Positive Quotes

The nature of the cosmos is such that whatever vision you have about yourself and the world will become reality. As soon as you awaken to the power you have, you begin to flex the muscles of your courage.

Then you can dream bravely: letting go of your limiting beliefs and pushing past your fears. You can start to come up with a truly original dream that germinates in your soul and bears fruit in your life.

Courageous Dreaming by Alberto Villoldo

Changing your life for the better is as simple as taking control of your THOUGHTS.

Download my free guide, "Change Your Life With Positive Thinking" and learn all kinds of simple, fun ways to become a more positive person - and transform your life.

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I have a lot of favorite authors, but one that tends to spark a welcome wave of inspiration and renewal every time I read his work is Rumi. Rumi was a 13th century Persian poet (1207-1273). Though his original works were written in Persian, they have also been translated into other languages and are still enjoyed by people in many countries today - even seven centuries after his death! Such timeless writings hold true gems of wisdom that we can rediscover and savor each time we ponder them.

With that thought in mind, I'd love to share five of Rumi's quotes that I believe are truly brilliant. They are my personal favorites and I've shared a few thoughts about why they speak so strongly to my heart - but don't take my word for it; ponder them yourself and let them speak to you. What insights do they hold for you?

"Let the beauty you love be what you do. There are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the earth."

This quote immediately moves me into that fabulous state of passion and joy that can only come from following your heart! Every time I read it I feel like kicking off my shoes, grabbing a notebook and pen and heading out to the back yard to write some poetry. Not that I write much poetry. Besides, it's winter here so my feet would get cold. But Rumi's words make me want to do it anyway.

On a deeper level, this quote reminds me that our true happiness comes from having a purpose in life. Something that makes us feel like we're doing worthwhile work - even if it's only worthwhile to us. And I love the phrase, "kneel and kiss the earth" - it brings to mind thoughts of gratitude and appreciation for, well - everything. The world around us and all of its inhabitants from people to animals to plants and even the tiniest insects. What wonders surround us!

"When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy."

So many of us forget this simple wisdom in the hustle and bustle of our everyday lives. We're so focused on what we have to do, need to do, almost forgot to do - that we end up living from our harried minds rather than the deeper place that makes everything so sacred.

Try an experiment yourself to feel the power in Rumi's words: Choose one task, big or small and do it from your soul. Take a walk and make a point of moving your body slowly and reverently. Brush your hair as if it were made of spun glass that might break if you tug too hard. Revel in the sensation of the brush bristles massaging your scalp and softening your hair. Even simple activities, when done in a conscious spiritual state, can awaken you in such profound ways that you'll never be the same.

"Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it."

Nowadays we are becoming more aware of the power of our own thoughts and the role they play in forming our physical reality, and this quote is very revealing in that context! Every time I read it I'm reminded that lack does not exist except in my own mind. Whatever I think I don't have enough of, I simply need to awaken to the ways I am blocking it from my perception. When I do that, suddenly it's all there right before my eyes, as it always was - if only I had been willing to see it. This can apply not only to love but money, good health, joy, inner peace, and so much more.

"The universe and the light of the stars come through me."

I don't think Rumi was bragging about his own greatness with this line, but rather sharing the insight that all of us "give birth" to our reality (our own universe, really) through our perceptions. He also may have been referring to inspiration - I've often said that written words "come through me" at times, especially when I'm "in the flow" and the words just come out with little editing on my part.

"Burdens are the foundations of ease and bitter things the forerunners of pleasure."

What a powerful message is contained in this gem! So often we resent the difficult moments in life and forget that they provide an important service for us. Not only do they lay a foundation and pave the way for better times later; they help us to become stronger, better people so we can appreciate those pleasant experiences when they arrive.

When I think back to some of the more difficult times I've had in life, I'm truly grateful for them now. They taught me a lot about myself and contributed greatly to the person I've become. I try hard to remember that when I find myself in tough situations these days - which makes them easier to bear.

In fact, that's what I love so much about quotes like Rumi's; they offer a moment of reprieve, a glimpse of grace, and a gentle reminder that the difficult moments will pass and the sun will shine once again. What more could we ask for?

Every individual has a place to fill in the world and is important in some respect whether he chooses to be so or not. - Nathaniel Hawthorne

Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy. - Kahlil Gibran

Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it. - The Buddha

God gave man work, not to burden him, but to bless him, and useful work, willingly, cheerfully, effectively done, has always been the finest expression of the human spirit. - Walter R. Courtenay

The first step is to find out what you love - and don't be practical about it. The second step is to start doing what you love immediately, in any small way possible. - Barbara Sher

The return from your work must be the satisfaction which that work brings you and the world's need of that work. With that, life is heaven, or as near heaven as you can get. Without this - with work which you despise, which bores you, and which the world does not need - this life is hell. - W.E.B. DuBois

There are no menial jobs, only menial attitudes. - William J. Bennett

Purpose Thought:

Do you believe you have a life purpose? Do you believe you can choose one? Follow your heart in everything you do, and you'll never be without purpose - or joy, or abundance, or love, or happiness....

Success Quotes compiled by Patric Chan
(Contributed by Mark Bravura of Laws of Attraction Demystified - thanks Mark!)

Unstoppable Peak Performance Quotes compiled by Aurelius Tjin
(Contributed by Mark Bravura of Laws of Attraction Demystified - thanks Mark!)

365 Daily Success Quotes compiled by Secrets of Wealth

"To laugh much; to win the respect of people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition, to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Without forgiveness, there's no future." - Desmond Tutu

"He who is thankful for the common things will enjoy many great things. A grateful mind is a great mind." - Thomas Secker

"When gratitude overflows the swelling heart, and breathes in free and uncorrupted praise for benefits received, propitious heaven takes such acknowledgment as fragrant incense, and doubles all its blessings." - George Lillo

"Stretch out our hands, and take the world's wide gift of Joy and Beauty." - Corinne Roosevelt Robinson

"Three Rules of Work: Out of clutter find simplicity; From discord find harmony; In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." - Albert Einstein

"The best way to predict the future is to invent it." - Alan Kay

"The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present, but a place that is created--created first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating." - Jim Bishop

"There is nothing with which every man is so afraid as getting to know how enormously much he is capable of doing and becoming." - Kierkegaard

"Formulate and stamp indelibly on your mind a mental picture of yourself as succeeding. Hold this picture tenaciously. Never permit it to fade." - Norman Vincent Peale

"So when it comes to balancing work and romance, I'm not a believer. There should be no balance... These two hungers, for work and for romance, work together in successful people. To me, both are full-out endeavors, endeavors that depend on each other and should never get in the way of one another.. I give both everything I've got, and the effort, in the long run, is always worth it." - Donald J. Trump, Think Like a Billionaire

"It's been a long journey... I think the ride has just begun." - Christina Aguilera

Thanks to Mark at Laws of Attraction Demystified for these great quotes! :-)

Life is but a wondrous journey...

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved. - Helen Keller

If you're not failing now and again, it's a sign you're playing it safe. - Woody Allen

Every successful person I have heard of has done the best he could with the conditions as he found them, and not waited until next year for better. - E.W. Howe

I studied the lives of great men and famous women, and I found that the men and women who get to the top were those who did the jobs they had in hand, with everything they had of energy and enthusiasm and hard work. - Harry S. Truman

If you aren't going all the way, why go at all? - Joe Namath

Success consists of getting up just one more time than you fall. - Oliver Goldsmith

Success means we go to sleep at night knowing that our talents and abilities were used in a way that served others. - Marianne Williamson

Success Thought:

Are you waiting for external circumstances to prove that you are successful? It must come from within FIRST. Believe you are successful, act like you are successful...and everything around you will begin to reflect it.

In life, there are cycles of good and bad. Times when our lives seem joyful and easy, and times when we're struggling through what seem like endless difficulties. Then there are times when the two seem to co-mingle. These are the times I call bittersweet.

Perhaps you've had a bittersweet period in your own life? Usually it begins with something wonderful, followed immediately by something awful.

You get a great promotion at work, then your spouse loses his or her job. Or you finally start making progress on your new fitness regime, and you pull a muscle, putting you out of commission for a week or two. A new baby is born into your family, and then a loved one passes away suddenly (or sometimes not so suddenly).

Currently, I find myself in a bittersweet period of my own. My husband and I recently purchased our first home. This has been a dream of ours for years, and we've worked hard to make it happen. Finally the dream came true, and we moved into our new home less than two weeks ago, eager to begin a new phase of our lives.

Then the hammer dropped. In the same week, we received news that two family members have been diagnosed with cancer. My husband's uncle, and my mother (who also just moved into our new home with us).

During the years I'd fantasized about what it would be like to have our dream of homeownership come true, I never expected a dark shadow to be cast over the joy of our new situation. Somehow, I thought it would be smooth sailing once the hard work was done and we achieved our goal.

For the first few days after we received the bad news, I felt somewhat indignant toward the powers that be. Why now? Why couldn't we just enjoy the experience of our new home ownership, and deal with the bad stuff later?

Yes, I admit, such thoughts are selfish, not to mention futile. Life doesn't work like that, and the universe doesn't revolve around our wishes. There will always be difficulties to work through, regardless of what else is happening in our lives at the time. We simply have to carry on, because there is nothing else to do.

Still, I felt like a petulant child, pouting because pain, fear, and uncertainty had chosen this moment to knock on our door.

A few nights later I was feeling restless, unable to concentrate on anything. I was afraid for my loved ones, worried that the cancer may have spread, wondering what was going to happen.

Finally I decided to sort through some still-unpacked boxes to take my mind off my worries. It was late and the house was silent and still when I crept out to the garage. I began quietly sorting through a box of miscellaneous items when a wave of weariness came over me, and I sat down heavily on a folding chair to collect my thoughts.

In the grip of despair, I reached out with my heart and mind to the universe, seeking, asking for...something. Comfort? Strength? Reassurance? Guidance?

I don't even know what I needed at that moment, I just reached out wordlessly from my soul, hoping to get a response that made everything all right again.

Suddenly my attention was pulled to an item resting just inside the top of the box I had been sorting through. It was the corner of a greeting card I had tossed into the box in the haste of packing.

I reached out and pulled on the corner of the card, and as it emerged from the box, I saw that the front of it featured a bouquet of flowers and the words, "thank you".

A flood of warmth washed over me then, flowing through every fiber of my being, clearing my mind, lifting my heart, refreshing my spirit. Yes. THANK YOU! That was the answer I had been seeking.

There, in the cool, quiet garage, I finally understood that the dark shadow that had been cast over our lives didn't have to blot out our joy.

Do we despair when clouds blot out the brilliance of the sun? No. We simply continue on with our lives, working, playing, laughing, loving.

The bitter CAN co-exist with the sweet. I realized that it's a matter of perspective, as are so many things in life.

It's true that bitterness has the power to taint sweetness, but it's also true that sweetness can ease the intensity of bitterness.

It just depends which angle you focus on.

Thankfully, the universe found a way to remind me that I have a choice, and I began focusing more on gratitude and joy again.

The next morning, my husband and I had some errands to run, and as we drove along a street we've traveled numerous times, I saw a side street that I'd never noticed before. I glanced up at the sign and saw that the street name was "Bittersweet Lane."

Honestly, it didn't look like a bad place to live. :-)

This week something interesting happened to me. I made a gift for someone, and they absolutely loved it.

As they exclaimed over it and admired it, they asked if it had taken me long to make. I shrugged and said, "Just a few hours" - when in fact I spent more than 30 hours working on it. I poured alot of heart and soul into it. Why then, did I diminish it? Why did I feel the need to fib about how much effort I had put into that gift?

I must admit, I had to give that question some long, hard thought. What I realized is that I am still following the pattern that has dominated much of my life. I'm hiding my Light. You know that song, "This Little Light of Mine, I'm Gonna Let It Shine?" How many of us are afraid to let our "lights" shine? How many of us hold back a large part of ourselves?

Maybe we are afraid of being braggarts. Nobody likes a boastful, prideful person. From a young age, our parents teach us modesty and humility, which is not a bad thing in itself. But where do we draw the line? Are we not allowed to take pride in our own accomplishments at all?

There is a very big difference between sharing our gifts with the world, and showing off. When I look back across my life, I see a classic underachiever. Not because I wasn't capable of achieving anything, but because I was ashamed and embarrassed by my own abilities and strengths.

I denied them and hid them at every available opportunity. If I shared those gifts with the world, it would call attention to me, attention I didn't feel worthy of accepting.

Perhaps I was also afraid of ridicule. If I shared my heart and soul with the world, would I be laughed at or made fun of? Nothing could shoot my confidence down more quickly than rejection.

Maybe you've had the same experiences? Have you had feelings of hesitancy about sharing your gifts? Have you been hiding your light, holding back an essential part of yourself?

How dare we hide our Lights? They are not ours to hide. They were given to us by a loving God of Light (whatever your perception of "God" may be) - the same light that shines within us. Each of us has a little spark of the Divine within.

By denying that part of ourselves, we also deny God within us! We have a responsibility to share ourselves with the world; not in a way that proclaims us to be better than anyone else, but in a way that uplifts and enriches others.

We owe it to ourselves, we owe it to the world, and we owe it to God, the one who gave us these gifts and abilities to begin with.

What good is a gift that doesn't get used? Imagine a flower being afraid to bloom, rain being afraid to fall, the sun being afraid to shine. We need to shift our perspective and realize that by hiding our lights, we are not serving anyone. Love, unexpressed, is not love at all.

So many of us think that we have nothing to share. We spend most of our days feeling like an empty shell. However, nothing is truly ever empty. Nature abhors a vacuum. Ah, remember that, from Science class? ;-)

Though you may feel empty, there is something inside of you. It may be chaos or joy, optimism or pessimism, hope or doubt - but something is there. If you don't like what it is, you have the ability to change it by the power of your thoughts.

Know that you do have something to share with the world. If you will dare to reach down inside your soul and feel around a bit, you will find a long forgotten dream. A sense of excitement that you once had, a knowingness that you could change the world and make it just a little bit brighter.

Reclaim that dream. It never really left you, it just got covered with a little dust. Clean it off and set it upon your mantle of hope. Infuse it with new life, and allow it to come into Being.

Remember that you are the only one holding yourself back.

"And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight." 1 John 3: 22

"And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anthing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him." 1 John 5: 14,15

"If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit ; so shall ye be my disciples.

As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain ; that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you." John 15: 7-11, 16

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him ? Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets." Matthew 6: 33,34; 7: 7-12

"And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove: and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.

For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." Matthew 17: 20; 18: 18-20; 21: 21-22

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not ; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering: for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.

Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit [or, breath] is dead, so faith without works is dead also. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded." James 1: 5-8; 2: 17,24; 4: 3,7,8,10

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.

By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." Hebrews 11: 1-6

"And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass ; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against any; that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses." Mark 11: 22-26

"It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom. The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him: but the desire of the righteous shall be granted. As the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation." Proverbs 10: 23-25

"And Jabez was more honorable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow. And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested." 1 Chronicles 4: 9, 10

"Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it." John 14: 8-14

**Thanks to Mark at Laws of Attraction Demystified for these great quotes! :-)