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The Power of the Spoken Word: Teachings of Florence Scovel Shinn
THE POWER OF THE SPOKEN WORD takes you to the heart of Florence Scovel Shinn's teachings by emphasizing the importance of affirmations and how they change your life. Our words have the power to change our lives. By paying more attention to how we speak, and hence how we think, we can change our circumstances for the better. The Power of the Spoken Word will help you make the positive changes that you've always wanted to make.
90 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1945
About the author
Florence Scovel Shinn
459 books580 followersFlorence Scovel Shinn (September 24, 1871, Camden, New Jersey – October 17, 1940) was an American artist and book illustrator who became a New Thought spiritual teacher and metaphysical writer in her middle years. In New Thought circles, she is best known for her first book, The Game of Life and How to Play It (1925).
Her books "Your Word Is Your Wand" and "The Game of Life and How To Play It" were released as audiobooks in 2014 and 2015 respectively and were narrated by actress Hillary Hawkins.
Shinn is considered part of the New Thought movement, as her writings follow in the tradition of Phineas Quimby (1802–1866), Emma Curtis Hopkins (1849–1925), and both Charles Fillmore (1854–1948) and Myrtle Fillmore (1845–1931), co-founders of the Unity Church.
Motivational author Louise Hay acknowledges her as an early influence.
Her books "Your Word Is Your Wand" and "The Game of Life and How To Play It" were released as audiobooks in 2014 and 2015 respectively and were narrated by actress Hillary Hawkins.
Shinn is considered part of the New Thought movement, as her writings follow in the tradition of Phineas Quimby (1802–1866), Emma Curtis Hopkins (1849–1925), and both Charles Fillmore (1854–1948) and Myrtle Fillmore (1845–1931), co-founders of the Unity Church.
Motivational author Louise Hay acknowledges her as an early influence.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
May 20, 2019
I have just read this book for the second time after many years.
Florence Scovel Shin is one of the great, famous prosperity teachers, and I can’t give her less than five stars.
This book was published after Florence’s death on the basis of “a collection of notes and memoranda”.
The message of the book is unchanged, of course, but I admit, though I much admire the author, it does now seem extremely dated/old-fashioned and not that easy to read. Still, it is absolutely inspiring, thus the five stars.
There is much repetition, religious terminology and many biblical quotes, so it will not be to everyone’s taste.
Jesus Christ said, “When ye pray, believe ye have it”.
Intuition is Divine Guidance. It is the God within. God is Love but God is Law. (I’m not sure that I know what is meant by “God is law”.)
We need to be a good receiver. Prepare for our blessing, rejoice and give thanks and it will come to pass.
We contact the God-power in all things by the word. “Life and death are in the power of the tongue.” This God-power is in “the realm of miracles and wonders”. As soon as we ask, Infinite Intelligence knows what to do. Our part is to rejoice and give thanks. (I realize I’m repeating myself too.)
The author tells us that fear is our only adversary. It robs us of all power, for we have lost contact with “the Universal Power House”.
The mission of Jesus Christ was to wake people up. “Awake thou that sleepeth”.
“Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all right things shall be added unto you.”
Leave the plan of your life to the Divine Planner and you will find all conditions permanently perfect.
We are given various inspiring stories about some of the author’s clients who transformed their lives by following her advice.
We are advised not to follow “the reasoning mind” but rather our intuition. We need to follow our leads and hunches.
Owing to the vibratory power of words, what you voice, you begin to attract. People who continually speak of disease, invariably attract disease.
“A word is spoken and a chemical change takes place in the body.”
We must watch our thoughts and our words.
All life is vibration. If we feel rich, we will attract riches.
These things are not new, but Florence Scovel Shin was one of the first to write about them.
If we are in a negative state of mind we should repeat the statement “I look with wonder at that which is before me!”
I once followed Florence’s advice and repeated these words while looking at a scratch card I’d just bought where one could win money if one was lucky. I had previously looked at it and found nothing, but now I saw that I had actually won 1000 kroner!
We need to cultivate the feeling that “miracles and wonders are coming to pass”.
Only our doubts, fears and resentments keep our good from us. We must remain undisturbed by injustice and send good-will to all concerned.
All that we desire or require is already on our pathway.
We must not be anxious since an “invincible, invisible” power is at man’s command to supply every need. But we need to believe in it.
We need to visualize what we want, then it will come. She gives us the example of a great football player who trained in a hammock, visualizing.
We must expect our good to come to pass. “We are the receivers, God is the Giver, and He must create His own channels.”
Prayer is telephoning to God, and intuition is God telephoning to you.
This book is a summary of the teachings of Florence Scovel Shin, and if you have not yet read it or her other books, I highly recommend that you do.
Florence Scovel Shin is one of the great, famous prosperity teachers, and I can’t give her less than five stars.
This book was published after Florence’s death on the basis of “a collection of notes and memoranda”.
The message of the book is unchanged, of course, but I admit, though I much admire the author, it does now seem extremely dated/old-fashioned and not that easy to read. Still, it is absolutely inspiring, thus the five stars.
There is much repetition, religious terminology and many biblical quotes, so it will not be to everyone’s taste.
Jesus Christ said, “When ye pray, believe ye have it”.
Intuition is Divine Guidance. It is the God within. God is Love but God is Law. (I’m not sure that I know what is meant by “God is law”.)
We need to be a good receiver. Prepare for our blessing, rejoice and give thanks and it will come to pass.
We contact the God-power in all things by the word. “Life and death are in the power of the tongue.” This God-power is in “the realm of miracles and wonders”. As soon as we ask, Infinite Intelligence knows what to do. Our part is to rejoice and give thanks. (I realize I’m repeating myself too.)
The author tells us that fear is our only adversary. It robs us of all power, for we have lost contact with “the Universal Power House”.
The mission of Jesus Christ was to wake people up. “Awake thou that sleepeth”.
“Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all right things shall be added unto you.”
Leave the plan of your life to the Divine Planner and you will find all conditions permanently perfect.
We are given various inspiring stories about some of the author’s clients who transformed their lives by following her advice.
We are advised not to follow “the reasoning mind” but rather our intuition. We need to follow our leads and hunches.
Owing to the vibratory power of words, what you voice, you begin to attract. People who continually speak of disease, invariably attract disease.
“A word is spoken and a chemical change takes place in the body.”
We must watch our thoughts and our words.
All life is vibration. If we feel rich, we will attract riches.
These things are not new, but Florence Scovel Shin was one of the first to write about them.
If we are in a negative state of mind we should repeat the statement “I look with wonder at that which is before me!”
I once followed Florence’s advice and repeated these words while looking at a scratch card I’d just bought where one could win money if one was lucky. I had previously looked at it and found nothing, but now I saw that I had actually won 1000 kroner!
We need to cultivate the feeling that “miracles and wonders are coming to pass”.
Only our doubts, fears and resentments keep our good from us. We must remain undisturbed by injustice and send good-will to all concerned.
All that we desire or require is already on our pathway.
We must not be anxious since an “invincible, invisible” power is at man’s command to supply every need. But we need to believe in it.
We need to visualize what we want, then it will come. She gives us the example of a great football player who trained in a hammock, visualizing.
We must expect our good to come to pass. “We are the receivers, God is the Giver, and He must create His own channels.”
Prayer is telephoning to God, and intuition is God telephoning to you.
This book is a summary of the teachings of Florence Scovel Shin, and if you have not yet read it or her other books, I highly recommend that you do.
February 9, 2013
I'm surprised that her name is not better known -- if people are recommended to read Emerson or Thoreau, they definitely should be recommended Scovel Shinn as well.
May 27, 2014
This book reveals what you think and what you say have influence in how your life unfolds. It is full of affirmations to retrain the way you think. Another book that should be read by everyone.
March 7, 2022
She was a teacher of truth. She taught about the subconscious and superconcious mind. She taught about the divinity within. She taught about Natural Law. She equates the Law with Christ as He was a metaphysical genius who came to tell us about Divine Law also known as Natural or Cosmic Law. "I have weapons ye know not of. I have ways ye know not of. I have channels ye know not of. Mysterious weapons, mysterious ways, mysterious channels. For God works in mysterious ways His wonders to perform. The trouble with most people is they want to know the way and the channels beforehand. They want to tell Supreme Intelligence just how their prayers should be answered. They do not trust the wisdom and ingenuity of God. They pray giving infinite intelligence definite directions how to work thereby limiting the holy one of Israel. Jesus Christ said when ye pray believe ye have it. What could be more simple or direct? Become as a child to enter the kingdom. We may paraphrase this scripture as to have the expectancy of a little child to have your prayers answered."
February 7, 2014
I can honestly say these books are a blessing, My whole thought patterns are changing into positive mode after reading the four books. This book I found the most rewarding. I will strive to live my life with passion and follow my intuition. If you are a creative soul you will appreciate these books.
March 3, 2019
Excelente audiolibro. Me transforma. Me da paz. Me da fuerza. Me da herramientas para el éxito en la vida.
June 10, 2016
Have you ever thought that the way you speak with yourself, others and specially with God(when you’re praying) can extremely change your life? This is exactly what the author focuses on this book. She believes that if we pray with a belief of already gaining our desires, we’ll definitely get what we wanted. Also, if we show our active faith in our words and actions we’ll definitely get our demands. In this book, there are also some sentences that worth repeating everyday in order to get our specific goals. we can also create our own focusing sentences regarding our demands so that we can repeat them and go through the way of realizing our dreams.
It worth trying these points and see what happens, you won’t lose anything if you didn’t get any success. Share your comments and reviews on this book.
It worth trying these points and see what happens, you won’t lose anything if you didn’t get any success. Share your comments and reviews on this book.
January 5, 2014
I had not heard of this author, and recently picked up this book. It's an interesting blend of positive thinking and biblical / spiritual reference. The author writes, "God's gift to man is power; power and dominion over all created things; his mind, his body and affairs. All unhappiness comes from lack of power. Man imagines himself weak and the victim of the circumstances, claiming that "Conditions over which he had no control" caused his defeat. Man by himself, is indeed a victim of the circumstances; but linked with God-power all things are possible."
Not sure "all unhappiness comes from lack of power" - even if you see "power" as "faith." But as St Paul writes, "All things are possible through God, who strengthens me." Much to be learned here about faith!
Not sure "all unhappiness comes from lack of power" - even if you see "power" as "faith." But as St Paul writes, "All things are possible through God, who strengthens me." Much to be learned here about faith!
October 20, 2019
This books is very good. It's probably not the best book to begin learning about this topic, but if you already know a little bit, this is an excellent way to build up to the next level. Florence Scovel Shinn was probably quite the character back in her day but she also had a lot of influence. People would seek her out because of her ability to "work miracles" for them. And she could do it!
February 13, 2018
Quick read, with lots of misquotes, missed citations, and misinterpretations (on purpose)...especially of the Bible. Rewrites the book, essentially, to promote her ideas about God (or promotes herself).
July 17, 2013
Americans need to read this book, take a good look at how they treat each other, then sit down and restructure their lives.
August 14, 2020
Powerful
This book has opened my mind to the truth, to God be the glory.I will utilize these passages in my journey
This book has opened my mind to the truth, to God be the glory.I will utilize these passages in my journey
April 14, 2016
Gibberish.
August 14, 2018
Enormously inspirational !
This book reveals the power of the spoken word. I would recommend this book to anyone serious about taking control over their lives and their destiny.
This book reveals the power of the spoken word. I would recommend this book to anyone serious about taking control over their lives and their destiny.
July 30, 2019
Is it possible to give 0 stars. Another one of the "ask and it will happen" books. Plain tosh start to finish. I had to grit my teeth to go through with the whole book, it is a short book luckily
April 7, 2021
trust that there is an invisible power taking care of everything
June 29, 2023
The Power of the Spoken Word contains valuable lessons on how to live a positive live and get the things that you want. This is the third book by Florence Scovel Shinn that I read. I don't think that Th Secret Door to Success or The Power of the Spoken Word are as powerful as The Game of Life and How to Play It. But, they do continue to emphasize the power of attracting positive things.
It took me a while to finish The Power of the Spoken Word because I was distracted with a heavy workload and a move to a different state. I probably would have done better to read a page a day to keep the concept of positive thought and positive speech in my subconscious. I mention this for those who may turn to the books of Florence Scovel Shinn and who are in need of change in their life.
It took me a while to finish The Power of the Spoken Word because I was distracted with a heavy workload and a move to a different state. I probably would have done better to read a page a day to keep the concept of positive thought and positive speech in my subconscious. I mention this for those who may turn to the books of Florence Scovel Shinn and who are in need of change in their life.
November 18, 2023
4.5 Stars ✨
My favourite quotes from the book:
“Fear and worries are the robbers of time.”
“Why are you fearful, oh ye of little faith.”
“Past and future are the two robbers. Live in now.”
“You cannot control your thoughts, but you can control your words. Change your words and you change your world for your word is your world.”
I listened to it on YouTube and it was very beautifully narrated by one of the best narrators I have heard of. This book somehow helps me to find faith and my spiritual needs again.
I would love to revisit this book again.
My favourite quotes from the book:
“Fear and worries are the robbers of time.”
“Why are you fearful, oh ye of little faith.”
“Past and future are the two robbers. Live in now.”
“You cannot control your thoughts, but you can control your words. Change your words and you change your world for your word is your world.”
I listened to it on YouTube and it was very beautifully narrated by one of the best narrators I have heard of. This book somehow helps me to find faith and my spiritual needs again.
I would love to revisit this book again.
September 16, 2020
Never heard of Florence Scovel Shinn--a great find.
Note: Namiki Fountain Pen cost a fortune.
Note: Namiki Fountain Pen cost a fortune.
January 28, 2024
florence scovel was kinda THAT girl
April 13, 2018
This is the last of Ms. Shinn's books I've read. It was published after she passed away and was compiled from her notes and teachings, by one of her students. This is No way lessened the impact. I may not believe all Ms. Shinn's theories about reincarnation and the metaphysical, but I absolutely believe all she taught about speaking good into your life. She may have been teaching this in the 1920's, but I'm starting to believe people need to teach these principles today. They are just a relevant, and I can't help but think the world would be better for having and applying this knowledge. Read these books,,they are an investment in yourself and your happiness.
November 8, 2020
This is a powerful book with a powerful message that I want to believe yet has proven not effective at times while others it worked. I think there are things in the spiritual realm that stay mysterious yet they get you excited. This is where I stand and this book was a good reminder of the potential we have. Smooth and simple it’s an easy read, she gets to the point, it’s worth reading and experimenting.
February 3, 2015
Awesome insights in this Spiritual book by Florence Schovel Shinn, she takes Bible verses and relates them metaphysically. These matter of fact messages are easy to adapt in our lives teaching us the Spoken word can help or harm each of us. The book is filled with stories of real people and how the spoken word affected them.
January 20, 2016
I have always known that words were powerful, but I have always thought of it in a more negative kind of way. I know a compliment or a criticism can change lives. This book made me think of it on a different and even more powerful level. I have never thought so much about how my own spoken words can impact my personal life on a powerful level. I really enjoyed this book.
January 3, 2016
Very enjoyable, concepts that with awareness can create a more joyful life.☺
I loved the quote from scriptures and instructions of how to pray. I want to be aware of not only my words, also my thoughts.
I loved the quote from scriptures and instructions of how to pray. I want to be aware of not only my words, also my thoughts.
June 7, 2009
Cannot live without this one. I've always said, there is power in words. They carry a vibrational force. Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.
Read
June 17, 2010You will appreciate this book whether you believe in Jesus or not, but if you believe it is power
June 4, 2012
Great follow-up to her previous works. Lots of great affirmations and plenty of believable examples.
July 17, 2012
spiritually edifying!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews