Tag Archives: Michael Beckwith

Gratitude Experiment: Day 51

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I remember hearing a few years ago a sermon that Rev. Michael Beckwith gave at Agape where he said, “You are to be grateful for everything in your life…not just the good stuff…but EVERYTHING.”   When I first heard that I thought, he must be speaking metaphorically or something. Because, how could we be grateful for illness, relationship trouble, failure, lack, etc.?   No, he really meant everything. 

Well, we know that sometimes the most amazing blessings come to us out of the most challenging experiences.  At the very least, we’ve learned a lesson. We’ll never make that mistake again, right?  We can also learn more about forgiveness.  We can learn to forgive ourselves, our family and our friends.  What a blessing that is. Forgiveness frees us.

But there is a deeper level on which we can take this message.  Beckwith went on to say that, “when we are grateful for everything, we are literally lifting our vibration…lifting it out of the realm of dense, physical form…out of the realm of ‘effect’ and into the the vibration of ’cause’.”  

Okay, if we accept that everything is energy, and all things vibrate at a certain vibration…and that like vibration attracts that which is like itself, then this begins to make sense.  In other words, if I am focusing on how bad my current experience is, this causes me to feel pretty bad about myself, other people, and life in general.  I am now vibrating at a level that will…if I don’t change it…attract more challenging experiences to me.

But, how do I change it?   I can begin to change my vibration by shifting my perception.   I can shift my perception to a place where I understand that these challenging circumstances and experiences are, in fact, “effects” in my life.  It’s not who I am. Who I am is far greater than the experiences and circumstances of my life.  I am an expression of Life itself.  When I focus on this…I can be thankful for my life. When I am thankful for my life, I begin to feel better about myself and about life in general. 

When I feel better about these my life, my mind becomes clearer. I can begin to see solutions to certain challenges. I begin to get ideas about how I can change things.  I can also feel more compassion for myself and others.  I can love myself more.  All of this lifts my vibration into the realm of “cause” from which my experience flows.  And the experiences that flow from this vibration are blessed indeed.

What do you think?  Do you think it’s possible to be grateful for everything?  Can you honestly be grateful for everything? Share your thoughts by commenting here.

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Today I am grateful for the experiences in my life that have led me to this point…I am open and available to Spirit to move through me.

Gratitude Experiment: Day 45

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One of greatest benefits of practicing proactive gratitude is that you begin to realize that you live in a friendly universe that has created a magnificent world for you to enjoy.  You start to feel…deep down in your bones…that there is a force (call it Creative Intelligence, the Infinite, God, or whatever) that loves you so much that It has given you…and continues to give you…more good than you can possibly imagine. 

This is the place we want to get to in our practice of proactive gratitude.  We want to “know it in our bones.”   The Universe responds to our self-contemplation and intention.  When you feel that your life is blessed, and you are loved, then naturally you begin to feel worthy.  “Wow, I must be a pretty special person, I must be so beloved to have all these wonderful blessings given to me every day.  Hey, I must actually be worth it!” This is how we “sneak up on our worthiness” as Michael Beckwith indicates. 

This is a much more effective way to begin to accept our true worth then repeating positive affirmations to yourself all day…much more.  Positive affirmations are great, don’t get me wrong.  They have a place in our spiritual practice. But practicing proactive gratitude actually shifts the energy around our beliefs in our worthiness.

And it is that feeling of worthiness that allows the Universe to pour more blessings into your life. 

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I am grateful for the lessons in my life which are appearing much more gently and peacefully than ever before.

I am grateful for a warm mug of Earl Grey tea…with milk and honey!

I am grateful for the new cherry blossoms beginning to appear in the tree at school (it’s trusting in the potential of Spring.)

I am grateful for my wonderful bank and all of the happy, helpful people that work there…truly dedicated to helping their customers.

I am grateful for my Rav4.  It’s comfortable and starts every time I get in and turn it on. Amazing.

Gratitude Experiment: Day 38

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New thought leader (and my teacher,) Reverend Michael Bernard Beckwith said in the movie and book, The Secret,  “This is a feeling Universe.  So if you have just an intellectual understanding of something, it doesn’t necessarily have the power to manifest. You have to FEEL it” (with a large emphasis on the word feel!)  Many new thought teachers speak about the importance of feeling good, and feeling that your good is here now. 

And, many students wonder how to capture that “feeling.”  More importantly, once captured, how to maintain the “feeling joyous place.”   Well, here’s how…

Practice proactive gratitude.  It’s really what gratitude is all about.  When you are on the lookout for things to be grateful for, and you revel in that blessings, and then you document these blessings by writing it in your journal, or posting it here (which increases the power as other people read and rejoice with you) then you’ve got the key to maintaining a “feeling tone” of love, joy and peace.  It is this “feeling tone” that is the frequency that attracts more and more blessings into our lives and yes, manifests your desires!

Practicing proactive gratitude is such a simple way to stay in the feeling space that has the power to manifest what you have asked for…your heart’s desires.

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I am grateful for a day to sleep in and not rush and just enjoy the morning with my family.

I am grateful for my new smart phone and all the cool stuff I can do with it.

I am grateful for the power of team work and the process of Appreciative Inquiry.

I am grateful for the smell of fresh herbs and how special they make food taste.