Blog Archives

Forge Ahead

11/30/2015

I’ve had a few radio control airplanes land in a field of weeds so tall that I couldn’t see over the tops of them. It would be nice if I could push them aside and go in a straight line to find my fallen plane, but the path often weaves and bobs, and at times I completely miss the plane and have to backtrack. After playing the “find the plane” game I have a better understanding of why it’s so difficult for us to find our path in life. Still, no matter the challenges, we weave and bob, backtrack and forge on until we find our prize.

Attitudes Affect Emotions

11/29/2015

Our attitudes directly affect our emotions, and if we have a bad attitude about something, our emotions will act accordingly. When we take responsibility for our attitudes, we can choose to correct those that bring bad feelings and bad actions.

Mutual Respect

11/28/2015

Sometimes people who live in one particular religion find it difficult to respect, much less love, someone from a different religion, especially if they believe that the other person’s religion is in direct opposition to their religion. Instead of concentrating on their similarities, they seem to want to concentrate on their differences, and they seem to enjoy the division that comes with their mutual distrust and dislike of one another. If we could begin with mutual respect by finding ways to appreciate and to accept at least a small part of their religious beliefs, then surely we could build from there.

Reaction Control

11/27/2015

We have no control over the way someone treats us except perhaps to distance ourselves from them. We do, however, have control over how we respond to them. It might not seem like this is true because we have been programmed to respond in certain ways, but we do have the ability to change that programming and respond differently. Deprogramming and programming new ways of behavior take time and often concerted effort, but if we want to live with less stress in our lives we can learn to control how we react to negative behavior, words, and people.

Getting Even

11/26/2015

Getting even with someone because they have hurt us doesn’t really work. I sometimes say in jest that I don’t get even, I get ahead. I don’t actually try to get even or ahead of someone who has hurt me because I know it’s a losing proposition. If I succeed in “getting ahead” or doing more harm to them than they did to me, I already know that there is a strong possibility that they will retaliate and want to not only get me back, but to inflict greater harm. The only time we should get even or ahead, is with someone who has shown us kindness and love. Then if they try to get ahead, well, that’s okay. Let the love flow.

Ho’oponopono

11/25/2015

There is a Hawaiian healing ceremony called “Ho’oponopono” that is used to help mend relationships. Simply stated, it uses the power of an apology, forgiveness, love, and gratitude to heal relationships. These four simple principles are foundational to helping us solve life’s personal, spiritual, and global problems. When these principles are sincerely practiced in our daily lives, we will find our journey simpler, kinder, and more loving.

Broken Lives

11/24/2015

Brokenness comes to each of us in one form or another. There is no disgrace in finding our lives in disarray and confusion. Living life involves making decisions and testing our options, and at times we tend to make choices that don’t seem to work out for us. Trying again, making better choices, and moving on with our lives are all a part of the journey.

Weekly Newsletter: Get Along

11/24/2015

  One of the things we are expected to do in this world is to learn to get along. We will always have problems and difficulties, likes and dislikes, but as thinking, reasoning individuals we strive to find a way to make peace and play nicely together. Setting aside our wants and desires helps us achieve that goal, but if we bury our feelings it often comes out in not-so-nice ways. Verbal and sometimes physical fights erupt and we are left angry, defensive, and often ashamed.
      Getting along is not as easy as it sounds. Certainly our nations have shown how difficult it is, and so have our religions. For all our religious similarities, you’d think we could bury the hatchet and learn to cooperate for the betterment of all mankind. It hasn’t always been the case, but, at times, people do set aside their differences and work together.
      The key is to change our thinking. Instead of seeing the other person as different, we focus on the ways we are similar. Instead of looking at the darkness in them—darkness that we fear—we choose to look at the light in them that has the power to dispel our darkness and bring us closer. Getting along together shouldn’t be any more difficult than learning to play nicely together when we were kids at the playground. Take turns and share.

The Art of Overlooking

11/23/2015

There is a practice that can save us a lot of headaches, and that is the practice to “overlook things” that are not worth our time and attention. Too many battles are fought that could have been avoided. We don’t want to suppress our feelings or ignore situations, but we can overlook certain things simply by choosing to give other people the benefit of the doubt and try to see things from their point of view. And when that doesn’t work, we can try to see things from The Divine’s point of view.

Take Responsibility

11/22/2015

“I assert that I am responsible for my own spiritual path.” Stone One is the foundation of the Thirteen Stones of Religious Recovery, and it sets the tone for taking control of our own spiritual path. We decide that we are wise enough to know right from wrong. Of course, we might rely on wisdom from religious sources to help us make certain decisions, but ultimately that decision is ours. If we choose to give those decisions over to another person, or to a religious organization, then it would behoove us to be certain the path they would lead us down will take us where we want to go. But, Religious Recovery proposes that we take control of our choices and allow the love that The Divine placed within our hearts to guide us.

Love and Kindness

11/21/2015

A large boulder in the middle of a stream seems unmoved by the water that surrounds it. But, over time, the current can wear down the rock and eventually move it along to another location. The stream overcomes not so much by strength of force but by consistency. Kindness works much the same way as the stream. By constantly being kind, our love will flow over and around the hard places of life, but not without affecting it. And, little by little, the boulders of our lives will be moved by love and kindness.

Let Go

11/20/2015

How easily we can recall the past with all its good and bad experiences. The good experiences bring us peace and happiness, but the bad experiences bring the negative emotions we would prefer to keep away. Saying “Let go” is easy, but doing it can take time and determination. Still, with each attempt we come nearer to closure, but even without closure, we can let go of the little things and chip away at the big things until there’s nothing left.

Hold onto the Real

11/19/2015

We try to hold onto things that have no meaning to us. Not just physical things, but also emotional things. When we hold onto the past and can’t find it within us to forgive others and ourselves, we are holding onto emotional baggage that does not serve us, and in the end, has no meaning for us. When we consider the things that do have lasting meaning for us, the list is small: love, kindness, understanding, acceptance, forgiveness, and peace. Hold onto these things, and life will make more sense.

Enjoy Life

11/18/2015

Relaxing and letting life play out the way it will is often a good way to achieve happiness and contentment. One thing I’m convinced of is that laughter is a strong ingredient in a happy, well-balanced, and meaningful life. Big dreams shouldn’t come at the cost of our funny bones. Smiles shouldn’t be removed because of our dreams. Success is not measured by wealth, but by living with joy in the present moment.

On Being Right

11/17/2015

Why is it so important that we be right? What difference does it make? Sure, there are times when being right can make a big difference, but in many circumstances our need to be right gets in the way of our need to be loving, caring, giving, and peaceful. Sometimes it seems we can be right or we can be happy. If it doesn’t really matter, then I would prefer to be happy. I just hope I can remember to get it right. :-)

Weekly Newsletter: Light

11/17/2015

Braving the darkness is more difficult than walking in the light, or so it would seem. If walking in the light is so easy, why do so many people choose to stay in the dark? Why do they shun the light of spiritual illumination? And, why do they close their eyes to views that would bring new light into their world?
I suppose it’s not that we want to walk in the darkness; it’s simply a matter of being comfortable there. Our spiritual vision adjusts to what we see and interprets things in the limited spiritual vision we possess. If another comes our way shining their light onto our path, we may hide or walk away from that light because it’s too bright or because it’s not “our light.”
The light can come from a multitude of sources: sunlight, moonlight, a candle, a match, a gas lantern, and among other sources are the light bulbs that brighten our homes. Whether the spiritual light comes from Eastern religions, Western religions, or from a different religious source doesn’t change the fact that it is light. We do not need to shun it or hide from it.

Carry Peace

11/16/2015

The search for peace begins with us. Each individual must find peace within themselves, and then they can share it with others, or rather they can share the way to find it. Peace is not a destination but a journey. We must take it with us as we travel and keep peace within us as we remain still. Peace is connecting with our Higher Power which is not “up there” but within our hearts.

Look for the Lesson

11/15/2015

When something comes along to upset our equilibrium, we often want to remove it as quickly as possible and get back to our view of normal. But, what if that incident was sent by the Universe to help us grow and to strengthen us for similar situations? Perhaps as we struggle to return to “normal,” we might want to take a moment to consider if there is a lesson to be learned.

Going Home

11/14/2015

No matter how dark our path, no matter how poor we consider our choices to have been, we are still divinely created and worthy of love. We have not fallen too far, lost all hope, or gone beyond the reach of Love. And, it only takes a simple decision on our part to accept love, decide to live in love, and to move forward with love in our hearts. It doesn’t take more than wanting our lives to be what The Divine wanted them to be. Some religions would try to make it more complicated, but ultimately it is just a simple choice to return Home.

Choose Love over Hate

11/13/2015

Loving everyone unconditionally is not easy, especially if someone has hurt us, or in the worst case scenario, has become our enemy. But we do not have to accept that someone as our enemy simply because they have chosen to make themselves one. We can choose to make them our friend by loving them no matter what they do to us. Keeping our distance and protecting ourselves doesn’t violate the love we have for them. It merely shows that we love ourselves, too.

New Adventures

11/12/2015

Our path often leads us away from the familiar to the unknown. Worrying over what direction the path will lead us will not change the path. Trying to return to what is familiar could work for a while, but if we do, we might miss some wonderful adventures that were just around the next bend.

Recognize Truth

11/11/2015

Truth is truth, and it doesn’t matter who presents it, what religion claims it, or where we find it. When it resonates with our soul, we recognize it, own it as our own, and share it with others. When we get hung up over where the truth originated, we can lose truth. What a shame that would be.

Live in Peace

11/10/2015

Anger is a response to an external stimulus that brings up areas in our past that need to be healed. The more anger we experience the more we are living in the past and allowing old scripts to rule our lives. By healing the past through love, forgiveness, and rewriting our scripts we can remove the majority of our anger issues. Once removed, we can concentrate on living in peace and being at one with the world.

Weekly Newsletter: Forgiveness and Music

11/10/2015

Another method that can be used to work through forgiveness is music. Not all music has this healing ability, but some musical compositions lend themselves to reaching into the heart and pulling out the best in us—which is love and forgiveness. One song that has been particularly helpful to me and also to a few that I’ve shared it with is titled “Kiss the Rain” by Yiruma.
The song soothes me, and after a short while into the song the musician repeats three notes in descending order that reminds me of falling rain. The artist repeats these three cascading notes thirty times before transitioning back into the soothing sounds that give the listener a break from the musical rain. Then those three notes repeat for a second series of thirty, and at the end it repeats one more time for forty repetitions before fading into silence.
Each time I hear those three notes that remind me of falling rain, I say or sing a three syllable phrase like, “I am safe,” or “all is well.” But when I use this song for the purpose of healing, I say the words, “I-for-give,” over and over. On the next set I may change it to, “I’m-for-given.” The words become a gentle mantra that reinforces the need to forgive and also the need to accept forgiveness.

Best Weapons

11/9/2015

What is the strongest weapon in the world? Some might suggest a military weapon, but that only has the power to destroy. What if there was a weapon that would heal and strengthen our world instead of devastating it? Wouldn’t that be a weapon we would want to unleash? There are mass weapons of construction that will build our world and not tear it down. These include acceptance, tolerance, forgiveness, respect, love, and grace.