Living in Abundance

 By Donna M Thomson | Submitted On March 03, 2009

When you saw the title did you assume this article was about money? Many people associate abundance, wealth and prosperity with the financial side of life but it's much more than that. We're going to look at your own abundance, define the types of abundance and work out how you can feel more abundant across your whole life. Do you have abundance? Abundance is generally considered a positive word. In basic terms it means 'a lot of a good thing'. So do you feel you have abundance in your life? I want you to take a piece of paper and a pen right now and write down every area of your life where you feel you have abundance. Okay, now that you've done that, did you find the task easy or difficult? Those of you who found the task easier and found several areas of abundance in your life will tend to have a greater understanding of what abundance truly is. 

Perhaps you included emotions and things that make you happy as well as the concrete, material things we usually associate with abundance. For instance, you may feel you have an abundance of love or joy in your family life, or an abundance of beauty in your home because you've created the feel and comfort you desire in the place you spend much of your time. Do you have an abundance of time to do the things you enjoy or simply an abundance of happiness and contentment with your life in general? Those of you who struggled to think of where you have abundance in your life may be more disconnected with the true notion of abundance and this is quite common in our materially-focused world. Your abundance, or lack of it, comes not from your opportunities to make money but from the way you perceive abundance and the way you perceive yourself more about that further on. Perhaps you have a long list but they are all material things a great car, the latest technological gadgets, lots of money in the bank, a great house, a wardrobe full of expensive clothes, etc. So the task may have appeared easy, but your view of abundance is incomplete and may lead to discontentment in the long-term. 

Defining Abundance According to Dictionary.com, abundance relates to three areas: 1. an extremely plentiful or over sufficient quantity or supply: an abundance of grain. 2. overflowing fullness: abundance of the heart. 3. affluence; wealth: the enjoyment of abundance. Definition one relates to material abundance - when we have plenty of something such as money and possessions. This can be anything from food to an abundance of shoes in your wardrobe! Material abundance is the easiest to focus on because it's external and requires little more than acquiring 'things'. It's important to point out here that money in itself is not a negative 12/14/2020 Living in Abundance https://ezinearticles.com/?Living-in-Abundance&id=2061152 2/3 thing but tends to have many negative associations. By changing how you perceive money, and by managing it correctly and wisely, you can actually increase your financial abundance. See the section on affirmations below.

Definition two relates to emotional abundance, where your heart overflows with love, or you feel full of contentment, compassion, and so on with yourself and others. This side of abundance comes from within you and is therefore not as easy to acquire. It requires loving yourself and opening yourself up to the world because unless you can feel an abundance of love towards yourself you will find it difficult to receive an abundance of love from others. I love the third definition that points out that wealth, for example, is not a state in itself but the enjoyment of what you have. You may need to examine your mindset and redefine what 'wealth' is to you it relates not just to material abundance but to your emotional abundance as well. Recognize where in your life you already have abundance and identify what will truly make you feel you have abundance.

 Knowing when you've achieved abundance As you can see, abundance is not so much about what we've acquired as it is about a feeling of contentment, satisfaction and happiness. I believe that when we are in a true state of abundance we are keen to share that abundance with others. When we've achieved that state of 'overflow' we have enough to give to others and this can be in the form of both material and emotional contributions. However, if you feel you 'need' more or that you're still 'lacking' something, then you're not yet feeling abundant. Think about this, the same two people living within the exact same means, same house, same possessions, same career, state of health and family life can have two very different perceptions. One can feel grateful for the abundance they have and feel very satisfied with their life. While the other person can feel they are living at the bottom of their means and are not satisfied with what they have. It's all about how you choose to think. What are you going to choose? How to Achieve Abundance Now that you have a more complete view of abundance, you may be wondering exactly what you can do to recognise it and welcome it into your life.

 Here are some ideas: Honor Yourself Before anything else you need to believe that you are worthy of abundance. Begin with the list you already created and examine your beliefs about wealth, money, happiness and abundance because it's all tied together. Feeling that you don't deserve these things may be your biggest block to having positive things come into your life. The following ideas will help you work on identifying your reality and honoring yourself and your life. Gratitude Journal I suggest you start a gratitude journal. This is something that has become popular since Sarah Ban Breathnach wrote "Simple Abundance". Buy yourself a nice blank notebook and at the end of each day, write down at least three things you are grateful for (aim for 5) from your day. This will help you recognise the things in your life that are positive and will help to change your way of thinking from one of 'lacking' to one of 'abundance'. There's a lot we take for granted and focusing your attention on the tiniest of good things in your life will help you put things into perspective. Even if things seem dire at this point in time, you can choose to be grateful for the basics such as the food you have to eat, the clothes on your back and the roof over your head. 

A gratitude journal will help you focus on what you have rather than what you don't have. Affirmations Affirmations are positive statements that can help you change the way you think about something, especially yourself. Find or create some affirmations and say them to yourself several times a day, at least when you wake up and before going to bed. Place the affirmations in prominent locations so you are reminded to read them and try to really feel them. By phrasing them in the present ("I am..." or "I have..."), you allow your mind to connect with the statement and implement it, whereas creating a phrase that is in the future ("I will..." or "I want to...") tells your mind that it's only a possibility. Here are some examples of positive affirmations relating to abundance: "I allow abundance to flow through me." "I am prosperous." "I am physically, emotionally and spiritually wealthy." "My life is filled with positive abundance. All of my needs are met and more." "I am open and receptive to all the good and abundance in the universe." "I always find an abundance of things to love about my life, myself, and all those around me." Be of Service 12/14/2020 Living in Abundance https://ezinearticles.com/?Living-in-Abundance&id=2061152 3/3 Look at the world, your local community and your neighbors. What do they need that you can give?

 Even if it's something small, knowing that you can help others can put things into perspective and make you realise what's most important to you. You could volunteer your time in the children's ward at your local hospital, visit with the elderly in nursing homes and listen to their stories, make a meal for your sick neighbor, donate a few dollars a week or month to causes close to your heart and so on. This act works on the universal law that what you send out comes back to you. Give of yourself and the world will give back to you. There is no reason that you should not have abundance flow to you. The universe is waiting for you to allow it to give to you, so open up your mind and heart and see what can happen! Donna is a natural psychic, channel and healer with a special interest in helping people heal from the inside out and to be empowered in the process. She is co-owner of Peaceful Willow [http://www.peacefulwillow.com], offering her expertise in many forms including writing courses, articles and answering readers' questions. Donna's areas of expertise include crystals, color, energy healing (including Reiki) and other self-healing and empowerment topics. Donna is Learning Coordinator for Peaceful Willow's Learning Center and is the author of a series of courses on crystals, including 'Introduction to Crystals', 'Understanding Crystals' and 'Crystal Intuition'. 

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