Grace

Sedona, Arizona

There is nothing that we can do to fall out of grace. The serial murderer has as much chance of finding grace as Mother Theresa had. The difference is that Mother Theresa realized that she was in a state of Grace. The murderer did not.

There is nothing that we can add to ourselves to bring us closer to it. We do not have to do anything to deserve it. We do not have to search for it. It does not have to be found. It is always right next to us. It is what we are.

We can find it in religion. We can find it without religion. Every moment is a new opportunity to become one with Grace.

Millions are awakening to it right now. Let's join the party.

Let's surrender to Grace

Awakening

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Since I have not been inspired to write this week, the following is a quote from Eckhart Tolle's A NEW EARTH:

"Your inner purpose is to awaken. It is as simple as that. You share that purpose with every other person on the planet-because it is the purpose of humanity...Awakening is a shift in consciousness in which thinking and awareness separate. For most people it is not an event but a process they undergo...There is nothing you can do about awakening. Whatever you do will be the ego trying to add awakening or enlightenment to itself as its most prized possession and thereby making itself more important and bigger. Instead of awakening, you add the concept of awakening to your mind, or the mental image of what an awakened or enlightened person is like, and then try to live up to that image. Living up to an image that you have of yourself or that other people have of you is inauthentic living-another unconscious role the ego plays...

What is the relationship between awareness and thinking? Awareness is the space in which thoughts exist when that space has become conscious of itself."

Change

Santa Fe, New Mexico

We are frightened by change. We feel safe in the comfort zone of our beliefs. We have expectations and preconceptions about what will happen to us. If we let go of our notions about the future and accept change as it happens, we will realize that there is nothing for us to be frightened of. Things will unfold as they are meant to.

We can become masters of our life by embracing the Unknown.

Let's embrace the Unknown. Let's embrace the great Mystery. Let's surrender to change.

A Prayer of Gratitude

Adobe House, Taos Pueblo, New Mexico

Gratitude is the key to acceptance, wisdom, peace and abundance. Let's express a prayer of gratitude. Mine is:

Thank you for the opportunity to know what is important and what is not important.

Thank you for love, health, peace and prosperity.

Thank you for what I have learned when I have experienced ill health, disappointment, frustration and lack.

Thank you for the opportunity to know the Divine, without religion.

Thank you for the opportunity to let go of my gender identity, my religion, and my other beliefs, and express who I really am.

Thank you for the opportunity to use this body to experience all that the material world has to offer.

Thank you for the opportunity to be present, even in this very moment.

Now

Autumn in Big Sur

Imagine how life would be if we could rid ourselves of our anxieties, our frustrations, our anger, and our unhappiness. What would we give to be able to live a life of peace, joy and freedom?

We can live that life now. In fact, the only way we can achieve such a life is now. We cannot accomplish it in the future. If we believe that our lives will be better "someday," we will never realize it, because "someday" will never come. The future can never arrive. It will always remain in the future. The only thing that exists is the now. Once we realize this, everything changes.

We can have the life we want by living in the now. We can live in the now by surrendering all of our beliefs, thoughts, ideas and judgments and bringing our attention to the present moment.

Let's be. here. now.

Courage

Kauri Tree, Coromandel Peninsula, New Zealand

We are afraid to leave the safety of our comfort zone. We feel safe thinking and acting in the same manner as the various groups we identify with. We have been conditioned our entire lives to think and behave a certain way. However, at some point we become conscious that we are dissatisfied and frustrated with our lives. The solution is not to join another group or try to alter our thinking.

The answer is to have the courage to give up compulsive thinking.

It take courage to surrender everything that we have been taught and everything that defines who we think we are. It takes courage to surrender to a great unknown, which cannot be defined or described. It can only be experienced. Once we become conscious, the thoughts and beliefs that we buried deep into our subconscious because they were too painful will begin to emerge. It takes courage to face them without judgment.

Let's have the courage to surrender to the Mystery.

Breathe

Mt. Tongariro from Lake Taupo

Our breath is the connection between our physical bodies and the Unmanifested. It is a doorway to Presence.

Our breath and our states of mind are irrevocably tied as well. If we are feeling stressed or anxious, our breath is shallow and quick. If our breath is long and deep, we are feeling peaceful. We can change our state of mind by changing our breath.

We take our breathing for granted because it is so familiar. It can be a very helpful tool. Studies have shown that we can greatly lower our blood pressure by doing breathing exercises. Following our breath with our attention is a powerful meditation.

By bringing awareness to our breathing, we become present.

Let's breathe.