Monday, March 30, 2015
Attitude of Gratitude
I am grateful for apologies. I really want my apologies when I want them but I am often slow to apologize at times as well. Whether we are apologizing or someone else is, it is apart of the forgiveness process and as none of us are perfect it is something we all need to be giving.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Quotes to live by
"The heart, like the mind, has a memory. And in it are kept the most precious keepsakes." ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Caught up in our emotions
When we are caught up in our emotions, it's as though they wash over us like a powerful wave and before we know it we find ourselves caught in a current. It's a current of deep waters we don't want to be in, struggling to stay afloat and not be taken under by. In the case of our emotions it's a current we don't want to be taken over by. Take anger for example; anger is easy to be swept up by and it is the path of least resistance. Water takes the path of least resistance and I believe emotions do to.
How many times do we find ourselves going along our merry way when bam, we are side swiped by something and we find ourselves saying and doing things we later regret because we were over taken by strong emotions. In the powerful wave of our emotions, everything 'feels' so real. And yet later when the emotions subside we are often able to see that things were not as real as they appeared under the influence of that powerful emotion.
I think we often feel that we are our emotions and from this perspective; if we are our emotions and our emotions are in pain, then it would seem to reason that the fight or flight response would take over thinking that we are in danger from the thing that is causing our emotions to feel this way. In this perspective it would be easy to see why we are often carried away by our powerful emotions and why they elicit such strong responses from us.
But what if we are not our emotions? What if we are something more important that has more control and a choice in how to respond to the emotions we feel? Oprah Winfrey in her studies with Eckhart Tolle and Deepak Chopra says, "We are the awareness behind our emotions."
What is our awareness, but our spirit. From the perspective that we feel that we are our emotions, it is easy to be carried away by our emotions and over taken by them. But if we make a change to a new perspective that we are not our emotions, but we are the spirit that is experiencing and witnessing these emotions, we no longer have to respond with the knee jerk response of fight or flight. If we are not our emotions and we do not have to respond as though we are in danger, how we choose to respond becomes a choice instead of a reaction. When we have a choice, we are free.
When we are free, our feelings no longer feel overwhelming; they become joyful and enrich our lives. They become the color of our world, brightening and enlivening it. They turn relationships into experiences that grow and mature us. We are not our feelings, we are the spirit that God created and as such we choose our feelings, they do not choose us.
How many times do we find ourselves going along our merry way when bam, we are side swiped by something and we find ourselves saying and doing things we later regret because we were over taken by strong emotions. In the powerful wave of our emotions, everything 'feels' so real. And yet later when the emotions subside we are often able to see that things were not as real as they appeared under the influence of that powerful emotion.
I think we often feel that we are our emotions and from this perspective; if we are our emotions and our emotions are in pain, then it would seem to reason that the fight or flight response would take over thinking that we are in danger from the thing that is causing our emotions to feel this way. In this perspective it would be easy to see why we are often carried away by our powerful emotions and why they elicit such strong responses from us.
But what if we are not our emotions? What if we are something more important that has more control and a choice in how to respond to the emotions we feel? Oprah Winfrey in her studies with Eckhart Tolle and Deepak Chopra says, "We are the awareness behind our emotions."
What is our awareness, but our spirit. From the perspective that we feel that we are our emotions, it is easy to be carried away by our emotions and over taken by them. But if we make a change to a new perspective that we are not our emotions, but we are the spirit that is experiencing and witnessing these emotions, we no longer have to respond with the knee jerk response of fight or flight. If we are not our emotions and we do not have to respond as though we are in danger, how we choose to respond becomes a choice instead of a reaction. When we have a choice, we are free.
When we are free, our feelings no longer feel overwhelming; they become joyful and enrich our lives. They become the color of our world, brightening and enlivening it. They turn relationships into experiences that grow and mature us. We are not our feelings, we are the spirit that God created and as such we choose our feelings, they do not choose us.
Monday, March 23, 2015
Attitude of Gratitude
I am grateful for coincidence. I am grateful that it is God's way of remaining anonymous, because everything is being divinely guided and directed by him who knows each of us perfectly and loves us unconditionally. That is who I want orchestrating the coincidences of my life.
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Be ye as a little child
This is just one of those days. You know the kind when you know there is something "more" for you to do but you have no idea how to go about doing it. I think I have some understanding of what "it" is, but it just seems as though the doors are shut and I can't get them open to make anything happen.
This is another classic case of me, trying to do it. Me being busy and scurrying around, looking for the one door that will get me to where I think I should go. All the while the anxiety is building and I feel more and more frustrated. And because things don't look the way I think they should, I feel like a failure. I'm disappointed and in the frustration of my feelings I find myself blaming God. Why are you asking me to do this if you're not making the way for it?
The truth is, God doesn't ask anything of us without providing the way. Usually what happens looks very much like when I ask one of my children to do something for me. As I begin to ask one of my kids if they will help me with something, they are often off and running to go do what I asked when I haven't even gotten half way through what I was asking them for. So that when they return they have often either not done what I asked or they come back asking me questions because they don't know how to do what I asked them to. Does this sound familiar?
As a parent, I want my child to be still, listen to all of my instructions and then ask any questions they may have before they go and do what I ask of them. God is our father, as a parent himself; would he want anything less from us, his children? So at times like these, when I don't know how to do what my heart is strongly telling me to do, I am to become as a little child.
Perhaps, like a child, I am confused because I did not listen long enough to get all of my instructions. And maybe either from excitement or dismay over the request, I forgot to ask the questions that would clarify things for me. So when we find ourselves in moments like these, God hasn't abandoned us to our fate but is rather patiently waiting for us to return for the further instructions that will turn confusion into clarity and dismay into excitement.
The scriptures say that we are to be as little children and children can be very eager which is good. But sometimes a child is so eager they forget to be patient. The scriptures also advise moderation. Maybe these are experiences where God is teaching us to temper our eagerness with patience so that with the two, we may have the eagerness to go forth and do the work and the patience to see it through to the end.
As it is, I think it's time for me to go and have a conversation with my father. Wish me luck! After all, it's St. Patrick's Day.
This is another classic case of me, trying to do it. Me being busy and scurrying around, looking for the one door that will get me to where I think I should go. All the while the anxiety is building and I feel more and more frustrated. And because things don't look the way I think they should, I feel like a failure. I'm disappointed and in the frustration of my feelings I find myself blaming God. Why are you asking me to do this if you're not making the way for it?
The truth is, God doesn't ask anything of us without providing the way. Usually what happens looks very much like when I ask one of my children to do something for me. As I begin to ask one of my kids if they will help me with something, they are often off and running to go do what I asked when I haven't even gotten half way through what I was asking them for. So that when they return they have often either not done what I asked or they come back asking me questions because they don't know how to do what I asked them to. Does this sound familiar?
As a parent, I want my child to be still, listen to all of my instructions and then ask any questions they may have before they go and do what I ask of them. God is our father, as a parent himself; would he want anything less from us, his children? So at times like these, when I don't know how to do what my heart is strongly telling me to do, I am to become as a little child.
Perhaps, like a child, I am confused because I did not listen long enough to get all of my instructions. And maybe either from excitement or dismay over the request, I forgot to ask the questions that would clarify things for me. So when we find ourselves in moments like these, God hasn't abandoned us to our fate but is rather patiently waiting for us to return for the further instructions that will turn confusion into clarity and dismay into excitement.
The scriptures say that we are to be as little children and children can be very eager which is good. But sometimes a child is so eager they forget to be patient. The scriptures also advise moderation. Maybe these are experiences where God is teaching us to temper our eagerness with patience so that with the two, we may have the eagerness to go forth and do the work and the patience to see it through to the end.
As it is, I think it's time for me to go and have a conversation with my father. Wish me luck! After all, it's St. Patrick's Day.
Monday, March 16, 2015
Attitude of Gratitude
I am grateful for the Disney Movie Frozen. I absolutely love the song "Let it go". I think it will be one of my all time favorites. It feels like the way Chaka Khan sang, "he's strumming my pain with his fingers, he's telling my life with his words." It feels like it describes so much of me and my life. Love it.
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Quotes to live by
"Do not let your fire go out spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all...The world you desire can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours." ~ Ayn Rand
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
No Problems?
Recently while I was at church they were discussing the things that Christ taught people to "be" during his sermon on the mount. He began each statement with "blessed are". He gave a list of 9 things to "be". A list that if we followed it and did as he said, we would be blessed. A list that sounds simple but can feel very hard to accomplish when we are in the midst of feeling our feelings.
Often we are trying to be perfect and do these things perfectly. But we are not perfect and often fall short of the mark. In our yearning to be perfect sometimes we ignore our mistakes or try to hide them. When our mistakes become secrets they can have a high price that can be devastating when they are discovered. And our wounds can feel too big and too deep to recover from.
Another thing we may do is wish them away or feel persecuted, why me? Why do we make the association that to be perfect means that we do not have any problems, trials or burdens? And we act as though the only way that God can show he loves us, is if we do not have any problems or trials. Or if we pray, the only way God can show he is listening and he loves us is to take away the problem we are praying over.
If Christ truly is our example in all things then his example shows us the folly in our thinking here. Christ truly was perfect, the only one of us who was, is and will continue to be perfect, without fault or blemish. No other person will ever be able to say the same. In fact we are full of such imperfection that we make mistakes on a daily basis.
Christ who is perfect, lived a life full of problems. He was tempted by the devil continually to misuse and abuse his station, his gifts, and his authority. He was ridiculed, mistreated, threatened, abused, rejected, taunted, demeaned, abandoned, ignored, denounced, betrayed, attacked, humiliated, entrapped, slandered, beaten, accused, punished, etc, etc, etc. The list literally can go on and on. Can any of you sympathize?
He experienced all of this for us, because he loves us. If this was his life, then why do we think our life is supposed to be any different. Why is our life to be the exception when we are here to become like Christ. And even though his life was full of these problems; he loved and was loved.
Loving and being loved does not mean there will be no problems. What it does mean is that you will not be alone when you experience your problems. The more you love and allow yourself to be loved, the more support you will find is there for you when you make your mistakes. Christ is again our example; he didn't give just any old kind of love, he gave unconditional love. It is this love without condition that will support us in our mistakes and imperfection as well as others when they fall short and disappoint or even hurt us with their mistakes. Who says that people only love us if they don't hurt us?
It wasn't just Christ's enemies who did all of these things to him. Some of these things were done by the people closest to him; the ones he called brother and friend. When did the only way a person can show they love us, is by not hurting us or causing us pain? Especially when we make mistakes that hurt the ones we love all the time. We know we made these mistakes and we love them; and yet we hold others to this different condition of, to love me is not to hurt me.
People make mistakes and it can hurt. But what truly hurts us and causes us our deepest heartache, sorrow and grief are the conditions that we are putting on love and life. It is these self-created prisons and self-inflicted pain that is in the way of our greatest happiness. If we put it there, then we have the power to remove it.
We can make a different choice and embrace a different way of thinking. We can remove the conditions we are putting on ourselves, on our lives, on others, on love and on God. We can strive for perfection and embrace our imperfections that lead to mistakes, which are merely learning and growing experiences. We can embrace a life that is filled with problems through grace and patience, and by doing so come to know what God is trying to teach us. We can experience problems while loving and being loved in all its messiness. And we can forgive; forgive ourselves, forgive others, and forgive God. It's that simple; the easiness or hardness is up to us and what conditions we decide to embrace.
I don't know about you but I know that for me, I choose to serve the Lord and receive of his unconditional love. And come what may, I will strive to reflect that unconditional love in my life to the best of my ability, problems and all.
Often we are trying to be perfect and do these things perfectly. But we are not perfect and often fall short of the mark. In our yearning to be perfect sometimes we ignore our mistakes or try to hide them. When our mistakes become secrets they can have a high price that can be devastating when they are discovered. And our wounds can feel too big and too deep to recover from.
Another thing we may do is wish them away or feel persecuted, why me? Why do we make the association that to be perfect means that we do not have any problems, trials or burdens? And we act as though the only way that God can show he loves us, is if we do not have any problems or trials. Or if we pray, the only way God can show he is listening and he loves us is to take away the problem we are praying over.
If Christ truly is our example in all things then his example shows us the folly in our thinking here. Christ truly was perfect, the only one of us who was, is and will continue to be perfect, without fault or blemish. No other person will ever be able to say the same. In fact we are full of such imperfection that we make mistakes on a daily basis.
Christ who is perfect, lived a life full of problems. He was tempted by the devil continually to misuse and abuse his station, his gifts, and his authority. He was ridiculed, mistreated, threatened, abused, rejected, taunted, demeaned, abandoned, ignored, denounced, betrayed, attacked, humiliated, entrapped, slandered, beaten, accused, punished, etc, etc, etc. The list literally can go on and on. Can any of you sympathize?
He experienced all of this for us, because he loves us. If this was his life, then why do we think our life is supposed to be any different. Why is our life to be the exception when we are here to become like Christ. And even though his life was full of these problems; he loved and was loved.
Loving and being loved does not mean there will be no problems. What it does mean is that you will not be alone when you experience your problems. The more you love and allow yourself to be loved, the more support you will find is there for you when you make your mistakes. Christ is again our example; he didn't give just any old kind of love, he gave unconditional love. It is this love without condition that will support us in our mistakes and imperfection as well as others when they fall short and disappoint or even hurt us with their mistakes. Who says that people only love us if they don't hurt us?
It wasn't just Christ's enemies who did all of these things to him. Some of these things were done by the people closest to him; the ones he called brother and friend. When did the only way a person can show they love us, is by not hurting us or causing us pain? Especially when we make mistakes that hurt the ones we love all the time. We know we made these mistakes and we love them; and yet we hold others to this different condition of, to love me is not to hurt me.
People make mistakes and it can hurt. But what truly hurts us and causes us our deepest heartache, sorrow and grief are the conditions that we are putting on love and life. It is these self-created prisons and self-inflicted pain that is in the way of our greatest happiness. If we put it there, then we have the power to remove it.
We can make a different choice and embrace a different way of thinking. We can remove the conditions we are putting on ourselves, on our lives, on others, on love and on God. We can strive for perfection and embrace our imperfections that lead to mistakes, which are merely learning and growing experiences. We can embrace a life that is filled with problems through grace and patience, and by doing so come to know what God is trying to teach us. We can experience problems while loving and being loved in all its messiness. And we can forgive; forgive ourselves, forgive others, and forgive God. It's that simple; the easiness or hardness is up to us and what conditions we decide to embrace.
I don't know about you but I know that for me, I choose to serve the Lord and receive of his unconditional love. And come what may, I will strive to reflect that unconditional love in my life to the best of my ability, problems and all.
Monday, March 9, 2015
Attitude of Gratitude
I am grateful for Pandora. My outlet where my kitchen radio is plugged into has broken, for unknown reasons to my children. Apparently I don't know and it wasn't me are the culprits. So thank you Pandora because I can stream music from my ipod when I am tired of my regular music.
Sunday, March 8, 2015
Quotes to live by
"Know yourself best. People don't tell you who you are, you tell them." ~ Unknown Author
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Free Ticket
Yesterday I posted about the upcoming Whole Person Preparedness Conference. Today I want to announce that I have a free ticket to the conference for one lucky winner. I will hold the drawing for this ticket on March 9th.
You can enter to win the ticket by leaving a comment with your name on this post. I will choose a winner from these comments. Once the winner has been chosen I will contact you about how to receive your ticket.
Good luck!
You can enter to win the ticket by leaving a comment with your name on this post. I will choose a winner from these comments. Once the winner has been chosen I will contact you about how to receive your ticket.
Good luck!
Monday, March 2, 2015
Whole Person Preparedness Conference
If you are interested in learning how to prepare yourself for the world you are living in today as well as the world you may be facing tomorrow, come to the Whole Person Preparedness Conference. I will have a booth where I will be offering free intuitive readings for anyone who is interested in learning more about them.
Attitude of Gratitude
I am grateful for my feelings. Many times they feel overwhelming or confusing. Other times they just plain old hurt. But whatever I may think or feel about my feelings, the point is that I feel and what a blessing that is.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Quotes to live by
"Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world." ~ Lucille Ball
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