The Power of Now - Focus on the Task at Hand

The following is an excerpt taken from Eckhart Tolle's book The Power of Now - A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. It discusses the importance of focusing on the task at hand instead of the results to experience the joy of being living in the Power of Now.

"So do not be concerned with the fruit of your action - just give attention to the action itself. The fruit will come of its own accord. This is a powerful spiritual practice."

Let's take a closer look at this statement and use a practical example for more clarity. As a gardener, it is your responsibility to sow the seed into the soil, water the garden, pull the weeds and ensure no pests devour your plants. That's the action that you give attention to. You cannot make the harvest come in, you cannot make the plant bear fruit, neither is it your responsibility to do that.

With that said, it would be very silly to frustrate yourself over the fruit and be mentally occupied in fear and worry about its appearance. But that's what we do all the time; become so mentally occupied with the fruit time, the results of what we desire, that we lose the joy of doing - the joy of nurturing the garden, the journey.

Excerpt continued

"When the compulsive striving away from the Now ceases, the joy of Being flows into everything you do. The moment your attention turns to the Now, you feel a presence, a stillness, a peace. You no longer depend on the future for fulfillment and satisfaction - you don't look to it for salvation. Therefore, you are not attached to the results. Neither failure nor success has the power to change your inner state of Being. You have found the life underneath your life situation."

As the gardeners of our lives, we can find fulfillment and satisfaction even in our mundane daily activities. We can be happy now and not wait for a future occasion, when the fruit appears, to be happy. Looking to the future event or circumstances for our current happiness only puts us in a position of giving our power away to something outside of ourselves. We are left standing on sinking sand and not on a solid foundation of inner peace and state of being.

Excerpt continued

"In the absence of psychological time, your sense of self is derived from Being, not from your personal past. Therefore, the psychological need to become anything other than who you are already is no longer there. In the world, on the level of your life situation, you may indeed become wealthy, knowledgeable, successful, free of this or that, but in the deeper dimension of Being you are complete and whole now."

Isn't it liberating to know that we are complete and whole now regardless of what our external circumstances display? We can start each day with a new slate freeing ourselves from the mistakes of the past and moving onward onto a better today. As a matter of fact, this state of being opens up the door for the life-giving flow of the Spirit to supply us with all we need.

To discover how you can use The Power of Now to overcome many of the daily struggles faced by mentally living in the past and in the future instead of Now (the present), click to learn more The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment.

Getting my body back Friday - Living in the Power of Now to Maximize Workout and Health Benefits

Visualization of your ideal weight and optimum health plays a vital part in keeping you focused on your target. But when it comes to working out, your mind needs to be present, be here now.

Don't just do the routine exercise. Focus on what muscles you're working out. Feel the muscles being put to work. You'll better be able to isolate the muscles and properly target the muscle group you're working on.

Pay attention to your breathing, as you're taking in fresh oxygen and releasing the bad air from your body, feel what's happening to your body and consciously recognize the cleansing breath you're taking in. Get your mind actively involved in this process as you direct the inhaling of positive energy and releasing of the negative.

Particularly when you're brisk walking and jogging, you need to draw in more oxygen. And as you breathe deeply, oxygen moves through your body giving you more energy to keep going.

Have you ever sat down with a bowl of fruits and because you were preoccupied in your thoughts you didn't realize you had finished the entire bowl? Disappointment swept over your face because you didn't realize you were down to your last piece of fruit and you probably felt dissatisfied because you didn't get to relish in the flavour of the last bite.

When you are living in the power of now, you're able to enjoy every bite along with a sense of being full. Take the time to truly enjoy your food and not be in a hurry to get it over with. Enjoy all the flavours as they burst in your mouth.

Make a conscious decision to live in the power of now as you continue your journey to your ideal weight and optimum health.

Click on the Power of Now to find out how you can learn more of Living in Power of Now and achieve spiritual enlightenment.

Action Thursday - Practice Silence and Become Empowered Living in the Power of Now - Part 4

As you quiet the mind and the body you're allowing power from the Infinite Source to empower you from within. Silence in the now is where great power resides. The still small voice speaks loudly in the silence. Wisdom emerges out of the silence. Confidence comes to you as you're strengthened in the silence. You overcome fear and become courageous in the silence. For silence is the dwelling place of the Universal Mind and Universal Power.

But this time of silence does not come to you unless you truly desire and consciously set the time aside for it. Only then will you be empowered living in the now as you practice silence.

5 Steps to Practice Silence

Step 1 - Schedule a time everyday where you'll not be disturbed and you can still your mind and body, preferably first thing in the morning to set the pace for the day and at night before bedtime so you can cleanse the mind and rejuvenate the body.

Step 2 - Speak peace to your mind. Say, "Peace, calm, relax." As you give this instruction to your mind, it will immediately pick up this vibration and send it also to your body causing it to relax. Repeat this as many times as necessary for you.

Step 3 - As you relax, become conscious of and allow the presence of inner peace, inner joy and love to emerge from within. I use the word presence because you'll feel this energy within you. The deeper you go into this the stronger this energy will become and the more peace, joy and love you'll experience. The warmth of your inner sun will begin to shine brighter and brighter dispersing the clouds that shade it.

Step 4 - Release all thoughts that come into this space. As thoughts come to you, look at them directly with your inner eye and consciously release them and re-enter your inner sanctuary of peace.

Step 5 - Become conscious that you are now in the presence of the Universal Mind - God, where all power, all knowledge - the All-in-All dwells and that, and this is very important, you are one with this Universal Mind. Be conscious that this Power Source now runs in and through you. Bask in this consciousness.

This is where I release you to have your own personal experience. Follow the inner guidance. You'll develop your own unique personal encounters and come out feeling energized and empowered to go out into your day. And as your day begins, continue to practice living in the power of now so that the flow of the Universal Energy is magnified into your daily activity.

The more you allow this energy to flow through you into others - releasing love, joy and peace to those around you - the more power you'll experience in your life. This energy multiplies by usage and you'll become a great power source through which the Infinite Mind of God can be expressed on the earth.

Click on the Power of Now to find out how you can learn more of Living in Power of Now and achieve spiritual enlightenment.

2 Keys to Living in the Power of Now - Part 3

In order to become more successful at living in the power of now, these 2 important keys unlock the door to attaining this spiritual level of enlightenment.

1) Become more 'now' conscious

Develop the now consciousness by becoming more now conscious. Pay attention to what's in front of you, to what you're currently doing. E.g. when you're driving your car, you know your destiny but you need to be present; you need to be conscious now to the road that's directly in front of you, to where you're driving, to the street signs, to what the other drivers are doing and not on the destination.

You know you will get to your destination eventually which will become your now. But until you get there, pay attention, be alert to what you're doing now and that will get you safely to your future destination.

2) Apply the formula for success

R=IOT - Repetition = Imprint Over Time

Success in anything requires repetition. You don't get good at riding a bicycle by riding it only one time. It's the constant repetition of the principles of balancing that you master each time you get on the bicycle.

Similarly, practicing living in the power of Now needs to be a constant daily practice in order to change the old way of thinking and adopt the mindset of living in the present. Many of the memories of the past may come rushing back to the conscious mind fighting for a way to capture your attention again. Many of your future joys may entrance you and cause you to miss the moment of expressing gratitude for what you currently have. But be persist and in time the new habit will begin to create the imprint on your subconscious and ultimately expressed in your daily lifestyle.

As you rest and relax, become still and allow your mind and body to be absorb with the state of being and feeling inner joy and peace. Here you will draw the energy you need to vitalize every part of you and fill the void you feel within. There's power in stillness. There's power in silence. Practice silence and reap the benefits of a satisfying and enriched life.

Click on the Power of Now to find out how you can learn more of Living in Power of Now and achieve spiritual enlightenment.

3 Steps to Living in the Power of Now - Part 2

Living in the Power of Now enables you to activate the power that's available to you now. Power does not come to you for a past event. Neither does it come to you for something you're going to do in the future.

Power comes to you now! Now, when you need it to carry out the task that's immediately in front of you. Now, when you need to make a decision. Now, when you need wisdom to overcome your current situation. Being more in the present, in the Now, you can be in the constant flow of Infinite Energy to rise above any situation you face now.

What then can you do to embrace living in the power of now?

1) Observe your mind

Because the mind is the tool to express who you are through the law of thinking, take the time to observe how your current state of mind is controlling you as it runs on autopilot. If you're unable to stop thinking at will and just allow your mind to rest, your mind is in control of you. It's draining vital energy when you should be resting and energizing your body. This is the first step to taking control of your mind and not your mind controlling you - observing what your mind is doing.

2) Release the past

As you observe your mind, you can begin to filter out those thoughts and thinking patterns that are not in harmony with who you desire to be. Release the past negative experiences and don't allow them to be your present preoccupation to inhibit your future growth. Release the past positive experiences in gratitude so that you can embrace more new positive experiences that you'd never thought of by living in the power of now.

3) Release the future

Living in the future, for that moment when everything will become better, puts you in a state of being constantly absent from the present. There needs to be a balance - a time to think about the future, but then you need to become present so you can get wisdom and engage in the necessary steps, in the now, that will become your future results.

Click on the Power of Now to find out how you can learn more of Living in Power of Now and achieve spiritual enlightenment.

Living in the Power of Now - Part 1

What will you do with Now? Will you continue to live in the past, as good or bad as it was? 'Was' being the operative word here - it's gone. Or will you constantly live in the future - that which is not here yet?

Your past and your future only exist in your mind. All you have is here and now. Will you give your power to the past, releasing all your energies into something that no longer exists? Will you dwell in fear of the future that has not yet come?

Everything that is created has been created in the here and Now. When we allow our attention to be constantly preoccupied with the past and the future, we lose the energy for creative power in the Now.

What happens when we are preoccupied in the present with the past?

The Now becomes the past and presents itself with another missed opportunity to enjoy the peace and power that exists only in the Now.

What happens when we are preoccupied in the present with the future?

Preoccupation with the future robs us of consciously seeing and appreciating what the present, the moment of Now has for us. We miss when the Spirit brings answers to us because we're unable to immediately recognize it when it appears. We miss the still small voice of wisdom and the joys that the present holds because we're constantly looking for joy, peace and a better life somewhere sometime in the future.

Click on the Power of Now to find out how you can learn more of Living in Power of Now and achieve spiritual enlightenment.