Awakening to Life's True Purpose

By Steve Wickham

Distraction is the concept in contention with life's true purpose; the biggest, now global, trick of human history. This is as visible a threat as it is insidious. It is literally strangling our quality of life and we are helpless against it, unless we are awakened to our true life purpose.
Life, ironically, is a distraction from our purpose. Almost everything in today's world conspires against this purpose. Not that we should reject our world and live as secluded hermits. But there is a force in this life that blocks our awareness of, and our access to, our purpose.
SO, WHAT'S OUR PURPOSE?
Our purpose is to honour God by living our lives - not kidnapped by agendas-of-distraction but with eyes wide awake to the God-honest realities that are somehow subsumed by these agendas-of-distraction.
Allow me to put it in plain illustrative terms.
One example of distraction is entertainment; what is not clear about entertainment, however, is what distractive element takes us toward our purpose (for some entertainment is purposefully distractive) versus what takes us away. Most entertainment takes us away. For instance, we choose entertainment when we should be doing other things. Or, we choose the wrong sort of entertainment. Moreover, much entertainment takes our minds away from more relevant God-honest realities. We are all implicated.
Dismissing or rejecting entertainment out of hand, if we follow the chosen example, is not the answer; nor is merely giving in to the entertainment revolution sweeping the globe continuously.
There has to be a more compelling and effectual answer.
Frustration has no part whatsoever in us living our purpose, unless it's part of the learning process. There's little to be learned via the frustration of chopping and changing in indecision.
THE AGENCY AND PROCESS OF AWAKENING
Let us be perfectly clear that the awakening in view is no New Age concept. Such an awakening - the necessity of humanity to partake - is as old as creation itself. Adam and Eve, of course, failed their awakening test, as have and do we.
Awakening is nothing about failure, however.
It is, like salvation, an initial choice as well as an ongoing choice-the finances of the mind invested in focusing on what is really relevant, as well as learning what agendas-of-distraction we are to dispatch to the archives of previous currencies.
Awakening is truly about choosing to live the abundant life.
THE SCIENCE OF THE ABUNDANT LIFE
One of the most poignant things Jesus ever said about the nature of worldly life, and the countering nature of salvation, was:

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
~John 10:10 (NRSV).

Agendas-of-distraction are an example of the thief, among many examples. The myriad examples of distraction sway us away from true abundance - the experience of God breaking through our consciousness and awakening us to reality.
This is no subjective reality, but the reality.
It must surely be the greatest gift; to enjoy knowledge of reality. That is, to be at peace with it. This is where the abundant life begins. Indeed, this, not apart from the Saviour, is its source.
The abundant life journeys with simplicity. Having dealt with the distractions - those that would otherwise seal our fate as stolen - the simplicity of the abundant life opens up new doorways and new streams of thinking.
The abundant life is our true life purpose. It is no destination, so we must endear ourselves to it, rejecting distractions, and follow it passionately all our lives.
Perhaps the following quote of Isaac Newton's encapsulates the whole article:

I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.

Ours is to look past the distractive pebbles and shells on the seashore and further yonder to the ocean of truth. There is where life is truly at; nowhere else.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6535850

The Nature Of Stress

By Williams Tehoy

What is the nature of stress? It can be positive or it can be negative, being part of daily life for all people, but it can also be a burden that is exhausting and filled with anxiety. Regardless of where it comes from, good or bad, stress can influence both the person experiencing it and the environment around them. This stress overview aims to take the mystery out of stress, sharing important information with you that can help you control stress. It is all a matter of learning and coping with stress.
What are the causes of stress?
Stress can come from both internal and external factors, including the environment around you, whether it is your job, a relationship, challenges, life situations, your home, varied difficulties or even expectations that you might have of yourself. However, modern life is riddled with heavy pressures to achieve, even look our best, which means that it is no big surprise that we view stress in a very bad light, even if biologically stress may be less negative than we realize. As a result, stress usually is a creation of the human mind in regards to things that may not yet have happened or may never happen, yet our brains anticipate based on mere assumptions.
Internal stresses can influence how we respond to our lives, the challenges that face us and if our health may be harmed as a result of that stress. Yes, these types of stresses are the most detrimental because they affect the most important parts of our lives, our sleep and rest time, not to mention our nutritional needs. Somehow our bodies and minds have evolved to adapt to the stresses of the environment around us, as well as the pressures that we and others put on ourselves. We are amongst the most evolved on the planet. Sometimes even people who cope well with stress need assistance in getting their stresses under control again.
Are there any sections of our body that are bothered the most by stress? Your reproductive system, pancreas, intestines, stomach, heart, muscles, joints, nerves and brain can suffer or sustain damage with too much stress. We do have neo-cortex which has the challenge, yet the ability and talent to adapt accordingly to our changing environments, no matter how dangerous or risky they might be. Unfortunately, the mind and body can only take so much, making stress the most risky and dangerous threats to human survival, far out doing even wars, though its final effects may take years to be realized.
Coping with stress strategies
If stress is managing your mind and body, playing havoc and making you feel ill, now is the time that you must control stress, getting assistance to reduce stress and anxiety before your mind and body finally break down permanently. As such, this stress overview can help you deal with your stress because stress is something that human beings are better adept at dealing with, making stress and the worries we subject ourselves to more psychological and thus we do not have to succumb to the illnesses or nutritional impacts if we learn proper coping mechanisms.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6472958

Questions for Self-Improvement

By A McIntyre

You need to constantly question yourself if you want to improve. Questions guide your inner dialogue. They act as a guide for you to create inner and outer wealth living a life with emotional and financial freedom.
When we were still toddlers, we learn by asking questions. Sadly, when we became adults, some of us lost out ability to ask. Some deem asking as an activity only for childish individuals. Others simply neglect it because they are already satisfied with their current state. Ideally, we must never lose this ability. As long as we live, we need to ask questions. Some of these questions might have satisfying answers in the future; some might have not. BUT at least, you didn't maintain an idle mind.
We have come up with 3 questions for self-improvement. If you haven't asked yourself these questions yet, then start asking them now.
1.) Do I enjoy the things that I do?
You have to reflect on your current state. You have to make sure that you are enjoying the things that you have right now - work, relationships, and responsibilities. If there is one area in your life that seems boring, painful or monotonous to you, focus on that part. Reflect on the reason why you don't enjoy doing the things in that certain area. Strive to get out of these areas as soon as possible unless you want to live a miserable life.
2.) What is my real passion in life?
You enjoy doing what you do if it is your passion. For example, work seems so easy if you love the responsibilities that are included in it. When you enjoy what you do, you don't call it work anymore; you call it passion. People who choose not to pursue their passion live a life of misery most of the time.
3.) Do I always plan for my future?
It is not a sin to live in the present but it is a sin not to look forward to the future. Always think 5 to 10 years ahead. Think of things that you would like to achieve if you are allowed to live even for another decade. Create a list of what you would like to do and fulfill them one by one.
You can't find inspiration if you are just contented with your current state. You need to stand up and push yourself to your limit. The power of questions is inexhaustible. Famous success coach Anthony Robbins once said "quality questions create a quality life." You must put these questions in front of you in order to drive you to your goals, be rooted in your capabilities, and change your overall perception of yourself.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6496588

How To Stop Procrastinating: Finding The Payoff

By Carmen Gilfillan

Mastering procrastination is about undertaking with determination, motivation and excellence those tasks for which there is no obvious psychological reward. This article looks at how to stop procrastinating by finding the payoff in any task you undertake.
Examples of activities where there may seem to be no clear or immediate payoff may include:
Working on a very small activity which is part of a larger task. If you're building a house for example painting the beams of the house is a small activity which may seem quite unrewarding but which is an important part of the project
Undertaking a small task in of itself that just needs to be done: writing that letter, making that phone call, sending that email. The effect of carrying out these 'little', seemingly unimportant tasks may be significant even though the payoff, once the task has been done on time, may seem small. The effect, however, of not carrying out these small tasks can be enormous.
Often, when we are proactive there may seem little reward for what we do: the world does not seem to change that much once the task or activity is complete; we may not always feel a huge sense of relief once the task is done; there may be no fanfares at the end of the task.
However, when we think through the consequences of not writing that letter, making that call or sending that email we realise just how important these 'small' tasks are.
Strategies The following are strategies that show you how to stop procrastinating and raise the importance in your mind of the task(s) you're doing:
1. Set a time limit that turns the activity into a race against time exercise. This raises your motivation levels, adds a reward as well as adding an interesting element to carrying out the task. You also over time improve your ability to work to deadlines.
2. Follow the task up with something you enjoy or even love doing in order that your mind is not focused solely on the activity.
3. If you are engaged in an undertaking you do not enjoy give yourself a reward for completing it. One reward may be to take the rest of the day off. In this case you simply do not schedule anything in for the rest of the day and allow yourself to do whatever you want to do.
4. Think through the consequences of not carrying out the task and use this as a reverse incentive to push on with it. Neuro linguistic programming (NLP) specialists say our motivation is either towards something pleasurable or away from pain. This is an example of when you are avoiding the pain of not doing something you know you should.
5. For larger tasks map out exactly what you need to do. If you are building a house create a plan of action you can refer to that goes alongside your architectural plans. This gives you a psychological framework and lets you see where in your plan your beams painting activity comes. It also gives you a sense of progress because you know where you are in your plan at any one time.
6. If there is an activity you really cannot face enlist the help of those around you (your support network) to either assist or motivate you.
7. Start each day with one main activity you do not enjoy. Do it before you tackle anything else. Set your time limit. Complete the task, give yourself a reward for doing so, then continue your day as normal. The payoff is either the reward or the satisfaction you feel that a job has been done well, quickly and is out of the way.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6500369

Everything Is OK Right Now

By Kevin Schoeninger 

Do you find yourself in a state of low-grade anxiety much of the time? Is there a sense of pressure that unrelentingly weighs down upon you? Maybe your mind is constantly busy with thoughts about what you "have to" or "should" do.
There are many reasons you could find to support feeling stressed or anxious-the state of the world economy, the prevalence of natural disasters, the news headlines, the rhetoric of our politicians, or predictions of what lies ahead for us in 2012. Perhaps your feelings come from the unremitting presence of your debts and bills or from your never-ending TO DO List. Maybe they come from constant concerns for your loved ones.
What is it that keeps you from being happy with life right now?
No matter what your answer to that question is, there is one simple action that can turn the tide and shift your experience right here and now-being fully present. When you do that, you realize that everything is O.K.
What does that mean and how does that work?
First, being present contrasts with being worried about what may happen in the future or beating yourself up about what happened in the past. When you are present, you temporarily let go of those two time zones to more fully experience "what is" inside you and right in front of you.
Being present begins within. You become aware of sensations and feelings right now in your body. If you are used to focusing on tasks or events outside you, feeling inside your body may seem a bit odd. You may not know what that would be like-to feel inside your body. However, awakening your inner senses is a profound way to be present and a key to accessing true happiness right here and now.
You can begin very simply by becoming aware of your breathing. Take a few slow deep breaths and feel the sensation of breathing in your abdomen, your chest, your nose, and your throat. Take a moment to really enjoy the feeling of breathing fully and deeply.
Now see if you can feel the space inside your skin. You could begin by feeling the space inside your hands and fingers. Then, allow this inner sensation to spread out into your arms, torso, and head. Allow inner sensation to expand into your abdomen, hips, legs, and feet.
You may find that you can feel some areas inside your body and not others. That's O.K. Center your attention in whatever sensation you can feel. Can you notice that your thoughts become quiet as you focus on inner sensation? Or, maybe, you have thoughts about if you're doing this right or if it is a waste of your time. It's O.K. Those thoughts are normal at the start.
Learning to be present is about becoming aware of present felt sensations and differentiating these from the interpretations that you layer on top of those raw sensations. This can be a profound realization-to understand that how you interpret things is not necessarily the way things are.
As you become more aware of inner sensations, you can expand your awareness to include outer sensations that are present in your environment. Notice the fine details of your surroundings. Notice what you might normally pass by in your rush to get things done. Allow the colors, sounds, smells, and feeling of the space around you to become brighter and more vibrant. Again, notice how your mind quiets down as you do this. Also, notice any commentary that goes on inside your head.
As you notice the details inside your skin and in your surroundings, you may begin to appreciate the beauty in "what is." I suggest you actively look for that. Look for the good around you. Then, take it one step farther and move into gratitude.
What are you grateful for right now? I suggest making a list of everything you can find to be grateful for. Taking a few moments to write these things down can really shift your perception. The more you find to be grateful for, the happier you'll be.
As you actively focus into present sensations, appreciate them, and feel grateful for them, your mind continues to become quieter and quieter. Freed from your thoughts about the future and the past, you discover that everything is actually O.K. As your worries and fears recede, you realize that right now you are fine. You can handle what is happening in this moment and you may even find that things are much better than you thought.

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Why Tai Chi Chuan Is The Ultimate Art of Manifesting

By Loretta M Wollering

Ancient China is filled with tales of Taoist adepts who had miraculous powers. While some of these old stories seem far-fetched to the modern mind, and some may indeed be generously embellished, there lie kernels of truth within the pulp. One such popular Taoist practice that has made headway into our modern world is the art of tai chi chuan (note that this is also spelled "taijiquan" in pinyin romanization).
Millions worldwide use this sophisticated, yet simple practice as a holistic health activity, and some use it as a martial arts discipline. No matter for which one you use it, it helps to cultivate the human's least-developed sense of our "five senses" - the sense of "touch." Actually, not the sense of touch as that limited to reflex-level pressure, pain or temperature; instead, it develops our kinesthetic and proprioceptive capacities. "Kinesthetic" refers to keen awareness of the position and movement of your body, and "proprioceptive" refers to the awareness of the stimuli in your body and your environment, and what you do with that sensory information. Engaging in a meditiative, dedicated and consistent practice of tai chi helps take these rather weak "touch" senses and vitalizes them into powerhouse skills. These invigorated skills are thought to be the bridge to heightened powers of intuition and manifestation.
While this may sound a little "far out," please allow me to illustrate why this is actually quite rational. Let's consider the following fact. Our mind determines how we feel and how we move our body. That right there is a perfect example of using your mind to manifest something in the physical world. The interface to the physical world is your body. Before you physically manifest getting up out of your chair to walk over to the door, you must first intend it in our mind. Your mind then creates a game plan - in a split second - of how you will play this out. Which leg, which arm you will move, which direction you will go... all of this was laid out in a mental blueprint (the non-physical aspect of yourself) before it even got to your muscles (the physical aspect of yourself). The event manifests in your mind instantly, but it takes at least several seconds or minutes before your body can fully play out the entire event in the physical world. There is a lag time between the mental blueprint and the physical manifestation of that blueprint.
"Manifestation" is a hot topic in today's self-development literature. Not too long ago, it was relegated to the backseat of science - belonging more to the realm of metaphysics and new age studies. However, as our knowledge of the mind/body connection matures, we can see how something as the example above is simply a mundane example of the art of manifestation.
At a higher level, experts mention that how you focus your mind and how strongly and efficiently you do so will lead you to carry out actions that increase your opportunities for your manifested intent to occur in the physical world. You'll also attract very supportive energies to you. Traditional tai chi offers special training techniques that laser-focus your mind with synchronous movements of your body. That's why throughout the centuries, those who practice these tai chi techniques have exhibited amazing skill and longevity, along with a higher quality of life. They were engaging in a turbo-charges practice of manifestation.
This is the little secret that so few tai chi practitioners don't use, however. They don't realize that they can take a lot of tai chi's mind and energy techniques and apply them for manifesting a situation in their life to occur. The way to do this is to focus on developing the "yi," or "spirit intent," as it is roughly translated from Chinese.
The problem is that most people get overly attached to memorizing tai chi's movements and physical techniques instead of putting in the effort to suffuse those movements with strong meditative "yi." When folks understand and use yi, they start manifesting the energetic aspects of tai chi deeper. These energetic aspects include: stronger "qi" life-fore (vitality), wisdom, heightened artistic or problem-solving skills, inner peace, and spiritual wisdom. Those energies become heightened beyond that of the average person.
So if "manifesting" works for average folks, just imagine what can be accomplished if you use tai chi to develop your energy. The biggest problem is getting yourself to stay committed to the disciplined meditation and "qi" training of traditional tai chi. If you can make that the priority over just memorizing some physical skills and movements, you will then possess turbo-charged manifesting skills. Then, follow any book or program about manifesting or the law of attraction, and meticulously apply your newfound abilities there. Put in a little consistent effort, and fasten your seatbelt - you're in for the ride of your life!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6483797

Let Your Strength Work for You

By Girijesh Pathak 

Each student has some strength and weakness. It is a common advise available to everyone that he should try to overcome his weaknesses. This shifts the focus towards weaknesses and in certain situations doesn't allow the strength to work.
It depends on the kind of examinations a student is taking. There are examinations in which lakhs of students score over 90% marks. Do such tests test the strengths of the students or weaknesses? It is basically a pressure situation in which a student has to built a capability of answering questions in a pre-decided way. If he does, he scores irrespective of whether he knows the concept or not. He gets high marks but how does it help him? High marks can be helpful only in getting admission in next course where admission is based on marks. Leave aside the marks and you find that these students in order to get high marks have build such capabilities that may not be of much help in getting success in subsequent phases of life. Mere a surface level knowledge on all the topics in the structured way provided by the system is good enough to score 90%. This habit of living with surface level knowledge and not learning to go deeper becomes a bottleneck in getting overall success at later stage.
Majority of the examinations in India that open the door of great career are low scoring. Whether it is IIT-JEE or CAT or Civil services examination, in all such examinations it is seen that about 50% aggregate marks is good enough to get a good rank. Such tests try to test the depth of understanding of various concepts in the student. It penetrates to such level that it is not easy to have such in-depth understanding in all the topics in the syllabus. It is not expected too. But, if a person follows the advise of working hard on the weaknesses, he gets into a trap. He is not able to go sufficiently deep on his strong topics to be able to score in such examinations. Also, he is not able to do much from his weak areas. It is seen that lakhs of students regularly scoring over 90% in their school and college examinations fail to score even 20-25% in examinations like IIT-JEE. That too after coaching from highly reputed places.
Hence, it is very important to work on own strengths and allow them to work for you. Shifting the focus from weaknesses to strengths works wonders. And it makes the preparation enjoying too.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6339297

Take Action: Dealing With Emotional Triggers

By April E O'Leary

One of the most challenging steps anyone can take in the process of goal achievement, parenting, financial success, career advancement, weight loss, emotional health or any such personal endeavor is realizing that triggers are not external annoyances as much as they are internal indicators. Once you accept that it is your responsibility to deal with your own triggers, and the best (and only) way to do this is by looking inside of you, rather than trying to control your outside circumstances or the people around you, you are ready to take action!
MAKE A LIST OF ALL YOUR TRIGGERS
The second step to dealing with triggers is to take action and make a complete list of all the triggers you notice that surface in your life on a regular basis. How do you know if something is a trigger? The litmus test to identify a trigger is if you are responding emotionally. Maybe at 5:00 everyday you are impatient to the point of yelling at your children? Maybe when the topic of money comes up with your spouse you get defensive? Maybe when you talk politics with your father you get angry? Maybe there are certain types of people you can't tolerate? Maybe certain foods cause an emotional response? Don't overlook it. Write it down.
It is best to compile as long and complete a list as possible, so you can really SEE on paper what you are dealing with. Think of situations, people and locations. Think of topics of conversation. Try to notice patterns. The idea is that the list of triggers opens up your awareness. Maybe your children fighting causes you to jump in and play referee, so you write it down. Then the next day you notice this same thing happening again. Ah! There it is! You noticed it again. Now you are making progress!
It is not better if it is a short list, or worse if it is a long list. The fact that you are taking ownership of your reactivity and trying to identify personal patterns is in short, amazing! For now it is enough to just make the list. Don't worry about what to do next. That will come. For now, keep listing. Keep a paper taped inside of your kitchen cabinet and add to it over time. After you react, think about it. Try to identify what it was that triggered you and write it down. Congratulate yourself for having the courage to look more deeply and start slowing down when you sense a trigger is coming on. You'll be amazed how slowing down will diffuse a lot of those trigger moments.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6448847

Master Your Life - Finding Your Car Keys Considered

By Lance Winslow

Not too long ago, I was talking to an individual who happened to run an online business which specialized in helping others market their products and services, and we got onto the topic of dealing with achievement and success. Perhaps you've seen all the self-help books and success seminars that are being offered - some of them on DVD, and you can buy them in e-books, or you can go to a seminar that happens to be in your area. Indeed, it's been years since I've done anything like that, and back in the
day, all we had were sets of tapes to listen to.
Nevertheless as we got to talking, my acquaintance said to me; "You're so lucky to have found the key to mastering your life. Many look." Indeed, I found this to be an interesting comment, but to me success and achievement are one with will, determination, hard work, and perseverance. Those are not necessarily things you have to go and look for, everyone has them, but no one wants to put in the effort to make it happen. Therefore, I told my acquaintance that success can be achieved if you want it bad enough.
I also made another comment which I think might be of value to you and that is this; I think too many people get confused on how everyone else wants them to live their life, rather than realizing they own their own life, and they should live their life their way. I think it also makes you a better person because, once someone believes in freedom and liberty, they instinctively want that for everyone else too.
My acquaintance agreed with what I had to say, and put it in slightly other words; "And they also put up with a lot less crap from other people! I think that following your heart makes you a better person because you're living according to your own purpose, using your inborn talents, and growing in the direction of your best, highest self."
If you intend to master your own life, then you have to find your car keys, put them in the ignition, plan out your route, and start driving. It is the driven individual, the one who has chosen to get it done, and knows where they're going who will eventually succeed.
Yes there will be speed bumps, traffic lights, and traffic also along the way. But if you know where your destination is, and you persevere to get there, as long as you have enough gas in that car, you will finally reach that destination. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6284269