Couple of great articles from halfway around the world. Enjoy and have a great Sunday!

Source  The Times of India for both articles

"MIND SET: THINK ABOUT IT

"Thoughts are things. You have probably heard this idea at one time or another. You have probably nodded your head in agreement understanding that thoughts are in fact, things. You probably believe this and accept that your thoughts, being things, do in fact have power.

Have you really thought about this? Do you apply this to your day-to-day life? Hopefully you do, because your every thought and word is contributing to your life experience.

For openers, your thoughts produce your emotions, which, in turn, result in how you feel about a particular event occurring in your life.

It has always amazed me how people can walk around feeling a particular way and not understand that it is their own thoughts, or more accurately what they are telling themselves that is producing the feeling in the first place.

This is why two people can look at the exact same event and have opposite feelings about it. You are creating your own reality, moment by moment, with the thoughts you choose to think and what you say, both to yourself and others. Let us explore this a little further.

Most people will agree, and science can demonstrate, that everything in our world is a field of energy and therefore has a particular frequency. The chair you are sitting on, your car, your cat, dog, you and everything else including thoughts, have a field of energy or vibration. "

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/SUNDAY_SPECIALS/Mind_Over_Matter/MIND_SET_THINK_ABOUT_IT/articleshow/msid-576729,curpg-1.cms
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"Thank God for what you have

Has this ever happened to you? You pick up a book and a sentence leaps off the page as if it had been written just for you. Or you hear a revelation in the lyrics of a song. Sometimes an angel seems to whisper in your ear.

One ordinary morning I realised I was emotionally and physically exhausted from concentrating on things I wanted to buy but couldn't afford. I felt trapped in a vicious circle. The more I focused on lack and on what I couldn't have, the more depressed i became. The more depressed I became the more I focused on lack. My soul whispered that what I really yearned for was not financial security but financial serenity. I was still - quiet enough to listen. At that moment I acknowledged the deep longing in my heart. What I hungered for was an inner peace that the world could not take away. I asked for help and committed to following wheresoever Spirit would lead me. For the first time in my life i discarded my five-year goals and became a sojourner.

When I surrendered my desire for security and sought serenity instead, I looked at my life with open eyes. I saw that I had much for which to be grateful. I felt humbled by my riches and regretted that I look for granted the abundance that already existed in my life. How could I expect more from the Universe when I didn't appreciate what I already had? Immediately I made an inventory of my life's assets: my health, a wonderful husband, a beautiful and happy daughter, their health, our home and three precious pets who daily bring me faithful companionship and great joy. There's always plenty of good food on the table and wine in the pantry. We are also blessed with many wonderful friends who care deeply about us and share in our lives.

Once I started, my list grew. I loved my work; it was being sent out into the world and had been well received. What you give to the world will be returned to you. When I looked at my life's ledger I realised I was a very rich woman. What I was experiencing was merely a temporary cash-flow problem. Finally, I came to an inner awareness that my personal net worth couldn't possibly be determined by the size of my checking account balance. Neither can yours.

It doesn't matter how awareness arrives. What matters is that it comes. My heart began to overflow with gratefulness. I started giving thanks for everything: daisies in a jelly jar on my kitchen windowsill, the sweet fragrance of my daughter's hair, the first sip of tea in the morning and hearing the words "I love you" before I went to sleep. Each day began to offer me authentic moments of pleasure and contentment. But hadn't they before? The difference was that I was now noticing and appreciating each day's gifts. The power of gratefulness caught me by surprise.

All I ask you to do today is to open "the eyes of your eyes" and give your life another glance. Are your basic needs met? Do you have a home? Food on the table? Clothes to wear? Is there a regular paycheck coming in? Do you have dreams? Do you have your health? Can you walk, talk, see the beauty that surrounds you, listen to music that stirs your soul or makes your feet want to boogie? Do you have family and friends whom you love and who love you? Then pause for a moment and give thanks. "

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Lifestyle/Spirituality/Mind_over_Matter/Thank_God_for_what_you_have/articleshow/2948028.cms