Casting the Burden

Casting the burden is a very gentle but potent tool that I learned years ago when reading some of the writings of Florence Scovel Shinn. Shinn was a new thought spiritual teacher and metaphysical writer born in 1871. She published The Game of Life and How to Play It in 1925, Your Word is Your Wand in 1928 and The Secret Door of Success in 1940. I was amazed reading her books how very ahead of her time she was. She was one of the pioneers in our understanding that what we think and hold true, we manifest in our lives.

She was a great believer in affirmations, affirmed what she choose to be true about her reality, and encouraged others to do the same. One affirmation that I have used throughout the years, and that I needed in particular today, was "I cast this burden to the Christ within and I go free."

I had a bad day at work. People were grumpy and mean-spirited. I tried very hard to keep my mood separate from what was going on around me, but by the end of the day I was feeling pretty beat up. I forgot all of my tools. I got completely sucked in and it didn't feel very good. When I got home I sat down to do my meditation, but was feeling kind of antsy. I had absorbed so much of the conflict energy that I couldn't settle down. My mind was racing. I was frustrated because I knew that I needed to take some time to release the stuff I'd picked up that was not me, but I couldn't even decide what to do. (I trust I'm painting a clear picture of how keyed up I was, and how very much I wanted not to be!)

When I finally let go and stopped trying, and said to myself, "I don't know what to do to," I instantly remembered Florence Scovel Shinn's affirmation, "I cast this burden to the Christ within and I go free". The acknowledgement of that inner wisdom recreated my perspective, in an inkling, to one of truth. No situation I encounter could ever be more powerful than the truth that God lives in me and as me, and in any situation, I can choose how I view my experience. I can dwell on it and suffer over it, or I can let it go and focus on other, more positive things. The Christ within me, who knows herself as one with God and the sole creator of her perception, can decide at any point to be free of any burden, and it is done.

Shinn was a great teacher of truth. I look forward to writing more about her teachings in this blog.

Thank you, God!