Book Review: There’s a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem

There’s a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem

by Wayne Dyer

My Rating **** (4 out of 5 stars)

Why Did I Read?

I love the teachings of Wayne Dyer.  I never get tired of listening to his stories or learning about his teachings.  I found this book at a book sale a few years ago.  It sat on my shelf for a few years, but it has been calling to me for a while.  I finally decided to pick it up and read it in February of this year. At times while I was reading, I lost interest in it (or maybe I just wasn’t ready for the lessons I was about to read).  I often found myself taking a break from this book to read other books that were easier to read.  It’s now September, and I am just finishing it.  It did take me quite a while to get through it, but I’m glad I did.

Summary (from Goodreads)

“In this inspiring new book, bestselling author Wayne W. Dyer shows us that there is an omnipresent spiritual force right at our fingertips that contains the solution to our problems — from ill health to financial worries to relationship difficulties.  Drawing from various spiritual traditions, especially from the prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi, Dyer helps us unplug from the material world and awaken to the divine within.

The first part of the book provides the essential foundation for spiritual problem solving. In these chapters, you’ll read the words of Patanjali, a Yogi mystic whose teachings and practices deeply affected Dyer and informed his realization that the spiritual force is everywhere.

The second half, organized around the prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi, contains specific suggestions to help readers put spiritual problem solving into practice.  Saint Francis’s legacy is one of love, harmony, and service — putting our collective energies toward what we are for instead of what we are against. Each of these last seven chapters begins with a line from this prayer; Dyer then goes on to offer specific and practical suggestions for applying the teaching to everyday problems. These suggestions include affirmations, writing exercises, guided meditations, and other strategies for putting Saint Francis’s words and the wisdom of this book into practice.Profound and thought provoking, yet filled with pragmatic advice, There’s a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem is a book about self-awareness and tapping the healing energy within all of us.  As Dyer writes, ‘Thinking is the source of problems. Your heart holds the answer to solving them.’ “

What did I think/Recommendation?

As I mentioned above, I love the teachings of Wayne Dyer!  This book is filled with so much wonderful advice, and it can be difficult to take it all in at once.  It is a very deep book, and if I were rating it on content alone, I would give it 5 stars without a doubt.  The only reason I gave it 4 stars is because it was not an easy read for me and it took me quite a while to get through it.

When Wayne Dyer passed away on August 30th of this year, I felt the need to pick it up again and finish it.  I love the stories he tells from his personal life to illustrate some of his points, and I love the way he uses scripture and quotes from all different religions and cultures.  The advice he gives applies to everyone.  If I had to describe this book in one word, I would say it is about LOVE.  He knew about love and being connected to everyone and everything, and I’m so grateful he is going to live on through his books and teachings so we can all learn to do the same.

Whenever I read his books or listen to his talks, I feel so much more at peace.  I also notice opportunities begin to arise in my life that allow me to practice his teachings.  For example, just this week I was able to practice turning my fears into love when my daughter had surgery on her broken arm.  As I was sitting in the waiting room, filled with anxiety over the thought of my daughter under anesthesia for the first time, I picked up this book and continued reading to try to keep my mind off my fears.  I didn’t get far into it before I was guided to put down the book, close my eyes, push aside my fears, and send love to the situation.  I decided to send love to everyone in the operating room with my daughter and to give gratitude for the doctors and nurses, the anesthesia, and the entire experience.  My fears subsided, I was granted peace, and everything went smoothly.

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who is open to embracing their spirituality and connecting more with everyone and everything in the universe.

There are so many quotes and concepts I love from this book.  Here are just a few of my favorites:

Have a mind that is open to everything and attached to nothing.

“You come into this life with nothing and you leave with nothing.  The only thing you can do with your life is give it away.” -p.248

“There is no object so foul that intense light will not make it beautiful.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

For more quotes and reviews from this book, or to learn more about Wayne Dyer, visit Goodreads here.