No Less than Greatness
Introduction
Learning to live in love is my life’s greatest lesson, and my daily life is the curriculum.
My relationship with a Higher Power lies at the core of my ability to truly find and live in love.
I have the opportunity for a life of greatness and the people in my life are gifts to help me achieve my purpose.
I find perfect love in imperfect relationships.
I am a child of God and there is nothing beyond my capacity to create.
Chapter 1
I am a unique expression of the Creator with a specific purpose – to give my gift of love to the world. When I align with my true self and reach out in loving ways, I am fulfilling my individual destiny.
My true identity is as a child of God. Why should I try to be anyone else?
Being my real self begins with my thinking. There’s no greater investment I can make with my thinking than remembering my heritage.
With God, I am enough.
Chapter 2
When I remember that I am not alone, I tap into my capacity to triumph over circumstances that would keep me down.
God seeded greatness in me; I nourish it by my attention and cooperation.
When I am in difficulty I say: I am more than this hurt. Who I am is greater than the problem before me, because I am never alone. God, my Higher Power, is only a thought away.
When I am consciously connected to God I know that I am more than enough.
I am not meant to live my life outside of God’s love.
As I become aware of my divine heritage, I increasingly feel the Presence of God in my life.
Where I am, God is, and I am never alone.
It is never too late to be who I might have been.
Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on me, that I should be called a child of God!
Chapter 3
If I want to experience love, I’ve got to open up.
There is nothing I can hide from God. My Creator already knows everything about me and loves me.
As I remember that I am loved absolutely, I lose the urge to hide.
God’s love for me is not based on appearance or performance. God’s love is unconditional.
Chapter 4
I let the events of my life be what they are without coloring them with my negative beliefs. The “facts of my life" carry only the meaning I attach to them.
I assume people’s best intentions rather than their worst. I avoid jumping to conclusions about myself and how others see me.
When I am loving and happy within myself, I attract others to me.
I think “God thoughts” to replace the filters that dim my beliefs. God
thoughts allow me to lift my own thoughts to meet those of God’s.
I choose to believe the best.
When I see myself as God sees me, I come to know that I am loved.
Chapter 5
I direct my creativity into building better relationships. I have the power to make my relationships great.
I create what I focus on. I choose to focus on the good in others.
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
Aristotle
I ask myself if I want to be right, or to have a better relationship with my loved ones. I choose to live in peace rather than be right.
I design my relationships as a co-creator with God.
In order to change unhealthy relationships, I need to first notice where I am drifting. I develop new patterns that help me create the relationships I truly want.
God offers the experience of greatness through my relationships.
Chapter 6
I first make a mental picture of my improved relationships. I turn my attention, energy, and enthusiasm to the experience I desire to bring into being.
I step into my new picture and act as I imagine my ideal life to be. With God’s help, I have the power to bring my new picture to life.
God has a great plan for me to live in love.
I no longer focus on flaws and loneliness. Instead, I use my
creative power to mentally illustrate what I truly want in relationships.
Chapter 7
To use all my resources, I ask God for help. God answers all my prayers, but not always in the way I expect. I receive the answers I need when I am connected to my source.
I focus on a willingness to develop a relationship with God; God does the rest.
Everywhere I see life is evidence of God’s presence.
My longing for God may get covered or disguised, but it never goes away. And neither does God’s longing for me.
My only real problem is disconnection from God. I practice thinking in a way that God is never absent from my thoughts. The greatest commitment move I can make is choosing to stay connected to God.
I step out in faith, knowing that God is my constant partner.
Every day I ask God, “What would you have me do today?” Then I listen for an impulse, idea or directive.
I look for opportunities for God to show up and see God in every person I encounter.
Instead of asking that someone else or my circumstances be changed, I ask that I be
changed. “God, help me to see this differently.” I am willing to try on a new way of seeing.
Chapter 8
I establish a pattern of awareness, so that I may be open to God’s direction for my life.
I listen to my intuition – God’s interruption – so that I don’t miss the really big things in life; I allow for a change in plans.
My spiritual practice is remembering God all day long; when I am in contact, I can feel the nudges, I allow the interruptions.
“God, I want to be present to You today. I want to do my part. I promise to attend to any nudge I feel from You today. I know You are with me, always, and for that I am grateful.”
At the end of the day I pray, “Thank you for this day. Speak to me in my dreams. I’m available and receptive.”
God speaks to me in powerful ways when I pay attention.
Chapter 9
I unify my thinking with the creative source of all that is good.
God is Spirit, and I worship in Spirit and in Truth. I lift myself up to a high level of consciousness to connect with the all-sufficient life, substance and intelligence of God.
In prayer I open my life that I may receive what God has always been trying to give me.
When I ask God for help, I claim my inheritance as a spiritual being. I believe I already have it.
Like Jesus, I claim my truth with strong I AM affirmations. I am the light of the world.
Father, I am your child. I affirm my unity with You. I acknowledge your kingdom within me which is whole and perfect, as is your nature. You are my supply at all times. You remind me to be forgiving and intent on staying in the light.
I am now conscious of the infinite and eternal presence in whom I live and by which I think and create.
Your presence within me is whole and complete; you are my health, intelligence, substance and love.
I am your glorious possibility. I let your perfect idea of me unfold in and through me. I have no existence outside of you and can never be separated from you.
Chapter 10
I lay up treasures in heaven, for where my treasure is, there will my heart be also. I have a mental bank account of faith, building an awareness of the opulent substance of Spirit. This consciousness attracts goodness to me.
God is the source of my supply; material substance flows through me and to me.
My thoughts are property attuned to the Infinite Mind. I trust in God in all transactions and experiences.
I salute the divinity in every person, even those who are unloving and unjust. When I see the goodness is all people, I see with a single eye and draw goodness from them.
I am established with spiritual unity with God and with all people. I express the divinity in me and I salute the divinity in everyone I meet.
I am a spiritual being, living life from within out. I relax and let go and let life fulfill itself in me.
I refrain from worrying and let every day take care of itself. It is my privilege to uncover my good one day at a time. Life is eternal and I am alive in eternity now.
Chapter 11
I pray believing that help and healing are already mine because of my unity with God. I find abundant life here and now.
When I enter into the Spirit, I am free from bondage to the flesh, my debt is canceled and I begin to know and experience life and wholeness.
I look at my own limitations and correct them, rather than trying to correct others. I release my need to change others.
As I become more loving and understanding, my brother’s imperfections become irrelevant.
I am God’s child and it is right for me to have love, companionship and fulfillment. I claim it, I give thanks for it.
I release the creative potential in me and find the opportunities to fulfill it. I draw to me the right and perfect place where I can fulfill all my needs. I release and fulfill the divine energy within me.
I build my life upon principles that are impervious to change and challenge. I give expression to the Truth that is within me.
Chapter 12
I avoid darkness of self-limitation by turning on the light of Spirit.
Like the prodigal son, I realize that my separation is unnecessary and I return to the Father.
God is love even though I am angry and bitter. As I release my bitterness, rise above my guilt and stop feeling sorry for myself, in that moment, “God is love” sweeps through me and loves me.
As the prodigal son decided to arise and go to his father, I rise out of my limited consciousness and accept the truth of my sonship. I am instantly received by the Father.
I let the flood of life and inspiration and intelligence fill me and thrill me – and I am transformed. I am forgiven because I have forgiven myself.
If I want forgiveness, I must express forgiveness. I find release from guilt through forgiveness.
As I express more love and understanding, I release the positive power of the Spirit that cleanses me.
I forgive and love my enemies not for their sake, but for my own. I let go of judgment and bring myself into a state of accepting what is.
As I turn to God, the wisdom, love, life and peace of God showers me with the blessings of His presence.
Chapter 13
I have a human side of me that is not too confident, but I have divine side in me that knows what to do.
I long for intimacy but make new choices that make distances disappear. I have the capacity to choose a better way.
In deciding how to respond I ask, “God, what would love do here?”
I make a choice to do what is required to live in love right now.
Today, with God’s help, I release bitterness, resentment and the need to control.
Today, with God’s help, I choose intimacy over distance.
Chapter 14
In my relationships, something deeper grows in me when I ignite a spark that has grown dim.
I see my loved ones as fluid, changing individuals instead of the roles I associate with them.
I want to keep discovering new things about my loved ones and communicate with them in deeper, more meaningful ways.
God gives me enough natural curiosity to last a lifetime.
I accept the feelings others have as their own; they are not debatable. I accept my own feelings as well.
I express my feelings and my needs so that others don’t have to guess.
I choose carefully with whom I want to share my deepest feelings and when. When I open up, I speak from the heart.
Chapter 15
I value my intimate relationships and tell those people in my life how much I care.
I say the words that my loved ones need most to hear – how much I love them.
My word is my wand. It is a tool of magic that I can wave to wither a relationship or use to develop and declare my love. Every day I put love first.
I instill in my children these three messages:
* I love you, no matter what.
* Everybody makes mistakes.
* There is no mistake too big to deal with, if we face it together.
Chapter 16
I live my truth through my relationships. I practice rigorous honesty with myself, God and others.
God has something greater in store for each of us, and I stop holding back and start participating.
When I am hurt or have a misunderstanding with someone, I ask what I could have done differently. I take responsibility for my own choices.
When I ask God, “What is the truth here?” the answer may not always please me, but it always leads me to a state where I can live in love.
The voice for God is as loud as my willingness to learn. (from Course in Miracles)
Chapter 17
In dealing with difficult people in my life I pray, “God, lead me in how to love this person.”
I embrace differences, not just tolerate them.
I create a template for my own children through the example I set in how I think of, speak about and treat my own parents.
Forgiving and loving my parents has the potential to transform my life. I can find the hand of God in our differences.
My parents did the best they knew how. I choose to focus on and be
grateful for the gifts I did receive.
Chapter 18
I don’t need to be right. Practicing perfect love is what I aim for.
Difficult people give me the opportunity to grow spiritually. When challenged I can react to the moment or find and draw from the
Divine presence within me. I choose the latter.
I practice coping with difficult people in loving ways until it become easy. I partner with God to be better every day.
If I am not at peace, I must have chosen wrongly. I choose again to see things differently.
I learn to respond with compassion instead of self-defense.
There is no place where God is not. I find God even in the faces of difficult people.
Chapter 19
The people who have hurt me offer me a great gift; I open my heart at the moment my instincts tell me to shut down, and through
betrayal I find entrance into everlasting unconditional love.
When I ask myself what I want most, it isn’t vengeance, but love.
Love is more powerful than fear, retribution or hurt.
Though I could stand for hurt and vengeance, I choose to stand for something greater – that which gives me life. I stand for love.
Chapter 20
It is never too late to begin anew. My first step toward resurrection is acknowledging that I have forgiveness work to do.
To forgive, I make a shift through Holy Spirit. I need to change my awareness to the way God sees that person.
When I seek help from God to forgive someone who has wronged me, that person doesn’t change; I do.
I am willing to release my judgment and pain and draw love to me.
When the situation looks hopeless, I remember that God’s power is greater than this.
I follow the steps to resurrection:
Acknowledge: I have forgiveness work to do.
Realize: I can’t do it alone.
Affirm: I desire a shift.
Pray: God, help me let go.
Request: Let me forgive myself.
Chapter 21
I accept others as they are and appreciate the qualities that make
each of us unique.
Jesus said, “You are the light of the world.” No one was excluded. I
let my light shine.
Chapter 22
I ask what is holding me back and where I have my foot on the brake. I restore my connection to the power within me.
I harness this power of God and move ahead, even in the midst of fear or pain.
By practicing perfect loving in imperfect relationships, I find my way back to love.
God’s power in my life is limited only by my unwillingness to receive it.
Chapter 23
I no longer focus on what is missing in my life, but on what is good.
With God as my constant companion, I am never alone.
No longer holding back, I give myself permission to have it all. I celebrate life NOW!
I make a commitment to loving, and find it in each person I encounter.
Chapter 24
When my relationships are not everything I would like them to be, I act as if they were and find improvements little by little. The IF becomes my reality.
Since the world lives up to my beliefs and expectations, I expect only good.
No one can steal my God-given freedom to respond. I respond only with love, joy and compassion.
My relationships are as full as the joy I breathe into them.
Chapter 25
I don’t have to wait for certain calendar dates; I incorporate rites of loving into my relationships at any time. I ask, “What can I do today for the ones I love?”
My spiritual practice includes demonstrating my love through acts of devotion.
Every day brings me a fresh opportunity to demonstrate love. What I do today creates a beautiful memory for someone else.
When I perform a loving ritual, I am deepening my relationship to God, the source of all love.
