Intentions

These are our thoughts feelings and experiences. We accept responsibility for them. We understand your journey may be different. We honor and respect that. Wishing you effortless joy. Eloise and Jake

Intentions:
A lot has been written about creating your own reality. That is just a way of saying, you decide if you are going to be happy or not. Many times it is a choice.
I understand that there are chemical imbalances, developmental disorders, illnesses and injury that contribute to depression, anxiety, mood disorders and disorders of thought. But too often it is our choices that trigger the exacerbation of an underlying genetic predisposition. And it is our choices that take a situation and make it worse. And it is our choices that often keep us stuck in negativity and destruction. And it is our choices that impact those chemicals or processes in our bodies.
Intentions are choices we make in how we think. And our intentions contribute greatly to how we feel. Intentions are the map we design to take us on our journeys.
Intentions however are not always conscious. Sometimes intentions cause us to do things that on the surface appear negative, but if you look at the motivation, the true intent is often survival, protection, safety or justice. Many over weight woman find comfort in excessive weight because they might have had their healthy body used or abused. An overweight man may find comfort in food, as a way not to smoke, and many violent individuals are often only trying to get some sense of control in their life.
Whether or not you are aware of why you are doing something, there is always a benefit to a “bad behavior”. Discovering that benefit; is often the only way to change the “bad behavior”. It is usually very uncomfortable to do self examination and look at those reasons, but in becoming aware of them brings about an opportunity to redirect ones choices. New choices, new behaviors bring about new feelings. To promote good feelings there has to be an awareness of our thoughts, and an active participation in our behavioral choices.
There is a specialty in psychology that deals with this: NLP (Neuro-linguistic Programming) which is all about intentions:
http://lifecoachesblog.com/2006/06/09/nlp-101-every-behaviour-has-a-positive-intention and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positive_and_negative_(NLP
and
http://www.nlpu.com/Articles/article2.htm
The Spiritual new agers call it manifestation:
http://www.guide-to-self-help-techniques.com/creative-visualization.html
and
http://www.how-to-manifest-your-desires.com/how-to-manifest-reality.html
and
http://www.awakening-spirits.net/7-step-manifestations.htm
And it is even biblical: John 14.13 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.” , The Jabez prayer in Chronicles and in Matthew 21: 22: "And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.".
At any rate intentions drive outcomes. Let us look at a few: If you repeatedly say “I am stressed out”, you most likely will continue to feel and be stressed out. If however you repeatedly say, “I am relaxed”, you will most likely become aware of the need to relax and begin to change your behaviors so you can relax.
The mind is a power tool of association. It associates feeling “stressed” with many unhealthy things. (Increased heart rate increased blood pressure, increase stress hormone cortisol) It also associates relaxation with a release of endorphins, which is your bodies own pain killer. It is sort of like hearing a certain “golden oldie” and remembering your first kiss and feeling good.
The words (saying them, writing them, hearing them, knowing them, believing them, feeling them) in of themselves do not make changes but the words bring about awareness, and awareness brings about changes in behavior. It is pretty hard to eat junk food while repeating the words, I am nourished and healthy.
Intentions need to be in the present tense as if it were already a fact. That demonstrates to the mind that you believe it. Some of my intentions are: I am prosperous, I am healthy, I am peaceful, I am energetic, I am loved, I am lovable. I am valued, I am useful, I am making a difference, I am generous, and I am attractive.
To get to here, I need to go through a four step process. I need… I want….I love….I am. I made a list of what I needed: Then I went through that list and tried to say I wanted each thing. It sort of puts a spin on it. For example, one of the times I said I need to eat more vegetables. Then when it got to the second step: I couldn’t say “I want to eat more vegetables” So I had to revise my list to say I need to LOVE to eat vegetables. And then you put it into the present tense. And my intent became: I love eating vegetables.
You will not, I will not make any changes till we WANT to. So intending love for a certain behavior is very powerful. But more important than that is the outcome. It’s the why of it. And in this case the intent went to: I am healthy and I am nourished.
It works the opposite way too, if we start out saying: “I want to be rich”, and can’t say “I need to be rich”, you probably won’t ever get to “loving being rich”. But I need to be prosperous, because I need to be generous, and I want to be generous and prosperous, because I love being generous and prosperous. I am generous and I am prosperous.
Here is another one: “I want healing, I need healing, I love being healed, I love healing.” “I am healed” It was hard for me at first to say: “I need healing”. (I kept thinking of all of the other people who needed it more); which brought to light my diminished value. So after I dealt with that, I could actually say it, feel it write it, speak it, know it, believe it, EXPERINCE it. (And I am healed)
“Intentions: will change your “awareness”. They will change your “reality”. And doing intentions with friends is fun. Call up a friend and say? What would you be celebrating right now if life was perfect for you? Get them to put it in a measurable package like: “I am experiencing romance with my husband, I am cashing my first royalty check from my book, I am having fun most of the time, and I am giggling with my grandchildren.” And then periodically call them up again and say: how about those silly grandchildren? How big is that royalty check, how is that good man of yours”
Happiness is just an intention away. Trade in those old thoughts, and create new ones.
Have fun with this, be blessed, and then be super grateful!