If they talk to us as when we are a tiny baby, where do they go as we grow older, like us?

That 'higher consciousness' many try to connect with is also the 'parking angel' that guides us to the perfect, safe parking spot in a crowd, the one who whispers, "take a different route today" that seemingly knows the regular route could have been disastrous for us. The angels that surround us, whisper in our ear, raise alarms for no apparent reason are with us from the very beginning. Newborns have not been told they are not real and readily recognize them, especially during sleep time when we enjoy a different conscious state of mind. Sleep makes the world go away, for a time. But young children and certainly adults are wiser... aren't they?

As children we knew what we believed was real, were never afraid of dreaming and surely not afraid of voicing those big dreams. And then, a joker name reality strode onto the scene in the form of trusted adults who warned us that those things were not real, we were imagining or even being dishonest about those angels, dreams and odd stories. What we 'knew' quickly became filtered through the lens of cynical adults who had long since ceased to believe. But they were wrong.

The practice of dashing dreams has been instilled in most adults; we become adept at being cynical and disbelieving of all that cannot be processed through the filters of what we now believe. Is it any wonder that so few dare to dream, and believe in them? There is a very simple explanation of who those 'angels' are; they are parts and parcels of you, the parts that remain with you always, yet not enclosed in the human body. If all the parts of you were contained in your body you would appear just like an angel, a being of light. The human body cannot contain all the parts of who we are.

The parts that remain outside of us are identifiable; the innate that surrounds and protects each of us, warning of danger around you, illnesses that require attention and people in your surroundings whose intentions are potentially harmful. They are the 'parking angel' the sixth sense, the intuitive part of you, the higher self or higher consciousness imparting information that is always benevolent because it comes from a part of you that exists in a higher consciousness.

Everyone who still believes in dreams, dreaming and the ability to reach their highest goals is highly intuitive. They have parted ways with those warnings about what is real or not real, understanding that some people will consciously choose to sleep through their life experience; but not them. They have reestablished the connection to those parts of themselves and rely on the inner guidance they receive. Intuitive they are, because they listen and believe in those gut feelings (the most reliable, incoming from the innate) the sense of just knowing, or an answer to an issue received in dream time.

We call them intuitive or psychic because they know things we seemingly cannot know. Intuitive people understand that the same higher consciousness that surrounds all of us is willing to communicate with those willing to assist in delivering the important messages. Can you image how much better life could be if everyone reestablished the line of communication with the best part of themselves? Fear would become a thing of the past and dreams would soon be a new reality. Just imagine!

https://ezinearticles.com/?Talking-to-the-Angels&id=10186741

Reclaiming Your Personal Power (By Liah Howard)

As the year draws to a close, I find it helpful to review and assess if there are any psychic cords that would be best to cut before going into the new year. In this way the new year can be greeted with renewed energy. A psychic cord is an invisible energetic cable that connects one person to another person, living or dead that has a toxic feel to it. We are not victims of psychic cords, they happen when we don't protect and clear our energetic field regularly. Just as cavities occur in teeth if one does not brush and floss on a regular basis.

Psychic cords happen when we consciously or unconsciously give our sacred personal power, away to another person, and permit them to invade our psyche. We can both give and receive psychic cords. It is important to note, that cutting psychic cords does not mean cutting off the love. The love connection can remain but any fear, anger, negativity or judgement with another person, is most beneficial to sever and release regardless if you are the one holding them captive or they are psychically attaching to you.

Sometimes the cording can be very subtle and feel so familiar that the foreign energy is hard to recognize. One can easily become acclimated to feeling low energy or depleted from someone else's energy in their psychic field (which acts as a parasite or leech)if the cord is from an individual that is somewhat enmeshed in your field like close friends, family or co-workers. Also the cording is hard to discern if the person who is psychically merged with you carries or vibrates at the same frequency level of one of your parents from your family of origin.

Not all psychic cords have a malevolent intent. Most do not. Some psychic cords have been put there with the intention of helping another. For example, a parent who is very controlling and worries a lot, may psychically cord to their child, teenager or adult child because they are fearful of losing them or worried about their safety. Another instance of unintentionally cording is apparent when an ex-lover attaches a psychic cord to their past partner because they care about them and can't let go. However, though well intended, the recipient of the cord ends up feeling compromised in the clarity of listening to their own inner guidance because someone else's energy is in their field.

Luckily there is a quick and easy solution to this psychic phenomenon. First and foremost a person must desire to be free of unhealthy cording. A qualified psychic can assist with cutting and removing the cords or an individual can do it themselves. Here is a simple technique: Begin by being willing to quiet the mind and scan your energy field to see if you have either taken on someone else's fears, thoughts or energies or sent a cord to another person. The next step is to tune in to the location of the cord in the body by identifying where the feeling of constriction is. After this is done, it is helpful to visualize how large the cord feels and what its density is. For instance, does it feel like a huge thick metal cable or a light fabric leash type of cord? Once these specifics are established, envision a huge pair of etheric shears that are designed to cut through anything.

In your mind's eye sever the cord completely and simultaneously send the foreign energy back to its source. Then reclaim your own energy that you gave away and picture a pure white light entering the place where the cord resided in your body. Next see this light dissolving any residual energy from the other person. Complete this psychic cord cutting exercise by surrounding yourself in a bubble of protective white light, a type of psychic armoring that let's love through but does not permit negative energy to pass into your energy field.

Enjoy the feeling of your own pure and protected energy field. You are now ready to open up to your clear inner guidance and move forward in life on your soul's path with renewed energy.

https://ezinearticles.com/?Reclaiming-Your-Personal-Power&id=10219352

Be The Eye Of The Storm

To be the eye of the storm and remain calm during times of conflict, stress, or worry is not an easy task to perform but it is something that anyone can learn with a little discipline. As you have heard it before, life is ten percent of what happens to you and ninety percent on how you respond to it.

So, how do you come down and keep your cool? What can you do when life throws curve balls at you? In what way can you deal with stressful situations or people?

The eye of the storm is usually a period during a storm when things stay calm. However, this does not mean that it is over. Things may just get worse. No matter of what is happening around you and in your life, it is all relative to the way you perceive things and how you handle them.

You surely know that you are never at your best when you are stressed. As a matter of fact, your brain has evolved over hundreds of years to automatically release cortisol in any stressful circumstances, hindering rational and logical thinking.

It is created in such a way to potentially help you survive, say, in case of any danger you may encounter. When you are stressed, cortisol which is toxic is released, while in turn, stress raises your heart rate, modulates adrenaline levels and even clouds your thinking.

Therefore, it is not the best thing for our bodies or mental states to experience. So, to remain the eye of the storm in most stressful situations, there are a few ways you can learn to avoid making critical mistakes. When your thoughts become clouded, the idea is to think ahead to what those fiascos might be.

How Can You Begin Being the Eye of the Storm

Just like any ocean, sea, river, body of water or thunderstorm in this world, the surface is always susceptible to change. But if you go further in, such as in the deeper waters or the center, you can find calmness and the power you need to turn into the eye of the storm.

You need to learn the skill of separating what you perceive or feel in a situation from its reality. You have to understand that the things that happen around you are not meant to be directed only to you and do not matter nearly as much as you think they are.

Some people struggle their entire life and seem like they have nothing, yet they have so much love in their hearts and so much compassion that they want to give to the world. On the other hand, some individuals have everything, yet they are full of bitterness, sadness, and hate.

To begin being calm and become the eye of the storm, you have to realize and see that your feelings, emotions, opinions, thoughts, and perception are often completely independent of anything going on in the world around you.

Staying Calm in the Midst of the Storm

Most of us take things personally by believing that situations or others are intentionally provoking us. We have difficulties with peers, financial misfortunes, and get other frustrations that seem to drag us out of our zones of comfort. When it happens to us, it pushes us into a negative state of being we do not want to be in.

So, even when you are the eye of the storm, there will always be something, or someone, to annoy, bother, infuriate, upset, or burden you. The important thing here is that you have to stay calm in the midst of the storm. As you do, you feel a peace and harmony that exceeds all understanding.

Real peace is when you do not allow misfortune, trouble, struggle, conflict, and challenges all around you on the outside to get on the inside. So, do not let the storm overcome you. Rather, be the eye of the storm, which is a place of serenity and tranquility that you can go to in periods of stress.

Accessing the Eye of the Storm

You have to consider that you are conscious and aware. You are not the elements of what your perception or consciousness creates because those are your experiences. It is not you. Therefore, when it is time to cut off from the turmoil around you, you have to access the eye of the storm.

However, you need to be the eye of the storm at any moment, even when you have to take immediate action based on what is going on. Let me remind you that being the eye of the storm does not mean you are detached and disengaged but rather the exact opposite.

You and only you can access the focus, drive, intuition, gut instinct, inner guidance and lucidity to do exactly what needs to be done. But then, are there systems or things that you can learn and use that would prevent bad things from happening or could have the likelihood of minimizing catastrophes?

Connecting with the Eye of the Storm

You should remember that you are always in control of your internal world, no matter how helpless you feel in the face of the world around you. How? Well, simply because of your imagination. It is a system and place you can continuously go to form the reality you want and improve your experience.

Your imagination transforms your mental experience in real-time. It also sends out your intentions which are like planting seeds for what you desire to manifest in your physical experience. The more you connect with the eye of the storm by remaining calm and focus on the life you want to be living; the more doors will open for you in your physical reality. As you probably know, it is called the Law of Attraction.

At the current moment, your physical reality might feel like you are confined in a dungeon. However, there is an endless number of places you could imagine going. So, begin to access this high power!

Tips to Be the Eye of the Storm

You should look ahead and look at all the things that could go wrong, and then try to figure out what you can do to prevent those things from happening or to minimize the damage. There are obvious things you can do, while there are some which are not so obvious.

• When feeling stressed, imagine a place of peace such as the summit of a mountain, a boat on the ocean, a beach on an island, or an audience who is enjoying your performance.
• Get control of your self-talk because thoughts become things.
• Overwrite negative thoughts with positive ones if you want to be the eye of the storm.
• Use positive statements and repeat them over and over. Saying them out loud is more powerful.
• Practice box breathing. Inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4, exhale for 4 and then hold again for 4. Do this a few times to cool down.
• In your house, designate a place for quiet moments you can go to if you need it anytime. Around your home, select a spot to put things that are consistently lost and be scrupulous about it. So that when you look for your car keys or your passport, it will always be there when you look for them.
• Take pictures of your travel documents, credit card, passport, and more and email it to yourself so that if things are lost or stolen, you can facilitate their replacement.

So now, realize that you can override anything you want. You do not have to argue about a matter that arises or let circumstances or anyone affect your emotions anymore. Remember that you can make a choice to debate, discuss, contest, get hurt, or be the eye of the storm by overlooking, forgiving, letting go, leaving, or changing what is occurring in your life. It is all up to you!

https://ezinearticles.com/?Be-The-Eye-Of-The-Storm&id=9796269

A Major Cause of Stress

Discover that stress is NOT being caused primarily by people or situations, but by your own thoughts and actions.

We tend to think of stress as something that occurs because of outside events, such as having financial problems, relationship problems, health problems, or from having too much to do. Certainly events such as these are challenging, but they are not the actual cause of stressful feelings.

Stress Is An Important Message

Stress is your inner guidance's way of letting you know that you are thinking thoughts or taking actions that are out of alignment with what is in your highest good, or that you are trying to control something that you cannot control - such as how people feel about you or the outcome of things. Stress may also be letting you know that something in your body is out of whack - you are on medications or substances that are affecting your brain and causing the stress, or you have eaten foods such as sugar, processed, or pesticide-laden food that is causing brain toxicity, leading to feeling stressed.

When you are operating from your wounded self and trying to control something over which you have no control - such as others' feelings and the outcome of things - your stress is letting you know that you are hitting your head against a wall and not accepting reality. The opposite of stress - inner peace - is the result of accepting what is, learning to take loving care of ourselves in the face of what is, and practicing gratitude for the big and small blessings on this incredible journey of life - even in the face of all the challenges. And as many of us have experienced, gratitude offers us a stress-free way to manifest what we want, and works far better than trying to control others and outcomes,

Beyond Stress

Wallace Wattles, the author of the 110-year old book, "The Science of Getting Rich," states that "Man [and woman] may come into full harmony with the Formless Substance [this is what he calls God] by entertaining a lively and sincere gratitude for the blessings it bestows upon him [and her]. Gratitude unifies the mind of man [and woman] with the intelligence of Substance, so that man's [and woman's] thoughts are received by the Formless Intelligence through a deep and continuous feeling of gratitude." He states that when you frequently contemplate the mental image of what you want, "coupled with unwavering faith and devout gratitude," you set in motion the creative forces of manifestation.

Your stress is letting you know that you are doing the opposite of this - you are using your thoughts to create what you don't want and to try to control others and outcomes rather than to co-create with Spirit.

The major challenge here is about being in faith that all of this is true. You might know that this is true from the perspective of your loving adult, but your wounded self likely doesn't believe it. It is very easy for the wounded self to come in with thoughts of bad things happening, which moves you out of faith and gratitude and into stress. It is very easy for the wounded self to focus on how to try to have control over others and outcomes, which will always create stress. It is very easy for the wounded self to turn to junk food and other substances that bring the body out of balance and cause stress. It is even easy for the wounded self to try to use Inner Work and gratitude as a way of controlling God! It is so important, when opening to learning and moving into Gratitude, to make sure that your intent is to be loving to yourself and others, WITH NO OTHER AGENDA, rather than using Inner Work as just another way to attempt to control others and outcomes.

Stress Is Your Friend

Stress is your friend in that it is instantly letting you know that you are off track in your thinking and/or behavior. Instead of ignoring your stress or pacifying it with various addictions, which will ultimately cause more stress, why not do Inner Work and attend to it with a deep desire to learn about how you are off track?

When you really think about it, it is strange that our society tries so hard to get rid of stress with medications and addictions, instead of learning what it is trying to tell us. When you really get that stress is your guidance's way of telling you that you are "off the mark," (in the original Aramaic Bible, sin is translated as off the mark) in your thinking and/or behavior, you will attend to what you are doing to create it, rather than ignore it or try to get rid of it.

https://ezinearticles.com/?A-Major-Cause-of-Stress&id=9982042

Open The Floodgates of Abundance (By Jeanna Gabellini)

If you want the floodgates of abundance to open wide for you, here's a surefire way to do it.

It's truly not an intuitive strategy. Many of my coaching clients resist it. I also must confess that I sometimes resist it too. It's a hard one to swallow when your life or business gets intense.

Are you ready for the number-one secret to solving every challenge you have?

Chill out.

That's it. It's the best strategy on the planet to rake in the abundance.

Anytime you feel the push that you must work harder, take more action, or figure out how to solve a crisis, simply take a step away from your current focus.

I spent almost two decades working on my business whenever I felt inspired.

Now my time is very limited since I had two children. Gasp!

Early on I set my intention that my life would be more balanced as a result of having babies and that I would make more money. I've had to remind myself of that declaration many times as I practiced letting go of all my "to-dos."

I am thrilled to tell you that my business is currently the best it's ever been. The added bonus is that I started reading again as soon as I had baby #1. I used to only read business and self-improvement books. Now I read for fun. The more time I spend chilling, water-skiing, and out of my office, the more inspiration I have.

More opportunities and clients come my way, too!

I noticed this same phenomenon in the real estate industry. I was coaching a whole office of realtors, and they joked about how every time they went on vacation, their business thrived. They thought it was unique to their industry. Nope. It's a Universal Law.

When you release any resistance or stress in your life, you allow in the abundance that is your birthright.

This law is the reason we benefit from sleep, walks outside, meditation, movies, good music, and great conversations. These actions pull us away from any worries and toward more joy. Even an afternoon of hooky or play will allow you to get back to your life with a fresh perspective. Change your perspective and change your life.

Is there a topic in your life where you need to let go of all thought? A mini vacation from that issue will allow you to reconnect with your inner guidance. Once you've allowed yourself to come back to your power source, you'll easily and naturally find the next step to take.

As they say, "Let go and let God."

http://ezinearticles.com/?Open-The-Floodgates-of-Abundance&id=9801510

Do You Really Care What Other People Think Of You? (By Kathryn Corbin)

"What will the neighbors think?" That seemed to be the main concern of my parents when I was growing up.

As much as I rebelled against it at the time, and as much as that concern always felt like bondage to me, and as much as I really did see it as an example of how NOT to live, I still internalized the message that it matters VERY MUCH what other people think of me.

What I realize now is that being so concerned with what the neighbors and other people thought of us back then meant we were denying our own inner guidance and our own right to choose the best way to live and especially our own right to choose what feels good to us.

"What will the neighbors think" morphed into what will anyone and everyone - except me - think about me!!! Believing that I was constantly being judged and that it was extremely important not to be judged negatively, my connection with my True Self became tenuous at best.

While I remained in the prison of what other people think of me, my external guidance was playing at full volume and my inner guidance was often set on mute.

"It's just about being you and being cool with that." - Carmine Gallo

Subtly and stealthily, I learned to let the way other people felt about me determine how I felt about myself. Which lead to trying to get other people - especially significant others - to like me so I could like myself.

Can you imagine? Trying to get other people to like and approve of me in order to like and approve of myself!

Well, it made sense at the time. Actually, it never made sense. It just became the game I was playing. The impossible game of trying to feel good about myself while believing it matters desperately what other people think of me!

When I first heard Abraham's guidance to not give a rip what other people think, I was thrilled at the idea but I had no clue where to begin.

I had always liked the aphorism "happiness is an inside job" and decided to figure out what that actually means. I finally - halleluiah! - started looking inside to feel good. There were shaky starts and setbacks, but my True Self continued to call me to feel good from the inside out.

I set intentions, recited affirmations and practiced new beliefs. Most importantly, I made friends with my Inner Being and decided if my Inner Being and I feel good about me, that's enough for me.

Now, with rare exceptions, I celebrate each day that:

I Feel Good from the Inside Out and

I No Longer Need Other People or Circumstances

To Make Me Feel Good!

And that, my friend, is #freedom!

http://ezinearticles.com/?Do-You-Really-Care-What-Other-People-Think-Of-You?&id=9508864

Success Often Isn't Convenient

I want you to take a hard look at the story you're telling yourself that is keeping you from advancing to receiving abundance in all areas of your life, and truly living your ideal lifestyle.

Here are some examples.

Ya but...

I don't have the time.

I don't have the money.

I don't know how.

My inner guidance told me it isn't the right time.

And so on...

These stories seem real, but they are exactly that. Stories. Reasons to keep yourself stuck and right where you are. And ohhhh... isn't the subconscious mind sneaky... it will give you all of the evidence to support these reasons. ALL of them. You will buy into it and then stay exactly where you are.

Think of a time when you've really wanted something. That was really important to you. You find a way to make it happen right? No matter what.

Think of all of the inspiring success stories about people who came from "nothing" and made something great of themselves.

They really didn't have the money. Even worse, they had no one believing in them most of the time.

BUT they still did it. They went for it. They persevered at all odds, especially with those "odds" being against them.

It's because they made the DECISION to go for it first.

DECISION always, always comes first. The universe cannot provide you with the way unless you decide to do it first. THEN and only THEN does everything start lining up. You have to keep going for it though, and continuing to say yes to the opportunities that present themselves.

This is where success isn't always convenient. What you're asked to next, or shown to do more like it, may not always be comfortable. It's usually not.

It's because your PARADIGM is being asked to shift. You are going to be asked to get out of your comfort zone. To step into a new way of doing things. Into a NEW belief system. That is freakin' tough. I'm not going to lie. This is where the real work lies. Letting go of old thoughts and beliefs no longer serving you. Letting go of the stories keeping you stuck, which you think are safe, but really aren't. Growing isn't safe. Stepping out isn't comfortable. Saying yes when you have no idea "how" in the world you're going to make something happen doesn't feel safe. It means showing-up differently in your life and relationships. This is hard. All of those things seem safe, but the reality is they keep us playing small.

It's like saying you want to live in a new house by the ocean. But not then being willing to do what you need to do to get there. Up leveling like that involves a new way of thinking. You can't bring your old thoughts into a new equation and expect to get a different solution. It just doesn't work that way.

So I ask you today, what is the new and empowered belief you must adopt in order to create the life you're really wanting? What is the new story you want to tell yourself?

Here are some ideas.

Success comes easy.

The universe has my back and is always showing me the next steps.

I am worthy of love and success.

My success is certain.

Make the decision to go for it, and start reprogramming your subconscious mind by repeating this new belief over, and over again. You will START to see through the lens of THIS new belief instead, and just watch your life shift like magic! All of a sudden you will stop being a victim to your circumstances, and stat creating the circumstances you need to support your goals and dreams.

You can do it. It's time to write a new story. I believe in you.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Success-Often-Isnt-Convenient&id=9592848

Manifesting 101: What You Need To Do First!

Is there any area of your life in which you feel like you're in a rut? You find yourself thinking, doing, and saying the same things over and over and - predictably - you're getting the same old, frustrating, unsatisfying results? You've probably heard it said that the definition of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results. Yet, it's surprising how often we do this.

So, perhaps, you decide you really do want something different. You decide you are going to manifest better health, a better relationship, or more money to do the things you really want to do in your life. Do you have a clear picture of what it is that you want?

What is it exactly? How will you know when you have that? What will it feel like? Specifically, how will your life be different?

Now, those may seem like obvious questions, but in reality they're the ones that get many of "hung up." Do you really know what you want?

Unfortunately, it's all too common to be so used to doing what we think we "should do" or "have to do" that we lose touch with what really lights our fire. When we constantly push ourselves and force ourselves to do what we don't want to do, we dull our inner senses. We lose our ability to feel the passion that pulls us forward and the signals that guide us there.

Do you ever wonder what would really make you happy?

Have you given up even asking that question?

Have you settled into settling?

Have you rationalized that with spiritual pleasantries like, "Just be happy with what is," while, inside, you just feel bored with what is or afraid to venture something new?

What if you are equipped with an inner guidance system that is constantly sending you signals that would break you out of your ruts? What if your body is guiding you with sensations which tell you exactly what you want and how to get it? What if it was just a matter of paying attention and learning to discern what those signals are telling you?

In my experience, it can be as simple as pausing my busy-ness and following my interest.

What if you took a conscious break from your "shoulds" and "have tos?" What if you gave yourself a period of time every day in which you did exactly and only what you were really interested in doing? It doesn't matter how long you do that, just that you make it a top priority and do it every day.

For example, what if you've been dreaming of being on a beach and went to TripAdvisor.com and looked at possible destinations? Or, stopped at that yoga studio on your way home from work and picked up a class schedule? Or, browsed through the bookstore for a magazine or book that catches your eye? Or attended a meet-up focused around a subject you're passionate about?

What might happen if you took time to indulge and participate in something that interests you-no matter how pointless it seems? What if you followed wherever it led you? What new experiences might open up? What new paths might appear?

If you did that, when you got to the end of each day you could look back on whatever happened and say, "Today, I took a step to manifesting something new!"

When you participate in anything that interests you and follow where it leads, for even a few minutes every day, you grow new possibilities. You take the first step to manifesting a new reality.

Enjoy your practice!

Are you ready to be free from negative thoughts, feelings, and beliefs that keep you stuck repeated the same old results?

http://ezinearticles.com/?Manifesting-101:-What-You-Need-To-Do-First!&id=9372897

You Can't Have A Mindful Life Unless You Have These 3 Things

Mindfulness meditation is getting a lot of well-deserved attention in 2015. The search for the term has doubled in less than two years and corporations are increasingly adding mindfulness practices into their wellness programs. This is really good news. If there’s one thing our stressed out, exhausted, emotionally wrought culture needs today, it’s the practice of mindfulness.

Mindfulness gives us the courage to live our truth, and the inner guidance to deal with day-to-day stresses. Life goes on, but with the help of mindfulness, there's more joy, clarity, creativity and energy.

The trouble is that this ancient Eastern practice can be confusing and even frustrating. It’s challenging to be mindful when our thoughts grab us and take us on roller coaster rides with them. The trick is to be the witness who watches these thoughts come and go. Imagine you're sitting on the porch of your home, watching the rush-hour traffic pass by. You don’t want to jump into each of these cars and drive away, right? How do you remain on the porch and watch these cars pass by without wanting to hop into one (or all of them?).

Before we begin a meditation practice, it’s important to build a solid foundation that supports the process of going inward. If this foundation is weak, then going within and experiencing that blissful silence is not only challenging but also impossible. Let’s take a look at these three aspects and what we can do to balance them in our lives.

1. The Right Food

There are two aspects to this that need addressing.

First, let’s talk about the kind of foods that steer us away from our center.

Foods that sedate, numb or intoxicate are going to come in the way. While alcohol comes right up on top, there are other foods that add to the acidity of the body, creating hurdles to our experience of higher consciousness. These include coffee, refined sugars, processed, chemical-laden and heavy foods. If you eat something and don’t feel vibrant and alive a few hours after eating it, then it’s probably the wrong food for you. The best way to find out is to keep a food journal and track what you eat and how you feel.

The second thing about food is the state of our mind when eating, which is equally as important, if not more important than the food itself. The same food, eaten joyously, lovingly and with gratitude will have a different impact on the body-mind than eating with sadness, anxiety or stress. Sharing a meal with loved ones will nourish us differently from a meal eaten in the car on the way to work.

2. The Right Movement

Lack of physical activity has completely disconnected us from our bodies and the intuition it brings with it. This disconnect is costing us dearly, from physical ailments to psychological issues. Add to that the tremendous amount of food (not necessarily nutrient dense) that we have access to 24/7, and we're an unhealthy bunch of people.

For mindfulness to work, movement is very significant, because it creates opportunities for centering. Energy from the brain starts moving downward, and with that, balance and harmony within our being are possible. If you’re a runner, you know that in those moments when your body is in motion, there's no room for thought, contemplation or worry. Movement lets the experience of "no-mind" occur and is therefore a very powerful building block for mindfulness.

Movement can range from simple household activities (doing the dishes, carrying children around, taking the stairs) to more active styles like running and working out at the gym. Dance, yoga, Pilates, tai chi, and chi gong are all forms of movement that support the energy to move from the head to the navel, also called our second brain.

I often us the analogy of dating: you have to try out a bunch of different movement types to find "the one." Take a few classes or try some DVDs at home to see which style resonates with you and make you feel vibrant and energetic.

3. The Right Sleep

With disorganized food and exercise patterns, is it any surprise that we’re a nation (and planet) riddled with sleep disorders?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Persons experiencing sleep insufficiency are also more likely to suffer from chronic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, depression, and obesity, as well as from cancer, increased mortality, and reduced quality of life and productivity.”

There’s a reason for that. The liver carries out some serious work in our sleep, especially between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. This work involves detoxification and filtering out toxins from the body. If the liver isn’t able to complete its job, the toxins return to the blood stream and circulate, causing imbalances and in turn a host of disorders. This capacity to regain and recoup during the night, what has been lost in the day, is central to our physical and psychological health.

While there are guidelines for how much sleep is required, every body is different and other factors like age play a role as well. Eastern wisdom recommends waking up with the sun because with the rising sun the body’s temperature begins to rise as well, but I recommend experimentation and coming to your own conclusions.

By balancing these areas in our lives we have a good shot at enjoying the bliss of mindfulness. How’s your foundation looking?

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-12718/you-cant-have-a-mindful-life-unless-you-have-these-3-things.html

3 Lies You Need To Stop Telling Yourself About The Future

The desire to receive guidance for a better future has been around since recorded history. Oracles — individuals gifted with the ability to receive insight and direction from beyond — have always existed and often been revered in society. More and more today, however, people are beginning to tap into the intuitive abilities that we all have to tap into spiritual truths.

In working with people to hone their intuitive abilities and trust their own guidance, I typically find that the reason people feel doubt about their lives has less to do with their intuitive skills and more with myths about what spiritual guidance is and how it can guide us to some ideal future.

The following three myths are stumbling blocks that keep us believing falsehoods about how to make decisions for the future, thereby keeping us from believing in our intuitive gifts. Identify them. Understand them — and their shortcomings — and you'll be better able to tap into own your skills and ambitions for the life you want to create.

1. "If you're following your inner guidance, everything will flow easily."

Some teachers will tell you that it's only when you're "in the flow" that you're in alignment with your true purpose and direction. Yet some of the most clear and direct guidance I have received has included, "Move your family to Indonesia" and "Leave your relationship." While these moves indeed created some of the most profound and poignant moments in my life, they were also just as filled with incredible difficulty and emotional upheaval. Things were certainly not "flowing," but I definitely think I was following my internal compass. Following your inner guidance doesn't always mean smooth sailing.

Imagine for a moment you went to a movie and in the first 30 minutes the good guy defeated the bad guys, won over his love interest, made a ton of money and rode off into the sunset. You'd be bored. A story is only interesting because of what someone over comes and works through — so too is life.

2. "Do what you love and money will follow."

This could be considered as a corollary to the first myth but it deserves its own space because most people want their guidance to include a guarantee of financial success or at least safety of some kind. If financial (or other) security is missing from the equation, people tend to assume they aren't following legitimate guidance.

While the "do what you love and money will follow" mantra sells a lot of books, it's a myth, plain and simple. If you look at most people who have created anything amazing in their lives, their mantra looks more like, "Decide to do what you love but work three part time jobs in the interim, take out a second mortgage on your house, ask friends and family to help out financially …. and then the real money will follow." If you wait around for money to come, you may never follow your dreams.

3. "Inner guidance will show you all the steps you need to take."

I often hear, "I have a strong feeling I need to do X but I don't know how everything will come together to make it all work out."

When you program a destination into the GPS in your car what do you get back? The next move you need to make. We'd all like our internal needs and desires to lay out a neat, GPS-approved plan to show us exactly what we need to do in sequence to get from where we are to where we want to be.

But the truth is we only know what we need to know in each moment we live. This is precisely what allows our lives to unfold instead of following a preordained script. I tend to think of this as less a trick of the Universe and more as a gift in disguise.

If we truly knew what our journey was getting us into many of us might run away from the quest and thereby miss the prize. Likewise just because you might not know where the ladder leads doesn't mean you can't start climbing.

We are all capable of receiving guidance and assistance in our lives, both from within and from others. Just like a muscle, the more you listen, trust and act on your own guidance, the stronger it gets — and the stronger you will get.

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-16647/3-lies-you-need-to-stop-telling-yourself-about-the-future.html