“You may never know what results come from your action. But if you do nothing, there will be no result.”
~Mahatma Gandhi
Those of you who have heard me lecture or read my new book know that I am a huge proponent of changing your thinking by following your intuition, or said another way, allowing your feelings to guide you. Our feelings are the one and only thing that has the power to change the world. Think for a minute about how much more powerful a feeling is than a thought. It is the feeling about something that always spurs you into action. The thought arrives, a feeling follows and then action takes place. The magnetic field of our heart, when overlaid with the magnetic field of the Earth, is identical. So what does that mean? It means that our feelings and emotions have the power to change the actual magnetic field of the Earth if we allowed it.
Gregg Braden gives a great example of how powerful our feelings really are. Our country has 2 satellites in space whose main job is, by the hour, to report back to the scientists on Earth a measurement of the Earth’s magnetic field. The Earth’s magnetic field ebbs and flows in cycles but mostly stays in a fairly consistent wave. One day, researchers were astonished when a reading showed a very large spike in the Earths magnetic field. What on Earth (literally) could have happened to cause such a massive spike?
When traced back, the precise moment of the massive spike in the Earth’s magnetic field was at 9:00am on September 11, 2001…15 minutes after the first plane hit the towers in New York and the world was informed that the United States was under a terrorist attack. A flood of pure, raw, unrehearsed emotions were set loose, not only changing the magnetic field of each individual person’s heart, but the magnetic field of the Earth itself. Our hearts were not the only hearts affected on that day…the Earth heart took a hit as well; hence, the power of our feelings.
If you are of a science mind and still questioning the validity of what I am saying, that is ok. I am a scientist by nature as well. But remember, not everything can be explained and there are just some things that cannot be understood using the human mind. Some things need trust, hope and faith to understand. Some things we may never truly understand. Understand it or not, the world still goes round and round. Sometimes the things we least understand, by not understanding them and trusting, are the exact things we need in our life to change the world we know.
Embrace the unknown and with your feelings, help change the world!
We can do it!
Chris
Chris Sopa is founder and owner of Chris Sopa International, Inc. You can learn more about her at www.ChrisSopa.com. Find her at Facebook.com/ChrisSopaInternational, Twitter @ChrisSopa, LinkedIn, and Google+.
Purchase your copy of, “Choosing the Life You Were Born to Live: How Changing Your Thoughts Will Change Your Life” by Chris Sopa published by Balboa Press.
I know…it hurts. That ache in your heart from being disappointed, betrayed once again, losing someone you love, words that sting so bad you feel them physically…ouch! Welcome to the power of your heart chakra.
The middle of your chest is an extremely powerful area. When we are surprised, our hand automatically goes there. When we are hurt, our hand automatically goes there. We know that part of our body is the core of our very being…the place where all of our healing occurs so we do what we need to do to protect it. The center of your chest is where your heart chakra sits. This chakra is so powerful I decided to single it out in this blog. Click here Fourth Chakra to view more information about this chakra.
The life and spiritual theme that resonates from your heart chakra is “love is divine power.” Love…we are motivated by it, inspired by it, controlled by it, destroyed by it, healed by it, and hurt by it. Every single one of our life lessons is in some shape or form a lesson in an aspect of love; lessons on either how we love one another or how we love ourselves. How we respond to our life lessons is recorded in our physical cell tissue and in our heart chakra – the choices we make, whether we like it or not, show up in our biology. We physically manifest the consequences of our choices and lack of honoring ourselves or others in the form of illnesses.
If this chakra is imbalanced at all, and it is for most people out there right now, you will notice issues around your heart, circulatory system, lungs, shoulders, arms, ribs, breasts, diaphragm, thymus gland, and breathing issues. All of these are a clue that there is some lesson in love you are being called to learn.
Two weeks ago I was swimming laps in the pool as usual. On about lap 5 I started to panic because all of a sudden I couldn’t breathe. I became overwhelmed with terror that I was going to drown and die. I felt an extremely heavy sensation in my chest. It was so strong that I began to hyperventilate. I got out of the pool and experienced a momentary black-out, came to and spent the rest of the day wondering what the heck happened to me in that pool.
For the last several months, my heart chakra has taken quite the beating (I think many of you can relate). I have had disappointments in relationships, my career, finances, etc. All of which have felt like a blow to my chest. It has been hard to get over. Especially the romantic ones…finding out through Facebook that the man I dated at the beginning of the year who I just broke up with in February, who swore he didn’t lie to me or cheat on me just got married in June…well, to say the least, that was a whopper! How do you recover from that?
I realized, with the help of some great friends, that my heart experienced an opening in that pool. When we have been hurt so much in life, we tend to do what we need to do in order to protect the sacred space around our heart. I apparently decided at some point to put a rock over mine. Stone cold! That rock broke and out came all of the emotions I had been bottling up for so long…hence the terror I felt.
Since, “the pool incident,” I have had bursts of aches in my chest and back between my shoulder blades; all symptoms of the process of an opening of the heart.
We are entering a time in history where it is not an option anymore to have an open heart…it is a necessity. These new times call for heart-centered living and in order to live from the heart, the heart has to be open. It is not as easy as it sounds. It calls for mastering the process of “letting go and letting God”…not so easy for us control freaks.
Spend some time today nurturing your heart. Take a stroll in nature; listen to some classical music or burn a rose scented candle. It’s ok…your heart is meant to be open. Being open and vulnerable to what is out there is scary…I know. But trust and allow life to guide you to the experiences you are supposed to have to learn about love. Love makes the world go round…remember? 😉
Loving you with my open heart,
Chris
Chris Sopa is founder and owner of Chris Sopa International, Inc. You can learn more about her at www.ChrisSopa.com. Find her at Facebook.com/ChrisSopaInternational, Twitter @ChrisSopa, LinkedIn, and Google+.
What is Karma Anyway?
“Karma is the eternal assertion of human freedom…Our thoughts, our words, and deeds are the threads of the net which we throw around ourselves.” ~Swami Vivekananda
Saturday I turned 42 years old. In 42 years I have had a lot of different experiences. I grew up in Cleveland in your typical dysfunctional family (I mean that very lovingly for family members who are reading this!), went to college like I was “supposed to,” got married at 20, had both of my daughters by the time I was 23, experienced being a stay at home Mom for a few years, moved to Baltimore, went back to work, ended up with a chronic illness at 32 and almost died, started my own business at 33, got divorced at 38, and just recently moved again to Arizona. Of course, there are many things I have left out but overall my life has been amazing!
As we look back on our lives, remembering the happy times is easy but when the memories of painful times arise, times where maybe we were not “our best,” it is not easy to look in the mirror. Did you ever wonder why certain things in your life happened? I mean, really wondered? Not wondered from a victim place of “why is this happening to me?” but from a place of “what the heck is going on here?”
As I write this, I am sitting in the kitchen of my old house which is now my ex-husband’s house. No, that is not weird. It is possible to get divorced and still get along with your ex. Last night after flying all day, my daughter picked me up at the airport late; I got back to this house and plopped into the bed in the spare room. As I laid there trying to fall asleep I remembered the last time I had slept in that bed. It was my last night in this house before I left my husband. It made me stop and think about karma and choices I have made in my life up until this point.
I define karma as action and consequence. I don’t believe karma is a tablet with all of our deeds kept in the hands of the Gods for them to decide how we should be punished for what we did wrong. I believe karma is just the word to describe the consequences for the actions we choose. We all have heard the expression, “what you sow is what you reap.” Karma, in essence, is simply the Universe’s way of making you responsible and accountable for the choices you have made thus far.
Here is the rub; some of the choices we make are unconscious. Over 90% of our behaviors come from our subconscious minds and in that part of the mind sits all of our past conditioning which we received from parents, teachers, experiences and even past lives (if you believe in that). The question becomes, if we want to make the best and highest choices going forward so we no longer accumulate “KARMA,” what can we do?
K = Keep heart centered
Many of us make our choices only after we have run the scenario through our minds countless times, done a pie chart and asked 80,000 different people their opinions. Learn to make your choices using your heart, not your head. When you have to make a choice, listen to your body and your feelings. How does the choice feel? Where does the feeling show up in your body? Does the choice feel comfortable or does it make you uncomfortable?
A = Always learn from your past experiences
Unfortunately, there is such a thing as “karmic debt.” With every action, there is a reaction and yes, you do have to balance (not “pay for”) any misdeeds you have done. Going forward, when something unfortunate happens or you make a poor choice ask yourself, “What can I learn from this experience?” “What is the message the Universe is trying to tell me?” and “How can I use this experience to help others?”
R = Remember to be present
Being present means being aware of what is going on at this moment. Be an observer of your life and witness what is going on around you. Be here, now. Your future is created in the present moment and the choices you are making right now. Be present so you can make the best choices possible.
M = Make peace with yourself and others
Every choice you make not only affects you but it affects those around you and sometimes in ways in which you may not even be aware. No debt in the Universe ever goes unpaid – that is just law. If you have done harm to someone in the past you don’t necessarily have to hunt them down and beg for forgiveness. Do your own work. Bring that person up in your mind, send them light and love, apologize and let them go. Use that experience as a lesson to make higher choices in the future.
A = Ask yourself questions constantly
Every time you are about to make a choice ask yourself, “What are the consequences of this choice I am making and will it benefit me and others involved?” Answer from your heart. Always, always question your thoughts. When you find yourself judging yourself or someone else ask yourself, “Is that true?” “Can I be certain it is true?” “Who would I be if that thought didn’t exist?” Always do your best in choosing the higher road.
A year older,
Chris
Chris Sopa is founder and owner of Chris Sopa International, Inc. You can learn more about her at www.ChrisSopa.com. Find her at Facebook.com/ChrisSopaInternational, Twitter @ChrisSopa, LinkedIn, and Google+.
Its Up To YOU To Decide Who You Are
In the movie, Chalk Talk, there is a priest who counsels alcoholics and tells stories to inspire those who are in recovery. He told one particular story about a woman who came to him after her drunken husband called her a whore.
“Would you be upset if he called you a chair?” he asked her.
“Of course not,” she said.
“Why not?” he asked.
“I know I am not a chair,” she said.
“Don’t you know that you are not a whore?” he asked.
Ultimately, he tells her it doesn’t matter what people call you, you decide what you answer to.
During my years as a public speaker and writer, I have been called many things (some not so nice). Even in personal relationships, especially when they start to go sour, we all have experienced being called a name at some point in time. We all remember the times on the playground in elementary school where we inevitably were called something that brought tears to our eyes. We would run home to our Mom and she would recite the ever popular, “Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me!” Really? Is there anyone out there who has never been hurt by words or names before? I am not sure who made that one up, but it’s the most untrue statement I have ever heard!
Words hurt. It is easy to get tossed around in your own mind by other people’s opinions of you. When I find myself struggling with whose opinion to listen to, mine or someone else’s, I always come back to one place. My heart. I filter everything I hear and experience through my heart. This is where the voice of truth echoes. Does it feel right what that other person said? If not, then what is the truth? Who am I?
Our world is based on perception and the only perception that is valid is your own. How do you see yourself? If it falls somewhere below the line of “ok,” you may need a little work on your own self image. We do not take care of what we do not value. Begin to value yourself by taking some time for yourself. What do you like to do? What or who makes you feel better? Make a list and do one thing every day for yourself. Define who you are. If you don’t, someone else will for sure do it for you. Make some space in your life for you!
So, what do you answer to?
Truly my own woman,
Chris Sopa is founder and owner of Chris Sopa International, Inc. You can learn more about her at www.ChrisSopa.com. Find her at Facebook.com/ChrisSopaInternational, Twitter @ChrisSopa, LinkedIn, and Google+.