KristaAbbott

The Practice of Meditation: How to Meditate the “Christian Way”

Posted on 02. Jan, 2011 by Krista Abbott.

The Christian Practice of Meditation
This is a completely impromptu post. In fact, I am supposed to be working on some other projects right now, but I felt divinely inspired (from a facebook comment thread about me embarking on a 21 day spiritual focus…thanks David) to get this out to you tonight. I will likely come back around and elaborate on this over the next several weeks, but tonight I am going to introduce you to the practice of meditation and explain how Christians can meditate and not feel “spooked out” by it.

Meditation is growing in popularity across cultural and religious circles. Some of this may be the result of individuals trying to decrease stress levels due to the condition of the world right now. Meditation is a great tool for stress reduction, no doubt about that. But for me, it is much more – it is really a requirement and a necessary practice of my faith – Christianity.

Should Christians Meditate?

I know I may get some push back here from Christians who read this, because most Christians are misinformed about the origins of meditation and get visuals of people sitting in some trance like state with incense burning around them humming some mantra or something. And…all of that is cool if that’s how you choose to meditate – but for me, it is a point of personal deep spiritual connection to God.

Now realize, there is no way for me to lay out every aspect of meditation, why it is important, what the health benefits are, what the spiritual benefits are and why everyone, including Christians, should do it in one blog post. But I can show you in Scripture where meditation is encouraged and at the end I will provide you with some simple steps to get started with a solid silent meditation practice.

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How to Prioritize on Purpose

Posted on 06. Nov, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

Reflections from the Recycled Dream Project

Today I had a deep moment. An epiphany of purpose – specifically as it relates to “prioritizing on purpose”.

Over the past several months I have been doing some deep self reflection, really examining life as I have been living it. I think it is important to do that from time to time – to just take some time to look at everything you have going on, everything you are doing, everything you are spending your time, your resources, and your energy on. Then decide how much of all that stuff is really necessary…how much of it is a means to your desired end.

What I have found in my reflections these past few months is that the vast majority of what we as humans do is not really what we need to be doing…heck for most people, it’s not even what they want to be doing. Why?

Perhaps someone in their life said something that influenced them in a direction opposite of what was in their heart…and they felt pressured to follow suit. Maybe they were afraid they were going to miss out on something if they didn’t participate or pursue those things. People have different reasons for doing what they do, and my purpose today is really not to delve into the psychological side of human nature, but to share some of the observations that help create an understanding that there is a need for change in our world.

So, while I was taking a walk today I decided to make a short video to share with you how I have been prioritizing on purpose and eliminating the unnecessary energy leaches from my life.

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How To Define Success For “Your” Life?

Posted on 13. Aug, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

Let’s talk about success today.

After all, I HAVE built my personal brand around inspiring people to unleash success in their lives.

In doing that, I have talked a lot about determination, perspective, how to handle your dreams…I’ve even shared some social media management tips, business building concepts, communication strategies and mindset practices.

But, what I realized last week, was this: I haven’t really addressed success in the simplest form. What I mean by that is looking at it from a defining standpoint, and digging into what it really means for you as an individual.

See, I have been going through some serious self assessment these last few weeks, which is one reason why I haven’t posted any new information. I do this periodically in life, just to check my path and make sure I am still headed the direction I want to head with my life, my business, etc. This time though I purposed to do it deeper, to do it stronger, and to really dig around deep in my heart to make sure I am on the path I want to be on.

So, in this post we will talk about “What Success Is”, “How to Define Success”, and I will walk you through how to create your very own “Personal Success Scenario”…..

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How To Eliminate Negative Thought Patterns

Posted on 01. Jul, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

How Do Thoughts Impact Your Life?

The thought patterns we live with day in and day out have extreme influence into the direction our lives take. Essentially, our thoughts can make us or they can break us. Eliminating negative thoughts and thought patterns is crucial to your success and happiness in life.

Now this concept is nothing new to those who are familiar with the Law of Attraction and the principles that surround it. There are a lot of one liners that originated out of this movement that point to such. Some of these include quotes such as:

“Thoughts become things.”

“What you think about, you bring about.”

These concepts are valid and true. Scripture even supports them when it says:

“As a man thinks in his heart…so is he” (Proverbs 27:3)

So, with this knowledge comes the understanding that the direction of your thoughts lead to the direction of your life. Therefore, it is important that you maintain a complete awareness of what you are thinking. You can do this by…

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Gulf Oil Spill Deepwater Horizon: A Child’s View

Posted on 19. Jun, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

The Gulf Oil Spill
A Child’s View…With Nora

The Gulf Oil Spill, Deepwater Horizon, has finally reached the Florida coastline. Being a native Floridian, living near the coast this environmental crisis hits very close to home. The President of the United States, Barak Obama, visited Florida last week to see the impact this disaster is having on our our coast, and afterwards addressed the nation from the oval office. Once again, our region has been thrust into the international spot light as a result of this tragic event.

Kids seem to have an innocent and candid expression of how this crisis is filtering through their thoughts. This week, my seven year old niece was visiting and began expressing her thoughts (unsolicited) about the oil spill. As she talked I realized the impact this is having on the world as she understands it. I asked her if she would be willing for me to video tape her sharing her thoughts with me.

She was very eager to do so because she “…wanted to try to help save the animals.”

She also knows I blog, and use videos on my site to speak to my readers and friends. So, she asked me if I would show her video to my friends so that maybe they could get their kids to help too.

So, please take a moment and watch this video to see what Nora has to say about the Gulf Oil Spill from A Child’s View…..Click Continue to Watch Video…

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Communication: The Crucial Component to Your Home, Your Business, Your Life

Posted on 08. Jun, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

Communication in your home, your business and your life can make or break you.

It seems every leadership or personal development book I read talks about communication.

And…with good reason.

It happens – nearly every time something goes awry at home, in business, or in life – someone, somewhere, blames it on poor communication, miscommunication, or (God help us) NO communication!

We all know it is true, because we have all experienced it.

See, I am a very communication oriented person, and I make every effort to communicate openly, clearly, and thoroughly (maybe sometimes too thoroughly). So, imagine my frustration when I realized everyone is not like me!! (Say What?!?) And, worse yet…some of them hear something completely different than what I am saying.

Wow! How’d that happen?

It took some time, but by studying things like personality theory and communication theory I soon realized that there are techniques that can help minimize the frustrations often associated with failed communication.

I have successfully used the concepts and techniques that I am about to share with you, in several of my personal and business relationships, as well as corporate and team building. As a result of my own implementation of these things, I have found them extremely effective and helpful in both areas to: avoid misunderstandings, increase collaboration, build team relationships, facilitate increased productivity…

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Recycled Dreams

Posted on 17. May, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

Have you ever had a dream escape you?
You know, one of those deep desires of your heart that you sought after, and believed for and worked hard for…maybe even you prayed fervently for it – but one disappointment led to another…and another…and another…until one day – you surrendered that dream. You didn’t necessarily give up on it or quit…you just accepted that maybe it wasn’t meant to be, and although disappointed, and heartbroken you moved on with your life and started creating and realizing new dreams for yourself.

I have.

I have lived through the heartache and disappointment of broken dreams, released dreams, and forgotten dreams. I’ve also lived in the excitement and satisfaction that comes with embracing new dreams – realizing them and living them. This seems to make the loss of the broken (or escaped) dreams more bearable. Recently, I’ve been confronted again with one of my lost dreams – a dream that, well frankly, when lost caused me a great deal of heart break and many tears. I had completely released it and moved on, quite successfully, with my life. It was, honestly, at the time, one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make – to release that dream and walk away from it. Events over the past few months have led to new developments that I never expected to occur, and I now find myself face to face with that dream again… Do I embrace this dream once again with the hope of a different outcome this time, or do I play it safe and continue on with my successful life and new dreams?
What did I decide? Well, in a moment of complete transparency and authenticity…

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Viral Explosions Book Launch Gets You FREE Stuff!

Posted on 12. Apr, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

Peggy McColl is launching her brand new book, Viral Explosions – Proven Techniques to Expand, Explode, or Ignite Your Business or Brand On-Line, on Tuesday, April 13, 2010.

I have had the privilege of being one of Peggy’s students for the past several months, and I have learned things that will revolutionize my on-line marketing tactics. Peggy is a high energy author who has used internet marketing techniques that have taken her books to Best Seller status in 24 hours or less. This week, I get to watch her do it again with her new release, Viral Explosions. [peggy mccoll] In Viral Explosions, Peggy shares her secrets for internet marketing success and takes the reader step-by-step through her proven formula for results.

The super cool thing about buying one of Peggy’s books on her campaign day (Tuesday for this book) is that she gives an INSANE amount of FREE bonus gifts….

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4 Critical Things to Look for in a Mentor

Posted on 06. Apr, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

Mentors create success.

It’s that simple. Having a strong mentor in your life can make a huge impact in the levels of success you are able to reach in your business, your personal life, and your spiritual journey. In fact, it may be the single most important thing you can do to advance your life in the direction you want it to go.

YOU are the designer of your life. You have, innately within you, the wherewithal to determine where your life goes and how you get there. I heard it said once, that success does not happen by chance, success happens on purpose.

In my reflections I’ve thought about the dreams I have already achieved and those I am living now; I also thought about those I still have and that I am still working toward. As I thought, I remembered my mentors, how they influenced me and helped me realize success as I know it today and who push me to continue reaching for the “Big Dreams”. I wanted to share some thoughts with you on what mentoring is and what good mentors do…

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The Power of Perspective

Posted on 16. Feb, 2010 by Krista Abbott.

How we choose to view our circumstances and our challenges in life determines both our direction and our outcome. In other words, your destination tomorrow is determined by the way you think today.

Recently, I have found myself in the midst of conversations with various people who want to voice their complaints or concerns over matters that they are dissatisfied with in life. Some of these matters are trivial, some are more serious, and all of them very real to the people I am talking to. It’s almost been uncanny the number of times, just this week, that I have talked with someone who is feeling challenged, feeling like a failure, thinking about giving up, or who has already given up and they just don’t know it yet. In other words, their heart forgot to tell their mind that they “quit”!
This is a dangerous place to be, my friends.

As entrepreneurs, as business leaders, or as leaders in life, we will all face set backs and challenges. These can come through a bad business deal, a betrayal by a partner, a failed idea or product launch. Some can be less serious but equally as challenging, such as the occasional technological glitch that on-line marketers are confronted with, or the rude , uncooperative team member. In your journey to success, there are always going to be challenges and obstacles to overcome, but you can emerge on top by choosing to maintain a proper perspective on the situation. The way you choose to handle these things today, in the present, can have far reaching impact on your future outcomes. So what can you do to overcome?

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