Blog

I've been working on spirituality for decades. I used to assume that I've been optimistic all those years. But lately I've noticed that there are times when I think pessimistic thoughts and say pessimistic words. This is important information. If I fool myself into thinking I'm always optimistic when there's a pessimistic streak in me, I'm doing myself a disservice. If I see myself as I am, I can do something about it. If I continue thinking that something negative is going to happen, I'm increasing the likelihood that it will. Fortunately, the same is true with optimistic thoughts.

Over the last several years there has been a lot of talk about the law of attraction—what you habitually believe, think, dwell on, and visualize, whether consciously or unconsciously, positive or negative, manifests or will eventually manifest in your life. Is the law of attraction true? I've had enough experience in my life of the power of thought to believe that it's true. Is it as easy to manifest the positive things you want and need as those who preach it say it is? It depends.

It often takes a lot of persistence, particularly for those whose unconscious beliefs about themselves and the world aren't aligned with what they are trying to achieve. For those who have been operating the law of attraction with success for a while, it's easier. They have largely overcome the limiting beliefs of "I can't...," "I don't deserve...," and so on. They have removed many of the inner obstacles, which are the hardest to overcome, and have learned how to be optimistic if they weren't naturally that way. And finally, they have faith in the principles because they have proved to themselves time and again that they work.

If you're new to manifesting what you want or need, start with something small so you can have a successful experience and begin to convince yourself that it works. The body is responsive to the mind, so working with some minor chronic problem or pain is a good way to gain experience with it.

When I was still a monk I went on a backpacking trip with a group of fellow monks. Within minutes of starting to hike up the mountain, I began having difficulty breathing because of mild chronic asthma. I didn't want to slow down our progress by stopping to get out my inhaler, so I repeated mentally my favorite healing affirmation and visualized healing energy flowing to my bronchial tubes and opening them up. Within ten minutes I started to breathe easily. Not only that, but I continued to breathe without difficulty throughout the camping trip and for weeks afterward.

Why did it work so fast? Probably because I had used that affirmation for years, had experienced its power, and believed it would work. So, testing strong thoughts on your body can be an excellent way to convince yourself of the power of your mind.

To attract what you want takes steady, persistent practice in working with the power of thought. However, it's best not to assume anything about the amount of time or work it's going to take to manifest something. If you think you can manifest a need quickly and you don't, then your faith might be shaken. If you think it's going to take a long time and a lot of work, then that can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy. Why throw a wet towel over the fire of your good intentions? Instead, keep visualizing the goal, take actions to support that goal, and persist in your efforts.

In the spring of 2009, my wife Eileen and I spent 40 uninterrupted days working on attracting greater abundance by studying quotations on prosperity, practicing affirmations, and journaling. Not long afterward, we started getting some extra income from both expected and unexpected sources, such as a bonus check from my employer and new clients for Eileen.

In 2010 I have focused on the thought "money is coming in" and on thanking God for what's coming to us. Even more income has come in this year, again from both expected and unexpected sources, and sometimes for surprising reasons. Has this increased my faith? Absolutely, especially when I receive money for totally unexpected and amazing reasons. Can I use this increased faith to keep at it and attract more abundance, greater health, and so on? Absolutely, and I intend to. —Jeff Braucher

As mentioned two blogs ago (see “Let the Insights Roll: Dwelling on Truth for Deeper Understanding” below), I’ve been studying a quotation from I Thessalonians (5:18, KJV) off and on: “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God...”

A few days after discussing these insights, I was dwelling on the words again and this time I wondered if there was anything significant to be gained from the words “give thanks.” What came to me immediately was the obvious connection between the words “give” and “gift.” Giving thanks is a gift we give to God.

I believe in both an impersonal aspect of God and a personal aspect—not residing in a limited body, but one that is sensitive to emotion and desire. After all, how could a totally impersonal God create personal human beings? And if the universe is God’s hobby or play, what might God want from it?

God has everything as the Creator of the physical universe and the subtle universes of energy and thought. But is there anything lacking in God’s vast consciousness? Paraphrasing a thought expressed by Yogananda, the one thing God lacks is our love and gratitude, unless we choose to offer it.

Obviously God has no desire to force us to offer that love and gratitude. We’ve been given free will. It is our choice. If God has any desire, it’s for us to cultivate that love and gratitude and to give it freely.

If we choose to do so, and if it is the will or desire of God that we do so, then certainly we become more attuned to God and draw closer to the Source of all life and all love. That brings on more love and more gratitude, freely felt and freely given. —Jeff Braucher

For most of my adult life I have been really good at suppressing the so-called negative feelings—especially anger. I became so proficient at getting rid of moodiness, for example, that I could repeat a particular affirmation just once and the unwanted mood would be blasted out of my consciousness. It may sound good, but what was the cost? What was the mood trying to tell me?

Moods are hard to define and I find it maddening if I try to figure out why I'm in a mood. The "figuring out" process is mental not emotional, so it’s like asking a question in English and getting an answer in a foreign language. Asking a "what" question is much better than asking why, which only gets you into your head and out of your feeling. "What is this about?" Taking an attitude of curiosity, try to feel what the answer is rather than figure it out with the logical mind. You might not get an answer right away; it might come when you least expect it. Just trust that the answer will come at the perfect time.

Perhaps our uncommunicated feelings result in moods. If we allowed ourselves to feel our feelings, express them in a constructive way—in writing or in a conversation with a close friend or to God in prayer—maybe we would be less subject to moods. At any rate, the feeling can then move, like a baby who's crying one second and laughing the next.

Some feelings are uncomfortable and there can be a strong tendency to use spiritual methods to bypass those feelings, just as I did when I used an affirmation to get rid of an unwanted mood. Apparently I got really good at bypassing, because I could be angry and not even acknowledge the feeling. About ten years ago a friend asked me to think of a time when I got angry. I remembered a time in high school and related it to him. Then he said, "Most people would have related an incident that occurred within the last few days."

Feelings can provide greater self-awareness. They are far from being unspiritual. They can lead to an understanding of the interplay of facts, sensations, thoughts, judgments, and our beliefs about the world and ourselves, and how all these lead to feelings. We can't change some facts, but we can change the way we view those facts and the judgments we have toward them. Shakespeare wrote: "There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so" (Hamlet, II:ii:259). And we can work toward changing the beliefs that hold us back and no longer serve us. These underlying beliefs are at the core of our automatic judgments and reactions to the occurrences (facts) of our lives.

When I used to suppress my anger, I would end up forming resentments. Since I wasn't that aware of the resentment either, it just kept growing and growing. I was surprised how strong it was when I finally became aware of it. When I feel my anger, express it in constructive ways, and allow it to pass through me, I find that resentments can't form. Fortunately I no longer have the temptation to use spiritual methods to suppress or bypass feelings that will move on if I allow them to. I'm not afraid I'll get stuck in the feelings, no matter how uncomfortable they may be.

For more information about spiritual bypassing, see Robert Augustus Masters' blog (http://www.robertmasters.com/Blog_HTML/BLOG_Feb08.html#spiritual). He has also written a book titled Spiritual Bypassing, which is coming out at the end of July.—Jeff Braucher

My brother David told me recently that when he's working on a new play, whether as an actor or a director, he reads it a minimum of eight times. By doing so, he can reach deeper levels of understanding and meaning. That's certainly the case with statements of truth as well. It's amazing how you can read something over and over and still get fresh insights from it. That's the nature of truth. Each thread of truth is connected to the entirety of Truth, so why wouldn't we keep getting new insights? And as we grow in understanding and spirituality, we are able to receive still more realizations.

Occasionally I study a quote from the Bible that reads, "In every thing give thanks, for this is the will of God" (I Thessalonians 5:18, KJV). When I first read it, I understood that "every thing" meant not only all the good things but also all the seemingly bad. If we're supposed to give thanks for the seemingly bad, maybe it's not really bad after all in the grand scheme of things. If we had a God's-eye view of our lives, we would see how everything meshes together perfectly for our highest good—even though while we're going through challenges it hardly seems that way. Nor does that lofty thought necessarily take away any emotional pain associated with the challenges.

On another occasion the words "for this is the will of God" struck me. It's not just a good idea to give thanks for everything, you could say it's a commandment. Why would it be God's will that we express gratitude for "every thing"? Because God knows what it will do for us. We will feel more love and joy and be more attuned to God. We will open a channel for more good (the enjoyable kind) to come to us.

Recently I was impressed again by "every thing." I realized I often belittle the small things and not think they're big enough to express thanks for. If it's strongly recommended that we give thanks for "every thing," that includes the small things. And are they really all that small if they can powerfully help us connect with God through gratitude?

Are the things I think are small really just a matter of my taking them for granted? When I take things for granted, I make them small, even though they might be great and wonderful things. When we're grateful for all things, we effectively prevent ourselves from taking them for granted. When we can appreciate all things, both large and seemingly small, good and seemingly bad, doesn't life become more sacred? —Jeff Braucher

The New Year is like going to hear a motivational speaker. You get inspired and excited about the possibility of change, of making a fresh start and improving your life in some way, and then two or three weeks later (if that long) the effect has worn off and you’ve lost most of that inspiration and excitement. Perhaps whatever resolutions you’ve made have fallen by the wayside.

How do we deal with this? We have to find a way to keep that inspiration fresh. We’re used to thinking of the New Year as a new beginning, but each day holds the potential of being a new beginning—each moment, really, but it’s easier to think in terms of a full day.

What do we do with each new day? Decide on one action we want to do that brings out the best in ourselves, resolve to do it, and then stick to it. We’re more likely to stick to a resolution over 24 hours than 365 days, and the encouragement we get from following through will help us keep the next day’s resolution. Then we’ll have a full year of spiritual effort, one day at a time.

There are spiritual practices in my life that I’ve been resisting. They take up too much time; I’d rather do other things; I’d rather relax and watch a movie. In effect what I’m saying is that I’d rather float downstream instead of swimming against the current toward greater love, awareness, Self-realization—and true happiness.

Anyone who has tried to form a new good habit knows that creating it is often hard work. You’re swimming upstream when you work at creating a good habit. You have to fight against the resistance of your lower self. And even after you’ve formed the habit, it doesn’t take much to break it. If you stop swimming upstream and working through that resistance, you immediately start floating downstream.

Anyone who has fought against a bad habit knows how difficult it is to break it—the current is especially strong—and how easy it was to form it in the first place. The good news is that the more we swim upstream, the stronger our spiritual muscles become and the more we can take on.

I intend to be more aware of that resistance this year so that I make daily resolutions, follow through on them, and make some real spiritual progress throughout the year.

(Incidentally, if you want to learn more about resistance, I highly recommend “The War of Art,” by Steven Pressfield. He covers the topic from a spiritual perspective and his insights have helped me be more aware of the subtle manifestations of resistance as well as its opposite, inspiration. Pressfield is also the author of “The Legend of Bagger Vance,” which is an allegory based on the Bhagavad Gita.) —Jeff Braucher