SpiritPathNow

What I Believe....

Breathe Into Your Fears

When I am in stress my body wants to shorten my breath and tighten the sinews of my bones in defense.   Everything seems to scream at me to run the other direction, to get as much distance between me and what I find threatening as I can.

What I have learned however is that the answers are found in moving toward what stresses and frightens me, not away from it.  It is a doorway, a transformative threshold, that is beckoning me to my next level.

When I am in stress I now know that this is the time to dive deeper, to reach through the murk to the core of Truth where the heat waves rising from the problems do not distort.  Staying in the shallows stuck in the surface currents and feelings provides no answers.

When my heart feels heavy and weighted I remind myself to BREATHE.  To infuse my being with the light of Spirit.  To raise it up with the buoyancy of breath and at the same time, anchor it, ground it, in the bedrock of Truth.

One of my first paths to wholeness in these moments is to recognize that light, that spark in another person and compliment it.  Like blowing on kindling that is just catching fire, the sparks multiply and their warmth and brilliance envelopes BOTH of us. 

Sit in the silence and breathe.  This is all I need to remember.
Go back to the basics, the building blocks, the essential Truth.
God and I are one.

From this place a spaciousness opens up within and around my fears.  The knotted tangles of energy release and light begins to flow between the narrow places.  There is Divine Light that fills the Universe and enlivens every space, every thing, every thought and every feeling.  This Divine Light is the Divine Potential of our Highest and Best in every Sacred Moment.

Enter the Mishkan, the dwelling place of your Divine Beingness and ALL becomes jeweled with this light.  Everything that doe not share it's frequency is shaken loose, dissolved and dissapates into nothingness.

All is Spirit.  The deeper you go,  the higher you go, all is Spirit.

The Territory of Ego... Who's Driving This Bus?

Did you know that being self critical and judging of others is a way that your ego tries to be in control?  Do you wonder sometimes why so much of what comes out of your mouth is negative, about yourself and others?  

When the Inner Child in us has been ignored and felt unloved the ego works overtime trying to protect it but its efforts often come out sideways since the internal systems are out of balance.  The result can be that the Inner Child is effectively cut off from real, significant honest relationship in the world.

The ego-barriers of criticism (and self-doubt), of judgment (and self-blame) are built up and reinforced.  The Inner Child is 'protected' by an ego-driven process of worry, catastrophizing, and defensiveness to its' own detriment like a child locked in a closet to protect it from the cruel world.  "But I'm only trying to protect you."  "It's a tough world out there."  "It's for your own good." 

Criticism or judgment is a warped response to the need to be loved and validated.  It is a path that will never get you to what you need.  What is needed is on a different plane, at a different frequency.  That need of the Inner Child to be loved, to feel belonging and validation can never be filled from the territory of ego.  It is just not on that map.  It is faulty logic to try to find an answer at that level.

The messages the ego asks us to buy as its responses to the world are encrusted in defense and attack rather than openness and trust which is the natural, healthy state of our Inner Child. 

The antidote, the prescription, the medicine, is to go into the territory of the Inner Child, not the territory of the ego.   Crack yourself open and be vulnerable and real.  It's counter-intuitive but that is where your strength, power and resilience come from.  It is not a 'protection' based on defenses.  It is a 'protection' based on being in alignment with your Highest Self or pure soul that can never be hurt, harmed or endangered.

From that essence, embrace a spiritual practice of nurturing and affirmation.   Be 'selfish', but a different kind of 'self'-ish... focus on nurturing your 'self', on affirming your 'self'.  The work is with you, no one else.  Step into the vulnerability of asking for what you need.  Short circuit the egoistic worry patterns and 'clarify' rather than 'worrify'.   Feel what you feel.  Don't bury it.  Be real with it.  It feels more risky than hiding behind the bully of an ego and it takes practice to stay open to receive but this keeps your energy in the same territory, on the same plane, the same frequency as where the need is.  You are standing in your Truth where you are whole, perfect and complete.

That deepest place where Divinity is flowing into us, that belly button of the Soul, is our Inner Child, our Highest Self, not our little self ego.  It has the purest, most direct connection to Source.  We need to consciously step into that flow, empower that flow in our lives and stand in ever-greater alignment within our Highest Self and the Divine.

When the tumblers of our consciousness and Divine consciousness line-up, things click into place and a new doorway opens up in our lives.  We are living from Center and any need for criticism or judgment of others or ourselves simply falls away.

See you on the path!

Your Imagination Is Simply A Preview....

 

"Your imagination is simply a preview
to coming events in your life."
~ Albert Einstein

It sounds to me like Einstein was a metaphysician!  How can we move towards anything if we can't grab hold of it with our mind?  True, but that is not enough as Einstein realized.  We must also paint it real with the brush of our feelings THEN we open the door to its possibility. 

Many people stop at the level of describing something they want to have happen with just words, keeping all their energy above the shoulders and in their heads.  At that level the ego is quick to jump in and stomp on our ideas.  "That would be nice but I could never do that.  I don't have enough money.  I'm not smart enough.  I tried that and it didn't work.  I don't have the right education or connections.  I've got a family to take care of.  That's just not realistic.  I better settle for something more doable."

But Einstein used the word 'imagination', not just 'thoughts'.  Imagination is a word often associated with artists, creatives, poets, and children - all people who still have their sense of wonder and adventure intact.  It conjures up light and color, creativity, vibrancy and emotion, not logic and so-called facts.  'Imagination' -- it's a three-dimensional (maybe even four-dimensional) concept that beckons you to step into it, to suspend reality and transcend into something greater that you can really feel in your bones.

What we imagine about our future is the template that the universe pours its energy into creating for us.  If our feelings continually swirl around anger, doubt, lack, unhappiness and frustration then that is the mold we are giving to the universe to fill.  That is the filter we are seeing everything through and chances are we are not even noticing the good around us.

Fortunately we can learn to shift our awareness and appetize our imagination towards positive feelings and energies through a practice of gratitude, gratitude even for small things.  Pay attention to what you are grateful for.  What we pay attention to grows.  Harvest those moments and learn to step into that joy when you find it.  Did your face light up?  Did your step perk up?  Did you heart feel just a bit fuller?  Could you not wait to share the gift of that surprising discovery with someone? 

The fuel for creating change, for growing, for moving towards something greater in our lives is not the static two-dimensional words we use to describe it.  FEELINGS are the fuel that ignites change when we infuse them into our desires and goals. 

Infuse your goals and dreams, your sense of your highest self, with ALL your senses.  What does it feel like, smell like, taste like?  Breathe it in.  Imagine it!  How does your heart feel when you imagine yourself there, wherever 'there' is?  Paint it 'real' in your heart first.  Once your heart knows how it feels when you imagine it as already so, your head will start recognizing ways to make your dreams unfold in your life.  The path to your goals has always been there.   Your imagination will program your GPS to find it.

 

Positive Thinking and Affirmations - 5 Steps to Achieving Goals In Your Business or Personal Life

This 'Positive Thinking and Affirmations - 5 Steps to Achieving Goals In Your Business or Personal Life' post is written by guest author

Connie Ragen Green

By using positive thinking and affirmations in your daily life you can achieve any goals you make for your business or personal life. These processes need to become part of your morning and evening routine. After a few weeks they will become habits and you will find yourself taking the necessary actions to turn your dreams into reality. There are 5 important steps that you must take to put these daily activities into action.

1. Spend time working on your vision and mission. Why are you here on earth? Think about how you would like to spend the rest of your life. Will you be writing? Working with others? Where will you be living? Many people go through life without asking themselves these questions. Picture yourself living an ideal day. Allow yourself to daydream and feel yourself living in the right place, with the right people, and doing the right things for your life. When you have a clear picture about what you want to do and where you want to go you can express it clearly to others.
2. Now that you know what you want to do with your life, write it down. The written word is extremely powerful and solidifies what you have been thinking about. Your brain is more apt to propel you into action if you have written down what you want and read it every day. Put the information you have written someplace where you can see it when you first wake up and before you go to sleep at night. Make sure you have written details about what you want and stated it in a positive form.
3. Make a list of the steps you will need to take to get from where you are currently to where you would like to be. Taking even a small step each day can mover you closer to your goal in a short amount of time. By writing down your action steps you are placing them in the front of your conscious mind and you will automatically be attracted to them. You will find yourself talking about your goals to others during the day and finding that they want to help you achieve what you have talked to them about.
4. Write down what you want to do and make it in the form of positive affirmations. Say them out loud in the morning and at night. Sit or stand in the same place each time you say your affirmations so that your mind associates the affirmations with a physical location and even with a specific piece of furniture, such as a favorite chair.
5. Review your goals and affirmations monthly to note the progress you have made. You will be amazed at what you can accomplish if you keep it in your mind, write it down, say it out loud, and visualize it regularly. Always stay positive about what you are doing and working toward, even if those around you are not. Others cannot know what we are feeling and what our vision is. Many times they will make negative comments that they are not even aware of.

By spending time each day focusing on your dreams, goals, and aspirations you will move closer to the life you are wanting for yourself in the shortest possible amount of time. When you look back at what you are accomplishing over a period of weeks or months you will find it amazing that you have come so far so fast. Keep thinking positively and working on your affirmations and you will be living the life you have always envisioned.

Connie Ragen Green is a motivational speaker and author. Visit her at http://www.ReinventYourLifeWithPassion.com

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Thank God I'm Wealthy!

  "Thank God I'm Wealthy!"

 

If this were our reaction every time life sent us lemons, lemonade would be the elixir that fed, nurtured and sustained us.  Our abundance, our wealth, our blessings, all come from just One Source, so how can anything that comes into our path ultimately not serve us in our spiritual growth.  Yet we name it as bad.  We name it as an obstacle.  We name it as separation creating a belief in 'us' and 'them', 'have' and 'have not', in 'plentitude' and 'lack'. 

 

A while ago a friend commented woefully about how two of her acquaintances had recently been apparently cheated out of their inheritances.  How could the Universe work that way and deny them what was rightfully theirs? 

 

My response was that she was seeing a limited pipeline of their good.  The Universe is not bound by our limited concepts of 'channels' of good or abundance.  When we become myopic and only look where we expect good to come from, we miss the Universe pouring into our lives in a myriad of other paths.  And sometimes because we have our backs turned on those other channels we are not open to receiving the gifts that are there for us.  It's like having a winning lottery ticket and never turning it in. 

 

When we approach life with the "Thank God I'm wealthy!" attitude we are always open, always in a state of blessing, always interacting with the world with our pumps already primed and ready for the flow.  The truth is in every moment we have everything we need.  Really we do.  It is only in the fear of the future or the regret of the past that we experience 'not enoughness'.  In this NOW moment you are doing fine!  This is the core of your beingness, not the projected worry that your little egoic self keeps yelling about.

 

Step into your wholeness right now.  Right here and right now you have everything you need.  Pure potential is in every breath, in every heart beat.  Celebrate that!  And declare "Thank God I'm wealthy!" because you are!

 

Did I Just Say That? Pulling Out The Arrows

I said something 'sharp' to someone yesterday and as soon as it was out of my mouth I heard, like a cosmic clash, the jarring dissonance between the shrill voice of my 'little ego' and the beautiful, resonant voice of the Truth that I know to be.  I can't get those words back.  It matters not what 'facts' float around the issue.  It was not a matter of 'facts'.  It was a matter of being in the now moment as a beneficial presence beyond the facts yet I turned from that still, deep pool of Truth and jumped headfirst into the miasma of that little, petty and self-preoccupied place in a split second that left me shocked at myself.  Whiplash.  Knee-jerk reaction, primal fight or flight -- sometimes both with a flung verbal jab and then a pushing away as I did.

What do I do now?  I've behaved badly.  I'm embarrassed.  I feel naked and exposed... oops, my 'un-enlightenment' is showing.  But ah, that's my 'little ego' talking again, hanging on to appearances.  From this defensive place it's not that I wasn't 'right' in my judgment but that I was caught off-guard and someone saw my worst side.

So even in trying to address this my 'little ego' is still running rampant trying to do damage control from that limited perspective.  Sometimes I just give up like a tired parent.  I give my 'little ego' a 'talking to'.  I wag my finger and scold "You'd better behave better next time!" and sweep it under the rug.  I'm over 50.  Evidently that's not an effective method of growth.

Like most important life lessons, there is no one thing to do, no simple recipe or pill for this.  We cannot embody the answer by reading a book or listening to a teleseminar.  But there are empowering steps we can take to bring ourselves into living every day, with each encounter, in a more conscious intentional manner so that these "Did I just say that?" moments are the exception rather than the norm and that when they happen we can quickly shift to a place of accountability and forgiveness --- accepting accountability for my actions and words and asking forgiveness from others and, once I accept my role in the situation, granting forgiveness to myself for my mis-steps as well.

"Mis-steps".   The Hebrew word for 'sin' can be understood as 'miss-take' and it's a term that came from archery meaning missing the mark and implies an ever present opportunity to aim again.  There is an eternal 'do-over' opportunity built into our humanness. 

But if we keep arguing for our limitations, keep trying to re-draw the Bull's-Eye around our off-center arrows rather than taking responsibility, walking up to the target, owning our miss-hit, pulling the miss-hit arrow out, stepping back and taking a fresh look at the target and re-aiming, we forego that 'do-over' opportunity and stay 'stuck' in that off-center place.

Pull those arrows out!  Don't wait!  Make this your spiritual practice.  Embrace 'do-overs' with humility.  That's what I'm going to do.

Kindness, Courage, Vision and Faith of the Heart

A Poem for the Jewish High Holidays

 
Photo copyright Lisa Kaye.  Poem from Hallmark Tree of Life

GIVE US THE KINDNESS
to hear with compassion,
to offer support, loving comfort, and care.

GIVE US THE COURAGE
to do what is needed,
the wisdom to choose
what is right and most fair.

GIVE US THE VISION
to see what is possible.

GIVE US THE FAITH
that will help pave the way
for a present that's hopeful,
a future that's peaceful...

GIVE US THE HEART
to bring joy to each day.

L'shanah tovah!

Hands of Talent

The power of connection, using art to teach, open hearts, heal hearts, and inspire.  Take a moment to watch these hands create something that will deeply stir you...

 

 

Your Soul's Plan: Discovering the Real Meaning of The Life You Planned Before You Were Born

"Our bodies are exquisitely sensitive receivers (and transmitters) of energy that tell us through feeling whether there is a match or or a mismatch between who we really are and the ways in which we are currently expressing ourselves."
 Robert Schwartz, "Your Soul's Plan, Discovering the Real Meaning of The Life You Planned Before You Were Born"

• How did I ever end up in this family?

• Why do I feel I've known someone forever?

• How can I forgive those people who have been antagonists in my life story

• How can I find the blessing in illness and trauma?

My intention when I began reading "Your Soul's Plan" was to take notes since I was reading it in preparation for a presentation but I couldn't stop reading long enough to write anything down!  Pre-birth planning was a startlingly freeing concept that made so many things in my life make sense.

Unlock the secrets in your life that, according to Robert Schwartz, "those who most challenge us do so at our behest." This book takes us beyond the duality of the black and white overlay we try to put over much of our life and into the larger picture of the soul which quietly holds a space for us to exist with compassion and nonjudgment.

Come meet your soul in a new way, with a gentle encompassing love that clears our stories and opens possibility. If this calls to you, this book will be balm to your soul's path.