Archive for the ‘Joy’ Category

Have you ever felt like, if you forgive someone, you are condoning what they did? Being able to forgive is one of the biggest challenges we face…and one of our biggest barriers to experiencing joy.

I choose how I feel or react, so my anger at the other person is my own feeling and interpretation. That doesn’t mean I need to forget what happened or allow myself to be harmed by that person in the same way again!

Try this for a week: Each day identify someone that you feel harmed you or someone you love. Ask yourself in what way you have been able to use that interaction as a teacher – what did you learn that has been helpful, or how did it push you in a new, exciting direction.

Remember the feeling of joy – that sense of such extreme delight that you are radiant? Joy is similar to happiness, but it doesn’t require achieving some result. It is simply a state of being in the moment, in the “flow.” Our natural state, as souls, is joyousness.

So why don’t we feel joyous all the time? One reason is that we get focused on our mistakes, or our attachments to specific outcomes, or criticism of others. That kind of focus shifts us out of our sense of oneness or “intunedness” with the universe, which is the core of joyousness.

Try this for a week: Each day pick one time when you feel perfectly in tune with the universe. What made that possible? How can you increase that sense of “intunedness”?

How can we stop feeling entitled to have whatever we want whenever we want it? We don’t seem content any longer with just sufficiency. We get caught up in “more is better.”

Think for a moment: How many changes of clothing do you have? How much extra bedding? I know I have much more than I actually need. I’m not suggesting that we pare back to the bare minimum. But I am suggesting that we become mindful of what we assume we need.

Try this for a week: Whenever you are about to say “need,” substitute “want” (unless it actually is a need). So instead of saying, “I need a new coat,” say “I want a new coat.” See how you feel.

Any other ideas for how we can shift from “more is better” to contentment?