We are speaking of miracles in everyday life. We often think that miracles reside in the realm of mystics and saints, but changing our perceptions from closed to open minded constitutes a miracle. When painful or difficult things happen, we'll often ask, "Why me?" This places us into the victim mentality. When we change our perceptions and begin to see obstacles as opportunities, we open our minds to growing and learning about ourselves. A simple self-checklist to see where we stand in manifesting miracles includes the following questions: Do we believe that there is an invisible, all knowing, life force operating within that we can tap into? Do we come from a perspective that― seeing is believing or believing is seeing? Are we open minded to unlimited possibilities? Are we connected to our divine purpose in life? Do we practice letting go of self-defeating thoughts and patterns of behavior?
Here are some examples of people who believed in miracles and overcame obstacles― an academy award winning writer, director, and producer who flunked motion picture production and failed English at NYU- Woody Allen. Four young, nervous musicians who were turned down by their first recording executives because they didn't like their sound― The Beatles. In 1959 Universal Studios dismissed this star for having a chipped tooth, talking too slow and they criticized his Adam's Apple for sticking out too far―Clint Eastwood. In 1954 the manager of The Grand Ole Opry fired this legend after one performance saying, "You ain't going nowhere son; go back to driving a truck."―Elvis Presley. It took Thomas Edison 2000 tries to invent the light bulb. His response to a reporter who asked how he felt about failing so many times was, "I never failed once. I invented the light bulb in a 2000 step process."
In order to experience miracles in everyday life we must first open our hearts and create a miracle mind-set by thinking outside of the box. We must practice recognizing and canceling judgments of ourselves and others. What limitations do we argue for that may not be true? Let's listen to how often we say – "I can't help it; I've always been this way; it's just my nature, my personality, my culture, my body chemistry, etc.― and let's deny these thoughts. Let's affirm that we are without limits, that we are all miraculous children of God. We must honor and validate our intuition and not dismiss these "knowings" as coincidences. Let's challenge what we think is impossible with our health, our finances, or our relationships, and become open to creating possibilities from impossibilities.
The movies, "What the 'Bleep'" and "The Secret" relay the message that there is a universal intelligence and law of attraction operating that permeates all experiences. Do we feel connected to this energy or separate? Alan Cohen writes, "Our noblest purpose in life is to remember our spiritual nature in the face of suggestions and appearances that we are only material."
When we feel connected, we feel a sense of responsibility to the universe and we begin behaving like the God in all life matters. Let's practice knowing and trusting, rather than doubting and fearing, with the next stranger we meet.
When we practice believing in miracles and our ability to manifest them, our life becomes a tandem-bike journey. At first God was in the back helping us pedal. Then, we let go and gave God the lead. We felt scared. "Where are you taking me?" we'd ask. God laughed. Then, we started to trust the adventure, enjoy the view, and feel the cool breeze on our faces. When we were sure we couldn't go on, God would smile and say, "Just pedal." Please write to Dr. Islands at sandyislands@hawaii.rr.com.