Affirmations are widely used but often misunderstood. So many people think that all they need to do is say positive things (that they don’t believe) to themselves and it will somehow magically fix their life. When it doesn’t, they decide affirmations don’t work at all. That is like getting in a car to drive to the store, key in hand, but getting out, disgusted, when the car doesn’t start and you never got to your destination. So let me share a few important aspects that will make this powerful tool work for you.
Charles Filmore, who co-founded the Unity movement with his wife Myrtle, said,
“We grow to be like that which we idealize. Affirming or naming a mighty spiritual
principle identifies the mind with the principle; then all that principle stands for in
the realm of ideas is poured out upon the one who affirms.” -- The Twelve Powers
of Man, p. 38.
what do you want to embody?
What great spiritual principles do you want to embody? Tolerance? Compassion?Confidence? Optimism? Abundance in all areas of your life? The early Christian apostle Paul said that we should think on the principles that are noble, pure, lovely and admirable. Many times when a person is designing an affirmation for themselves, they do so to address a problem, and identify the problem in the affirmation. The teaching of the Unity movement is to state the problem, only once, followed by affirming what you want.
It needs to be stated positively. If you are in pain, and your affirmation is “I am pain-free,” you just brought pain to your awareness. Likewise, avoid using the word “not” in your affirmation. Your subconscious doesn’t hear the negative. “I don’t have pain” is heard as “I have pain.” The challenge is to put it in positive terms.
Describe it
If you WERE pain-free, how would you move? What would you be doing? Describe that. “I comfortably walk around the block, breathing easily as I do so” is a much more effective affirmation. It fixes your mind on what you WANT.
Words are powerful, but we tend to think in images and story. Pair the affirmation with an image of what you want. It there is a story the image is embedded in, all the better. Then, infuse the image and affirmation with feeling, Otherwise, the words ring hollow on your subconscious.
If you are upset that women no longer have full autonomy over their bodies in every state, it is easy to focus on the problem. However, we get more of whatever we are focusing on. Instead, focus on what you want. What would be like if every woman (every person) had full autonomy of their bodies? What would it look like? What conversations might you overhear—or engage it?
“Imagine a scenario that is symbolic of what that would look like.”
Imagine a scenario that is symbolic of what that would look like. Maybe you imagine a woman talking to another person, saying that she tested positive, she is pregnant and she has made a decision. In the scenario it doesn’t even matter what the decision is, just that she has the ability to make the decision. In order to support the creation of that reality, you might use the affirmation, “I am wise enough to know what the next action
is mine to take to create a world in which all people have autonomy over their bodies.”
If there is conflict at work, tell yourself, “I feel motivated to go to work and do my best.” If you aren’t sure how to pay your bills, affirm “I live in an abundant universe.”
Many affirmations start with the words “I AM.” This is in reference to God’s response to Moses when Moses asked who he should tell Pharaoh was sending him. God replied “I AM” or “I am who I am.” (Exodus 3:14) To use this term is to identify with one’s divine nature, that we are created in the image and likeness of God, so if God has any particular spiritual trait, so do we. Reminding us of that connection to God can make the affirmation much more powerful.
imprint spiritual principles
Affirmations aren’t aimed at changing God. They are used to change our minds, to imprint spiritual principles we can use to change the energy we bring to our situation. Once we’ve changed our thinking/energy, it is time to act. As powerful as affirmations are, they aren’t magic.
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