Change of Heart: Seven Tips for Giving and Receiving More Love
Jan 24, 2019 07:05PM ● By Rosalinda Siciliano
Many of us recognize that we want more love in our lives. Our days may be full of family obligations or work responsibilities, and we often forget to check in with our own needs. Let's explore how to give and receive more love while strengthening our hearts.
In the words of 11th century Sufi mystic Al-Ghazali, “By heart I do not mean the piece of flesh situated in the left of our bodies, but that which uses all the other faculties as its instruments and servants.” The ancient Egyptians believed that the heart, rather than the brain, was the source of all human wisdom and emotions, memory, the soul and personality. Quantum physics is bearing this out too.
The heart is not just a physical organ but also a gateway to higher consciousness. Here are seven tips to strengthen and nurture your heart from world-renowned author and pioneer in practical spirituality, Elizabeth Clare Prophet.
1. Get Centered in Your Heart Daily
Many of us are so busy in our heads we’ve lost contact with our heart and the wisdom and guidance that comes from it. Take time each day to center in your heart. An easy way to get back to your heart is to simply put your hand over your heart in a way that's comfortable for you. Consciously think, feel, act and breathe through the heart. You can pretend your heart has nostrils and just breathe right through it. Let this light- and love-filled heart energy surround you as you breathe in and out of it.
2. Stretch Your Heart Muscles
Stretch your heart muscles by being a friend to someone. Begin giving more love to others. If you have someone in your life who irritates you or whom you dislike, practice being more patient with that person and find a way to be kind. Visualize this person's higher self and keep the image of love's highest concept—imagine this person as their best self. Observe the change in them when you keep this positive outlook.
3. Reflect on Yourself
If you’ve stopped extending yourself because you feel uncomfortable, realize you’ve stopped loving. Find a way to get past the point of pain. Through extending love, you stretch your heart's ability to love. Think of what you need to give up so you can love more. Could it be anger, fear, pride, selfishness or jealousy? Are you working too late? Ask yourself the simple question, “What do I need to give up to open to more love?” and listen for the answer within yourself. Write down your soul's response so you can review and remember it later.
4. Be Aware of Your Feelings
Notice when you’re in the midst of a test of love and you’re slipping out of balance. As poet Rumi writes, “Listen when your crown reminds you of what makes you cold toward others, as you pamper the greedy energy inside.”
5. Write Yourself a New Vision
Write down what your positive vision of your life would look like when sprinkled throughout with love. It’s unique to each one of us. If something has happened that isn’t in alignment with your heart, write yourself a new ending to that situation. Reread it and feel it in your heart. Let this be what you strive toward.
6. Breathe!
Slow, conscious breathing does wonders for helping you become calm and peaceful. It turns your emotional dial from upset to calm quickly. Give a simple affirmation or mantra to bring you back to your heart center. It may be as simple as repeating the word “love,” or whatever resonates with you.
7. Meditate on White Light
To enhance your spiritual protection, meditate on white light. It’s a shield of energy that comes to you from your personal God self through your higher self when you ask for it. To protect yourself from anti-love, visualize this white light as a giant tube around you while giving affirmations, such as “I am love,” “OM” or “Om mani padme hum,” to name a few.
To gain more insight into how to clear and guard the heart and increase your spiritual protection with Saint Germain's teachings, see Alchemy of the Heart, by Elizabeth Clare Prophet. It’s available at tsl.org, 1-800-245-5445 or on Amazon.com. There is a local group in Phoenix that hosts book studies on this subject. You can learn more about them at SummitLighthousePhoenix.org.
Rosalinda Siciliano, MEd, is an educator and advocate of The Teachings of the Ascended Masters and the work of Dr. Maria Montessori. Connect with her at [email protected].
