Creating a Better Life

Five Original Articles by… Me!

Karen from Live the Power hit me up to take part in a group writing project, passed to her by Rick Cockrum of Shards of Consciousness, and to him by Liz Strauss of Successful Blog.

The Challenge: Share Five Posts from Your Past Writing

The Question: Would you change what you’ve said?

To answer the question first: no - I wouldn’t change the basic ideas behind what I’ve written. I may have written them better (like Rick said), or been more consistent, but I don’t think there’s anything that I would say “My view on that has completely changed.” I can only think of one post that I kinda sorta regret making, but I really don’t like deleting them once they are published, so it’s stayed, with updates.

When it comes to the posts that I’d like to share, a comment that was left by Jean of Transforming Stress to Personal Power got me thinking. Jean asked:

Would you be willing to tell me what changes you are making in your life and what tools you are using?

So a little review is probably in order… her question dovetails nicely with this particular meme.

Here are my five posts:

The Secret (May 1, 2006)

This was my first post after watching the original version of The Secret - the version with Esther Hicks. I still haven’t seen the extended edition. This is where I really started to get interested in something I’d known about for a long time, but wasn’t using to my advantage - the Law of Attraction.

Jesus and Earl (May 24, 2006)

In this post, I really started to get the whole “Do Unto Others” thing. It’s not tit-for-tat: when we do for others, we already are doing for ourselves. I should probably also fix the dead links in that article, since it references an old blog of mine that’s no longer around.

Antidepressants (December 15, 2006)

This one was a post where wrote about my decision to go back on an antidepressant medication. I remember being pretty torn up about this, but I now know that it was probably one of the best decisions I could have made. I know there’s a lot of controversy around this kind of medication, but I’m not really interested in that. I use what works for me.

The Spiritual Atheist (February 27, 2007)

A write up of my thoughts on god, religion, and spirituality.

It’s Between You and God (June 21, 2007)

More of Mother Teresa’s words than my own, but here I did a little exploring about just who I have to answer to in my own life.

Join In

For the time being, I’ve stopped tagging specific bloggers with memes and group writing projects - if you’d like to participate, just have at it, and share five past posts from your own blog.

[full disclosure: a couple of amazon affiliate links]

Personal Development Audio and Video Added This Week

It was a great week for new audio and video finds:

I’m really excited about this one, and have already listened to it at least 10 times: the original audio of Earl Nightingale’s The Strangest Secret, with commentary by Mark Victor Hansen. “The Strangest Secret” is a classic in the field of personal development, and it shows that The Secret movie and book weren’t the first to reveal “the secret” via modern communication channels… Earl Nightingale was!

Because of a thoughtful discussion on my Keep the Power Flowing article, I was introduced to Powerfull Living with Lorraine Cohen, a weekly internet radio show that presents interviews with experts on success, the Law of Attraction, productivity, and more! Be sure to also visit Lorraine’s Bring It On Weblog for more insights for Powerfull (with 2 L’s) Living.

And last (but far far far from least), via Keeping the Secret (who else), a full version of Bob Proctor’s The Science of Getting Rich Seminar. Well worth the 1 hour and 47 minutes to watch and take notes on.

What The Teachings of Abraham-Hicks Can Do For You

My second recommended resource is the teachings of Abraham-Hicks, especially the free Introduction to Abraham audios.

Get ready, skeptics…

Esther Hicks channels a group of multidimensional beings called Abraham, and shares the result of that channeling with people through the Abraham-Hicks website, books, tapes and CDs, as well as through Art of Allowing Workshops.

If you haven’t already checked them out, some of you may think “What did he just write? Channeling? Um, OK… I’ll be leaving now…”

That’s where I was a couple of years ago.

My Introduction to Their Teachings

I was first made aware of Abraham when I was attending the DuPage Church of Religious Science. One of the members asked me if I had ever heard of Abraham-Hicks; I told them I hadn’t.

First they told me that, in a nutshell, all of their teachings centered around one idea:

Find something to be happy about.

Sounds good to me! Tell me more…

Then they told me about the channeling.

“Um, OK… I’ll be leaving now…”

And that was that for a bit.

Exposed Again

The next time I remember being exposed to Abraham’s teachings wasn’t through Abraham.

It was through my wife, after she’d left me and moved to California.

I was talking to her on the phone, and she told me that at first, she hated it out here… she hated the people, she hated the weather (we are both rain lovers), she hated… well, she just hated it.

She said she solved her negativity problem by starting to find things to be happy about.

I didn’t make the connection at first… didn’t even remember talking to that church member.

I just though: “Hey, that’s an interesting idea… I should start trying that.”

It Keeps Poking In

The teachings kept showing up in my life here and there. Bob Doyle includes a chapter on Abraham-Hicks in his Wealth Beyond Reason program. In the acknowledgments of Spiritual Marketing, Joe Vitale thanks “Jerry and Esther Hicks for their insights into the process of creating whatever you want.”

Then I saw the original version of The Secret.

I’m one of those who was hooked on the movie from the first time I saw it. It’s gotten a lot of negative press, but the basic message really got to me: If you change yourself, your world changes.

And Esther was the reason I was hooked. I was bummed when she was removed from the extended version of the movie. I haven’t seen that version, so I can’t comment on it. I still have my original version DVD, and refer back to it occasionally.

The Emotional Scale

When I picked up a copy of “Ask and It Is Given”, I was fascinated by the concept of The Emotional Scale. There are three basic things it’s done for me:

1. It gave me permission to be angry and blaming. If I could look at anger and blame as a step up from depression, while they aren’t ideal, at least they are movement toward joy. Without giving myself that permission, I would stay stuck in depression for weeks.
2. It made me realize that a quantum leap from depression to joy wasn’t necessary, or usually even possible. Before this, I was always looking for that one big thing that would finally make me OK. I understand now that joy is a process, not an event.
3. It improved my honesty about my emotions, which allowed me to work through them. Being depressed and angry, but plastering a smile on my face, did nothing for myself or others. Nothing will change if we aren’t honest about where we are.

But She Still Channels!

As I said earlier, the channeling has been the biggest point of resistance.

I think Abraham’s own words can explain:

“Jerry and Esther never used the word channeling,” Abraham reflects. “It is used when applied to them, but they have never used it, because it means many things of which they are not, you see.”

“You could leave the channeling out of it. Call it inspiration; that’s all it is. You don’t call the basketball player a channeler, but he is; he’s an extension of Source Energy. You don’t call the surgeon a channeler, but he is. You don’t call the musician, the magnificent master musician, you don’t call him a channeler, but he is. He’s channeling the broader essence of who he is into the specifics of what he is about.” [from About Abraham, emphasis mine]

I actually just found that quote while I was researching this article. It helped to put things in perspective.

Relying on the Kindness of Strangers

Jerry, Esther, and Abraham all say the same thing: you may not need more than their introductory material.

And this is no little promotional teaser. Jerry and Esther get letters from people who say they have never attended a single workshop; they have never bought a single product—and yet they say their lives have been completely transformed through the words of Abraham—the words and wisdom contained on this 70-minute CD. [from The Teachings of Abraham for Newcomers]

Of course, I always want to go deeper. But I’ve also learned to be wiser than I’ve been in the past when it comes to my financial situation, and the tape and CD subscriptions just didn’t fit into my budget.

But I asked… and it was given.

I ran across an Abundance Game being run by My Secret Spiritual Dance - free Abraham tapes for website referrals. I threw my hat in the ring, and won that first week. Pretty cool!

Then Vickie of Contemplate This (still my favorite blog on Abraham-Hicks) contacted me and offered to let me borrow a few of the CDs she owns. We decided that she could be my AbeFlicks (as in Netflix) - she’d send me a CD, I’d listen and send it back, then she’d send me another.

I didn’t even know these people 3 months ago.

But Isn’t This Just Another Cult?

No. There is no organization to join. If you want to buy their materials, buy them. If you want to just listen to their free stuff, that’s cool to. There are no meetings (there are seminars), no secret society (at least that I’m aware of!). With the low key marketing and freedom provided, Abraham-Hicks gives me exactly what I value in any teaching: I take what I need, and leave the rest.

Conclusions

It’s interesting how I feel the need to say something negative about the teachings… but I really can’t think of anything that has come out of Esther’s mouth that I can say “Wow, that’s a load…” The channeling aspect is the only thing I still get stuck on sometimes, but I keep reminding myself that the message is more important than the messenger.

If you are interested in more information, here are the links (again!) to help you get started:

The Teachings of Abraham
Abraham’s Teachings In Brief
Audio Introduction to Abraham

And here are some people who are not officially endorsed by Abraham-Hicks, but have some great information on them:

Contemplate This
The Abraham-Hicks Appreciators Page
The Abe Forum

I’d love to hear what your own thoughts. Feel free to leave your feedback in the comments, or shoot me an email via my contact page.

—

Next up in the series… Vipassana Meditation.

A Morning of Contrast

I first learned Abraham-Hicks’ three step process from the original edition of the movie “The Secret”^aff.

It’s pretty simple:

1.) Ask (we do this - automatically)
2.) Answer (the universe does this - automatically)
3.) Receive (we do this - but it takes some work)

I’ve read that in the extended edition of the movie^aff, it was changed to “Ask, Believe, Receive.” I’ve never seen that version, so I can’t comment on it. I’m going to stick with the Abraham-Hicks version here.

One of the ways that Esther/Abraham begins her talks is by asking the audience if they are “appreciating the contrast of their experience.” By contrast, she’s talking about the difference between what is and what is wanted.

I’ve noticed that she doesn’t say accept it… she’s talking about “appreciating” it.

We appreciate it because it helps us to clarify what we want.

This morning was the first time that I was able to remember this idea the instant something happened that I didn’t want in my experience.

The laundry machines here at my apartment complex gave me clarity!

I don’t mind so much when they are out of order and I know this before I’ve put the detergent and money in… but when realize they are broken down afterwards… boy, that pisses me off!

So I know what I don’t want - I don’t want doing my laundry be a pain in the ass.

And what do I want? The opposite… I want an easy and effortless way of getting my laundry done.

It may seem like a simple example, but this could have been a real breakthrough for me. I actually allowed myself to admit - on the spot, immediately, and consciously - that I don’t want what I have.

I appreciated the contrast of my experience.

Steps 1 and 2 are done.

Now, it’s time to get focused on what I do want. It’s been asked and answered.

And by the simple practice of gratitude (appreciation), I’m moving myself into a place where I’m able to receive.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, whether it’s as “small” as your laundry or a “big” life changing event, just make sure that you are honest about your situation. Allow the feelings to be what they are, and use your thoughts to guide yourself to a better feeling place.

Don’t squelch those feelings in a form of fake gratitude - “Oh, it’s OK, there’s so much good in my life anyway, I can deal with it,” while the whole time you are stewing inside.

Allow those rockets of desire to fly! By resisting them, you’re only making yourself miserable… since they are going to go up anyway.

—

[This article was included in Live The Power Unlimited, Volume 3]

New Video and Ebooks Added in the Last Week

Personal Development Video Added

Bob Doyle posted a follow up video to his Secret Misconceptions page, answering the tough question “How do you explain when ‘bad’ things happen to people who should never have attracted those bad things?” It’s something that I’ve struggled to wrap my mind around myself, and this video helped.

Personal Development Ebooks Added

Aaron Potts has a short but power packed ebook available to his newsletter subscribers titled Self Improvement Task List. I’ve always loved what Aaron has produced, and this was no exception - I only wish I’d picked it up earlier!