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Are you ready to deepen your spiritual connection? If so, “The Universe Has Your Back” by Gabriele Bernstein and this book review are perfect for you.
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Book Review
This book was exactly what I needed to progress on my spiritual journey and stay calm and faithful in the face of horrific global events.
I especially loved the prayers and guided meditations that the book offers.
If you are looking for inspiration and tools to strengthen your certainty in life and connect more deeply to the Universe, this book is perfect for you.
Lessons
1. Fear is a sign that you rely too much on yourself and too little on the Universe
“The moment you choose to disconnect from the loving presence of the Universe, you lose sight of the safety, security, and clear guidance that is otherwise available to you.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
Why should you feel afraid if you know that the Universe has your back? Why worry if you know that everything happens for a reason and perfectly divine timing.
The Universe doesn’t make mistakes, but humans do. If you rely only on your planning, skills, and knowledge, it is easy to fear that you will mess up in one way or another.
But of course, releasing this fear and need to control is easier said than done, especially if you were taught that you should be independent and that the world is cruel.
One way to do so is by closing your eyes, feeling the fear flow through you, placing it visually into the hands of the Universe, and watching it be swept away.
2. The quicker you can release your emotions, the happier you are
“Our happiness is a direct reflection of how quickly we can restore our fear back to love.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
Happiness is always difficult to measure, and we often trick ourselves into believing we are happy when we are not.
It is nice to have a benchmark we can fall back on.
In this case, the time it takes you between being overcome by emotions and reverting to a loving state.
Careful! Don’t attempt to go all the way to ecstatic. Love is neutral on the spectrum of emotions.
Being calm, content, grateful and loving should be your goal. Happiness will follow automatically, but nobody can always feel positive emotions.
So, the next time you feel angry, annoyed, sad, or panicked, don’t just wallow in it. Instead, actively try to release the emotions.
The more you practice it, the quicker you will get.
3. The Universe presents you with Universal Assignments to help heal you from the past
“Freedom from the past is available to you when you show up for the assignments in the present.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
The struggles you encounter in life, especially repeated ones, are sent to you by the Universe to help you heal from the past.
For example, if you go through one relationship after another and they all end in a nasty heartbreak, there is a Universal lesson you need to learn.
Once you complete the Universal Assignment by learning the lesson and leaving the past behind, you won’t encounter this same struggle anymore.
Changing your outlook on these issues into something more appreciative and looking forward to the lessons you’ll learn will be life-changing.
The more open you are to the Universe serving you instead of punishing you, the smoother you will overcome these Universal Assignments and heal from your past.
4. Obstacles are disguised roadsigns
“Obstacles are detours in the right direction.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
As already mentioned, obstacles in life can be Universal Assignments that are meant to teach you a lesson to heal from the past.
However, obstacles can also be roadsigns trying to direct your focus and efforts into a better direction.
For example, getting turned down by your University of choice might seem like the premature end of your dreams.
However, later on, as you find yourself at another University studying something entirely different, perhaps, you might just realize what a blessing it was to get turned down.
Frequently, we don’t realize there is a better option waiting for us out there. So while we fight tooth and nail to get what we think is the best option, the Universe throws an obstacle in our way to lead us to an even better place.
Try to see obstacles for the disguised blessings they really are. Or, at the very least, trust that the Universe has your back and won’t lead you astray without a good reason.
5. The energy you embody attracts the reality you live in
“The frequency you embody supports the experiences that you have.
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
Manifesting your reality with the Law of Attraction is not only about thinking positive thoughts, using pretty affirmations, and imagining nice scenarios.
More than anything, it is about embodying the energy of the reality you seek to attract.
Positive thoughts, affirmations, and visualization are only tools meant to help you with that.
You can think of as many affirmations as you want; as long as you don’t feel them, you won’t attract what you want.
So make sure to do multiple emotional check-ins throughout the day. The more often you can remind yourself to embody the right energy, the more powerful your attraction will be.
6. Pray daily to tap into the Universal support
“When you pray you get out of the way. Making prayer a daily practice will help you feel the flow of synchronicity and universal support all the time.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
For me, praying has always been a religious tool. Even as I became more spiritual, I had never even considered integrating prayer into life.
That changed once I read The Universe Has Your Back.
Suddenly, I realized that we can use prayer even without subscribing to one specific religion.
And what’s more, I realized that we are not only allowed but even encouraged to pray for small daily matters.
It isn’t selfish or greedy to pray to the Universe to help you find a good parking spot or ask the Universe for clear skin or a calm mind.
There is no topic too big or too small for prayer.
And the prayer itself doesn’t have to be some special formula. Instead, we should see it as a simple conversation between the Universe and us.
So the next time you find yourself worrying about or hoping for a specific outcome (e. g. hopefully it won’t rain; hopefully, my period won’t hit on Tuesday, I’m worried I won’t get the bananas at the store today), remember that this is a perfect opportunity to turn towards prayer and to release your worries to the Universe.
7. Goals and intricate plans will restrict the Universal guidance you receive
“When you overplan, you limit your capacity to co-create with the Universe. Rigidly sticking to a plan forces you to rely on your will, which cuts you off from the support and wisdom of the Universe.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
Of course, we modern girls (and boys) are all about organization, S.M.A.R.T. goals, and productivity.
We are determined to actively co-create our reality and therefore take a very hands-on approach.
Thankfully, The Universe Has Your Back shares a lesson few people ever tell us: Our goals and intricate plans restrict the universal guidance we receive.
In other words: the more you plan and anticipate, and the more strictly you follow these plans, the less room there is for the Universe to guide you down the path of least resistance.
After all, aren’t you planning out every little step because you trust yourself more than the often unpredictable guidance of the Universe?
There is definitely some merit to planning out your action steps. It increases your efficiency and keeps you from getting overwhelmed.
However, you should leave room for the MESSY and INSPIRED part in the messy, inspired action required to succeed.
Always look out for Universal guidance and be willing to make changes no matter at which stage of your plan you are.
Do not put your plan above Universal guidance!
8. Surrender means trusting the Universe more than yourself
“You know you’ve surrendered when you trust that the Universe has a better plan than you do. You’ve surrendered when you no longer manipulate and force outcomes.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
This lesson adds beautifully to the previous one.
It is often difficult for spiritual beginners to recognize whether they have surrendered properly or not.
After all, surrender isn’t anything tangible or visible. It’s more of a feeling, and those are always difficult to imagine if never felt before.
One great way to check whether you’ve surrendered is by asking yourself who you trust more, the Universe or your plans.
Do you feel nervous and impatient about what’s to come?
Do you have a plan B ready for when your manifestation doesn’t work, just in case?
These things indicate that you haven’t fully surrendered.
But don’t worry, it is never too late to surrender.
9. Confronting the world’s darkness will motivate you to shine brighter
“Being conscious of the darkness in the world fuels our desire to bring more light.”
– Gabriele Bernstein (The Universe Has Your Back)
It’s understandable to want to shut yourself off from the world’s news.
After all, no matter where you look – television, radio, social media – there is a never-ending focus on bad, horrific, and depressing news.
These events will inevitably affect us.
However, we get to choose if the effects will be entirely negative or if we turn them into something positive.
Modern spiritual women and men don’t hide away from the world’s darkness.
Instead, they turn it into a fierce determination to shine their light into the world’s darkness.
They donate, send kind words and prayers, organize campaigns, and do more.
What will you do? Hide or act?
Well, what was your favorite lesson from The Universe Has Your Back? Have you read the book already, or is it still on your reading list?
As always, we’d love to hear from you.
And if you are determined to deepen your connection to the Universe and truly feel its support, write ‘SUPPORTED’ into the comments.
Until next time, Felicity Seeker!
