Choices, Choices, Choices

I was reading an entry in an old journal about a spiritual revelation I had over 30 years ago.  I could hardly describe it then, and even when I’ve thought it since, I’ve had a hard time describing it.  However, while reading my entry, I realized the thing that affected me the most was the realization that I had CHOICE.  I could choose whatever I wanted to be, do, say, or love.  Never again would someone else’s choice for my life be more important than mine.

As soon as I realized this, I started hearing people talk about their experience.  A woman who is new to our Center explained why she cries during my messages.  No one had ever told her she could choose her reality, much less encouraged her to do so. 

I asked my new students “Out of all the churches available, what drew you to a Center for Spiritual Living?”  Each one had a different story, yet the stories were about realizing they could choose what they wanted.

At every moment we get to make little choices.  Sometimes we get to make big ones.  How do we know when we’re making the right ones? 

I believe there’s an infinite intelligence that is the Source and substance of all there is, including me and you.  This Intelligence is part of an unconditionally loving Energy that is absolutely everywhere.  All we have to do is choose to acknowledge It, place our intentions for our life into It, and know this Presence can be trusted to serve us well. 

In the revelation experience I had, I remember a feeling of wonder and awe come over me, and I made the biggest choice of my life.  I held out my hands and said “Use me God.”  In that moment I chose to trust I would be guided along my path, and it would always be for the highest and best of all.  Within a few weeks, I was embarked on the path to ministry (though I didn’t know it at the time – I thought I was just getting people together for brunch and to watch Terry Cole Whittaker on TV on Sunday mornings.)   30 plus years later, I have participated in conferences in most of the world’s power spots, started two Centers,  mentored new ministers, and my first book is in the process of published.  Everything has been a choice – a choice to live a Spirit led life and to serve humanity to the best of my ability. 

I also remember a time in my life when I chose the wrong thing and was guided back to my Path.  While studying for the ministry, I had applied for a job in an exclusive jewelry store.  I made it through two interviews, and then was told that even though I was highly qualified for the position, I didn’t have the job.  I was devastated, but reminded myself that Infinite Intelligence had my highest good in mind, and I had to trust.  A week or so later, I found another job that perfectly suited my studies .. my boss even let me do my homework in the office!  That certainly wouldn’t have happened in the jewelry store! 

Think back on your life, and realize all the choices you’ve made.  You are right where you are now because of those choices.  Where do you want to be next year or 10 years from now?  Choose now, declare your intentions into the Law of Mind, let the Universe do the work it loves to do and trust the process!

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

Infinite Intelligence is present everywhere in potential and in expression.  It is here for me to use consciously or unconsciously.  I choose to be conscious in my choices.

I choose to experience Life in the fullness that It offers.  In my heart of hearts, I know what I want to be, do and have.  I now state those desires as intentions for my life into the Law of Mind with love.  Love points the way, and Law makes the way possible.  I pay attention to the inspiration the Universe is constantly giving me as I walk the Path of my intentions.  I know, without doubts, fears or concerns, that I can trust Infinite Intelligence to guide me, nurture me and support me as I become all I want to be. 

How grateful I am to know I am making wise choices, not only for myself, but for all humanity.   I release these words, knowing they are already embodied deep within my subjective mind.  And so it is.

Atonement

The highest holy Jewish holiday, Yom Kippur, starts tonight.  It’s a day of fasting and atonement.  Though I am not Jewish, I like using the energies of various holy days personally.  I will fast, not necessarily from food, but from all negative thinking to the best of my ability.

To me, atonement is defined as “making amends for a wrong or injury.”  How would I make amends? Here’s a little process I’ve developed for myself:

1^st:  I will take an honest inventory.  Who have I hurt?  Did I put myself on that list? 

2^nd: I will consciously let go of whatever emotional hurts I am holding onto.

3^rd: I will release myself and other people to their highest good. I will no longer belittle or judge myself, or think I am unworthy. I will now give all of us safe passage through my mind.

4^th:  I will never tell the ‘story’ again.

As I make amends with the God in All, I move into a place of At-One-Ment, recognizing nothing can separate us, because the Divine is within all of us. It is as if I am setting my world back in balance.

Whether Yom Kippur is your high holy day or not, fasting and atonement is always a good practice!

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

I honor the powerful presence of Love within me, knowing that God is Love – an unconditional Love that never holds anything against me or anyone else.  Love is the greatest healing agent in the universe and Love is everywhere present.

I now let go and surrender the stories of hurt, frustration and anger to this Great Love.  I let go of the stories of fear to this Great Love.  I am now empty, and in this emptiness, I am made new. In my newness, I declare I am ready and willing to be of greater service than ever before. 

I celebrate God in everyone I come in contact with from this point on. 

How grateful I am to be able to let go and let God in me, as me, and through me, do this work  I now release these words to the Law of Love, knowing they are already so.  And so it is.

How Wonderful It Is To Be Open

I attended an art show called “Magnitude” and a lecture by Jennet Inglis yesterday.  She said quite a few things in her lecture on “Art, Science and Spirit in the 21^st Century: Curiosity, Collaboration, and Compass” that touched me in ways I can’t quite articulate.  It made me think, got me excited, and I feel more opened up.

I got a glimpse into a world of light and color and sound and the mathematics of it all.  How everything fits together so harmoniously even where or when it seems like it shouldn’t.

At one point Jennet said something about our heartbeat being our first clock … establishing us in time.  I remembered a Sunday in Vancouver, BC, where a drummer had joined us and brought lots of drums.  During my talk I asked him to play the first drum ever heard by all of us –  our heartbeat. As I remembered I realized it does establish us in time – we come from the timeless into this dimension when we’re born, and go into the timeless when we die.

A moment later Jennet asked “Is there a holographic heart of humanity?  Where is it?”   My mind jumped into thinking about living in a holographic universe.  That everything is projected from our minds outward as if on a giant blue screen and becomes the reality we live in. We believe in what we’ve projected, therefore we experience it as solid and real.  Jennet’s question made me ask myself “Is this why we’re collectively experiencing so much chaos?  The beliefs we’ve held on to for so long are crashing down and the Global Heart is shining through.  Where is it? It’s inside us – we’re being broken open to let out the Light!

During the Q & A after the lecture someone asked her about color, and she pointed to the back of the theater and told us the colors she saw.  I looked and saw the walls and the rows of seats, but as I listened to her description, suddenly I saw the blocks of color and shading she was describing, and the picture became so much more alive!

That reminded me of taking an art class in Hawai’i and learning about different brushes and the techniques used with them … and then for weeks I’d be driving along looking at things thinking “Oh, I could use a fan brush there!”

Jennet’s PowerPoint presentation ended with a quote by Democritus of Abdera – 430 BC:  “Nothing exists except atoms and space, everything else is opinion.”   I laughed, yet how true this is.  My world is a projection of my opinions and how wonderful it was to be open anothers opinion of art, science and Spirit. What if we were to approach all of life this way .. listening, learning, no preconceived opinions?   How rich, alive and peaceful our world would be.

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

We live in an infinite field of creative potentiality.  We live and move and have our being in this Field, and It lives and moves and has Its being in us.   It is absolutely all there is.

I recognize that the mechanics of this Field are Love and Law.  Love points the way and Law makes the way possible.  Knowing this I now declare I am more open to the possibilities than I have ever been before.  I am judgment free.  My opinions are those of a much higher, more involved mind, the One Mind, the Mind of God.  My life is so much more vibrant, so much more alive that it was just a few minutes ago.  I live with full abandonment of my old, limiting beliefs, and this is good, very good. 

 Gratefully I celebrate knowing there is so much more to learn, more to live.  I am excited about the adventure.  I release these words into the Law of Mind, knowing they are so, and so it is.

I Live in a Universe That Works!

Lately I’ve been hearing people talk about what isn’t working.  Sitting in Starbucks the other day I could hear conversations about the government, relationships, work, medications, finances – you name it, nothing was working!

I asked a group of people “Do you want to change what’s not working?  Let’s reframe this conversation – let’s talk about what is working and be grateful that it is.”  One person told me to “get real” and another told me they agreed with me, but it was good to express what wasn’t working.  I thought to myself "Express yes - dwell on it, no."

I know that when I keep observing a certain thing, it’s because I need to hear it and I got to experience “not working” with my internet and phone service.  It was more off than on for almost a week. I was getting frustrated, especially when a tech came and fixed it and four hours later, I had the same problem only worse.

I realized sometimes I don’t want to accept what is – I just want to move on as if it wasn’t.  Yet that doesn’t work.  I just focus more on the problem. Then I remembered a quote from Ernest Holmes that I have in my journal. I don’t remember where I got it from but here it is:  “Every problem contains its own answer if you think of the problem as a question, and inquiry, and not as an obstruction.  Thinking of it this way, keep your mind not on the repetition of thoughts about the problem, but on the receipt of a definite answer.” 

Those things we’re thinking don’t work?  We’re thinking of them as if they are entities, things of themselves that have power. We dwell on them, giving them free rent in our minds.  That creates the obstruction. Problems don’t have any power except for what we’ve given them.

I decided to just ‘be’ with little or no internet or phone service, not to let it frustrate me.  It was what was, and I knew it would change soon enough. I spent time being grateful for the ways internet and phones serve me, for having other devices to be able to stay connected, and that my circle of friends was much larger because of technology.  Now I’m connected fully again, with a benefit – my service is much faster than before and there is a lot less wire pooling on the floor under the modem!    

My theme for this week is to stop thinking about what isn’t working, look at what is, and be grateful for it!    Join me?

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

Gratefully I acknowledge that at the very center of everything – every cell and atom that makes up everything – is a Divine Energy that is both Love and Law.  It is responsive and exacting.  From deep within me It responds to my thoughts and feelings.

Knowing this I pay attention.  I make my conversation, whether with others or myself, be one of an awareness that I make a difference in this world.  I let go of complaints, and make my choices consciously. I live in a universe that always works and can be trusted.

I am so grateful for everything I’ve ever had, I have now, and will have in my future.  There is only One Life, that Life is God’s and this is the Life I am living now.  It is good, very good.

I release these words into the Law of Mind, knowing they are so, and so it is.  

Honor Your Acheivements

On the Summer Solstice I wrote as my Facebook status:  “This Solstice represents a time of fulfillment. Think of all the things you've achieved this year and celebrate them!!”

When I sat down to do this myself, I started thinking about the things I wanted to do and didn’t.  I wondered how many of us do this instead of honoring our achievements.  Think about the last time you did a year-in-review before a birthday or New Years. What did you mainly think about? 

In our faith tradition there’s a saying:  “The energy flows where the attention goes.”  In other words, if we’re only thinking about what we didn’t do, we’ll not do more of the same.  If we focus on our achievements, we’ll achieve more.

Years ago, I met a man named Positive Paul.  He stated that humans think up to 90,000 thoughts a day, yet over 60,000 of them are negative.  I started paying more attention to my self talk and realized he was right!   I found myself in the land of ‘should,’ ‘shouldn’t have’, ‘if only,’ why didn’t I’, ‘why didn’t they’, or ‘what about me’, over and over.  

When I catch myself going into the negatives, I don’t like it at all. I’ve declared that a part of my mind will be my not-so-silent witness, and when I start to head in the wrong direction, it has directions to gently, easily and humorously remind me to get back on track!

Not only do some people not honor their achievements, they get embarrassed and try to avoid acknowledgment from others. A year ago or so, my prayer partner and I talked about this very subject, and decided to keep a compliment journal.  Every night we’d right down whatever compliments we got during the day.   What fun it is to look back and see how much I have been appreciated!

Will you join me in honoring your achievements now and forevermore?  It feels so good!

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

Gratefully I acknowledge the powerful Presence within me, that loved so much It became Life Itself.  It became all things to have an even more unique experience of Itself, including me. This powerful Presence is my lifeforce.

I now choose to claim and acknowledge all my accomplishments, All things I have done, I have done with and as the Presence Within.  I know my desire to do the things I do is Spirit’s desire.  My willingness to be the best I can be, is Spirit’s willingness.  I let go of any fears of ego attachment I might have, and know I am always doing my best. I listen to the voice of Spirit as I hear compliments. Spirit in me as me is achieving many things and I get the acknowledgement.  My life is good, very good.

I now release these words into the Law of Mind, knowing I have accomplished a lot.  And so it is.

In and Out of Overwhelm

Wednesday I went to Washington D.C. for the 1^st time.  My friend and I visited the Lincoln Memorial first.  I stood in awe of what seemed like a ‘temple’ to the idea of freedom for all.  It was beautiful and sacred. 

We admired the reflecting pool with the Washington Monument at the other end (still in scaffolding being repaired after last year’s earthquake), then walked over to the Vietnam Memorial.  I’ve seen pictures on TV and online, but I wasn’t prepared for how long it was. I saw old men in wheelchairs proudly wearing their uniforms and others my age in tears.  I saw parents or grandparents making rubbings of names and young children looking at all the memorial pieces (pictures, crosses, flowers, etc.) that lay in front of the wall. I could hear conversations between the volunteers who were looking up names for people and what section they would be in, and stories of brothers and fathers.   

With each step I took, I went more and more into overwhelm. This is my generation’s war.  Where was the freedom?  Over 58,000 names are on that wall.  That is incomprehensible.  My mind then jumped to the thought that for every name on that wall there’s at least one Vietcong man, woman or child who also died. Why? Maybe I will never know. Can I let that be OK?

How do I reconcile these feelings with the metaphysical idea that “everything is for the highest good?”

Perhaps this is where Trust comes in.  I can do nothing about what happened in the past.  I can only work for the highest peace NOW.  I can only do that by attaining and maintaining a peaceful consciousness within myself.

It is the same with every situation in our lives.  We can do nothing about the past except let it be.  In this moment, we can forgive and love again.  Forgive and live again.  Forgive and let others live.  We can be compassionate with ourselves and others.  It’s all up to us. 

I now see that the overwhelm of Wednesday moved me into a greater desire to be the very best person I can possibly be – for them, and for all of life.  I come back to the place where all I see is God.    

  

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

Gratefully I acknowledge the Presence of The Divine as being in everything, everywhere.  I see It is in war as much as It is in peace.  It is in me no matter what I am feeling.  I choose to recognize and claim that aspect of The Divine that is Love.  This is what God is, and God being all, this is what I am as well.

I forgive myself for my judgmental and war like thoughts. I choose to be more mindful from this moment on.  I stand on a firm foundation of Peace.  I let myself be a center of Love where peace radiates out without limits of any kind. 

I stand for all of humanity experiencing itself as Divine, no matter what we’ve done, and I see us transformation of all that energy of the past into something constructive and peaceful and good.

Gratefully I release these words, knowing they are so, and so It is.

Everything We Do Affects Far More Than We Think

At a recent book circle, we were reading a section of a book that has to do with feelings, and our conversation kept going back to the recent Oklahoma tornado that was so devastating.  As usual, one of the questions was ‘why?”

Something I had read in our book made me think of the creative power of thoughts and feelings.  I thought about how our country seems so divided – so hostile – especially in the areas of politics, religion, and sexuality. 

The tornado was right in the middle of the country.  What if it was a result of our divisiveness?   I know my consciousness creates or attracts experiences in my life.  Who’s to say that the same Law that is working in my life isn’t happening in the collective consciousness?

The macrocosm and the microcosm. According to Wikipedia -  Macrocosm and microcosm is an ancient Greek Neo-Platonic schema of seeing the same patterns reproduced in all levels of the cosmos, from the largest scale (macrocosm or universe-level) all the way down to the smallest scale (microcosm or sub-sub-atomic or even metaphysical-level).

In other words, the Law of Attraction works on every level.  So what does this mean to us?  To me?  I’ve really got to pay more attention to my thoughts and feelings!  I don’t want to be feeding a negative pool, I want to be part of the solution! 

This is another reason to keep studying the Science of Mind.  It really isn’t just about us anymore.  It’s about the Oneness – realizing that anything we do, think and feel, affects far more than our little circles of influence. 

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

Gratefully I celebrate the powerful presence of The Divine within me. I see It everywhere around me as well.  The infinitely intelligent mind of The Divine is working through us, awakening us to our spiritual magnificence, nurturing our spirits, clearing our minds and purifying our hearts. 

I acknowledge that together we are opening to a new way of being. We are ready to live without blame or criticism.  We are ready to communicate in ways that honor each others beliefs and cultures. We are ready to be loving kindness in action, peace personified, Love made manifest.

I personally commit myself to the possibilities of this time, knowing I am making a difference.  I declare that I am ready to be living for everyone’s highest good. I pledge myself to my human family to live the very best life, to think on good things, to celebrate Life in all its forms. I promise to honor and respect The Divine in everyone and every thing.

Call to Prayer

Suddenly the sounds of a helicopter flying low and sirens split the peace of my afternoon.  My housemate and I wondered what was going on.  She went on Facebook and we discovered there was a hazmat threat at a school not too far from us.  Everything turned out all right, but the incident made one thing very clear to me.  One no longer has to wait for the evening news to find out what’s going on anymore.  The ‘news’ is instant and everywhere.

I haven’t watched the news regularly in years.  I knew that if I needed to know about something, someone would tell me.  Now with the internet, I can’t get away from it. I joined Facebook quite a few years ago, and have enjoyed interacting with old and new friends and my peers.  I read great quotes, see wonderful pictures, get inspired by great talks and articles, and learn more about friend’s lives and their families.  Now I have to scroll quickly through instant pictures of bombings, shootings, abused people and animals, political arguments, accusations, threats and constant warnings about hackers, food and our safety to get to the things I like. I found myself wondering if one could get Post Traumatic Stress from the overload of information.

Facebook is almost like a socially approved addiction. One has fun with it at first, then it can get scary. Like any addiction, it is my choice.  I can unfriend people, I can limit my time, or I can choose the way I respond.  I can look at what I’m judging.  Facebook is really a reflective microcosm of the macrocosm.  There are things happening everywhere - it is I who is judging them good or bad. I have to ask myself “What am I focusing on?”     

Perhaps I could, as Dr. Michael Beckwith suggests, consider all that is uncomfortable to me as a Call to Prayer.  Prayer changes consciousness and consciousness creates.

SPIRITUAL MIND TREATMENT

Lifting my self above and beyond the human condition, I declare that we dwell in a consciousness of world that works for everyone. In this world is peace, love, harmony and abundance. In this world we are aware of ourselves as spiritual beings playing in the realms of Infinite Potentiality.

Creative Principle is at work in every facet of our experience. Regardless of appearances, I know we are motivated, empowered and inspired by Divine Intelligence within us. Nothing outside of us can prevent our growth. Nothing outside of us can prevent our conscious awareness that Life is moving through each of us creating more good all the time.  I personally let go of my judgmental nature and allow Life to move through me with ease and grace.

I rejoice as I celebrate our awakening to our spiritual magnificence. I honor the Divine Presence that makes all this possible. I release these words into the Law of Mind knowing they are already so. And so it is.

"It's so good to be back in my own bed."

In the past few months I’ve had the opportunity to be a world traveler.  I’ve been to Vancouver, BC, attending a conference, and Ireland, co-leading a women’s tour.   I’ve stayed in really nice places that advertise excellent beds, however, there's just something about my own bed.  You know what I mean.

Recently I woke up and felt like hugging my bed.  It is so comfortable.  I remembered hearing Louise Hay at last year's "I Can Do It Conference".  She told us that she starts her day by thanking her bed. I’ve now started doing that, which of course made me think more about my bed – which led to thinking about our beds.

We long for weekend mornings with a loved one and breakfast in bed.  We relish the idea of sleeping late.  When we're feeling sick, depressed, or lonely, we just want to curl up in our own bed.  When we've been traveling, no matter how wonderful the trip was, we often say "It's so good to be back in my own bed."

As children, even though we didn't want to go to bed when we were supposed to, for most of us, our beds were our safe havens.  They not only provided excellent places to read (after the lights were out), they protected us from unseen terrors - whether it was monsters in the closet or the hearing of strange noises or loud voices in other rooms.

What if we were to have the same attitude about our spiritual practices?  What if they were a 'safe place to land.'?  What if we longed to do them, relished the idea of being in the practice, knew that our practice would make us feel better … and what if when we lapsed we said “It’s so good to be back in my spiritual practices!”

A consistent spiritual practice opens the space to feel safe in our world.  It’s worth every second!

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

Spirit within me is alive, awake and aware.  My body is a living temple. Every atom of my being is vibrating with this Life.  How grateful I am to remember this.

I am also grateful to know how to develop a good daily spiritual practice.  I love connecting with the Real Me, that powerful Presence within.  I now declare my practice is consistent and I feel it in my mind, body and heart. My practice serves me well on every level of my being.

Yes, it is so good to be back in my spiritual practices!

I release these words, knowing they are so, and so it is.

Desire Hasn’t Manifested Yet?

Next month I’m going to Vancouver BC to attend a conference.  I’m excited because not only do I get to see a lot of my peers, I get to see quite a few of the friends I made when I was living there.

I also get to visit my stuff.  I’m almost embarrassed to say I still have a storage locker there with about 21 boxes of books and artwork even though I’ve lived in Baltimore for 3 years this month.

Why is it still there you might ask?  Well … Even though I have prayed to know I have all my things with me, I have a story going on about how much it costs to get it here.  I used to have a lot more in that locker. The last time I visited I went through everything ruthlessly, keeping only those things I felt I couldn’t live without, so it wouldn’t cost so much to ship it. 

The funny thing is, I’ve had the money – just not all at one time.  Indeed the money I’ve paid in storage, would have covered the shipping already!  Instead, I chose to go on a Mediterranean cruise, and then there were necessary things, like a $1000 car repair bill and getting a crown (dental not tiara).

  

When I decided to go to the conference, I declared “I now have the money to ship my things home.”  I did the research and discovered all the costs had gone up – and it was now going to cost me the same amount that it would have cost to ship originally – before I purged!  Yesterday I found myself slipping into thinking “Well, if I don’t manifest the money, I will re-purge the locker, and perhaps I can find someone to mail me a box at a time or something.”  When I heard my self-talk I realized that some part of me doesn’t believe I can manifest $3000 all at one time. OMG - I am limiting an unlimited Universe!

Ernest Holmes writes in the Science of Mind “One of the most important things for us to remember is that we are always causing something to be created for us.”  Ah yes, we are working with a Law that is mechanical, precisely responding to what we believe and feel.  So – I’m letting go of that story I’ve been telling myself, and I now declare all of my things are where I live.  I know the Universe knows how to do this way better than I do. 

What desire are you working on that hasn’t manifested yet?  What stories have you been telling yourself about that?  Let go of those stories, and join me in trusting the Law, knowing It is infinitely intelligent and can do the work easily and effortlessly!

AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

We are immersed in and surrounded by an infinitely creative field of potentiality.  In this Field is all we can possibly imagine and more.  This Field is Spirit Energy, intelligent, powerful and everywhere present.  It is at the very core of our being and in all the spaces around us.  It is, and It is all there is.

I recognize this Core as both Love and Law.  With Love I declare into the Law that we are now ready to let go of all that no longer serves us, and embody the Truth of our Being.  Our whole purpose is to make our intellect a vehicle for Spirit.  Spirit in me now reflects my belief and trust.

I believe in the highest good for all, and I trust that it is so.  Because of this, my good is here now.

With a grateful heart I release these words into spiritual law, knowing they are done.  And so it is.