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Gratitude: One of Life's Miracles
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Dr Wayne W. Dyer is one of the most widely read, internationally renowned authors today in the field of self-development.
He has written numerous best-selling books, including REAL MAGIC, YOUR ERRONEOUS ZONES, STAYING ON THE PATH, A PROMISE IS
A PROMISE, and EVERYDAY WISDOM; and has appeared on over 5,300 television and radio programs. He currently resides in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida. This essay is adapted from Wayne's book YOUR SACRED SELF published by HarperCollins.
Expressing gratitude for the miracles in your world is one of the best ways to make each moment of your life a
special one. As you progress on your path each day, have conversations with God in private and important moments. In
these conversations, rather than ask for special favors, affirm your willingness to use all of your inner strength to
create solutions. Ask for the inner wisdom to do so, and also give thanks to God for Her help.
Knowing that you are able to access divine guidance is more than a Sunday morning practice. It is a knowing that
comes from within that can never be doubted or shaken because these moments translate to how you lead your life.
As you become more aware of the divine presence flowing through you at all times, you will find that you take
more time to appreciate the beauty around you. As you contemplate a bird, a flower, a sunset, a mother and her nursing
infant, a school bus of children, or an aged man, open your heart to them. Allow the love to circulate from you to them
and feel it being returned. The more you practice receiving love from your surroundings, the more energized you will
become.
There is energy in everything and everyone. The way that you receive this invisible energy is through the actual
appreciation of the beauty and wonder of our universe.
With practice, you will be able to send out the love that you are receiving through the simple act of beauty
and appreciation. Try it!
Another positive result of being grateful for your world is your increased capacity to give. When you have gratitude
in your heart, you will find a new willingness to give to others so that they, too, might experience the joys that you
feel. You will find that you will want to contribute to the needs and wants of others without any expectation of
acknowledgment. But it is important to distinguish between giving and sacrificing. A sacrifice is generally for
something. The sacrifice is only made to achieve something. When you are sacrificing, you are giving in order to get,
and you are in an ego mode that programs you to believe that you are so important and special that you deserve
something for your giving. Ego wants you pumped up and believing that giving indicates your superiorities if your generosity
sets you apart from others who are not as munificent as you.
Or, if you give because you feel that you have to, you are not authentically motivated by your higher self. It is the ego at work here, too, telling you that you are so much better than the recipients and that they should be grateful to you.
However, giving as a means of fostering intolerance and love through your sacred self is different. As you cultivate a sincere sense of giving, stemming from your own gratitude for the gifts that have been given to you, you will experience the notion that giving is receiving and receiving is giving in all its splendor. The experience of mindfulness of others' needs is one of the most blissful experiences that we can know. Recall how exciting it was giving presents to parents, grandparents, and siblings. The gratitude you felt for their happiness equaled, and may have surpassed, your own excitement about receiving gifts. Why? Because you were receiving when you gave.
You see, it is your sacred self that enables you to feel gratitude and to give unconditionally. It is your ego that wants a reward. But that is only because that is what ego knows as long as you continue to reward it for keeping you separate from your loving presence. Give your ego the experience of knowing the love and tolerance of your higher self, and you will automatically begin functioning the same way in your outer life.
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