Love vs. Power: Earthly vs. Spiritual

Love vs. Power: Earthly vs. Spiritual
~Unknown


What we call “love” on the earthly level is not love at all. “Love” on the earthly level is about getting something for ourselves - approval, security, attention, understanding, sex, affection. Love on the spiritual level is about giving something to ourselves and others - caring, compassion, understanding, attention, affection. Love on the earthly level is about getting our emptiness filled by things, activities, substances and people. Love on the spiritual level is about learning to fill ourselves internally through connecting with our own essence and with God, receiving the energy of love and compassion from God and sharing it others.

Power on the earthly level is about controlling events and people; power on the spiritual level is about personal empowerment - power within. It includes the power to receive love and wisdom from Spirit, realize our creative potential and manifest our dreams. Spiritual power is the power to remain loving and compassionate in the face of fear.

Our beliefs about God are often at the root of our choice to operate primarily from an earthly perspective or a spiritual perspective.

It is essential to understand that the Creator gave all souls free will. This means that you get to decide your own purpose in life, your deepest desires, your way of being. You decide whether you are going to be loving or unloving, responsible for your own feelings and behavior or put the blame on others. You decide if you are going to be open to learning about your pain or avoid it with your various anesthetics - your addictions. You decide if your deepest motivation is to love yourself and others or to maintain “safety” by protecting yourself against loneliness, rejection and failure.

When your deepest desire is to be safe rather than loving, you close your heart to avoid feeling your pain. When you close your heart, you cannot feel God - God can only enter through an open heart. Free will means that God has chosen to relinquish power over your will. Even God cannot control your intent - that is, your deepest desire in any given moment.

God is an omnipotent energy that you can open to and invite into your heart, but God cannot enter your heart unbidden. Once you shift your intent and ask God to help heal your wounds and teach you to be loving to yourself and others, then the Spirit of love, compassion and wisdom that is God will always be there for you. But it is you who must decide to open or close your heart. No force outside of yourself can open your heart to God. When our hearts are closed to ourselves, we are also closed to the suffering of others.

You may believe there is nothing you can ever do that will please God. You may believe that God sees you as inherently flawed, “born into sin,” and there is nothing you can do to change this. You might believe that no matter how hard you try, in the end you will be punished for sin: God will never forgive you for being human. But if you are “created in the image of God,” meaning that you have the same love within you that is God, then it is not possible for you to be inherently flawed. That would mean you were created imperfect; God doesn’t do substandard work. Nor is God unforgiving. Unconditional love is, by definition, forgiving.

When we do believe in God but feel ourselves unlovable and unworthy, we may believe that we can be instruments of God’s love for others but not for ourselves. You may conclude that God has chosen certain people who deserve to be blessed, while ignoring others, who do not deserve it. This conclusion, as with many of the other false beliefs about God, comes from seeing God as an unloving, judgmental, vengeful person rather than as an unconditionally loving Spirit or Supreme Being. People have favorite people. God doesn’t. People think some people are more deserving than others. God doesn’t.

When you believe that God is a person or that God is demanding, controlling and judgmental, then you may believe that God put you here as a punishment (because you are inherently bad) or because God doesn’t love you. This false belief relieves you of the responsibility of choosing to heal, of evolving your soul. When you remember that you came here to evolve in lovingness, then you will understand that being alive is truly a sacred opportunity, a sacred privilege.

Living Life with The Attitude of Gratitude

Living Life with The Attitude of Gratitude
~Joseph Rettig

Having an Attitude of Gratitude comes from being truly grateful for what is in your life. This is a conscious decision intended to realize the blessings in your life with the emotion that is coupled with it. This is real gratitude, a thankfulness that is true, coming from the heart and soul of your very being.

A person who is not grateful may find themselves uttering "Thank you" a few times a day, but never mean it because this is as empty as the heart from which it came. The words "Thank you" hold little power to engage the Law of Gratitude if there is no real gratefulness behind the words. It is as if some people forgot what being thankful really feels like.

Grateful individuals take great joy in their blessings, realizing the source from where their happiness dwells. They influence others with their words because of the light that shines from them. They realize that giving and receiving are the same and gladly give their pleasure to those who should receive it.

The Law of Gratitude is available for everyone. There are ways to cultivate this grateful attitude. All that is required of you is a willingness to change your perception and begin seeing more light from the end of the tunnel. Soon, there will be no tunnel of darkness left for you dwell in.

When you seek to become more spiritually aware, empowering, supportive, energetic and positive, seek out those traits in others to be with. Finding like-minded people that live positive lives will lift you up higher. In turn, you will lift these people and others around you higher. This is a part of the Law of Attraction at work.

Helping those around you become grateful is not to find fault and criticize them for their shortcomings. This is to judge something you do not fully understand. You cannot walk in anyone's shoes any more than someone can walk in yours. Instead, live by example without placing fault on others.

Make a conscious effort to stop complaining about your life, it goes nowhere and is wasted energy spent. The more you complain, the more you will feel your life is something that should be complained about. Like attracts like.

If it appears, at times, that life handed you a bowl full of rotten cherries, then throw away the cherries and be grateful for the nice bowl life handed you. Now you can fill up the bowl with something better.

Whenever you say "Thank you", pay attention to what it is you are being thankful for. Most of the time, it's the small things that matter to be appreciative of. Take the time to let others you love know how much you are grateful for having them in your life. It matters to them and will help them remember just how much you mean to them also.

Thankfulness and the Law of Gratitude are one and the same. When you are thankful and grateful from your soul, this goes out and brings to you more of the same. It can make your life a true heaven on earth. Taking the time to focus on what you have instead of what you don't have will eventually bring to you a sense of peace and understanding that becomes you. In this way, you will teach others what the Attitude of Gratitude is truly about.

The Invitation

The Invitation
By Oriah Mountain Dreamer

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain!I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it, or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, to be realistic, to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul; if you can be faithlessand therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see beauty even when it's not pretty, every day,and if you can source your own life from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, “Yes!”

It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up, after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done to feed the children.

It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you, from the inside, when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.

Embracing Your Divinity

Embracing Your Divinity
By Linda Zander

The Imperative to Manifesting Sustainable Abundance

We’ve lost ourselves. We’ve lost the truth of who we are as human beings. We’ve turned our power over to negative thought forms and beliefs put into place thousands of years ago. These negative thought forms and beliefs were created with a single purpose in mind—to control our thoughts, actions and behaviors to the benefit of those who would wield power over us.

It is time that we took our power back! It is a social imperative that we all share the responsibility for. Do you truly want to be happy, joyous, abundant and free? Do you want to see peace reign in the world? Do you want to see our dwindling environmental resources begin to replenish and flourish? Do you want to have the power to manifest abundance in your life?

There is a way, as a collective humanity to co-create sustainable abundance in every area of our lives. It requires a Quantum Shift in perspective and a desire and willingness to reframe our beliefs about who we inherently are as human beings. It saddens me greatly when I repeatedly and continuously hear the following from the beautiful, radiantly talented people that cross my path: ·

· As human beings we are imperfect, flawed and weak
· No pain, no gain
· One cannot transcend or grow without suffering
· I don’t know what it would take for me to be happy. I have everything and I feel confused and alone.
· I feel like I am a prisoner in my own life and I don’t know how to undo it
· If only I had the right woman/man in my life, I’d feel ok
· If only I had money, I’d be free.
· I feel like I’m being punished for who I am
· If only I had a house, I’d be secure.

With great sadness in my heart I write to you to implore you to begin anew. To wipe the slate clean and to create a new Tabla Rosa and imprint upon it that which is truly your birthright and destiny as a human being! You are a bundle of pure divinity. You are a perfect, precious creation of unlimited intelligence, creativity and divine power to be the alchemist mixing and creating precious energies, thoughts, forms and materials into divine material form.

The true disease of our humanity causing the dwindling resources of our environment, increasingly aggressive warring among political and religious factions and early death due to diseases born out of our own behaviors, is our belief that we are flawed, imperfect, and being punished for the sin of being human!

My divine fellows, where, when and why did we decide to buy into the very belief that is causing the deconstruction and destruction of everything that we hold dear in life! Not until we REMEMBER and EMBRACE the truth of our divinity and LET GO of someone’s self-motivated spin that continues to dominate and control us, will we begin to be free. As we begin to embrace the truth of our wholeness, we will begin to feel the rise of a new era. A rise in health, wealth and well-being in our hearts, homes, communities and the world we live and breathe in.

The spin of “original sin” and human form as broken, flawed and in need of being saved is what perpetuates living from a place of fear. The belief that as human beings we are a stain on the fabric of the world is truly tragic and commits us to a barren future. The belief that only through pain, we rise, is yet another negative thought form which has as its’ goal to behavior modify us into a malleable controllable collective. It keeps us immobilized where institutions can lead us into arenas that only serve their thirst for power, dominance and control. Fear breeds more fear and increased fear in the world gives rise to those who want to capitalize on our fears. They control our minds, actions, behaviors and pocketbooks! Conquer and divide is the dish of the day if we continue to buy into the belief that our greatest strength as a human being is our weakness!

Living from fear allows us to be controlled. It controls what we are able to accomplish in the world. We strive to create security and success from a place of fear and when security and success is built on a foundation of fear, it is at risk of collapse and destruction. The only way to create SUSTAINABLE abundance is through living from a place of our own power and divinity. We must understand that as human beings we ARE PERFECT and we hold the power to the expansion of not only our lives, but the world around us.

When we begin to feel the rightness, beauty and brilliance of who we are, fear begins to slip away and we begin to feel a new surge of the divine running through our hearts, souls, and spirits. We begin to see life through a new lens. Everything comes vibrantly alive and a new energy moves through us giving birth to our own unique creative intelligence. We begin to live in flow and trust and not in fear. We begin to manifest a new reality of our own choosing! An abundant Universe where supply far exceeds demand! Just envision that for a moment. What would the World become having all the supply that we could ever need to meet demand? I know you know the answer. War, famine, disease, ego and fear would become ancient history! Humanity would rise to a new consciousness where abundance would be allowed to expand and flourish and we would become the generation of a new era of enlightenment!

We, the people, ARE the mass consciousness that have the power to create permanent quantum shift for a new tomorrow. Believe it, embrace it and manifest it now!

We’ve also bought into the belief that change is a painful process. When we even think of the word “change” it evokes a feeling of dread and fear. We, again, become immobilized and choose to stay stuck rather than facing the supposedly inevitable trauma of change. This is a belief that we have to shift and let go of in order to become proactive participants in the creation of a new abundant landscape of life.

Change is invigorating, energizing, exciting, and expansive and creates innovation and genius when you are the one instituting and creating the change.

The reason why most of us see change as a threat rather than the opportunity for wealth expansion is because most of us let change happen to us rather than being the proactive person promoting the shift. It is the difference between being the victim of circumstances or the victor of circumstances. Which will you choose going forward? To be the person who allows change to be thrust upon them or the person who creates positive change?

Again, it is a matter of living in faith of yourself as a divine creator and not as a fear-based person who is being manipulated and controlled by those who would seek power over you.

True and right use of power comes from within with a purity of intention to manifest abundance for the greater good of the whole. It starts in your heart, soul and home and trickles out into the world.

As you believe, others believe. As you live your divinity, others will live their divinity. As you radiate the new reality of our divine humanity, others see it, feel it and move into it. You have the power to change your mind, thoughts, beliefs, deeds, actions and reactions. You have the power to manifest a new reality that sustains your existence in the highest, most abundant form imaginable.

Blessings as you go forward into the divine flow your destiny!

Build Your Soul-Esteem

Build Your Soul-Esteem
A sense of self-worth
by Alina Mikos

In American culture, we've been trained from a young age to believe our self-worth is tied to material things like our job title, income, and social status. When those factors drop in a recession, we feel empty. But our self-worth is so much greater than the physical plane. If we quiet the noise around us and focus on our purpose, we will learn to acknowledge our soul-esteem.

What Is Soul-Esteem?
Loosely defined, soul-esteem is the innate worth each human being is born with, but all too often, is lost or forgotten somewhere along life's journey. Most of us live our entire lives reflected in the mirrors that other humans hold up, which prevents our true and extraordinary selves from reaching full-realization. If self-esteem is confidence and satisfaction in oneself, then soul-esteem would be the profound and primal awareness of our connection with everything in the universe. This soul-esteem, inherent in every being, instills in us an enormous sense of peace and belonging. It etches our lives with deep and meaningful purpose.

Soul-esteem has also been referred to as our 'Buddha nature' (or that oneness with all). It is the absolute inner-knowledge of who we are and how we can best utilize our unique talents to enrich the world.

Why Developing Soul-Esteem Is Essential
Developing our soul-esteem gives us spiritual confidence, not just to participate in our culture, but to transform it into something better. It is that open-minded and non-judgmental assurance that helps us foster deeply significant connections to other people, linking humanity instead of dividing it.

Some of the great leaders, like Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., developed extraordinary soul-esteem to oppose the norm, and to inspire others to rally against oppression and injustice. To be connected with our soul-esteem means that we can achieve immense spiritual confidence, allowing us to act from our highest power.

What Can You Do?
If we don't engage and foster our soul-esteem, our souls can wither. Depression, stress, frustration, illness, and even escapism are all side effects of failure to carefully develop our soul-esteem. We must listen to our primal and untainted inner guides, as they will lead us along the path we need to travel. When new opportunities arise, we must acknowledge them and allow our souls to lead us in the most positive direction that will stimulate spiritual growth. If we engage that wise and deep part of ourselves that shines and lights the way for others, then we are truly letting our souls flower fully and freely.

What Is Spirit?

What is Spirit
By: Shirley Marotta

When you ask the question what is Spirit? You open the door to many interpretations. I am giving here my understanding (from my reading and exploration) of what Spirit is to me.

Spirit is the unseen force within all people and within all worldly things. Spirit is the driving force behind all creation. Spirit is the core of your being that knows everything. It is the energy that propels things into manifestation. It is that voice inside that tells you when things feel right or wrong.

Spiritual Connection

When you are in the quiet of meditation you are bridging the gap between the ego, that goes about taking care of everyday life events, and your true Spirit within. This Spirit is the core of your being the energy that supports your life. Letting go of outside distractions allows you to touch your Spiritual core.

Have you ever been so involved in a project you love doing that time passed without notice, everything just flowed as it should, and all the pieces fell into place with ease? Your inner Spirit was guiding you, because you let go of everything around you and focused on the task. Spirit is that place inside you that gives you the inspiration and love for that task because it is right for you, it is what you were meant to do.

So when you ask what is Spirit? I say to you it is your center, the core of your being that knows all you need to know to live a happy fulfilling life. This is not to say that you will never experience ups and downs in your life. Being in touch with your Spiritual center will help you to deal with stressful situations, because you will be approaching it from the calm of your Spiritual center. Answer the question for yourself, what is Spirit? Explore the meaning for yourself, read, learn, seek out Spiritual teachers. You will touch the core of your being and begin the journey to Spiritual awakening then handling life's challenges will be easier.

Spiritual Living

Incorporate into your life those things that you enjoy that make you feel good about yourself and at the same time you are honoring your Spirit. Be aware that every living being has the same inner Spirit and try to see that in them as well.

Everyone has a Spirit within, everyone is dealing with different life situations that contribute to their outlook on life. They may not seem like Spiritual beings at times but it is there and if you can recognize that small spark in all things you will be the better for it. When you honor Spirit in others and in the world around you, you honor your Spirit as well. We are all one with the universal energy that is the one Divine Spirit that created our world and everything in it.

Open your mind and heart, learn and listen to the voice of the Spirit within. You come from Spirit and you are connected to the Divine Spirit that created this Universe and all that is in it. Because you are from this one true Spirit you share in its power and abundance if you recognize it and nurture that part of yourself.

Be kind to yourself and trust that inner voice, always think and act from a place of love and kindness. Every act of kindness will open your heart more and more. With an open heart you will hear the voice of Spirit, you will change your life for the better.

Whether you realize it or not every positive thought and act stems from your Spiritual center (that inner voice) and you are planting the seeds of positive change in the consciousness of the entire world. So ask yourself what is Spirit? And live your best life now.

Your Spiritual Intelligence

"There must be but one goal when we meditate or pray, and that is to have a God experience - an awareness, a consciousness of the presence of God." ~ Living the Infinite Way, Joel Goldsmith

Your Spiritual Intelligence
By Rev Dr Ann Ronan

Imagine this. You started out as a single cell that was 1/1,000 of an inch (tiny!).

That cell contained all the instructions that make up you within its DNA. All the information contained in that tiny cell would fill 1,000 books with 600 pages in each book.

You breathe without thinking. You digest food without thinking. You're blood circulates without your help. You are a miracle.

The intelligence that created you is beyond our imagination. It is the same intelligence that animates and sustains all of creation from the tiniest cell to the farthest galaxy. It is all God (as humans we feel we have to name everything) and it is good. Ernest Holmes often called this intelligence "it."

Just know that God is. God is. If you feel yourself getting stressed, feeling overwhelmed, not knowing what to do in a situation. Stop. And remember God is. That intelligence that is so much more than our little mind knows what to do.

And you are of this great intelligence. You are one part of it expressing itself through you this day. Know peace. Know all is well. Know that their is a power in the universe greater than anything you can imagine. And it works for you, through you.

Be still and know. Feel peace. Enjoy the moment. You are tapping into your spiritual intelligence.
Spiritual Practice

Create an image for yourself of this infinite, unlimited spiritual intelligence that is always there for you. Maybe a picture of a deep well, or the vast ocean, or a bubbling fountain that never runs dry. During the day, when you feel discomfort, stress, anger, judgment...bring that image to your mind and be still and know that you can draw upon your spiritual intelligence anytime.

Be still and know.

Everyday Spirituality

Everyday Spirituality
By: Shirley Marotta

Everyday spirituality is found within all of us. From your first day on this earth you have been influenced by the ideas of society telling you what kind of person you should be. These ideas and life events molded and shaped you into who you are today. Your inner spirit has taken a back seat crowded out by all these ideas and notions of who you are and how to live your life.

Seeing Spirituality Everyday

Look past the physical, look beyond it into each individual's spiritual center. Use your awareness to recognize it in all beings. The best way to begin is to set the mood by just think of the people and things that make you happy:



• your loved ones

• the sounds of happy children

• the sounds of nature on a quiet spring day

• a neighborly act of kindness

• a peaceful time for meditation

• reading a good book or inspirational story

• listening to your favorite music


You can and will experience an “aaah haaa” moment when you come to rediscover your own inner spirituality and that of the world around you. If you recognize all the good in your life and give it attention and recognition you will experience the spirituality that surrounds you everyday.

Spirituality is all around you, what is spirituality? I like this definition of spirituality: "Spirituality is that which relates to or affects the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things." Spirituality touches that part of you that is not dependant on material things or physical comforts.

You can bring spirituality into your everyday life. You can find it in everyone you encounter and everywhere you go. We are all spiritual beings deep within, if you look beyond the trappings of this material world. If you do this you will see spirituality in your everyday life.

Build Your Awareness of Everyday Spirituality

Make a note to yourself that as you go through everyday tasks and events you will remember to find the spiritual aspects of whatever it is you are doing. Bring your awareness into the here and now, you are not thinking ahead or thinking of what has past, you are in the moment. Practicing being completely in the moment is an excellent way to build your awareness of spirit.

Choosing to see the good in all people and things is the way to tune into your spirit within. You will no doubt encounter people that make it difficult to recognize their inner spirit. Everyone has a spiritual center; it is just that some are not ready to open to that part of their being yet. But your recognition of it and the way you treat that individual can help open that door for them if only a little bit, you have made a difference in that person's life.

Listen to the voice within the voice of your inner spirit and it will guide you to take right action every time.

Live Your Best Life Now!

Make today a new beginning live in and through your spiritual center. Remember the small things in life that truly make you smile. When you find yourself in a negative frame of mind just recall the things that make you happy. The positive events and people in your life will help diminish the affects of that negativity.

It is not an easy task but with practice it will become second nature and you will gain so much. Your life will start to evolve into the life you've dreamed of. Take one step at a time build your awareness of everyday spirituality by recognizing it in the people and things around you.

Start living your best life now, start recognizing the spirit in you, and the spirituality that surrounds you.

The Star

A Person is not a thing or a process
but an opening through which the
Absolute can manifest
~Heidegger

The Star
By Rosalie Cusumano©


In ancient religions the star symbolizes the guiding light...
It is the universal principle of self-esteem and confidence….

Each of us is a guiding light, a star, an "opening through which the Absolute can manifest".

When we are filled with self doubt we are closed and our light is dim.
We all have aspects of ourselves or things that we have or have not done that we are not proud of, including myself…

Let it go,forgive your self, embrace all of who you are and move on,
taking only the self realizations and lessons you have learned, with you.

You are a Star, a spark, of the Divine, a gateway through which the Absolute can manifest, perfect just as you are.
Believe in yourself…

Leave, inner-, criticism, judgment, and doubt behind.
None are of service to you on your journey forward, not unless you desire them to be.

What have you learned, how you have grown, are you opening up or closing down, are you shining brighter or has your light been diminished. This is what matters.


You control your light. You and you only can choose to shine or to allow the pitfalls of life to diminish your light.

I know that I am here to be of service, not only to the Divine, but to every spark of light, every Star, within the universe of the Divine, whether it shines or is dim.

If I lack self-esteem and confidence how can I be of service to myself or any one else? I can not.

Many have tried to shake my confidence and weaken might light, none have succeeded.


I am a Star, shining bright and strong, eternally expanding, not a thing or a process but an opening through which the Absolute can manifest.

Be radiant and confident with each step you take, leaving behind you a footprint of your light, so you may light the way for others who's Star have dimmed..

Shine……

Step away from self-pity

Lessons Learned ~ Step away from self-pity
by M. McMahon

We've all helped a friend through a breakup, a fight with their parents, a divorce, a foreclosure ... the list goes on and on. From the outside, it can seem so obvious what lesson is coming, but when it's personal, it's often much more difficult to understand. We feel overwhelmed by our circumstances. It can seem like everyday is a new slap in the face in the forms of painful revelations or unwanted outcomes. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to any of it.

And then the biggie: 'why me?' It's a good question to ask. Why are you being faced with this situation and what can you learn from it? The sooner you can step away from the self-pity and victimization, the faster you can move into an inner serenity that comes from saying, 'I am willing to learn.' Here are some steps to push through to the finish line, so you only have to learn this painful lesson once.

Been here before?
If you are hysterical, chances are the situation is historical. You've come to a familiar painful place, but where did it start? Make a list of precisely when you have felt this pain before. Perhaps you are suffering under an abusive boss. What other times have you felt victimized by someone in power? Reflect back until you find the very first time you can remember feeling this way. Chances are, that's what's really upsetting you. The present situation is rubbing an old wound. In this scenario, you may have wanted your very first abuser to love you. So now, you are hanging on to a job you hate because you are re-enacting that first situation, hoping for a different result. Nothing in the present will ever change the past. This is both painful and freeing because if you can acknowledge the true source of your pain, you are halfway to the healing that awaits you.

What is your part in this?
If you do not accept your part, you will repeat it. And you must be specific. For instance, simply saying, 'If I had known we were going to lose the house, I would have never bought it,' is a cop out. You have to look at your own patterns of leaping into things or refusing to face your own financial reality. Looking for your part may force-feed you a slice of humble pie. Not always easy going down, but humility is crucial to getting out of this painful merry-go-round.

If an apology is in order, make it. If you are not ready to apologize, ask yourself, 'what do I gain by staying in this dynamic?' It's not about manipulating the other parties to accomodate you. It's about your ability to move on from here. By stepping forward, you may be pleasantly surprised that others are relieved to change, too. Though you may break the ice, everyone benefits from the bridge.

Clarity is Freedom
The wonderful thing about walking through a painful situation is that it's your choice whether or not you go through it again. Most of the time, you'll find that there were warning signs at the outset of this painful lesson. If you can isolate when you ignored your intuition, you will unlock the key that will set you free. It's a small nudge, a quickening of the heart. It's a tiny guide deep within that gets quieter each time it is ignored. But if you can see where you turned away, you will beckon it back to you. It gets louder each time we honor it.

If you feel that there were no warning signs at all, look again. Nothing comes from nothing. Perhaps people around you were concerned when you rushed into a new relationship. Though they had compelling reasons for you to take it slow and get to know the person better, you thought, 'I will be the exception.'

Before you move on, take some time to give yourself props for everything you did right. Perhaps you extended patience, kindness and hard work. Perhaps you discovered a hidden talent or new hobby. Just because you lost the house doesn't mean you didn't enjoy painting it! Perhaps you had a rocky relationship with a musician, but the best parts where when you sang together. So take singing lessons!

The situation has as much power as you give it. Take your best assets with you. You're stronger and your experience is deeper and richer because there is no other outcome of growth. The universe wants us to experience love and abundance. Path-correction isn't easy, so tune down the inner critic. Reward yourself for walking through this and take a big breath. Better things are on their way!

Destiny is Variable

Destiny is Variable
by Owen Waters

In the Old Reality, things were seen as opposites - black or
white, hot or cold, good or bad, this way or that way. In the
expanded view of New Reality consciousness, life is seen in a
unified way. Opposite sides of the coin are viewed, not as
polar opposites, but rather as just being different aspects of
the one coin.

In the New Reality view of the world, the opposite extremes of
black and white become, instead, endless shades of gray. Hot
and cold become variable degrees of warmth. Good and bad become
different shades of human nature; free of the judgment, hate
and fear that comes with Old Reality, polarized thinking.

In the Old Reality, destiny and free will were seen as
mutually exclusive. The reasoning was that, if destiny exists,
then it controls everything and, therefore, free will does not
exist. On the other hand, you can prove that free will does
exist by making a choice. So, as the thinking goes, if free
will does exist, then there can be no destiny.

But, wait. Perhaps that choice of "free will" was really a
pre-destined one. Perhaps the person was destined to make that
choice all long, so the experience of choice was just an
illusion. At this point, people usually give up on the whole
question because it has turned into one of those brain teasers,
like asking which came first - the chicken or the egg.

Brain teasers keep your mind in an endless loop until you try
stepping back from the situation and seeing it in a wider
perspective. The new, wider perspective allows for the
inclusion of non-materialistic factors. In deciding whether the
chicken or the egg came first, for example, you just have to
step back and see that the Creator designed the chicken to be
self-perpetuating.

When you step back and see destiny and free will from a wider
perspective, you realize that nothing has to be absolute. If
every event in your life were pre-ordained, there would be no
such thing as free will or self-determination. As we do have
free will, destiny cannot be fixed.

Destiny is therefore variable, not fixed. Destiny and free
will both exist as interwoven facets of your life. Like threads
in a tapestry, they interact with each other and blend to form
the outcomes that are the events in your life.

Your destiny is created by plans that you made at a soul level
of consciousness. Before you were born, you made your main plan
for this life. Then, the minute you were born, the rules of the
game demanded that you also get a case of amnesia about the
whole arrangement. Such is the game of life in the physical
realm.

However, at night when you go to sleep, you have the chance to
visit the deepest levels of human consciousness and review how
the original plan is unfolding and make changes to your plan if
desired. When you return to your physical body and awake in the
morning, amnesia strikes again. Within seconds of your
conscious mind returning into your physical brain, you forget
both the surface dreams and the deep experiences of the night.

Amnesia may be a part of the game we are playing in this life,
but inner guidance is always is always available to anyone who
pays attention to it. Your intuition is your link to your soul,
or inner being, which is also linked to the rest of the
universe and all levels of Creation.

You are never left alone to fumble in the darkness of a purely
physical life. Your inner being is always there with you,
expressing itself through the quiet whisperings of intuitive
information. Thanks to this inner compass of knowing, you can
always sense which choice feels right. You can always tell when
your life is running on plan, and you can tell equally well if
you've become temporarily distracted from your plan. You always
have the means to be right on course, or get back on course,
and explore the fascinating themes that make up your life plan.

The most productive use of free will is to explore your true
potential within the themes of your life, thus gaining the
greatest possible experience from your life plan.

Destiny is an influence that comes from your inner plan. There
is nothing absolute about your destiny. It's a pressure which
constantly seeks the best route to unfold into manifestation.

Free will provides the means to manifest that destiny in a way
that provides the learning that you came here to acquire in
this life.

Destiny is variable. It adapts to the circumstances of your
life every second of the day. As destiny unfolds, you feel it
within as a sense of being a part of the flow of life, of
manifesting your potential in the way that you planned for this
day and that you planned for this life.

Destiny is the plan. Free will is the action. Experience is
the result.

That's what being human is all about.

Make a Life

Make a Life
~Neale Donald Walsch

The point of your activities throughout the day is not to
make a living, but to make a life; not to 'work' but to
create joy. If you are doing what you are doing merely
to 'pay the bills,' you will have missed the major reason
for All Of Life.

The purpose of life is to know and express Who You
Are. If you do other than that during the days and times
of your life, you will have not used those days and times
in a way that profits your soul. It is soul profit we are
after here, not body profit.

This first week of the New Year is a good time to
contemplate that, yes?

'Daily Affirmation' Video

Abundance -- Infinite Possibilities

Abundance -- Infinite Possibilities
By Theresa Crabtree

Scientists are beginning to discover what indigenous elders have known since antiquity. In the "ethers," there are tiny particles of no-thing-ness that at any moment can be activated and manifested into any-thing your heart desires! Once you have a true grasp that all literally is One, then you will better understand how to use this Oneness to create heaven on earth.

Due to the nature of "free will," many things labeled as "negative" have been allowed to happen from the beginning of the universe, for all is a grand experiment. Could there truly be "free will" if you are not allowed to experience the "bad" as well as the "good?" Like children, you learn that if you touch fire, you get burnt. After you have that understanding, you may then choose to not touch the fire again. However, when you have fuller understanding of the workings of the universe, you will learn that you can walk on fire and not get burnt! This is true for all things.

There is never only one solution to a problem; there are myriads of possibilities. However, when you are close-minded or lack the courage to think "out of the box," you limit yourself. Pay closer attention to the people and events that occur in your life. Watch for coincidences and synchronicities, especially after you have made a fervent request for something to occur.

Have the courage to take the steps to reach your highest goals. Take into account what is in your highest good and the good for all. You have experienced many "bad" things and are deserving of far more than you may currently allow yourself.

When you gain the ability to live the life of your dreams and say "no" to the things that take up your time, energy and money, you will have more time and resources available for recreation, art, music and all those things you love.

Spend quiet time each day reflecting on your life and practice those skills that bring a sense of peace and joy to you. Know that you may experience moments of unrest as you begin to realize that you are fully responsible for the current situations in your life. What joy you will experience as you release the fears and habits that have kept you captive for so long!

Learn to release the angst you feel toward others and come to the understanding that each of you is doing the best you can in every moment. In this new beginning, you will start with the knowledge of the full abundance available to you in all aspects of your life. Your passion will surpass anything you have thus far experienced on earth as each of you works together to support and encourage one another.