Each one of us is totally linked with the Universe and with all of life. The Power is within us to expand the horizons of our consciousness.
Now I want you to stretch even further. If you have been on the pathway and doing work on yourself for some time, does that mean you have nothing else to do? Are you really going to sit on your laurels and rest? Or do you realize that this inner work is a lifetime occupation, and once you start, you really never stop? You can hit plateaus and take vacations, but basically it’s a lifetime’s worth of work. You may want to ask yourself what areas you still need to work on and what you need. Are you healthy? Are you happy? Are you prosperous? Are you creatively fulfilled? Do you feel safe? Do you feel secure?
Limitations Learned from the Past
There is an expression I like to use a lot—the totality of possibilities. I learned it from one of my early teachers in New York—Eric Pace. It always gave me such a taking-off place for letting my mind go beyond what I thought possible; far beyond the limited beliefs I grew up with when I was young.
Being a child, I didn’t understand that the passing criticisms of grown-ups and friends were just the result of a bad day or a small disappointment and really weren’t true. I accepted these thoughts and beliefs about myself willingly, and they became a part of my limitations. I may not have looked awkward, or dumb, or silly, but I sure felt it.
Most of us create the ideas we believe about life by the time we are five years old. We add a little bit more when we are teenagers, and maybe a tiny bit more when we’re older, but very little. If I were to ask most people why they believe such and such on any subject, and they trace it back, they would discover that they made a certain decision about the subject by the time they were this young age.
So, we live in the limitations of our five-year-old consciousness. It was something we accepted from our parents, and we still live under *…he limitations of our parents’ consciousness. Even the most wonderful parents in the world didn’t know everything and had their own limitations. We say what they said and do what they did: “You can’t do that,” or “That won’t work.” However, we don’t need limitations, as important as they may seem.
Some of our beliefs may be positive and nourishing. These thoughts served us well all of our lives, such as, “Look both ways before you cross the street,” or “Fresh fruits and vegetables are good for your body.” Other thoughts may be useful at a young age, but as we grow older, they are no longer appropriate. “Don’t trust strangers,” for instance, may be good advice for a small child. As adults, to perpetuate this belief only creates isolation and loneliness. The good news in all of this is that we can always make adjustments all the time.
The moment we say “I can’t,” or “It won’t work,” or “There’s not enough money,…or “What would the neighbors think?” we are limited. This last expression is a significant obstacle for us. “What will the neighbors, or my friends, or my co-workers, or whoever, think?” It’s a good excuse—now we don’t have to do it, because they wouldn’t do it, and they wouldn’t approve. As society changes, what the neighbors think changes, also, so to hold on to this assumption doesn’t make sense.
If someone says to you, “Nobody has ever done it this way before,” you can say, “So what?” There are hundreds of ways of doing something, so do the way that’s right for you. We tell ourselves other absurd messages such as, “I’m not strong enough,” or I’m not young enough,” or “I’m not old enough,” or I’m not tall enough, or “I’m not the right sex.”
How often have you used the last one? “Because I’m a woman, I can’t do this,” or “Because I’m a man, I can’t do that.” Your soul has no sexuality. I believe you agreed upon your sexuality before you were born to learn a spiritual lesson. To feel inferior because of sexuality is not only a poor excuse but also another way to relinquish your power.
Our limitations often stop us from expressing and experiencing the totality of possibilities. “I don’t have the right education.” How many of us have let that one stop us? We have to realize that education is something set up by groups of people who say, “You can’t do such and such unless you do it our way.” We can accept that as a limitation, or we can go beyond it. I accepted it for many, many years because I was a high school drop-out. I used to say, “Oh, I don’t have any education. I can’t think. I can’t get a good job. I can’t do anything well.”
Then one day I realized that the limitation was all in my mind and had nothing to do with reality. When I dropped my own limiting beliefs, and I allowed myself to move into the totality of possibilities, I discovered that I could think. I discovered that I was very bright, and I could communicate. I discovered all sorts of possibilities, which when viewed from the limitations of the past seemed impossible.
Limiting the Potential Within Us
Then, there are some of you who think you know it all. The trouble with knowing it all is that you don’t grow, and nothing new can come in. Do you accept that there is a Power and an Intelligence greater than you, or do you think that you are “it”—you in your physical body? If you think that you’re “it,” then you will be running scared because of your limited mind. If you realize that there is a Power in this Universe that is far greater and wiser, and you are a part of It, then you can move into the space where the totality of possibilities can operate.
How often do you allow yourself to dwell in the limitations of your present consciousness? Every time you say, “I can’t,” you are putting a stop sign in front of you. You shut down the door to your own inner wisdom, and you block the flow of energy that is your spiritual know-ingness. Are you willing to go beyond what you believe today? You woke up this morning with certain concepts and ideas. You have the ability to move beyond some of them to experience a far greater reality. It is called learning—because you are taking in something new. It may fit in with what is already there, or it may even be better.
Have you ever noticed that when you start rearranging your closet, you discard clothes and odds and ends that you no longer need. You pile up the possessions you are giving away on one side, and throw away the stuff that is no longer usable. Then you begin to put everything back, and in a totally different order. It’s easier to find what you’re looking for, and at the same time, you made room for new clothes. If you bought a new outfit and put it in the old closet, you may have had to jam it between other paraphernalia. If you clean out your closet and rearrange it, then when you bring in the new outfit, it has room for itself.
We need to do the same routine with our minds. We need to clean out the contents that no longer work so we have room for the new possibilities. Where God is, all things are possible, and God is in each one of us. If we continue with our preconceived ideas, then we are blocked. When someone is ill, do you say, “Oh, poor person, how he or she must be suffering!” Or, do you look at the person and see the absolute truth of being and affirm the health of the Divine Power that is within? Do you see the totality of possibilities and know that miracles can happen?
A man I once met told me very emphatically that it was absolutely impossible for a grown person to change. He was living in the desert and had all sorts of illnesses, and he wanted to sell his property. He didn’t want to change his thinking, so he was very rigid when it came time to negotiate with a buyer. It had to be done his way. It was apparent that he would have a very burdensome time trying to sell his property because his belief was that he could never change. All he had to do was open his consciousness to a new way of thinking.
Expanding Our Horizons
How do we keep ourselves from moving into this totality of possibilities? What else limits us? All our fears are limitations. If you are frightened and you say, “I can’t; it won’t work,” what will happen? Fearful experiences will come back. Judgments are limitations. None of us like to be judged, yet how often do we do it? We’re encouraging limitations by our judgments. Every time you find yourself judging or criticizing, no matter how small, remind yourself that what goes out comes back. You may want to stop limiting your possibilities and change your thinking to something wonderful.
There is a difference between being judgmental and having an opinion. Many of you are asked for your judgment of something. In actuality, you are really giving your opinion. An opinion is how you feel about something, such as, “I prefer not to do this. I prefer to wear red instead of blue.” To say someone else is wrong because she wears blue becomes a judgment. We need to discern between the two. Remember, criticism is always making yourself or someone else wrong. If someone asks your opinion, your preference, don’t let it become a judgment or criticism against something else.
Similarly, every time you indulge in guilt, you are setting a limitation. If you hurt someone, say you’re sorry, and don’t hurt the person anymore. Don’t walk around feeling guilty because it keeps you locked out from experiencing your good and has nothing to do with the reality of your true being.
When you are unwilling to forgive, you limit your growth. Forgiveness allows you to right a wrong in your spiritual self, to have understanding instead of resentment, to have compassion instead of hatred.
Look at your problems as opportunities for you to grow. When you have problems, do you see only the restrictions of your limited-mind thinking? Do you think, “Oh, poor me, why did it happen to me?” You don’t always have to know how situations are going to work out. You need to trust the Power and Presence within, which is far greater than you are. You need to affirm that all is well and everything is working out for your highest good. If you open yourself to the possibilities when you have problems, you can make changes; changes can happen in incredible ways, perhaps ways you could not even imagine.
We’ve all been in situations in our lives where we’ve said, “I don’t know how I’ll work this out.” It seemed like we were up against a brick wall, and yet we are all here now, and we’ve worked through whatever it was. Maybe we didn’t understand how it happened, yet it did happen. The more we can align ourselves with the cosmic energy, the One Intelligence, the Truth and Power within us, the quicker those wonderful possibilities can be realized.
Group Consciousness
It is essential that we leave our limited thinking and beliefs behind and awaken our consciousness to a more cosmic view of life. The development of higher consciousness on this planet is happening at a rate far faster than ever before. The other day I saw a graph that just fascinated me. It showed the growth of various systems in our history and how they have changed. Agricultural development was overshadowed by industrial growth, and then around 1950, the informational phase took over as communication and computer operation became widespread.
Alongside this informational period, there is also a consciousness-raising movement graph that is shooting far ahead of the informational phase at a unchallenged rate of advancement. Can you imagine what it means? I do a lot of traveling, and wherever I go, I see people who are studying and learning. I’ve been to Australia, Jerusalem, London, Paris, and Amsterdam, and everywhere I go I meet large groups of people who are searching for ways to expand and enlighten themselves. They are fascinated by how their minds work, and they are using their wisdom to take control of their lives and their experiences.
We are reaching new levels of spirituality. Although religious wars are still being fought, they are becoming less and less prevalent. We are beginning to connect with one another on higher levels of consciousness. The collapse of the Berlin wall and the birth of freedom in Europe are examples of our expanding consciousness, as freedom is our natural birthright. As the consciousness of each person awakens, group consciousness becomes influenced as well.
Every time you use your consciousness in a positive way, you are connecting with other people who are doing the same. Every time you use it in a negative way, you are also connecting to that. Every time you meditate, you are connecting with other people on the planet who are meditating. Every time you visualize good for yourself, you do it for others as well. Every time you visualize the healing of your body, you connect with others who are doing the same thing.
Our goals are to expand our thinking and to go beyond what was, to what might be. Our consciousness can create miracles in the world.
The totality of possibilities connects everything, including our Universe and beyond. What are you connecting with? Prejudice is a form of fear. If you’re prejudiced, you are connecting with other prejudiced people. If you open your consciousness and do the best you can to work on a level of unconditional love, then you connect with the curve on the graph that is climbing upwards. Do you want to be left behind? Or do you want to go up with the curve?
Often there is a crisis in the world. How many people send positive energy to the troubled area and do affirmations that everything works out as quickly as possible and that there is a solution for the highest good of all concerned? You need to use your consciousness in a way that will create harmony and plenty for all people. What sort of energy are you sending? Instead of condemning and complaining, you can connect with the Power on the spiritual level and affirm the most positive results imaginable.
How far are you willing to expand the horizons of your thinking? Are you willing to go beyond your neighbors’? If your neighbors are limited, make new friends. How far will you stretch? How willing are you to change I can’t to I can.
Every time you hear that something is incurable, know in your mind that it isn’t true. Know that there is a Power greater. “Incurable” to me means that the medical profession simply hasn’t yet figured out how to cure that particular illness. It doesn’t mean that it’s not possible. It means that we go within and find a cure. We can go beyond statistics. We are not numbers on a chart. Those are someone else’s projections, somebody’s limited-mind thinking. If we don’t give ourselves possibilities, we don’t give ourselves hope. Dr. Donald M. Pachuta at the National Aids Conference in Washington, D.C., said that “we have never had an epidemic—ever—that was 100 percent fatal.”
Somewhere on this planet, someone has been healed of every single disease that we have been able to create. If we just accept doom and gloom, we are stuck. We need to take a positive approach so we can find some answers. We need to begin to use the Power within us to heal ourselves.
Our Other Powers
It is said that we use only 10 percent of our brain—only 10 percent! What is the purpose of the other 90 percent? I think having psychic ability, telepathy, clairvoyance, or clairaudience are all normal and natural. It’s just that we don’t allow ourselves to experience these phenomena. We have all sorts of reasons why we don’t, or why we don’t believe we can. Little children are often very psychic. Unfortunately, parents immediately say, “Don’t say that,” or “That’s your imagination,” or “Don’t believe in that foolish nonsense.” The child inevitably turns off these abilities.
I think the mind is capable of remarkable things, and I know for certain that I could go from New York to Los Angeles without a plane if I only knew how to dematerialize and rematerialize there. I don’t know how yet, but I know it is possible.
I think that we are capable of accomplishing incredible achievements, but we haven’t the knowledge yet because we won’t use it for our good. We will probably hurt others with the knowledge. We have to get to a point where we really can live in unconditional love, so we can begin using the other 90 percent of our brains.
Fire Walking
How many have heard about fire walking? Whenever I ask this question at seminars, several hands always go up. We all know that it is totally impossible to walk on hot coals, right? Nobody can do it without burning their feet. Yet people have done it, and they aren’t extraordinary people; they are people like you and me. They probably learned it in one evening by attending a fire-walking workshop.
I have a friend, Darby Long, who works with Dr. Carl Simonton, the cancer specialist. They do a week-long workshop for people with cancer, and during the week, they have a fire-walking demonstration. Darby has done it herself many times, and has even carried people across the hot coals. I always think how incredible it must be for people with cancer to see and experience such a process. It probably blows a lot of people’s minds. Their concepts about limitation would somehow be different afterward.
I believe Anthony Robbins, the young man who started fire walking in this country, is here to do something really extraordinary on the planet. He studied NLP, Neurolinguistic Programming, a process whereby he could observe someone’s patterns of behavior and then repeat that person’s responses and cues of behavior to achieve similar results. NLP is based on the hypnotic techniques of Milton Erickson, M.D. which were systematically observed and recorded by John Grinder and Richard Bandier. When Tony heard about fire walking, he wanted to learn it, and, in turn, to teach it to others. He was told by a yogi that it would take years of study and meditation. However, using NLP, Tony learned it within a few hours. He knew that if he could do it, anyone could do it. He has been teaching people how to walk on coals, not because it is a wonderful parlor trick, but because it shows them how to go beyond their limitations and fears.
Everything Is Possible
Repeat with me: “I live and dwell in the totality of possibilities. Where I am there is all good. “ Think about these words for a minute. All good. Not some, not a little bit, but all good. When you believe that anything is possible, you open yourself up to answers in every area of your life.
Where we are is the totality of possibilities. It is always up to us individually and collectively. We either have walls around us or we take them down and feel safe enough to be totally open to allow all good to come into our lives. Begin to observe yourself objectively. Notice what is going on inside you—how you feel, how you react, what you believe—and allow yourself to observe without comment or judgment. When you can, you will live your life from the totality of possibilities.