Two weeks ago I wrote about your "calling," and why you will experience the divine flow in a heightened way when you are actively engaged in that calling. A calling, as I pointed out, is something that adds meaning and purpose to your life. It is something that you are so passionate about, you would do it even if you were not paid for it.

That makes a calling different from a job, because — strictly speaking — a job is something you do solely for the income it provides. A calling is different from a career, too, because — again, strictly speaking — a career is also something you do for the income it provides, but it happens to be something that you are very interested in, and you are perfectly content doing that same thing for years on end.
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About half of surveyed U.S. doctors say they regularly prescribe placebos without their patients knowledge, and most admit to no qualms about handing out vitamins, aspirin, and other benign pills that have little relevance to the symptoms their patients complain of, according to a new study. Several medical ethicists say they're troubled by the results, including study coauthor Franklin Miller: "This is the doctor-patient relationship, and our expectations about being truthful about what's going on and about getting informed consent should give us pause about deception" [The New York Times].

Study coauthor John Tilburt says these findings are a reflection of the modern mentality that for every symptom you may experience, there's a pill to make it all better…. "Doctors feel pressured to prescribe something in order to show the patient that they are taking their symptoms seriously and trying to do something about it, so they try to find creative ways to make patients feel better, and will use any tool available, including psychological benefits" [ABC News].
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On Thursday, November 27th, citizens of the United States will be celebrating Thanksgiving Day. It's a day when we express gratitude for all the things in our lives that we really do appreciate, but often forget to be consciously thankful for . . . such as food, family, and friends.

Well, here's a challenge for you: Can you also be thankful for the things in your life that you do not appreciate? Can you be thankful for the people in your life that you hold resentments against? Can you be thankful for the circumstances in your life that have brought you discomfort . . . or even pain?
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You may already be familiar with one of the biggest threats to our health: it is heart disease in all its existing forms — atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries from plaque buildup), stroke, hypertension (high blood pressure), peripheral artery disease, arrhythmia, high cholesterol, congestive heart failure, aneurysm, and thrombosis.

While sometimes genetic, it is mostly preventable and treatable, yet is the leading cause of death in the United States, Canada, and England (affecting approximately 700,000 people in the U.S.).
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When I was inspired to write my book and get it published, I experienced the divine flow like never before. With incredible ease and grace, I was unmistakably directed to the publisher of my book; the cover photo was divinely delivered to me; three of the notable people who first endorsed my book literally showed up on the doorstep of my church; and my first significant speaking engagement was a rare opportunity that just came my way. Even when I was writing my book, I received extended, unexpected income to help support me during that lengthy process.
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People who feel that they lack control while participating in lab experiments are more likely to see patterns where none exist, researchers say, in a finding that helps explain persistent beliefs in superstitions and conspiracy theories. In a new study, researchers manipulated volunteers' perception of control and then watched the insecure subjects find connections where none existed in an apparent attempt to restore a sense of order to the world.

In one experiment, researchers gave half the volunteers a feeling of powerlessness and confusion by randomly scoring them right and wrong (and mostly wrong) on a series of questions. Then the volunteers had to find patterns. In one task, they were asked to find faint images in grainy patterns of dots. Half of the pictures had images and the others were random dots. While people in both groups correctly spotted the images, the group that felt they lacked control from a previous part of the experiment also "saw" images in 43 percent of pictures that were not there [Reuters].
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