This book of 365 daily devotionals supports the time-honored adage, "Why put off until tomorrow what you can do today?" The charismatic spiritual leader Iyanla Vanzant knows how easy it is to stay stuck in "old sentiments, resentments, beliefs, decisions, agreements, judgments, and ideas that may have become habitual." Through these devotions Vanzant hopes to show readers that the easiest way to create change is to simply shift your attitude--today. "We often work so hard to get the things we want that we miss the fact that it is the landscape of the inner world that stands between us and true happiness."

In the closing paragraph of each one-page devotional Vanzant names an old way of thinking and offers readers a new attitude to try on "just for today." For example, Vanzant writes, "Until today, you may have believed that you had to stay in the painful hole of hurt caused by the loss of a loved one. Just for today, make a conscious effort and choice to cover the hole and move on." Some might consider these devotions a fancy term for affirmations. Vanzant scoffs at the notion. Time spent in devotion is not a "New Age trick through which you can impose your will on God, the universe, or those around you," she writes. "Devotion is the reverent, personal act of surrendering your will to the Divine will." --Gail Hudson


From Library Journal
More inspiration from Vanzant. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Review
Linton Weeks The Washington Post Iyanla Vanzant has been down and now her books are pulling others up.


Book Description
Beloved: If there are situations, circumstances, or perhaps relationships in your life that you have been struggling to overcome, trying to work through, or doing your best to work around, throw your head back and declare to the universe, "Until Today!" If you believe that life has to be hard, that things will probably never get better for you, that you must expect less or accept less because that is just the way life is, raise your hands and shout into the ether, "Until Today!" If you have been hurt, betrayed, abandoned, or rejected, if you are struggling with feelings of anger, resentment, doubt, or fear, put your hands on your heart and gently whisper to yourself, "Until Today!" My friend and colleague Dr. Therman Evans once told me, "If you behaved yourself into a situation, you must behave yourself out of it!" A devotion is a behavior in service to love, truth, and God that will create powerful changes in the circumstances of your life that have held you down and back until today! Whatever has been going on in your mind, your life, or your heart can stop -- right now, if that is truly what you desire. However, you must be willing to "do a new thing." You must spend a little time, each day, in devotion to the truth about yourself and the truth about life. You must make a conscious approach to what you think and how you feel about what you do. Devotion will clear up misconceptions that may have obscured your vision of life until today! A devotion is a divine action. Its profound dedication demonstrates the desire to be in service to God. Since it is God's desire for you to be happy, any time spent in devotion will be beneficial. Your devotion, as a demonstration of your willingness to embrace new concepts and to undertake behaviors that support those concepts, will ultimately result in your happiness. When you are actively, willingly devoted to seeking a "good thing," the Divine Intelligence of life will guide, support, and reward you. I am excited! It is exciting to be alive in a time when people are actively, willingly, and devotedly seeking ways to be of greater service and create more love in our collective experience. I can hardly wait to see the good, the joy, and the peace that we can create. I am so grateful to be in support of and of service to you as you undertake this journey. Because I know that "where two or more are gathered" the Spirit of good is present, I believe that the things upon which we focus our hearts and minds will reap bountiful results. So, here's to your personal strength and your peace of mind, through the elimination of all things that hindered or denied our collective power and greatness -- Until Today! Be Blessed! Iyanla

FROM OUR EDITORS

Now slated for April 2000! Even before Oprah shared the secret, Iyanla Vanzant was a household name for many. And now she returns with a new devotional. As with her phenomenal bestseller Acts of Faith, Vanzant here provides a daily blueprint for healthier living and spiritual empowerment. Brimming with a year's supply of daily quotations, exercises, and Iyanla's acute observations, Until Today! is an ideal gift for yourself or a loved one.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

If there are situations, circumstances, or perhaps relationships in your life that you have been struggling to overcome, trying to work through, or doing your best to work around, throw your head back and declare to the universe, "Until Today!"

Whatever has been going on in your mind, your life, or your heart can stop — right now, if that is truly what you desire. However, you must be willing to "do a new thing." You must spend a little time, each day, in devotion to the truth about yourself and your life. You must make a conscious approach to what you think, what you feel, and what you do. Devotion will clear up misconceptions that may have obscured your vision until today!

Bestselling author Iyanla Vanzant presents a new book of devotions for anyone on the path to spiritual empowerment. These daily devotions will create powerful changes in the circumstances of your life that have held you back and will place you on the road to personal strength and peace of mind.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal