Have you ever lost something, searching and searching for it everywhere it could possibly have landed?  I’m referring to those situations where you literally have looked in every location where the “LOST” object could have wound up, and it is nowhere to be seen.  Maybe you’ve heard the Abraham story about Esther losing her favorite pen and eventually finding it in her purse where she had already looked multiple times.  When I heard that story, I always wondered whether the pen was there the entire time and she just couldn’t see it because she was so focused on it being lost, or whether the pen actually disappeared during the “lost” phase and reappeared once Esther stopped thinking about it being lost.

Well, in a recent seminar transcribed (with   appreciation) by a member of The Abe List, the answer was made clear.  Reality is a perceptual thing.  Abe tells the story of yet another Esther lost item.  Makes me feel better that she loses things too!  She couldn’t locate her parking ticket and she and a friend (there was a witness) had the same “Ahh!!” experience when suddenly the missing parking ticket appeared in her purse, which she had already searched through methodically.

Abe’s response, “There was no way of logically explaining why it came back into their perception other than – we would say in general terms – you cannot find something that is lost.  And the more Esther decided it was lost, the more stubborn the ticket was in appearing in her experience.  It is true of everything.  Everything is that way.”

Of course, I was thinking did it actually dematerialize?  Did it actually change its vibrational form to no longer become a “lost” item?  And the answer was “Yes, it did.”

For me it was a huge epiphany, despite the fact that I’ve been aware for a very long time that we’re creating our own reality with our thoughts, beliefs and expectations.  Abraham went on to say:

“Everything is that way.  Your Vortex is full of things you cannot see that will materialize and dematerialize and materialize and dematerialize depending upon what you’ve got going on vibrationally. …… If you would just for a little while let it be between you and your ability to perceive it – and not care about other people involved, to witness your manifestations – you will discover that the Universe has the ability to yield to you anything that you desire in much fuller and faster fashion – when you leave what feels like the necessary acknowledgement or perception of others, out of the equation.”

I’ve definitely had the experience of finding a lost object after I decided to stop focusing on it being lost.  It’s happened so many times now that when something is “lost,” I immediately say to myself “Nothing is lost in the mind of Source,” and decide to ease up on the searching.  Once I found a cherished necklace with great sentimental value about a year after I thought it was “lost.”  It was a gold chain with three tiny lockets, each containing a photo of my children, engraved with their birthdays, which my husband had given me on Mother’s Day many years ago.  I thought it had been stolen on a trip when I accidentally left it in my hotel room.  And then later, much later, I found it in my travel jewelry case, where, of course, I had searched several times when I lost the necklace.  I have to admit at the time that I suspected that things could rematerialize but I couldn’t be sure.

“Let it just be said that everything is perceptual and that when you have this Vortex that is full of the vibrational version of everything that you want, everything that you want is ready to fill in with your grid.  But it fills in to a reality that you perceive.  And what you want, and your belief about it, equals the perception that allows it to manifest.”

So what does this mean for us as deliberate creators?  If this isn’t a clarion call to remove our focus from things that aren’t pleasing to us and replace that thought with what we want instead, I can’t imagine what could inspire us more.  I spend a great deal of time in my course “How to Allow,” on creating the expectation of your desire materializing.  And, I’ve known it’s the key to creating what we want.  Although I’ve known about the importance of focus and expectation for what seems like ages, I feel like I finally REALLY GET THE IMPORTANCE OF FOCUS!  When I read that transcript I experienced a dramatic shift in my thinking.  You know how you already know something but now you REALLY KNOW IT?  To understand that I am literally materializing and dematerializing things in my vibrational escrow as I go about my day, sometimes sloppily focusing on this and that, is mind bending and makes me even more determined to sharpen my focus onto things I want and to ignore things I’d rather not see.

Right now I’ve “lost” a shirt that my kids got me for Mother’s Day where we were staying out of town.  I’ve looked in the natural places and now I’ve eased up.  I’ve decided that it’s not lost; it’s just on its way to me.  It’s giving me an opportunity to practice my focus.  And, I like the direction this is taking me!

One thing that strikes me is that there are other things that we value and would like to create in our experience that we could also view as “lost,” in a slightly different take on the word.  Could you be viewing a damaged relationship as “lost,” in your mind?  Are your expectations about it that it is “lost”?  Could you be viewing the possibility of creating an abundant revenue stream in your life as a “lost cause,” due to your age, your bank balance, the economy?  I think that there may be quite a number of things in our lives to which we’ve attached the label of lost, that is, we’re not really expecting improvement or miraculous change.

But now that you know that things literally materialize and dematerialize constantly by the power of your focus, don’t you think you might be willing to reconsider some of these issues and your expectations?

Let me know if you have any good stories about “lost” objects.  This could be another one of those areas where we practice our manifesting skills on things that aren’t mired in a lot of resistance and build our confidence in our ability to manifest even bigger things just as easily.  Keep me posted!  I’m expecting lots of found items!

Susan Shearer Young writes about the Law of Attraction and the Art of Allowing, specifically Allowing the Law of Attraction to Create the Results You Want.   Susan  is the author of "How to Allow," a course and e-book, which provides a roadmap for using the Law of Attraction to Allow your natural Well-Being. "How to Allow" reveals the real "Secret" to manifesting what you want in your life with a simple system of two daily rituals for raising your vibration to line up with your desires.  Susan is a graduate of the University of Virginia and Harvard Law School.  Susan provides coaching on an individual basis through her site www.howtoallow.net.  Susan has appeared on Blog Talk Radio and Good News Gone Viral on the topic of Allowing and "How to Allow."She also posts a regular blog at www.howtoallow.net and contributes to goodnewsgoneviral.com and thepowerofnow.com.

From the author: I have a passion for figuring out processes that work to help us to create what we really want in our lives and for sharing those with readers and others searching for this information. I am delighted with the feedback from readers of "How to Allow" and that the course/e-book is helping them to make real changes in their lives.

Susan can be reached at susan@howtoallow.net.

Anxiety is not fun.  It can be overpowering, all-encompassing, and it certainly seems to make life in the now next to impossible.  How can we desire to “be here now,” when “here” is riddled with fear, sweaty palms, and a stomach in knots?

Anxiety has been my greatest teacher in life.  Although I might not go as far as calling it a friend, if it were not for the anxiety-ridden periods that I have faced, I would not have the type of relationship with my Inner Guide that I do now.  Anxiety forced me to wake up.  Anxiety forced me to find “a better way.”  For that, I am very grateful for anxiety.

“A Course in Miracles” teaches that within each of us, we have an “Inner Guide,” a connection to our “Higher Self,” which is forever present to us, if we are wiling to hear its Voice.  But we can only hear that Voice at a particular moment in time, and that time is, of course, right now.

By developing a relationship with my Inner Guide, my relationship to anxiety has changed. Developing a relationship with your Inner Guide means that you start to open up to the possibility of there being truth beyond what our physical eyes can see. As I have learned to tap into my willingness to see things differently, my Inner Guide provides a different perception.  And it is this shifting of perception that ultimately leads to a profound sense of inner peace.

When we start to turn towards our Inner Guide, it comes to life.  We start noticing that beneath the fear we feel, there is peace.  We learn to rest in that peace, even as we watch anxious thoughts and feelings pass by like clouds in an open sky.  As we get better at listening to our Inner Guide, we learn that it is constantly there patiently waiting for our attention, whispering to us that we are loved, whole, and safe. This loving Voice has always been within us, only we were too wrapped up in the world to listen.  As our relationship with this Voice grows, anxiety fades.

So how do you begin to find freedom from anxiety?  Follow these 3 simple steps, which are core principles of “A Course in Miracles:”

1. Find your willingness. 

How willing are you to see the situation you’re in differently?  You only need to muster up the tiniest bit of willingness to have a shift in perception.  That is all it takes.

2. Be willing to look at what is coming up WITH your Inner Guide. 

When difficult feelings arise, be willing to look at them WITH your Inner Guide.  We like to try to clean up our own egos, whereas “A Course in Miracles” is teaching us that true perception can only come through our Inner Guide. We can’t “fix” ourselves alone. 

Also, “A Course in Miracles” is definitely supportive of getting therapy if you need it. Your Inner Guide can speak to you through others – so don’t hesitate to get help if need be.

3. Give your willingness to your Inner Guide.

Your Inner Guide knows the way to peace, and by handing over your willingness, you’re saying, “lead me there.”  We don’t know the way to peace, and when we think we do, we usually will end up feeling stuck.

I live and breathe these steps on a daily basis. Now, however, it is usually with experiences that I would label as “more pleasant” than anxiety. The anxiety has faded because my relationship with my Inner Guide has grown.  If you find that anxiety frequently visits you, you are blessed with a powerful teacher, which can help you find “a better way.”

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The contents of this article are not medical advice. See a medical or mental health professional if you need to.  The Course says that there is nothing wrong with doing so. 

Corinne Zupko, Ed.S., M.A., B.C.C., is a keynote speaker, adjunct professor, counselor, coach, and mindfulness meditation teacher.  She is also the co-founder of MiracleShare.org: The Social Network for Students and Teachers of “A Course in Miracles.” Corinne began her work with “A Course in Miracles” (ACIM) in 1997 after struggling with debilitating anxiety and panic attacks. More than any other method of relief she could find in the world, it has been practicing the principles of ACIM that have brought her to finding and maintaining inner peace. Find out more about Corinne’s work at From Anxiety to Love.

There was a song in the late 1970’s with a line that included the words of this post’s title. I can’t for the life of me remember the song or the artist, but those three words have rung in my mind repeatedly for decades. They would pop into my mind for no apparent reason, inexplicably having a powerful effect on me. A longing I couldn’t understand would permeate my heart with no way of fulfilling it. What was so significant about those words that they should be so powerful in my consciousness?
I know now that my unseen counsel was calling me again and again into the only place where I could find the answers, the understanding, I needed to deal effectively with what was appearing in life. The space between … the apparent emptiness between thoughts, emotions, and events, that no-thing realm that we have misconceived of as having no life. Perhaps there is a collective unconscious belief that to be in this space is to cease to exist and therefore a collective fear of it. That would explain my continued unconscious refusal to follow the simple guidance each time it came.The space between two breaths creates a gap, a pause. When we are conscious in that gap we experience it as having great depth, and something else. There is something there, not a thing really but an awareness, a sense of vital aliveness. It’s not tangible, yet it’s more real than anything we can touch, see, hear, or in any other way define. The space between two thoughts is filled with this same richness.If there is nothing in “the space between” but a sense of aliveness, what is the value of entering it? What could nothingness possibly contribute to life? Why would I want to spend time in empty space when there is so much to do that the hours in the day are never enough? Only surrendering the need to keep busy can answer those questions. Busy work is an avoidance pattern created in our subconscious mind when the present moment contains something we don’t know how to handle. Experience enough of such moments and you’ll develop a continuous need to be in motion. If continuous action fails to distract us from the moment our thoughts will run on auto-pilot rehashing old experiences and projecting them on the future. The gap becomes completely obscured and unavailable. All the while, the space between is where the understanding we need arises in our awareness.New ideas or understanding are not available in the context of old thoughts and beliefs. Similarly, the potential of our gifts, talents, and abilities cannot be realized while we are stuck in a cycle of repeating old behaviors. The space between cycles is the realm of new possibilities, new understanding, inspiration, and creativity. Have you ever experienced what is commonly called being in the zone? If so, you were in the gap between thoughts and old patterns. You were fully present in the moment and available to inspiration with access to abilities or wisdom that normally eludes you. Artists know the gap as the exhilarating experience of creative inspiration, as they bring something new into the world.The space between thoughts and movement is also where we discover by direct personal experience the truth of who/what we are. If we would live authentically, experience the full potential of life, it behooves us to know who we are, and that knowing can only come through direct experience. The experience and the knowing are in the gap. The expansion of life experience and joy that we long for flows out of that journey into the space between. In each moment of now, the space invites us into the infinite field of pure consciousness. If you accept the invitation, life can show you how rich and wonderful it really is.

About the Author:   Jacqueline Stone shares the journey of awakening consciousness through her writing and the beauty of this world with photography.  See more of Jacqueline's writing and photography at her website. 

It was the twinkle in his eye that I noticed first, that undeniable spark that flowed through his being and into the world to shine light upon this earth.  He walked with clarity and power.  Did I imagine him cutting through the ethers and walking toward me or was he an apparition that I created for my own reasons? The line between illusion and reality can sometimes become a bit blurry.  I was leaving LA and sat at the airport with all the other travelers waiting for my chariot to arrive.  I am not a big fan of traveling by air but how else was I to get back to the east coast?  It was going to be a long six-hour flight so I decided to just hunker down and go mindless for a while.  Out of my travel bag I pulled out a scarf that I was knitting for a boyfriend at that time. The scarf was never finished and the boyfriend was dumped … but I digress.  There I sat knitting like a little old granny, trying to pretend that I was anywhere else but LAX, Terminal C.  The more I think about it, the more I can safely say that I felt his presence first.  There was something about his whole aura that made him stand out from the crowd and made me realize that he was not of this earth and if he was, he was living a different life than mine.  He walked with grace, a kind of glide that said; “I am content with the moment and myself”.  I wondered if anyone else noticed him and rather assumed not because he was there for one purpose and one purpose only.  He was there to meet me or rather to come close and share his energy, so I was not the least bit surprised when he took the seat right next to me.  It was reserved for him.  We greeted each other as equals in this moment of time, dispensed with the platitudes and got down to a discussion about choices, roads that we had traveled and the knowledge that we gained from our choosing.  Never once did we ask each other what we did for a living or where we lived.  His talk with me was allegorical in nature, metaphors that truly could have been taken on so many different levels but of course my understanding was from the heart and he knew that.  Meanings and assumptions were transferred by subtle inferences and intonations.  It was as if my soul was ravaged but now was slowly being nourished, filled to the brim with prana.  I don’t really remember him getting up to leave. For that matter, I don’t remember gathering my belongings or boarding the plane.  When I finally became cognizant of my surroundings I realized that I was in my seat and we were getting ready for take off.  Was he on this flight I wondered? Where did he go?  Did he board this plane?  All of a sudden it became too much to think about.  I felt as if I had had an encounter with Infinity and I was tired.  I looked around the plane to find any available seats that were not taken and noticed some empty ones in back.  After the plane had taken off and we were safely winging our way to the Big Apple, I scrambled to the empty seats before anyone else got to them, threw a warm blanket over myself and fell fast asleep.  I was awakened by the noise of the landing gear being dropped and locked into place and a friendly attendant telling me that it was time to land.  I sat upright with a start, buckled my seat belt around my waist and felt a little uneasy about the fact that six hours had passed and I was aware of nothing.  As I sat wondering where I had been for the duration of the flight, I noticed a piece of paper lying there on my bags.  I picked it up and started to read.  This is what it said; “Dearest Angel, it does not surprise me that you have captured the only four available seats left on the plane. I saw you in the lounge, knitting away like a fair maiden and now find you sleeping as an innocent child.  Your power is great and your heart is open.  May you travel the roads ahead with love and wisdom, harnessing the power that you have at your command.  You will live a life of importance and meaning.  Godspeed.”  I looked up and searched the plane but couldn’t find him.  With my heart pounding I quickly deboarded and began to scour the airport.  I swear my mission was to find him and see him in the flesh.  My scientific mind wanted proof that he was a man but my heart danced in excitement knowing that I had just experienced greatness.  He simply wasn’t to be found.  I stood at that luggage carousel watching the bags go round and round while waiting for him to claim his, but I waited in vain.  He was gone … or didn’t exist … or a little bit of both.  I truly can’t tell you what happened that day but I felt as if I had touched something amazing and alive and although “he” was the catalyst, the greatness that I felt was inside of me and all he did was point the way.

There are so many little a-ha! moments and tid-bits I would love to tell you, but the one I'm thinking of now has to do with judgment.  I trained for and ran a  1/2 marathon recently.  I felt pressure to perform at a certain level even though I had never even done a race like this before.  I got to take a good look at the standards I set for myself.  I realized one day while struggling through a 9 mile run,  in tears, that I was creating this experience by judging myself.  The run was very difficult that day and I was not at all happy with my performance.  Around mile 8 it hit me, "Why do I have to classify this as a BAD run?"  (Will having a GOOD run make me truly happy?)    I suddenly understood that my run was neither bad nor good. It simply was.  The very instant I decided not to judge and label my performance I started laughing uncontrollably and surprise! The run got a lot easier  (coo-coo - haha).  The truth is all of our judgments and opinions are rooted in the past-what has gone on before and don't allow us to be in the Now.  Also, judgments almost always are about comparison. I should be this or that.  I should be better.  I should bla bla bla.  Rev. Jennifer Hadley says, "Wherever there is a 'should' there is a judgment...."   These are  levels and separation that A Course In Miracles talks about.  When I can let go and be present everything becomes GOOD, but it's deeper than that.  When I don't write my own meaning on the world, it's true meaning can emerge. How could we possibly think we know the meaning of everything (insane).  When I don't compare myself and my life to others I can be open.  The connection to the divine is no longer blocked by these judgments/opinions/comparisons.  Then my higher Self can tell me the truth about who I am.  Comparisons and levels are all a load of bologna anyway.  You cannot BE someone else... so why would you ever compare yourself to someone else?????  You cannot run faster than you can run, and you cannot live a life that was not meant for you to live!!!!  So all of that garbage is a clever way to "seek but do not find" (ACIM).    Sure you can challenge yourself, but you can only ever BE you.  When you embrace that, you find out you are more than you ever dreamed yourself to be.  You can only find that out right now.

About the Author: Misty Hall is a mom, wife, actress, singer ("Bhakti Birds"), runner, sales person, and North Carolina native who loves A Course In Miracles and Paramahansa Yogananda.  She is on a path of greater awareness and is just beginning to share her discoveries.