Sunday, December 29, 2013

Desire


Qamea, Fiji

We may desire, for example, a new home, a new job, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a new car, and so on.  Obtaining the desired object will only bring us fleeting satisfaction.  Soon, we will feel frustrated again and desire something new.  

If we dig a little deeper, we understand that these desires are only reflections of what we truly desire.  When we desire a new home, what we really desire is safety and security.  When we want an expensive car, we really want to be acknowledged and admired.  When we want a boyfriend or girlfriend, we really want to be loved.

Instead of focusing on what we think we want, we can focus on what we actually want, on a deeper level.  The material things we want are but a poor reflection of our true heart's desires.

When we acknowledge what we truly want, we begin to understand that what we really want is what we actually have.  We do not need to add anything to achieve it.  It is our natural state.  We just have to shed the layers of desire, expectation, judgment and belief, which have been programmed into us and which are keeping us from being fulfilled.

If we surrender our material desires, we can have all the peace, love, joy and freedom we crave.  It is simple because we do not have to seek them out or do anything to obtain them.

Let's focus on what is important and true.

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Thought

Coromandel, New Zealand

Have we examined our thoughts recently?  If we do, we will find a mixture of regret about the past ("what he did to me was not right!"); dread or hopeful anticipation about the future (If only I get this job, everything will be great."); ill-informed judgments ("that woman looks like a phony."); mundane thoughts ("I need to take the garbage cans out"); and utter gibberish ("What if PLANET OF THE APES was real?").

A very, very small percentage of our thoughts involve helping us achieve our life's goals.

So if the vast majority of our thoughts are at best useless and at worst are causing us to be angry, frustrated and depressed, how do we improve this situation?

We create a separation between ourselves and our thoughts through awareness.  By bringing our attention to our thoughts, without judgment, a separation is created, and we realize that we are not our thoughts.  We are beings who are aware of our thoughts.  This separation causes our thoughts to lose their power over us.  By shifting from unconscious thinking to awareness of our thoughts, we align ourselves with Universal Intelligence.  This alignment brings peace, joy and love into our lives.

Our thoughts bring us nothing, especially compared with the gifts that awareness brings.

Let's be aware.





Sunday, December 15, 2013

Stop making decisions!

Waihihi Bay, Bay of Islands, New Zealand

Figuring out the best course of action can be stressful.  We weigh the pros and cons of each decision and have anxiety over whether we are making the best one.

Instead of making decisions, we can allow decisions to be made.  We can stop trying to figure out the best solution through thought, and allow the decision to come through by relaxing into being.  The best course of action for all concerned comes to us naturally and effortlessly.

The information we have available to make decisions is incredibly limited compared to the all encompassing knowledge of the Infinite Energy Source.  If, instead of trying to think a problem through, we surrendered the outcome to Source, we would be guided to the best possible solution.

Our stress levels diminish greatly because it is a relief to realize that we do not have to decide anything.  We can merely allow decisions to happen.

Allowing decisions to be made is not being passive or lazy.  It is instead a recognition of who we are: Divine spirits in physical manifestation.  Allowing Source to guide us causes us to fulfill our life's purpose much more quickly and directly than having our limited minds try to figure things out.

Let's stop making decisions.

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Sadness

Whangapoua Beach, Coromandel, New Zealand

When feelings of sadness appear, we seek out memories that are consistent with that emotion.  The thoughts and memories strengthen, magnify and lengthen the duration of the feeling.   Our sadness intensifies and lasts for hours, days, or longer.  In addition to the present feeling of sadness, we are reminded of all the other times in our lives when we felt sad.

If we break the connection between the emotion and our thoughts, the emotion will enter and leave us in minutes, if not moments.  We can feel the emotion with all of our attention, without giving it power by connecting it to our thoughts.  We can break the connection between our emotion and our thoughts by bringing our awareness to our feelings without judgment.  Thoughts and memories keep giving the emotion energy to sustain it.  When we feel the emotion without triggering thoughts and memories, it soon passes.

Shifting our attention away from thought can feel like death.  In a way, it is.  Our ego, which consists of our thoughts, beliefs and judgments falls away and we awaken anew.  We awaken to the realization that we are not who we thought we were.  We are divine beings materialized.

Let's bring awareness to our emotions.

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Mystery

Hakone, Japan

We do not need to figure everything out.  If we have a difficult problem, we cannot find the best solution through thought.  When we surrender our judgments and beliefs, we realize that we do not have any problems at all.  We just have situations that we are interacting with.

When we allow Universal Mind to take over our actions, the result is the highest outcome for all concerned.

When we surrender our desires and expectations, we will receive miracles beyond anything that we can imagine for ourselves.  Our life's purpose will be fulfilled.

Our stress fades away when we realize that we do not have to plan our lives or solve our problems.  We do not have to think or do anything at all.  All we have to do is allow things to be as they are.  We will be led to our highest outcome.

We do not need to understand how Universal Mind works.  We could not begin to comprehend it anyway.

Let's surrender to the Great Mystery.

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Gratitude

Coromandel, New Zealand


Why is gratitude the key to abundance?  Because gratitude is abundance.  We are grateful because we have everything we need to be happy and fulfilled.

Think of the Universe as a giant machine, like the holodeck on Star Trek.  We will experience what we program into it.  We program it with what we think, say and believe. We are programming our experiences through our beliefs.

If we want to ascertain what our beliefs are, all we have to do is look at our lives.  When we embody gratitude, it signals to the Universe that we have abundance.  That programming allows more abundance to flow into our lives.

Gratitude cannot be faked.  We cannot say, "all I have to do to have what I want is to act grateful." It is the wanting that is keeping us from the having.  When we are grateful, we want for nothing.

We can begin to embody gratitude by embracing the little things (which are actually the most important things).  We can enjoy and appreciate things like walking in nature, holding hands, the pleasures of sex, looking at the sunset, brunch with an old friend, dancing, or the simple act of breathing.  The more that we appreciate the things in our lives which we enjoy, the more amazing things we will attract.

Let's be grateful.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Enlightenment Now

East Cape, New Zealand

It is time for us to get off the "spiritual path."  Many spiritually minded people say that they are on the path because that is an appropriate and modest thing to say.  Being on the path is a perfectly fine place to be.

The only problem is, the Universe will create a reality in perfect alignment with what we believe.  If we are on the path, we will always be on the path.  When we think it and say it, we do not have the actual intention that someday we will arrive and be enlightened.

The only reason that we do not believe that we will ever awaken is because we do not believe that we are capable of it.  We think that enlightenment is only for Indian gurus or a handful of great spiritual teachers.  We believe that it is too difficult.  This belief leaves us in a perpetual state of becoming.

There is a different way.  We can declare in this very moment that we are enlightened and will it into being.  I have written about The Upward Spiral in previous posts, and will not repeat what I said here.  Suffice it to say, if we declare it right now, the Universe will respond in an instant, and bring it into reality.  If we think it, declare it, and believe it, we will will it into reality.  Negative thoughts, such as anger, loneliness, frustration and fear cannot survive in the face of the strongly held belief that we are enlightened.

How awesome would it be if every person reading this post became enlightened in this very moment!

Let's get off the path and wake up right now.  This moment is the only time we can awaken.  We cannot awaken in the future because the future is an illusion.  It is only a concept.  It has no existence.  Now is the only time that exists.

Hallelujah!  We are now enlightened!


Saturday, November 2, 2013

Guilt

Bozeman, Montana

The vast majority of the guilt that we feel serves no purpose whatsoever.

True guilt has a natural purpose.  When we feel guilty about something we did, we can try to correct it, apologize for it, and resolve that when a similar situation arises, we will act differently.  Natural guilt causes us to be better and better.

Artificial guilt only serves to make us anxious and depressed.  It serves no function.

How can we tell the difference between natural and artificial guilt?  When we feel guilty,  we can ask ourselves the following question:  "If we were confronted with the same situation, would we do the same thing, or something different?"  If the answer is that we would do something different, that is natural guilt.  We can try to repair the situation that we caused, apologize sincerely, and resolve to act differently in the future.  The guilt has served its purpose and dissolves of its own accord.

If the answer is that we would do the exact same thing, that is artificial guilt.  Artificial guilt is a relic of our conditioned belief systems.  It is not necessary to figure out where it came from.  It is important to just get rid of it.  We can rid ourselves of artificial guilt permanently in about a month.

When we feel guilty and ask ourselves the question: "If we were in the same situation, would we do something different or would we do the same thing," and realize that we would do the same thing, the realization that the artificial guilt serves no purpose lessens its hold on us.  By undergoing this process, we understand how absurd it is to feel guilty.  We surrender the thought and feeling, and it dissolves when faced with the light of awareness.  With practice, it never even has a chance to affect us.  We are immediately able to differentiate between natural and artificial guilt and the artificial guilt disappears before it is able to enter our consciousness.

Let's be aware of our guilt.

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Being


Coromandel, New Zealand

Sometimes it is great not to do anything.  Not to meditate, listen to music, watch tv, surf the internet, blog, talk to someone, think, exercise, or do anything at all.  We think we always have to do something.  We feel guilty being idle, remembering everything that "needs" doing.

We can just sit peacefully, looking around (or not), our mind falling silent as the thoughts glide by our consciousness unimpeded.

There is great power in being.  Being is often more powerful than doing.  We think that we always have to do something in order to accomplish something.  Doing can be a gigantic waste of time.  Being can give us the clarity to do just the thing that we need to do.

Let's not do anything until we are compelled to do so.


Sunday, October 20, 2013

Stillness

Santa Fe, New Mexico

God whispers, rarely shouts.  God will never enter our life uninvited.  Of course, God is us and we are God.  However, we cut ourselves off from our higher self with the noise of our thoughts.

When we are in stillness, we can hear the subtle messages from the Infinite Energy Source.  It is the space between thoughts where the information we all crave resides.  Stillness arises when we allow our thoughts and feelings to pass through our awareness like clouds drifting across the sky.  It is when we grab onto our thoughts or believe that they represent the truth, that stress begins to enter into our lives.  The stress leads to frustration, anger, disappointment and depression.

When we hold onto our negative thoughts, they automatically attach themselves to painful memories and we begin to unconsciously spin out of control.  The sadness which would have passed in a few minutes, becomes a depression which lasts for hours or days.

We can break this memory association by bringing awareness to our thoughts and feelings.  Awareness is attention without judgment.  When we surrender our judgments and opinions and watch our thoughts pass through our awareness, we become still.  In this stillness, peace, love and joy reside.

When we give up control in stillness, we begin to fulfill our true purpose.  Our decisions bring us and everyone involved the highest outcome.  Miracles cascade into our lives.  We experience a peace and joy that we have never known.  All that we have to do is give up who we think we are and be who we truly are.

Let's be still.

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Love


Summer, Big Bear, California

Bringing love to a situation will always surprise us.  We will never receive the response that we expect. When we are indifferent to the result, love will often heal the pain that we find in others, as well as ourselves.

The object of our disdain is often merely misunderstood.  The person that we are angry with for ignoring us, may merely be lost in thought about their own health or the loss of a loved one.  We are almost always wrong when we think we know what others are thinking.  Also, meanness, greed and selfishness always come from a deep self-loathing and despair.  When we realize this, are we really doing our best by resenting them? 


The hardest spiritual discipline for me was being able to love those that hate us or are trying to do us harm.  I finally realized that my anger and hatred was not getting me anywhere regardless of whether it was "justified" or not.  Of course, we can always defend ourselves and others against those which intend to do physical or emotional harm.  And we can always express our feelings about other people's behavior. But our irritation, anger, and self-righteousness only harms ourselves. 

Love can often bring a healing to the situation.  But even if it doesn't, our peace and well being do not need to be upended.

Only love can heal us.  Only love can heal an impossible situation.  Love will heal our loneliness, our frustration, and our despair.


Let's bring love to every situation that we encounter.

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Death


Pohutukawa Tree, New Zealand

The fear of death follows us like our very own shadow.  It is certain that every living thing will someday be dead (some scientists believe that babies being born today may never die due to the accelerated pace of advances in artificial organs and robotics, but thinking about that makes my head want to explode, so we will leave that alone for now).

The unexamined fear of death affects everything that we do.  It brings irrational fears, neuroses, rage, dread, and so on.  We do not have enough information to determine whether death is indeed a bad thing.  Why do we assume that death is something horrible?  We do know that energy cannot be created or destroyed.  Why would we not think that death is just another adventure?  Regardless, the sooner that we become comfortable with the idea that we will be dead sooner or later, the more we will enjoy life and the better off that we will be.

It is not about thinking that life is short, so we better enjoy it while we can.  It is remembering that the present moment is eternal.  Once we live in the eternal space of the Now, we become at peace with everything that happens to us, including our impending deaths.

Let's be at peace with the concept and reality of death.


Sunday, September 29, 2013

Miracles

Qamea, Fiji

What is a miracle?  A miracle is a shift in perception that causes something unexpected and beautiful to occur.

Life can be repetitious and boring and something to be dreaded, or it can be an infinite series of miracles, one more beautiful than the next.  Or it can be anything in between.  the Universe will present as many miracles into our lives as we allow It to.  It is entirely up to us.

People in Los Angeles love to be cynical and judgmental.  It makes us feel special to believe and receive agreement on the faults of others.  That is fine, except by doing so we are confirming and materializing our own inadequacy.

We can allow life to be a wondrous adventure, filled with a never ending series of miracles, by dropping our judgments, desires and expectations and letting life be just what it is.  When we surrender our puny and small minded will to the Universal will, we fulfill our life's purpose for the maximum benefit of all involved.

Let's allow Life to be just as it is.


Saturday, September 14, 2013

Love

Nara, Japan

Love and fear.  These are the two root emotions from which every other one derives.  We are making a choice of one or the other every moment, even though we may not be aware that we are making a choice.

One road takes us to frustration, despair, anger, disappointment and self-loathing.  The other road takes us to love, peace, wisdom, and a feeling of connection to everything and everyone.  The choice should not be too hard, should it?

Since we are magnets which attract the things that we focus our attention on, when we choose fear, we will attract things which make us fearful.  When we choose love, positive things will start to happen to us.  We will attract other loving people into our lives.  The Universe will start to tilt in our direction. Reality will become a beautiful unfolding, rather than random chaos or an oppressive force which is out to get us.

Let's release our anger, frustration, fear and hatred, and turn our awareness to the love that binds us all.  It can happen in an instant.  It is as simple as turning on a switch.

Let's choose love.

Saturday, September 7, 2013

Allowing

Waiheke Island, New Zealand

We think we know who we are.  We think we know what we want.  We strive and work for things that we think will make us whole or fulfill us.  We yearn for things that others have.  We are convinced that if we only had a romantic partner, a new job, more money, a better home, an education, more friends, a better childhood, better looks, more youth, better health, a new car, new clothes, or better luck, that the holes in our hearts would finally be filled.

The truth is that if we had any or all of these things, we would soon find ourselves alone and frustrated again.  In fact, we might even feel more depressed because, if the thing that we thought would make us whole does not, there is truly no hope for us.  I believe that is what happened to Michael Jackson.  He had everything that anyone could have, yet found no peace, love or joy in his life.  If having everything does not make us happy, then the world must indeed be an evil and terrifying place.

Of course, there is another way.

We could have more peace, love and joy in our lives than we can possibly imagine.    Indeed it is our heritage.  It is what we are.  It is so simple to find because it is right there for us to discover at any given moment (how about this very one?).

All that we have to do is choose a different way.  

How do we do it?  We give up our desires and expectations, and surrender our will to the Divine Infinite.  We surrender our will to God's will.  When we do this, our lives will be filled with miracles, and we will discover our life's purpose.

Let's allow divine wisdom to guide us.

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Acknowledge and Surrender

Whangapoua Beach, Coromandel, New Zealand

Our unhappiness, anger and frustration are caused by unexamined thought.

We can begin to experience the peace, love and joy that is our very nature once we decide to bring awareness (i.e., attention without judgment) to our thoughts.

It takes courage to examine our thoughts.  Our thoughts were driven into our subconscious for a reason: in order to protect us from being hurt.  However, our subconscious thoughts infect our lives in ways we cannot imagine.  They color everything we say and do.

No thought can hurt us if we examine it without labeling or judging it.  It is the emotional response to the thought which causes us pain.  A thought triggers additional thoughts and memories which are consistent with the original thought.  Our mind spins into a cycle of regret and despair.

We can end this cycle of pain by acknowledging our thoughts and surrendering them to the Void.  The thought arises.  We bring our attention to it without judgment of any kind.  This prevents our thoughts from becoming a breeding ground for similar thoughts and negative emotions. Once we bring our attention to the thought without judgment, our attachment to it dissolves.

When we are stressed, it is very difficult to examine our thoughts because they are coming too fast.  It is very helpful to build some space around our thoughts by slowing them down.

We can slow down the pace of our thoughts by bringing our attention to our breathing, meditation, yoga, walking in nature, etc.  It is then much easier to examine and acknowledge our thoughts.

Let's acknowledge and surrender our thoughts.


Sunday, August 25, 2013

Love

Swan and cygnets, Lake Taupo, New Zealand

Love or fear?  These are our root emotions.  The choice seems obvious. However, if the best choice is so clear, why do we, on any given day, mostly choose fear?

We choose fear because we are not aware that we are choosing.  We are not aware that we have a choice.  The choices are made, moment by moment, on subconscious levels.  When we act unconsciously, we are mostly driven by negative emotions, such as fear, anger and frustration, which are derived from our stale belief systems, built up and reinforced over our lifetimes.

How do we begin to make conscious choices?  We make conscious choices by bringing awareness (i.e., our attention without judgment) to our thoughts. Once we are aware of our thoughts, we can begin to make different choices.

Let's choose love.

Sunday, August 18, 2013

The Watcher

Hakone, Japan

We are not our thoughts.  Our thoughts are derived from programming which started when we were born and continues to this day.  If we wrote down all of the thoughts that we had in any particular day, the list would consist of regret aver things that have occurred in the past, worry about possible events in the future, and fantasies about obtaining things which we think would make us feel whole.  But the largest portion of our thoughts would consist of nonsensical gibberish which has no connection to reality or our present lives.

Our anger, frustration and despair is not caused by our thoughts.  It is caused by our being unconscious of our thoughts.  When we think unconsciously (i.e., without awareness), we believe that our thoughts are true and represent who we are.  Actually, the vast majority of our thoughts are not true.

When we bring awareness (i.e., our attention without judgment) to our thoughts, we create a separation between our thoughts and ourselves.  We begin to understand that our thoughts are not who we are.

When this separation occurs, our thoughts start to lose their power over us. Eventually, we can look at our thoughts with amusement or even hilarity. They become so ridiculous to us that we are amazed that we ever took them seriously.

If we are not our thoughts, then who are we?  We are the one who is aware of our thoughts.  When we are aware without judgment, we are in harmony with the Infinite Energy Source (some call it God).  Our lives unfold in fulfilling ways and we experience peace, love and joy.

Let's be aware of our thoughts.

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Guilt

Kereta, Coromandel, New Zealand

Feelings of guilt ravage our sense of peace and well being.  Guilt has an original purpose: to encourage us to become more conscious.   However, the vast majority of the guilt we feel arises from our conditioned systems of beliefs, and serves no purpose whatsoever.  We are often tormented by these unnecessary feelings. We can rid ourselves of artificial guilt and free ourselves from the nagging voices in our heads, making us feel shame for no reason.

We can free ourselves from this burden by first identifying natural guild, which has an important role to play in our lives, from artificial guilt, which does not.

How can we tell the difference between natural guilt and artificial guilt?  If we feel guilty about something we did, we can ask ourselves: "if the same situation occurred again, would we do the same thing or do something different?" if we would act differently, that is natural guilt.  Once we endeavor to try to fix the situation we created, apologize, and/or resolve to behave differently when a similar situation arises in the future, the guilt dissolves because it has fulfilled its purpose.

If we would do the exact same thing in the same situation, that is artificial guilt.  There is nothing to be done to remedy the situation, and we do not need to resolve to act differently in the future.  Once we acknowledge this, we can release the feelings of guilt because we recognize them for what they are: an ancient artifact from a useless belief system.  The feelings of artificial guilt will dissolve once we are aware that they serve no purpose whatsoever, except to torment us.

Let's be free.

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Awakening

Cocoa Puff

We cannot awaken in the future.  If we are on the path to enlightenment, we will always be on the path.  The future does not exist.  We can only awaken in the present moment.

How do we awaken in the present?  We can awaken in the present by declaring it.  Once we declare it and take that belief into our hearts, we begin to create a new belief system.

When thoughts or feelings of fear, anger or frustration arise, a cognitive dissonance is created, i.e., we have two inconsistent thoughts.  One of the thoughts will have to give way in order for there to be consistency, which our minds require.  Positive thoughts and beliefs are stronger than negative thoughts.  In the face of the belief "I am awake," the thought "I am afraid," will dissolve.

When the negative thought dissolves, we feel good because it confirms our belief that we are awake.  We say to ourselves "it is really true.  I am awake!"   

The next time thoughts of fear or doubt occur, they hit a much stronger and reinforced wall of belief:  I am awake.  The weaker thought dissolves before it even has a chance to take hold.  It doesn't stand a chance.  We are creating an upward spiral.

Negative thoughts begin to diminish and are eventually met only with amusement.  They have lost their power over us.

The next time we meet with our friends or family, we can tell them that we had a spiritual awakening.  We may receive a positive or negative reaction, or they may have no idea what we are talking about.  It does not matter.  Our awakening is not dependent upon the response of others.  Every time we think it, every time we say it, we are affirming our belief.  We should say it and think it as often as possible.  It may seem like bragging, but affirming that we know who we really are is not a bad thing.  It is not only megalomaniacs who know that they are God.

Can obtaining enlightenment be as easy as declaring it?  I have found it to be true.  Let's try it.  We have nothing to lose.

Let's embody our awakening right now, right this very moment, and bring it deep into our hearts.

We are awake.

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Simplicity

Coromandel, New Zealand

There is nothing wrong with having nice or expensive things.  We can have and enjoy them, as long as we understand that they cannot bring us peace or fulfillment.  The problems arise when we believe that things will fill the hole in our lives or bring us lasting satisfaction or joy.  The elation that we feel when a long desired item or experience is achieved will soon lead to frustration when the feelings of desolation and isolation return.  It is doubly frustrating because we were so sure that it would make us feel whole.

We can experience peace, gratitude and joy by enjoying simple things: a swim in the sea, a walk in the park, holding hands, or watching a squadron of pelicans glide over the ocean.  Even the simple act of being aware of our breathing can bring us profound feelings of grace and fulfillment.

Let's enjoy life's simple pleasures.

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Surrender

Coromandel, New Zealand

Our thoughts and beliefs are keeping us from living peaceful and fulfilling lives.  We have built a solid wall of beliefs which was constructed from our birth and continues to the present moment.  This programming of our belief systems has occurred by our parents, teachers, friends, the media, religious leaders and so on.  We believe we are our thoughts and beliefs.  The reason this causes us so much frustration, anger, unhappiness and despair is because we all share the same root belief:  We are unloved and unlovable.  

All of our problems come from our identification with thought.  We have forgotten that all of our thoughts, beliefs, and judgments are an illusion. They are not who we really are.

The good news is that we can become who we really are and live peaceful, harmonious, fulfilling lives, filled with love and joy, in any given moment, including this very one.  Regardless of how hopeless or frustrated we believe our lives are, we could awaken to a brand new life right this second.  Every problem that we think we have would disappear in an instant.  We could create heaven on earth.  Right now.

All that we have to do is to acknowledge the truth of who we really are and surrender our thoughts and beliefs.

Since we believe we are our thoughts and beliefs, how do we do that?  We create a separation between our thoughts and beliefs and who we really are by bringing awareness to our thoughts.  Awareness is our attention without judgment.  We notice our thoughts, acknowledge them without labeling or judging them, and surrender them, allowing them to drift off without attaching ourselves (i.e., our awareness) to them.

Let's acknowledge our thoughts and surrender them to the light.

Saturday, July 6, 2013

Gratitude


Kamakura, Japan

The opposite of gratitude is regret.  We wish we had done things differently.  We wish that other people had acted differently.  We wish that things that happened to us, happened differently.

Gratitude is allowing things to be as they are.  It is accepting that life is what it is.  Anything other than that is denial.  Gratitude is acknowledging that everything that has happened to us is divine grace.  True change can only occur when we accept that reality is what it is.

Gratitude is the key to abundance.  In fact, gratitude is abundance.  If we are grateful for what we have, we are satisfied and fulfilled.  This is the definition of abundance.  When we are grateful, the Universe responds in kind.  Like energy attracts like energy.

The more we accept life, the more we appreciate what we have, the more abundance we will attract.  It is the striving, desire and frustration which keeps us from receiving what we want.

Gratitude is ecstasy.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

The Instrument

Dylan

It is much easier to live mindfully when our bodies are refreshed, nourished, relaxed and in shape.  When we eat junk food and do not exercise, our bodies feel sluggish, and so does our mind.  A sluggish mind leads to negative thoughts, which contribute to a cycle of malaise, cynicism and lack of fulfillment.  Low energy leads to boredom and frustration.

Our bodies are our instruments for interacting with the material world.  The more we take care of our instrument, the better it will serve us and contribute to our ability to fulfill our life's purpose.

It is no secret as to what is necessary to keep our instruments in fine tune: Restorative sleep; good nutrition; clean water; exercise and tools for reducing stress (e.g., yoga, meditation, walks in nature, satisfying social interactions).

Let's respect and care for our bodies, so that they can serve us.


Sunday, June 2, 2013

Miracles


Kamakura, Japan

A miracle is not necessarily receiving something that we desired.  A miracle is receiving the perfect thing for our development and unfolding when we allow Divine Grace to come into our lives.

When we surrender our desires, we create the space which allows blessings and miracles to occur.  It is our judgments about what is happening in our lives which prevent miracles from occurring.  When we treat everything that happens to us as a Divine gift, we are allowing the Universe to guide us to fulfill our life's purpose.  In a previous post, I said that the Universe is as benevolent as we allow it to be.  Similarly, we will have as many miracles in our lives as we allow there to be.

A miracle is not something that happens to us from outside of ourselves.  When we align our awareness with our Higher Self, miracles happen.  We can do this by surrendering our thoughts and beliefs and allowing life to be just as it is.

To bring miracles into our lives all that we have to do is ask for them and allow them to occur.

Let's ask for a miracle and allow it to occur.

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Intuition

Dylan

Since we do not have enough information to determine through thought what is our best course of action, we can rely on our intuition.  Intuition is information from Universal Spirit.  It is sometimes difficult to tell what is intuition and what is arising from our programmed ego.  Since intuition is from our divine nature, it will always come from a  place of peace, love and joy.  Thoughts from ego will often make us feel agitated, tight and self righteous.

When we are still, we can tune into Divine Energy.  It could be a voice or it could be an urge to take a certain action.  Our bodies help us indicate what is true inspiration.  One course of action will make our bodies feel relaxed and expansive.  Thoughts and cravings from the ego make our bodies feel tight and restrictive.

The chatter of our unconscious stream of thoughts can make it very difficult to tune into our intuition.  That is why meditating or being in nature is so useful to recharge our batteries and allow us to hear the subtle messages that our constantly being transmitted to us.  All we have to do is listen.

Let's be open to Universal guidance.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Surrender

Stony Batter, Waiheke Island, New Zealand

We act as if the universe is out to get us.  We are anxious and depressed and blame it on circumstances outside of ourselves.  We believe that the world is driven by negative impulses and random events.  Our desires are rarely fulfilled, and, when they are, the satisfaction is hollow and short-lived.

There is only one solution to this dilemma:  spiritual awakening.

It is our desire and expectations which cause our unhappiness and despair.  We suffer because we believe things should be different than they are.  It is only through acceptance and allowing everything to be as it is that we can experience the peace, love and joy which is our very nature.  That does not mean that we do not take steps to change our circumstances if they are not fulfilling.  Indeed, true change can only come with acceptance.  Once we accept that things are just as they are, we can begin to effectuate changes.

We think we know what will make us happy.  We think we know what will make us fulfilled.  We want material things, relationships and status because we believe that when we have those things, we will be happy.  It is the thinking and the wanting that create our suffering.

The Universe is as benevolent as we allow it to be.  We do not have enough information to know what will truly make us fulfilled.  Our dream job could turn into our worst nightmare.  Often, getting fired or becoming ill allows us to experience growth and fulfillment.

If we give up our desires and expectations, and allow the Universe (otherwise known as God) to lead us, we will find our life's purpose and our lives will unfold in ways beyond what we can imagine.  As we turn towards the Universe, the Universe turns in our direction.  The Universal Spirit will never intrude in our lives unless we ask it to by opening ourselves up to it.

Let's surrender to life just as it is..  

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Choice

Russell, Bay of Islands, New Zealand

Every moment of every day we are making a choice.  We are making choices regardless of whether we are aware of them or not.  We can make these choices consciously or we can continue to make them unconsciously.  In this very moment we can choose:

Love or fear
Peace or anger
Joy or disappointment
Fulfillment or frustration
Harmony or uncertainty
Ecstasy or boredom
Grace or gossip
Truth or confusion
Passion or cynicism
God or self

Since we are making choices anyway, let's make them consciously.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Life

Bay of Islands, New Zealand

Everything that happens to us is specifically designed to bring about our awakening.

We do not have enough information to determine whether things that happen to us are "good" or "bad."  What we think of as good may not be good for us, and what we think of as bad might be the best thing that ever happens to us. This is regardless of whether we lose our jobs, lose a loved one, or get cancer.  If we knew that we are going to die tomorrow, can we really know for certain that would be bad?

When we are grateful for everything that happens to us and treat all events as gifts from our Universal Connection, life unfolds harmoniously, and the gifts continue to pour down on us like a spring rain, When we surrender the life that we think we want for ourselves, Every moment of our lives becomes an adventure. We are passionate about even mundane tasks.  Peace, love and joy begin to permeate our lives as we begin to fulfill our life's purpose.

All we have to do is surrender our will to the Universal will.  Nothing else is required.

Let's be grateful.



Sunday, February 3, 2013

Prayer


East Cape, New Zealand

Many people are turned off by the idea of prayer because traditionally, it meant that we were asking favors from a supernatural being outside of ourselves.  Since many believe that the idea of a supernatural being outside of ourselves is a concept created by religious institutions as a means of power and control, we dismiss the notion of prayer as a product of those institutions.

Since we are divine beings wearing the clothes of human beings, when we pray we are actually setting our intentions for ourselves from our Divine nature .  We are not looking outward asking for help.  We are going inside ourselves, bringing our intentions into alignment with the Infinite Energy Source.

Of course, our prayers will work best when we are praying for the best outcome for the highest good of all concerned.

Let's surrender our will to our higher selves.


Sunday, January 27, 2013

Faith

Sedona, Arizona

What is faith?  Faith is trust. We trust that if we surrender our belief systems, which define who we think we are, we will be in harmony with Universal Intelligence and fulfill our life's purpose, rather than descend into a pit of fear and despair.

It is called faith because no words can convince us of this Truth.  There is no scientific evidence which will prove it (although they are getting close!).  No teacher can adequately describe it.  However, someone who is awake can create an energy field of Presence.

We must take the leap and experience it to see the truth of it.  When we sincerely try it, we immediately glimpse a different reality.  Our interactions with people change.  We no longer feel a need to be defensive.  We listen without thinking of what we want to say next.  Our anger, fear, loneliness, and frustration start to lessen.  Peace, love and joy begin to permeate our being.

The more we do it, the more evidence we see of it and the stronger our faith becomes.  It is like a muscle that gets stronger with exercise.  Faith becomes a habit (a good one!).

Let's have faith to surrender to the Void.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

The Choice

Cape Reinga, New Zealand

The most important choice we will ever make is whether we will continue our lives of fear, frustration and obsessive thinking about the past and the future, or live mindfully in the present moment.  There is nothing that we have to learn, accomplish or achieve to awaken.  No obstacles need to be overcome.  No training is required.

In fact, if we make the choice to live in harmony with Universal Intelligence, we can become enlightened in this very moment.

It seems too simple.  If it was so simple, why wouldn't we all be awakened masters?  The answer is that we are not aware that the choice is ours and the process is so simple.  We have hypnotized ourselves into thinking that following our belief systems is the only way to live.  The web of thought and belief is so thick, that we do not know there is another way.

If we choose to surrender our thoughts in this very moment, with the strong resolve that is necessary to repel the relentless pull of compulsive thinking, we will be in harmony with the flow of life, We will be fulfilled because we are living our true purpose. We will know peace.

Let's choose freedom.