Look to See (part 1 of Guided Imagery)

Part 1 is an intro to guided imagery and the fact that you have to intentionally direct your focus or gaze to be able to see clearly. 

Transcript

I got so much positive feedback from the last two episodes as part 1 and two, it made me happy! I had one listener, text me.  “I loved your two part series on validation, and found myself focusing more throughout the first week on things you mentioned, so I felt primed and ready, actually looking forward to building on more of my new understanding.”  So I’m hoping the next few episodes will do the same as I start this new 3 part series on guided imagery.  

As a zone therapist for 22 years, I’ve seen many people who have issues with their eyes.  Although there are obviously all kinds of physiological disturbances in the eyes themselves.  Like other places in the body that emotions land and can wreak havoc on weak spaces, many times the eyes can hold the confusion, denial or inability of not seeing something clearly.  Sometimes it’s an unknown future, for example  a husband who loses his job and is feeling the stress and  uncertainty of how to provide financially  for his growing family.  Sometimes it’s a mother who is overwhelmed with the challenges of a teenager making decisions that are affecting himself and his family negatively.  It can be hard to see how to navigate the discipline, and the road full of boundaries and consequences.  Sometimes it’s a diagnosis that leaves people reeling as they wonder what their futures and the futures of their families will look like as their health declines.  
Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to see clearly in those situations?  
While I’d be willing to bet none of us would decline a genie or fairy godmother the gift of a crystal ball, I guess the reality of this mortal life dictates that we as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will have to leave the future to the prophets, seers and revelators that we sustain, and that have the proper authority of that gift and use it in our behalf.

Today I want to share an insight that I can’t stop thinking about.  The word look has been popping up everywhere 
 I look lately.  
I first started noticing it in the Book of Mormon.  Now I know you’ve all heard my thoughts about the power of that divine book when we access it daily  so I started over yet again.  Sometimes I only read a couple of verses, or half a chapter or so before I continue my come follow me study of the old testament, so right now I am smack dab  in the middle of 1st Nephi.  Chapter 11 is where Nephi desired to see the vision his father saw, so he was pondering and ended up seeing the Spirit of the Lord and is shown  in vision the tree of life, along with many other things.  The thing that caught my attention was the phrase in vs. 8, And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me Look! And I looked and beheld a tree, then it goes on to describe the tree of life.  
I want you to make a note to look this up because  The word Look is followed by an exclamation point.  I was trying desperately to find out how many time the scriptures use exclamation points, but couldn’t do it. I don’t remember many, right off the top of my head.  It's worth mentioning tha in Vs. 10 the Lord asks Nephi?  "What desirest thou"?  Vs.  11 he tells the spirit what he wants in this case to know the interpretation of what he’d seen, vs. 12 he was told again to Look ! and I looked vs. 19 and the angel spake unto me saying Look! Vs 20 and I looked. Vs. 24 Look! And I looked  vs. 26 Look! And I looked. Vs. 30 Look! And I looked 31,32 .
Chapter 12 and 13 also follow a very similar pattern.  First I want to point out that Nephi saw all those things according to his desires.  When the word Look is followed by an exclamation point, which, as all you English speakers out there know, is a form of punctuation that follows a word or phrase to connotate strong emotion.  We feel something.  What we read there is very important.  It was important to Nephi, and it’s very important to those who read his account. 

Nephi was being told to look and only then could he see.  
This fact led me to ask Siri what the difference was between the words look and see.  
This is where this get’s interesting.  
The word see means to perceive with the eyes.  
The word look means an act of directing one’s gaze toward someone or something.  Ok, this is me nerding out on words but are you seeing what I am?  

Nephi was being told to look, or direct, or intentionally focus on something to see it more clearly.  

When he looked, or intentionally directed his gaze he was then and only then given more insight by the Spirit Only after he looked, or again, directed his gaze intentionally, was he able to see. 
Interestingly enough, the word look is used in the Book of Mormon 88 times. 

Let’s jump now to the Old Testament, Moses 6, 27 When we’re introduced to Enoch, and we learn that the lord was angry with the people, for their hearts had waxed hard, and their ears were dull of hearing and their eyes could not see afar off, what do you think that means?  Not being able to see the big picture?  Not being able to see into the future?  Remember that…because that’s part of what I want you to take away from this episode.   
Then further in the same chapter, Enoch asks the Lord, how have I found favor in thee, I am slow of speech, and the Lord sets out to help him understand not only why but HOW he can do the things he’s been asked to do because of what the Lord will do for him.  
Then in vs. 35 the Lord tells Enoch something really interesting, He tells him to “Anoint thine eyes with clay and wash them and though shalt see” and it said he did so.   This reminds me of another story, this time from the New Testament in John 9 when Jesus healed the man who was blind from birth by making clay from the dirt and putting it over his eyes.  Then Jesus told him to go wash his eyes in the pool of Siloam, which he did and came away seeing.  
You’re probably wondering why I’m making reference to all these examples of seeing, but I promise it will all come together…. 

I loved what David Butler said on the podcast that he and Emily Belle Freeman host called “Don’t Miss This”  on Moses 5 : … David teaches that when God commands Enoch to put Clay over his eyes he likes to think of it as an element of the earth so basically he was saying that he is seeing through the world “He’s seeing his view of the world and the earth and all of the worldly things around them and then when he’s told  to wash it off it’s basically saying take the view of the world or the earth away from you and looking through a more heavenly lens”.  Don’t you  just love that!
It makes all those Look exclamation points, and I looked phrases mean even more to me .  
I like thinking that When we intentionally direct our gaze, or look,  toward something or someone, or in this case we could say move or direct our gaze away from something, like the world, it could actually improve our ability to see things more clearly!

Here’s where I wanted to go with all of this….
There’s something I’ve done quite a bit of during my years of foot zoning, is called guided imagery. Guided imagery is just what it sounds like, It’s a method for managing stressful thoughts and directing or guiding them, using visualization exercises to create more  relaxing, and calming thoughts, therefore creating more relaxing and calming feelings.  Because you have to remember that your thoughts create your feelings.  
But it’s not as simple as just thinking about blue skies, rainbows and unicorns when you’re upset.  We all know how effective that is when we’d rather pull our hair out or scream at the top of our lungs, right?  
Guided imagery is a meditative technique, so it takes intentional focus, mindfulness, and lots of practice, but once it’s practiced and learned, it’s been clinically proven to help reduce stress and anxiety, promote relaxation and ease various symptoms related to stress.   Who doesn’t need help with that?

There are many different methodologies, but the main idea is to guide your mind through a process of relaxing thoughts that engage your senses, thereby making it more believable to your own mind, so that your body, once circulating these new powerful thoughts will in deference start responding positively.  For example, if you come home from a long day of work and are sick and tired of dealing with office drama and grown ups that act like children, Could the thought of holding your newborn granddaughter calm you?  In a relaxing position, sitting or lying down with palms up, close your eyes and Imagine standing at your son’s front door. Notice the rusty trim around the doorbell, breathe deeply do you notice the smell of what seems like spaghetti coming from an the open window.  Can you hear the newborns 2 yr. old brother crying over something in the background?  Take a deep breath.  Breathe it all in, in just seconds now, you’ll have that baby.  The door opens, your exhausted looking daughter has relief in her eyes as she sees you, and she passes that beautifully bundled little human into your arms before you can even pass the door’s threshold.  She runs off to tend to her toddler, giving you several minutes of pure, uninterrupted bliss.  Your purse slips off your other shoulder, as your kens bend and you slump into their deep cushy couch and every tense muscle in your shoulders and back seem to melt.  She smells like, well, only a fresh baby can smell, and her skin against your cheek feels like velvet, can you feel it? 
Think about every detail just like you were there. I’m craving a newborn as I say this.  The goal is to direct your thoughts to and through something so pleasant that your body can’t help lean into and relax with this new environment, even if it is only playing out in your mind. 
The power to Guided imagery is that it not only helps decrease stress and promote relaxation, but it’s also a very effective way of helping you visualize and achieve end goals.  
How many times have you watched an NBA player stand at the foul line of the basketball court, he bounced the ball once, bends his knees, goes through the motions of shooting without the ball, then he bounces it again, bends his knees and this time shoots.  Score!  Or what about the golfer.  You’ve seen them with the ball on the tee, they kneel down behind it to see the direct line of where they want their ball to go, then they step up to the tee, well almost, one step behind the ball, the take one practice swing, with the same anticipated movement they’ve practiced a million times, then maybe two. Before they actually hit the ball.  
Every Olympic athlete goes through their routine, their skate, their jump, dive or ride thousands of times before they actually compete.  Because they have visualized it down to every last detail so many times, their minds and muscle memory, in unison respond.
It’s the same with goals.  
If You’re interested, google this phrase…”How effective are goals that are not visualized”? 
I found at least 20 studies, survey’s and interesting reports on that very thing.  
Here’s just a quick mention from one. In Forbes magazine, Jan 27, 2016, in an article by Eilene Zimmerman called 

Survey Shows Visualizing Success Works, she said “If you’ve ever poked fun at someone—especially an entrepreneur--for creating a vision board as a way to picture success, you may not be laughing in a few minutes. A new study by TD Bank shows that small business owners use visualization—pictures and idea boards—to meet their entrepreneurial goals.
TD Bank surveyed more than 1100 people and 500 small business owners nationwide in December and January to learn about their “visualization practices.” 
In this survey Eighty-two percent of small business owners reported that using a vision board as a way to motivate themselves, from the very beginning accomplished over half of the goals they set from that board. 
Jay DesMarteau, head of small business banking at TD Bank concluded: “The survey results show that business owners who take the time to visualize their company are more successful and more likely to reach their goals than those who don’t.  That’s important for us as partners to small businesses, as we help the map out plans and translate that to greater financial success”.

Guided imagery or creating a vision board allows your brain to see your desired future and is another way to visualize success before it happens. It’s a way to Look, or direct or intentionally focus on something to see what can happen, if only we allow ourselves to see it!

Are you getting an idea of how guided imagery can work in your favor? 
I know it can take a lot of mental discipline, but everything worth working toward takes effort! I think you’ll really find that this is worth it in the long run!

Napoleon Hill said 
“Whatever Your Mind Can Conceive and Believe, It Can Achieve.” 
So now that we have a better understanding about guided imagery and how and why it helps us manage our stress, increase our ability to relax and motivate our success,  I want to challenge you to think all week about what we’ve learned here.  
Ask yourself a few questions to determine where to start.
*Is there something you’re having a hard time seeing clearly?  
*Is there a part of your life you feel utterly confused by?
*Is there something you feel paralyzed by, that you simply can’t take a step toward, even though you’d like to?
*Is there something that plagues you with doubt, or fear, or discouragement that you can’t find your way out of, you can’t see the solution to?
first we have to Look, direct or focus our gaze on something to see it more clearly, Are we actually looking?  Are we holding our hands open to receive information, so to speak,  Practice intentionally focusing on something or someone, or some situation that relaxes you.  Is it a stroll down the beach, feeling the waves crash against your bare feet, smelling the water, sand and salt?  Is the sun shining down on your bare shoulders?  Allow yourself to do some homework here to find out what experiences can you look to in your minds eye to promote happiness, calm, relaxation, etc. 
If God wanted to help us see something more clearly and told us to Look, exclamation point, what would he show us?  And would it be based on the desires of our hearts? What are the desires of your heart?  Can you ask God to help you with increased understanding about the interpretations of what you may see? And can we remove the clay, or the world from our view to see His messages more clearly?
Can you create a vision board to help drive you to success in reaching your goals?  Do you have your goals written down? You can’t work toward something or even see it till you know what it is. 
And last can you do some homework on guided imagery for me this week?  Can you look up Guided imagery audio recordings? There are all kinds available to get you started.  I put together a small list of places to find an array of choices, and I will have them available in my transcripts on Mannaormeatloaf.buzzsprout.com,  but just a few include 
YouTube (search for “guided imagery”)
Rogel Cancer Center Michigan Medicine
Dartmouth College Student Wellness Center
A Healthier Michigan podcast
Headspace app
Simply Being app
Or you can find or create your own. 
Next week I want to share some information on living as if….just a deeper look at guided imagery and how really honing in, focusing on, and directing your intentions and your energy can really change how you see your own future and help you make that future a reality.
And then in part 3 we’re actually going to do some exercises.  There you go B, our oldest daughter, who is largely responsible for me doing this podcast in the first place keeps begging me to do a guided imagery exercise. We’ll see how that goes, it should be fun! 
So have fun, and I'll see you next week!