Stop Hoping, Start Knowing: Your Life Is What You Intend

Do you know the difference between hoping and knowing? Hoping has you wanting a new outcome—knowing has you living it. Hoping comes with skepticism—knowing stems from conscious intention. Whatever you call that Higher Being in your life, it is always delivering according to the strength and clarity of your loudest intention. Not your hopes or dreams. Your intentions. The loudest one.

If you want to know what you have intended, look around. Your life is the perfect reflection of your thoughts, words, and actions. In fact, every experience—good or bad—you have directed by the energy of your intentions. If you do not like what you see, the good news is that you can change it.

I know this firsthand. For years I had hoped for a child. But inside, I was torn. The truth was that I did not think I would be a good mother. I loved my freedom without children. I feared going through a painful delivery. Most days, the tug of war inside was enough to cripple any hopes for a child. My loudest intention was not to become pregnant—it was to avoid my fears.

So the Universe obliged, as it always does, without judgment.

Any time we live in fear and worry, we are doomed. That is because what we focus on, we become. Worrying is like praying for the outcome we do not want.

If your ego is saying that this sounds too simple to be true, I understand. It took me years to accept that no thought is idle. Every thought is charged with emotion, and that emotion sends a message into the world, which then reflects back to us an experience of similar vibration. We react to that experience, sending out more emotionally charged energy, which then attracts more experiences with similar qualities. And the cycle escalates.

Just as I was getting tired of my own merry-go-round, I got a sense for how powerful my word was. If I could use it to attract things I did not want, surely I could put it to better use.

So the experiment began. As I noticed low-energy thoughts, I would say “how interesting” and choose something more vibrant. If my ego would not allow this shift, I would lovingly set her aside, saying, “Don’t worry. I won’t abandon you, but we’re bigger than this thought. How about something more inspiring?”

At first it was embarrassing to see many of my thoughts laced with guilt, resentment, or anger—all feelings that keep us small. But judging ourselves is never the answer. Loving is.

Changing my thoughts meant changing my life. Toxic relationships had to go. I stopped gossiping about others as seemingly “innocent” gossip was not about high-energy feelings. My work needed to speak to my soul’s desire. My health needed my loving attention.

Each morning I would ask, “What magnificence can I partake in today?” Never mind all my tasks. First, I wanted to frame my day with brilliant intentions for health, love, and abundance.

Before bed, I would ask God to address a few things while I slept. Perhaps I was stuck in my writing or desired a new melody for my song. No sense worrying. It would be taken care of while my body and soul rejuvenated.

I began to notice a shift in my awareness. No longer could I relate to people who complained. I saw beauty in the simplest things. Nature became my art gallery. Money started flowing my way. Possibilities replaced problems. And the messages came.

The Universe is continuously sending us messages. Most times, we are not paying enough attention. I finally tuned in when an article in an old magazine of my mother’s caught my eye. Entitled “Dust Off Your Dreams,” it spoke of a man rekindling his passion for writing after 20 years of being lured away by positions touting financial security and prestige. That article was written for me. Next I stumbled across the perfect book, which guided me in examining my fears surrounding parenting. Then I met a dear friend whose journey paralleled mine, and we helped move mountains in each other’s lives. The more I noticed and gave thanks for these messages, the more I received. I began trusting this brilliant process.

Honestly, I did not always like what came my way, but I would stop and say, “It is no mistake that I’m being given this experience. What am I putting out there to attract this?” Nobody does life to us. We direct our life stories, and then people show up for the scenes we want played out. There is great personal power in realizing why the plot unfolds as it does.

Soon it became obvious that my infertility was no accident. Rather, it reflected deeply rooted beliefs about my femininity. At a very early age I had rejected my beauty and my natural maternal instinct, and so my body protected me from my fears. Discovering this, I began showering myself with love. I revisited each childhood memory and comforted the little girl who still held on to painful experiences. Through journal writing I forgave people who had hurt me. They did not even need to know. Forgiveness was about me releasing them with love. And I began to set the scene for a new life that was not anchored to the past. What are my passions? Who do I dream of being? What do I want to leave as my legacy? These are delicious questions to contemplate.

Living our dreams is declaring what we are about before the evidence arrives. Often we let our circumstances determine who we are. I relied on my bank account to decide my wealth, medical test results to dictate my health, and broken relationships to determine my worthiness. Yet these results were all in the past. They speak nothing of what is possible going forward.

If I was to attract a child, I had to be a mother. I started buying parenting magazines. I read about hypno-birthing and midwives. I even envisioned telling my husband we were pregnant.

Imagine my surprise in the spring of 2005, when a pregnancy test came back positive. Even a miscarriage a few weeks later could not dampen my spirits. Through releasing beliefs that no longer served me, I had achieved what medical doctors for 10 years said was almost impossible given my medical condition.
Three months later, to my sheer delight, we received a call that we had been chosen as adoptive parents. I did not believe in miracles until Baby Hanna arrived. Now I know that anything is possible. What we seek is truly seeking us, if we allow it to. Often we think we know how life should turn out. Chances are that we cannot begin to imagine the amazing possibilities that await. Decide the qualities in life you desire. Take action and release what stands in your way. Stop hoping and start knowing—intend for miracles to unfold.

** This article is one of 101 great articles that were published in 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life. To get complete details on “101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life”, visit http://www.selfgrowth.com/greatways3.html