It can be very difficult to explore our spiritual nature and potential while we are getting home late from work, rushing to make dinner, and taking care of a family. But it is through this exploration that we find the way to notice the joy and peace of mind that is waiting for us. Words have power and energy! Soul Play explores the meaning and energy of 51 beautiful and uplifting words, and uses true life essays to demonstrate examples of how to utilize them to remember who we truly are--part of God--and how that truth can enrich our lives. This book is about how an average person--living life, making mistakes, and struggling on the human journey--can find a spiritual pathway to connect with the Source.

SOUL PLAY

CONNECTING WITH YOUR SOURCEBy Sharon Slockbower

Balboa Press

Copyright © 2011 Sharon Slockbower
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4525-3189-2

Contents

Introduction.......................ixAbundance..........................1Adventure..........................4Balance............................7Beauty.............................10Birth..............................13Clarity............................16Communication......................19Compassion.........................22Courage............................25Creativity.........................28Education..........................31Efficiency.........................34Enthusiasm.........................37Expectancy.........................40Faith..............................43Flexibility........................46Forgiveness........................49Freedom............................52Grace..............................55Gratitude..........................58Healing............................61Honesty............................64Humility...........................67Humor..............................70Inspiration........................73Integrity..........................76Joy................................79Light..............................82Love...............................85Loyalty............................88Obedience..........................91Oneness............................94Openness...........................97Patience...........................100Peace..............................103Playfulness........................106Power..............................109Purification.......................112Purpose............................115Release............................118Responsibility.....................121Simplicity.........................124Spontaneity........................127Strength...........................130Surrender..........................133Synthesis..........................136Tenderness.........................139Tolerance..........................142Trust..............................145Understanding......................148Willingness........................151

Chapter One

Abundance

Abundance is an overflow of blessings, already present in the universe, waiting for us to attract them toward us. All we need to do is ask, visualize, believe, and focus our attention on appreciating and acknowledging the blessings as they come into our lives.

By asking, we set powers in the universe into motion. Our Source does not interfere with our free will, but waits for us to request that which we want. We must believe that our desires are realistic—that they can become part of our lives. To do this, we must imagine that we already have what we seek. We must visualize the blessing and the results the blessing will bring into our reality. We must do this daily, and not lose faith that we will receive what we want ... when the time is right. We must have patience and clarity of intent.

If that for which we ask is not in keeping with our souls' missions here, then the possibility remains that we will not receive. We should always preface our requests with the understanding that we only desire to attract those things that truly benefit our journey. There is a saying, "Be careful of what you wish for or you just may get it." There is wisdom in this. There are times, in retrospect, that we realize that many wonderful coincidences began to happen to draw us toward our destiny, only because our prayers went "unanswered."

When we believe there is a lack—that there are not enough blessings to go around—we become greedy and possessive. This false paradigm of lack creates fear and repels the very blessings we seek. Abundance is an overflow—there is no lack in the universe. What is available to you is available to all. Like love, we must open a conduit to give as well as to receive. This keeps the flow of blessings from stagnating.

On a personal note:

There was a night last autumn when my daughter Laura and I were walking the mile from my mother's house to the beach. Night had fallen, and the air was crisp and clear. The stars seemed close enough to pull down from the sky. As we reached the deserted boardwalk, I could hear the rhythmic pounding of the surf and taste the salt in the air. We lay back on the sand for a comfortable view of the stars—not caring that it would take an hour to get it out of our hair—and just absorbed the moment.

I felt such a deep, contented peace, so grateful for the beauty of the place, and the company of my daughter (now nineteen years old and human again). I decided, in that moment, that I wanted my life to be an example of abundance. I wanted to appreciate every nuance of my journey here and to surround myself with beauty and light.

There is opportunity to appreciate abundance in every situation. I find that even at my worst moments, if I take the time to look, I will discover something to be grateful for. When I do this, my focus changes, and the universe responds ... sending more of those things I pay attention to.

Even in the most difficult of times, we can appreciate something. I learned this important lesson from one of my patients. He was a young man in his early forties, and he came to us through hospice, a service provided for those who are dying. He had been an alcoholic and his liver was not functioning, causing poisons to build up in his body. His skin was as yellow and waxy as banana peels. I learned from his best friend that he'd been an avid surfer and loved the sun and the sea. I looked at the shell of a man in the bed, shivering even with several blankets over him. It was summer, and I thought of the many months he'd been in the hospital, deprived of the abundance of nature, missing the rejuvenation of life returning with the spring. I made the decision to get him outside on the first sunny day.

I brought him a CD of soothing music with the sound of ocean waves in the background. We wheeled him out on a lounge chair and placed him in the warmth of the sun. I will never forget the look in his eyes. Surrounded by jaundiced yellow were the bluest eyes imaginable holding a spark of life, where moments before, they were dull with the anticipation of death. He turned his face toward the sun, and although he could no longer speak, I could see the appreciation in his countenance. Even in a moment such as this, it is possible to receive abundance.

We are not promised an easy life, but we can have an abundant one if we focus our attention on the positive and refuse to dwell on the negative. As we attract those things we focus our attention upon, it only makes sense to spend more time thinking about things that bring us joy.

Soul play:

* Spend some time thinking about which blessings you want to bring into your life. Do you believe this blessing is realistic? Can you visualize yourself living with this blessing?

* Don't forget to ask! Often we wish we could have something in our lives, but we forget to ask our Source for assistance. State your intentions in a clear and concise manner.

* Devote ten or fifteen minutes each day (preferably after you rise) sitting quietly and imagining the blessings unfolding in your life.

* Determine that your life will be a living example of abundance—spiritual, emotional, and material—let your cup run over, and allow the overflow to nourish others. Become a conduit for abundance—receiving and giving—and the blessings will flow.

* When times...