STWDM 14 - Many Breakthroughs, One Victory

Day 14 Message:  Breakthrough is guaranteed, if there is enough light. - Sunday Adelaja

You make a breakthrough every time you break out of a habitual response. Habit may veil our awareness, but awareness has the real power. At any given moment, if you notice how you really feel and what you really want, old habits begin to dissolve. People can break as many habits as they want by giving themselves freedom of choice.  Celebrate every breakthrough the minute it occurs, but know that in reality there is only one victory: the victory of awareness.

O:  Every time you make a choice to confront old or negative habits and beliefs, you’re making a breakthrough.  As you elevate your awareness through meditation, you begin to welcome the freedom that comes with choices.  When you make choices based on a fully aware presence, you gain ultimate power and freedom.  So far, we have learned so much about rebalancing, attitudes, beliefs and habits that hold us back.  As we deepen our connection to pure awareness, our ability to create breakthroughs will continue to grow.  At any given moment, if you notice how you really feel and what you really want, you start to dissolve old habits and create new possibilities.  Make a new choice and set your next best step.  You create many breakthroughs but the most important victory is your connection to awareness – right now – in this moment.  And that connection can be transformative.

D: Habits are hard to break for several reasons.  We are accustomed to them.  We’ve had years of repeating what they tell us to do.  The power of a habit  sometimes goes so deep that we forget the most important thing about them.  They were made by us and therefore we always have the power to break them.  The best way to regain your power is to take small steps.  You make a breakthroughs every time you choose the response you want to have instead of letting the habit choose for you.  This is true whether your habit has to do with overeating, responding with anger to the same situations, or feeling anxious about a challenge before you’ve tested it to see if you can overcome it.  All habits do the  same things – they rob us of awareness but awareness has all the real power.  At any given moment if you notice how you are acting, old habits begin to dissolve.

Here is an exercise to become more conscious.  Think about a period of time during your day when you are most susceptible to unwanted habits, perhaps midmorning.  Now narrate your behavior as if describing a character in a play, for instance, Janet is sitting at the computer.  Now she is walking towards the break room.  Janet’s hand reaches out for a donut.  In this little narration,  you’ve done nothing but notice what you’re doing in a simple but mindful way.  Often seeing yourself from the outside will lead to an instant breakthrough.  The next part of the story could be Janet realizes she’s not even hungry so she puts the donut back without eating it.  Once you start making small breakthroughs, celebrate them just briefly by giving yourself a silent pat on the back.  Realizing what you’ve achieved is  important as part of reprogramming your brain responses.   With every breakthrough you are giving yourself freedom of choice instead of acting on unconscious habit.   Find pleasure in every breakthrough the moment it occurs but in reality there is only one victory.  The victory of consciousness.  You are discovering an age-old secret.  With expanded consciousness comes the higher freedom – the freedom to be your true unbounded self.

Journal Ideas:  1)  Pick one habit you’d like to break. Describe any instances in which you gave in to the habit over the past week. How did these moments make you feel?  2)  Now, write down the response you’d like to have instead. 3)  Identify actionable steps you can take to promote the response you want to have. For example, you might carry around a reminder in your wallet that says, “If I don’t indulge, I feel much better.”