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| August, 2006 | ||
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When I first read Finding Your Own Spiritual Path, the subtitle of Janell Moon’s adventurous journey into new avenues of prayer, my skeptical side was aroused. Was this possible? Could we be so bold as to move away from prescribed paths of prayer that have been laid down to us for millennia? Find our own path? The author would seem to think so (and I came to agree). Because, as she writes, “We’re not necessarily asking of some force out there, we just turn to prayer to help us get quiet enough to hear our own spirit’s answer.” If this is not a “religious” book in the narrowest meaning of the term, it is certainly a spiritual one. Moon asks us to address in prayer our own inner wisdom—our spiritual self—for answers. After an appealing introduction, in which the author lays out the groundwork of her book and reasons for writing it, she proceeds to outline four types of prayer, with many examples of each: prayers of wonder, prayers of possibility, prayers for living your dreams, and “tipping the balance.” Although Moon would appear to address much of the book to women readers rather than to men, it is written with an honest, forthright spirit that should appeal to people of either gender. The author is a teacher and psychologist with two earlier books to her credit. I have every reason to believe this last one might be her best. —Cliff Johnson | |
For many people, paying bills is a stressful chore done under duress. In response to the anxiety and depression that can come with personal money management, Janet Carol Ryan has created the Abundant Blessings CD of meditations and affirmations for conscious money circulation. It is a popular belief that the amount of prosperity we have, like happiness, is a result of our own individual consciousness as it relates to expectation and our connection to our divine source. Ryan believes, “We can consciously choose thoughts, beliefs, and actions that cultivate abundance.” Included in those actions is the practice of gratitude for what we already have. Approximately thirty minutes in length, the CD includes an introduction, meditation, and affirmations with musical accompaniment. Ryan is the narrator. She has paired her pleasant voice with background music, and also uses the angelic singing of inspirational vocalist Karen Drucker, which makes for a relaxing, meditative experience. While spiritual in tone, the meditation and affirmations are not faith specific, for example, “My source is unlimited,” and “I am a center of divine circulation.” Ryan explains the CD’s purpose and benefits, “Abundant Blessings is truly a new ‘sound-track’ for transforming bill paying into a spiritual practice of circulating money with gratitude and joy.” The process is simple. Listen to the meditation first, then let the affirmations play while you write your checks; by making it a part of the bill-paying process, what was once a stressful routine is replaced with ease and relaxation. Ryan also suggests that the program can be listened to whenever we want to expand our prosperity consciousness and gratitude for money. —Yolanda Porter | ||
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