Book Excerpt: May Cause Miracles by Gabrielle Bernstein
PAGE 4
The Forty-Day Miracle Worker Commitment
Like any effective practice, true transformation occurs with daily repetition. Begin with a forty-day commitment and start experiencing positive results immediately. Why forty days? Metaphysicians and yogis place much emphasis on the repetition of a forty-day practice. Mythical examples range from Moses's forty days and forty nights spent on Mount Sinai to the story of the Buddha reaching enlightenment on the full moon in May after meditating and fasting under the bodhi tree for forty days. The number has scientific significance, too: research has shown that after repeating a new pattern for forty days, you can change the neural pathways in your brain to create long-lasting change. So let's take a cue from the mystics and scientists and commit to this forty-day fear cleanse. (Because this practice takes place over six weeks, you'll actually have forty two days for the fear cleanse, an extra two days to practice our miracle work!) It’s the simple, consistent shifts that count when you’re making change—so I've outlined this journey to be fun and achievable. I will guide you to keep it uncomplicated and stay on track. And one day at a time you’ll become a miracle worker.
By choosing to follow this plan for the next six weeks, you'll begin to reprogram your thoughts from fear to love. If you dig the results, stick to the path and commit to a life as a miracle worker.
This book is divided into six chapters, one for each week. The weekly chapters contain exercises for each day of the week to transform your thoughts back to love. Each week focuses on a different area of your life:
• Week One. This week guides you to identify how fear has tripped you up and blocked your life's flow. I'll lay the groundwork and guide you to embrace the key principles: witnessing your fear, willingness to change, shifts in perception, gratitude, forgiveness, expecting miracles, and reflecting and recapping.
• Week Two. This week is all about the importance of self-love. You'll be guided to strengthen your relationship with yourself, and you'll become willing to release old patterns of self- attack. Self- love is super crucial to the miracle-worker practice.
• Week Three. I'll give you practical exercises that shift your patterns of self-sabotage when it comes to food and your body. I will guide you to identify the root cause of your food and body issues and begin to shine light on any darkness in this area of your life. You'll quickly come to realize that ingesting loving thoughts greatly enhances how you ingest your food and perceive your body.
•Week Four. Romance is in the air! I'll help you get honest about how fear has held you back from romantic bliss. This week incorporates many of the Course’s rockin' teachings for releasing fear in romance. These powerful tools will lead you to experience immediate internal shifts around romance, whether you’re single or attached.
• Week Five. I'll guide you to focus on how fear has blocked your financial abundance. This week’s exercises activate gratitude for your current workplace, help you address your financial fears, and guide you to shift your limiting belief system around money and work. This week is applicable to any type of work, whether you’re a freelancer, a stay-at-home mom, a philanthropist, a banker, a salesperson, and so on. Just apply the principles to whatever work you do.
• Week Six. You'll learn to embrace the practice of being a miracle worker in the world. This week helps you shift your focus from yourself to your power to create energetic change in the world around you. Service is a key principle in A Course in Miracles and is strongly emphasized this week. You'll come to realize that serving the world is like serving yourself a big, heaping plate of love. When you focus your thoughts and energy lovingly on others, your heart opens and your true purpose shines bright.
Each week builds upon the next, layering exercises and strengthening your mental muscles as you embrace the miracles. Each day incorporates the same outline to create repetition within your daily routine and in your mind. As you repeat these practices, they'll become easier and easier until they become second nature. Though you may experience some bumps along the way, making the shift can be easy if you want it. When you're willing to change, you're given all the energy and support you need to move forward. Commit to each exercise and expect miracles!
Like any effective practice, true transformation occurs with daily repetition. Begin with a forty-day commitment and start experiencing positive results immediately. Why forty days? Metaphysicians and yogis place much emphasis on the repetition of a forty-day practice. Mythical examples range from Moses's forty days and forty nights spent on Mount Sinai to the story of the Buddha reaching enlightenment on the full moon in May after meditating and fasting under the bodhi tree for forty days. The number has scientific significance, too: research has shown that after repeating a new pattern for forty days, you can change the neural pathways in your brain to create long-lasting change. So let's take a cue from the mystics and scientists and commit to this forty-day fear cleanse. (Because this practice takes place over six weeks, you'll actually have forty two days for the fear cleanse, an extra two days to practice our miracle work!) It’s the simple, consistent shifts that count when you’re making change—so I've outlined this journey to be fun and achievable. I will guide you to keep it uncomplicated and stay on track. And one day at a time you’ll become a miracle worker.
By choosing to follow this plan for the next six weeks, you'll begin to reprogram your thoughts from fear to love. If you dig the results, stick to the path and commit to a life as a miracle worker.
This book is divided into six chapters, one for each week. The weekly chapters contain exercises for each day of the week to transform your thoughts back to love. Each week focuses on a different area of your life:
• Week One. This week guides you to identify how fear has tripped you up and blocked your life's flow. I'll lay the groundwork and guide you to embrace the key principles: witnessing your fear, willingness to change, shifts in perception, gratitude, forgiveness, expecting miracles, and reflecting and recapping.
• Week Two. This week is all about the importance of self-love. You'll be guided to strengthen your relationship with yourself, and you'll become willing to release old patterns of self- attack. Self- love is super crucial to the miracle-worker practice.
• Week Three. I'll give you practical exercises that shift your patterns of self-sabotage when it comes to food and your body. I will guide you to identify the root cause of your food and body issues and begin to shine light on any darkness in this area of your life. You'll quickly come to realize that ingesting loving thoughts greatly enhances how you ingest your food and perceive your body.
•Week Four. Romance is in the air! I'll help you get honest about how fear has held you back from romantic bliss. This week incorporates many of the Course’s rockin' teachings for releasing fear in romance. These powerful tools will lead you to experience immediate internal shifts around romance, whether you’re single or attached.
• Week Five. I'll guide you to focus on how fear has blocked your financial abundance. This week’s exercises activate gratitude for your current workplace, help you address your financial fears, and guide you to shift your limiting belief system around money and work. This week is applicable to any type of work, whether you’re a freelancer, a stay-at-home mom, a philanthropist, a banker, a salesperson, and so on. Just apply the principles to whatever work you do.
• Week Six. You'll learn to embrace the practice of being a miracle worker in the world. This week helps you shift your focus from yourself to your power to create energetic change in the world around you. Service is a key principle in A Course in Miracles and is strongly emphasized this week. You'll come to realize that serving the world is like serving yourself a big, heaping plate of love. When you focus your thoughts and energy lovingly on others, your heart opens and your true purpose shines bright.
Each week builds upon the next, layering exercises and strengthening your mental muscles as you embrace the miracles. Each day incorporates the same outline to create repetition within your daily routine and in your mind. As you repeat these practices, they'll become easier and easier until they become second nature. Though you may experience some bumps along the way, making the shift can be easy if you want it. When you're willing to change, you're given all the energy and support you need to move forward. Commit to each exercise and expect miracles!
