Why I Feel the Need to "Push" My Book Now

It has been three years since publishing my book, "Setting God Free: Awakening to Miracles" and yet, it seems to be having an awakening of its own.  There were times after I wrote it that I second guessed why I did it.  In today's world, we measure things by quantities and mass scales, so very modest and slow sales seem to indicate irrelevance.

I never felt much direction for marketing the book heavily, not to mention that I really just did not have the excess funds to do so (and looking back, maybe that was part of the Plan).  With things in my own life in some turmoil from the economic downturn, I was already stretched just to put it out there. It would have seemed like great sales and income would have been God's way of saying, "Well done in following Me."  I wondered sometimes if I had it all wrong.

Yet, deep inside, I knew that it didn't matter about numbers or pushing the book.  It was partly by fatigue but largely from an inner knowing that I chose to I let it sit, once I got over the feeling that it was all for naught.   At those times when I would second guess myself as to why God would have wanted me to go to all the trouble to publish if it wasn't going to "do something bigger", a different voice would whisper that it was ok...that it was all in time. Spiritual friends would often say that they thought people just may not be ready on a larger scale yet and that it would come in time.

I thought my book was simple and fairly benign in its voice, not anything that would be hard to be ready for, yet something about what those friends said rang true.  Maybe it is all about timing...and it will be there when the right people are ready to read it.  On the surface, that may seem pompous - like it is too lofty for many--  but it is actually from humility....a willingness to let God and angels dictate the journey and the timing.  I am now working on another book to continue the story.  I have no idea the time frame or the method of publication,  nor do I need to.  It will come in God's time.

So I write this today to urge you to read the excerpt from my book and see if it stirs anything within you.  I know that for many who have read it, it has somehow had that effect (which I know is beyond me or my mere words).  It's a simple, quick read, but it may open something within you that is dormant...it may be just the trigger you are looking for...Simple, but meaningful.   If you have ventured here, then you are likely already on your journey, or searching for a start...and this may just be what can lead you in that direction.

Blessings and love to all of you out there in Our Family of Love and Light...We are One and we are powerful beyond imagination.

Note: Setting God Free: Awakening to Miracles" is available on Amazon or Barnes and Noble online (or may be ordered through their stores).  Amazon has a kindles special in place right now.  CLICK HERE for excerpt and info)

One Small Step...Now Is the Time

"That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind."  (Neil Armstrong)

It has been quite some time since I have created a full blog entry on this page.  For the last couple of years, I have confined my sharing to my facebook fanpage, with smaller thoughts and snippets of ideas. I published a book consisting of many thoughts and experiences I had over the preceding several years, but I suddenly had nothing substantial to say in written form. The fanpage grew beyond my expection (17,555 at this writing), and it seemed to touch people involved, or help guide them in a small way just by sharing simple ideas.  But the deeper writing...nothing there.  I hosted a radio show, where I was readily able to answer questions and provide support, but nothing came at the keyboard. 

Over these two years, I have gone through many personal challenges - none enormous within themselves, but collectively a continued strain that seemed like the opposite of supporting my purpose.  Somewhere deep inside, I knew there must be some reason for it, or path that I could not see, but it also frustrated me...Why could I not get help in doing these things that I believed helped others...things that others would say helped change their lives?  I carried on, but not without ongoing frustration -- mostly at why I wasn't "getting it' or what I might be doing wrong.

Last spring, I bought a small business.  My finances toward such things as healing work, producing a book, or maintaining a radio show were depleted, my generosity toward others taking its toll.  I had to find other means just for my own financial survival.   It seemed at the time like a distraction from what was really important-- ironically at a time that I still believe holds the potential to change the world. Frustrations mounted as the business I had purchased revealed great misrepresentations in what was sold to me vs. what was actually there. Truth exposed, as is happening all around us (and is often hard to digest in its blatancy).  This brought on more frustration...a legal battle to make it right. I knew there was something in that process about standing up for myself, but I was tired and sometimes very confused.  I relied on some very close spiritual friends to hold me up at the times that I felt beaten. 

So why an I writing this now?  I am writing this to speak to each of you that feels called to a spiritual path-- to bring some form of light to a world that is pregnant with possibilities and ready to deliver a new and fresh paradigm for a new day.  It is the "good news" (the "gospel", I believe), just as Jesus delivered good news over two thousand years ago.  We have been told that Jesus will return to the world to save us.  Our small minds have assumed that it would be in a singular form, but I believe Jesus will return through the hearts of many who are willing to open their spirits and minds to a new way -- those willing to carry the Light until it illuminates all. It will not be for any single religious group, but will be the "Energy of the Christ", which loves and accepts all.  We are THOSE people.  If you are reading this, you may already know that you are one part of that whole. 

Most recently, the purpose for my path became quite clear to me -- with great understanding for "why" much of it happened.  I have seen the light of where it might be leading me -- and it is brighter than ever.  I see a new dawn where we will push through like a new birth.  But we need ALL those who have prepared for this time to be who they came here to be.

When Neil Armstrong stepped off Apollo 11 and declared, "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind,"  he knew that little step that he made as a single man doing the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other had greater implications to the world.  Today, each and every one of us can make that kind of step. We are all connected, we are all One.  As we return to that, making our own small contributions toward living in a new way, ushering in new paradigms, we are part of the huge step for mankind.  It is time to take that step that you have perhaps resisted, time for that push of energy and purpose that you may have thought you lost in this long journey.

The shifts in energy have been immense...As sensitive beings carrying the Light, or readying ourselves for that, we have felt the impact, we have carried the load and we have become weary from it.  But now is the time to keep the faith....take that new step that may seem impossible to take, but will contribute to a better world.  Now is not the time to be afraid, now is the time for collective courage. 

THIS is what we came here to do...So be strong, and contribute in small ways, knowing that each small step is a giant leap.  Lift up your spiritual soul mates, as they lift you up. Recenter your energy, find that determination to listen to your soul and make your own small steps.  We can do it together, because we now remember that we are ONE, and when we are One, we are aligned with God, the power of the Universe, the power to create the new world.

And so it is...Go forth and create it through your own light.

Behold the Turkey Vulture

(Repost from 2011):
A few years ago, when I felt led down a new path of a deeper spiritual journey, I encountered a turkey vulture, not on the roadside cleaning up remains of a dead animal, but up close and personal, diving and circling all around my house within about 10 feet of me. This went on for several minutes before the bird soared away, and somehow I knew that this unusual display was more than chance, that some higher power was trying to get my attention. I had had several previous odd, direct, and profound encounters with birds or animals during that phase. With each occurrence, I had known from the feeling that came over me that there was some deeper connection or meaning, some presence and power surrounding the event. This time, I did not even know what kind of bird this was as it soared like an eagle in front of me, because I had never seen a vulture so close up in flight, had never imagined that a vulture could be this graceful and beautiful, but I was able to ascertain what it was because of it's distinctive red head that looked a little like a turkey (hence the name).

Ancient cultures understood how God and Spirit can speak to us through animals. Native Americans also used (or still use) animals in their spiritual practices, or look to them as symbolic messengers. I knew deeply that these birds and animals that came to me in unusual and undeniable ways were calling me to a greater purpose, each providing some sort of guidance or wisdom. My discernment has not led me incorrectly, rather it had connected me to deeper serendipitous events or guided me down my path. Knowing this, I started reading about the Turkey Vulture to derive more meaning from my messenger.

I learned that the turkey vulture's wing span is approximately 6 feet wide (I can vouch for their incredible size from this animal soaring within 10 feet of me on my deck!). Their task in life is to clean up the mess, but an even more interesting aspect of the turkey vulture is that it is the only bird (or presumably only animal) whose feces is disease free. So the turkey vulture kindly cleans up dead carcasses or rotting flesh, then purifies them from any bacteria - making them perhaps nature's most perfect cleansing animal. They struggle with take off and appear awkward in early flight, but once they are off the ground, they soar like eagles (often mistaken as such at a distance), and can fly for hours without ever flapping their wings, riding thermals and currents. The turkey vulture that appeared to me did absolute acrobatics around me, looping effortlessly in glorious flight.

They are gentle and non-aggressive creatures, never killing, only cleaning up the mess of what has already been killed. A turkey vulture's means of protecting itself is not to fight or cause harm, but to regurgitate on itself in order to keep its attacker away, making itself undesirable to keep harm away. It is a meek and gentle being. Since this up-close visit from the turkey vulture, I have often pondered how we tend to judge this animal on its outward, "ugly" appearance and its "gross" habit of being drawn to and eating roadkill, not taking the time to be grateful for its continued deed of being nature's garbage man, gladly cleaning up the messes that others have left behind. We usually fail to see its absolute beauty - glorious flight, peacefulness, and contributing to the good of the earth. I have wondered if some of those "less desirable" humans (in our judgmental eyes) are our turkey vultures, knowing secretly how to soar...knowing things, doing thing that we never take the time to see.

The turkey vulture is symbolic of soulful cleansing, reaching a higher spiritual place...overcoming obstacles that we may encounter when trying to fly, but then soaring like an eagle when we get off the ground...cleansing the world bit by bit, day by day, by offering ourselves in service...being peaceful and non-aggressive, defending ourselves from attack, but only in ways that do not harm others. We should all be more like the turkey vulture. I see the turkey vulture as being much like Jesus and other great spiritual masters - peaceful, cleansing, non-aggressive, often considered down-trodden or less than desirable by society at large - all the while being a Divine model for us to emulate.

The next time you encounter this bird, see it as beautiful...be grateful toward it...acknowledge and thank it...then be more like it in your daily life. The world will surely be a better place if more of us do so.

Waiting On the World To Change

Singer John Mayer had a hit song a few years ago, Waiting On The World To Change, which most of us are probably familiar with. It expresses how we, as mere individuals, wait around on the world to change because we feel powerless to make a difference. In a sense, our system and our society have made us feel that we are unable to make any measurable change by telling us that we need them to make our troubles go away.

Our politicians and leaders do it by making us believe we need their programs to solve our problems (when many of their programs and their deals create our problems)...our churches do it by making us think we need them to touch God (when some of their restrictions actually restrict our experience)...the mass media does it by making us think we need their products to make our lives worthwhile or their opinions to form our thoughts (when their products make us unhealthy and their opinions make us cynical). By telling us repeatedly that we are powerless without them, these entities create that reality in our minds...our thoughts produce our reality. In relinquishing our power to others, we become dependant upon them and beholden to their desires. We forget that we are powerful creators made in the image of God - the universal life force energy, the energy of creation.

This energy is the basis of miracles. These miracles are formed by our beliefs...again, thoughts creating reality. If we believe something, we are contributing to its creation. This is the foundation of faith, and why we have been told that if we have the tiniest of faith in something, it will transpire. Our doubts are all that prevent us from creating miracles and claiming the joy that we deserve, reclaiming Eden. Jesus tried to help us understand that we each have the power of miracles within us, but religion took "us" (the individual) out of the equation and usurped that innate power by convincing us that we needed them or needed to do it their way in order to reach God and claim our power and glory.

John Mayer's words express many of our inner sentiments and fears:

Now we see everything that's going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it

But a new day is dawning, as many of us feel called to search for more, to open our minds to a better way, to take our place in helping change the world rather than waiting around for someone else to do it. Our problems will not be solved by a president, by Congress, by organized religion, by the media, or other power-seeking groups - they may only exacerbate our problems, by becoming too caught up in maintaining their own power to be truly effective. Individuals will change the world, as the collective efforts become exponentially more powerful with each additional person who joins in new thought, or decides to lay down previously ingrained ideas to see a better way.

We do have the means to rise above and beat it- to rise above and beat the negative energy that prevents miracles and abundance - if we will only set ourselves free from the shackles and commit to thinking in a new way. If we will individually take the steps to embrace change, both within our own lives and within society in general. Let us take these steps to shake up the world - one thought at a time, one person at a time, one miracles at a time - by stepping outside our boundaries and deciding once and for all that we will no longer limit ourselves through weakening thoughts, that we will longer imprison our souls with doubt and fear.

You can be part of changing the world, if you will simply allow yourself to be open to new thoughts and new ideas...you know you have a purpose and place in this endeavor that is beyond living in the routine. We can make a difference, but it will only come through hearts willing to return to their own power through the force of pure love. Open up your heart and mind to seize the opportunity.

Facebook Communication Difficulties

For those on my facebook fanpage "Seeing Miracles Every Day: A Course In Miracles," or my personal facebook page, those accounts were disabled today and I do not yet know why. It has been frustrating to say the least! I do not yet know if my page will be retrieved, and if it is, whether or not any content or any of the 13,000 plus fans on the page will still be connected to it. I have come to rely on that page as my touch point - a place where I not only share info that seems to uplift others, but where I get uplifted as well, so I hope that it will be restored soon to its previous status and members intact. This has been a trying week on several fronts, so please hold me in the light and say a prayer to rejuvenate me!

With much love and gratitude,
Sherri

NOTE: For those interested in the "Awakening the Angel Within" mentor program, please scroll down to info below.

Awakening the Angel Within

A mentor program for greater connection with your Higher Self…your inner angel.
Facilitated by Sherri Lane

Last week on my radio show, Awakening to Angels & Spirit, I announced a mentor program that I was contemplating putting together for those who wished to open up to spirit in a guided way, with a little "spiritual hand-holding" from me. This idea was brought to me by a dear friend who has been a hand-holder to me on my path, and I to her. At first, I balked at the suggestion. I did not particularly care for the label of "mentor" or the pressure that it might imply! She gently reminded me that I have been acting as a mentor to many for several years, just not in a formal way of a program. I realized that is may be the answer to my asking for the means to continue the work that I do, which has been financed almost entirely out of my own pocket for several years now, but which wouldn't be able to continue without some other revenue. As I released my own fears and hesitance, the program began to unfold. I realized that so many aspects were exactly in alignment with some of the visions I had seen and held at earlier times, as I moved down my own path of growth. So I will be offering this program beginning in early October through early December - and I see it as a push toward all the energies of 2012 - and using the already intensifying energies that are here now to help us through that portal.

The purpose of this program is provide step-by-step guidance to allow participants to open up to angels and spirit in a greater way in their day-to-day lives. It will be held via phone/conference call/internet, so anyone anywhere who has access to those connections will be able to register and participate. By being committed to the program and exercises, participants will be declaring to God, Spirit, Angels, and the Universe that they are ready for more – and are willing to take steps to allow and promote their own growth. There is no doubt in my mind that lives will be changed and life paths redirected. Those open and sincere about their progression will be guided for better alignment with Higher Self, to get more on course with their Soul Purpose. As we approach 2012, energies are intensifying and shifting. We can feel it – but we don’t always know how to get aligned with it. Doing so brings upon miracles, so for those who step up in this way—-to offer themselves as vessels, there will be miracles and new gifts that open. Join us….We are each stronger by our connection…Now is your time to answer the call. DUE TO THE PERSONAL NATURE AND ONE-ON-ONE TIME INVOLVED - SPACE IS LIMITED!! Register soon!

Following is a tentative schedule. It may be altered as Spirit leads, but the crux of the course will follow this general plan or focus. Group calls will be done via Skype (which is free to join, making the calls free for participants) with specific dates or times TBD…but calls will also be recorded/recordable for those who cannot make it on that particular call or at that time. (Sunday afternoon is a likely time for group calls, since it may be a time when most people are free to listen live). The program will begin in early October and run through early December….allowing perfect timing for celebrating over the holidays and welcoming in 2012 from your Higher Place!

Week 1: Personal Intuitive Reading from Sherri
During this week, I will conduct intensive one-on-one personal intuitive readings with each participant via phone. These readings are about 1-1/2 hour total and will allow messages from Angels and Spirit revealing your path or what you most need to focus on now for your spiritual growth. Through this reading you will be able to declare your intention to move forward, as well as set the intention for what you wish to gain from the course. (For more info about readings, visit my site, www.angelstouchtherapy.com - and read about "Manifesting with Angels" sessions).

Week 2: Clearing Your Energy and Your Space
Group call that will work through space clearing and energy clearing. We will focus on clearing the third eye…energy blessings for our space, water, & food. A buddy system will be coordinated to pair up participants for some of the exercises in the course. Our connections in these pairs, as well as the group activities will strengthen us… "where ever two or more are gathered.” Each of our intentions will be strengthened by the whole, and each participant will add to the power of the whole.

Week 3: Cord Cutting – Releasing to the Light
Group call to cut those cords that hold us back, as individuals and collectively. The cord cutting exercise will be through guided meditation. It will be preceded by necessary space/energy clearing…and followed by grounding and protection, that we might bring light into our lives and into the world more powerfully. Many transformations can come when we decide and declare that we wish to break free from the negative “chains” that bind us or hold us back, and when we ask for help from Angels and Spirit. This is another area where the group energy and the collective “asking” will bring great power, as each person asks for themselves, for their “buddy” and for the group.

Week 4: Past Life Regression
Another guided meditation which will allow us to touch on past life experiences for growth. Participants will first practice their own ability to see/feel past lives – first with their buddies and then as a group for a deeper look. In the “buddy exercise” participants will “see” and “feel” images or info for their partner…this info can then be emailed to Sherri for further insight into the meaning. This exercise will bring out each person’s intuitive abilities, as we each have that ability, but it goes dormant from misuse. This will awaken that gift – and by doing the exercise, each person will again be asking for more in the way of gifts and awakening. Glimpses of past lives can not only give us insight and clarity into our current situation, but they also allow us to “change” or heal the situation, sometimes instantaneously. Growth can be immense.

Week 5: Developing Greater Intuition
This week’s exercises will also begin with a “buddy exercise” where we coax out intuitive abilities. Images from these readings can be shared in the group call and interpreted or expanded in that group call (Sherri will assist to give examples of how images might be interpreted).

Week 6: Sacred Space & The Power of Group Intention
A “Sacred Space” will be visited or created by each participant to absorb, meditate, and revive. We will each offer up our own intentions (privately or openly) to be supported by the group in intention. We will also choose a “world issue,” or perhaps more than one, to focus on during our sacred space time, to send healing in a big way – to acknowledge the pain that is behind the problem, love it, and release it. We will also have other exercises on intention and manifesting – to make us not only more aware, but more committed to being clear on what we are creating.

Week 7: Using Tools to Enhance Our Communication with Spirit
This week’s focus will be on using tools to enhance our gifts or allow easy communication with Angels/Spirit. These may include oracle cards, pendulums, crystals, angel books, or nature symbols to open our channels of communication.

Week 8: The Awakened Angel
I am very much looking forward to this week, because it will allow me to use healing energy and symbols that were given to me by angels in visions several years ago. At that time, as I saw glimpses of my purpose and path, I had already begun studying Reiki and had reached the Master and Karuna levels. I was given new symbols that were to connect people in healing angel energy. It is much like traditional Reiki, yet has some nuances – and is made very simple and non-intimidating to those who may be unsure about Reiki or intimidated about what it means or what the symbols mean. It will also enhance any Reiki or energy healing that someone has already opened up to. I have attuned a few people with this energy and it has worked well…but I knew that it was not time to really put it out there….This course is the perfect timing and the perfect venue to bring this energy to others who are ready to more fully Awaken the Angel that is already within them.

Week 9: Follow up call or correspondence with Sherri
Following completion of the course, each participant will have the opportunity to schedule a private follow up session with me– approximately 15-20 minutes – to revisit their intentions and adjust, or receive any new messages to guide them in the next step. At this point, most should be able to feel their own messages in a greater way, so this time can be to simply affirm or direct what is already being revealed from Higher Self, from Angels, and from Spirit.

COST OF PROGRAM: $444
(Can be made via paypal in two payments of $222 if necessary….first payment as a deposit to register and hold space….second payment due before the beginning of the course). Not only did this number come to me instantaneously when I began laying this out – and of course, the “444’ makes sense in “angel number speak” because it means thousands of angels are surrounding you or surrounding a situation…. But it was also the immediate response that I received when running it by the friend who had suggested I do a mentor program…without her knowing what I had felt. Not only do I think it is a fair cost, but I think it is a great value at this price, especially when I look back on the workshops and courses that I did when I sought similar growth opportunities on my own path.

Ask, and it shall be given. If you put your pure intention toward participating in this course and you mean to become a greater light for the world around you, I believe the financial means to do so will unfold.

SPACE IS LIMITED!!!... and is on a FIRST COME, FIRST SERVED basis. To register, email Sherri at sherrilane444@gmail.com to hold your space. Information and an invoice will be emailed to you to confirm your spot!

Navigating the Storms

I have not posted on this blog site for quite a while. My book, Setting God Free: Awakening to Miracles was published a few months ago, and in almost exact synchronicity, complications arose in my life (or at least in the lives of some around me) which caused me to feel pain, grief, and frustration. It seemed that the closer I got to some sort of victory, or the more I gave of myself, the more strife came toward me. In the spiritual world, the ideas of the laws of attraction tell us that we attract what we put out, but another element of the laws of attraction is that the closer we get to what it is we desire, the more opposites will also come our way, as opportunities to give some final release that will open new doors and gateways. Just when we are about to touch what it is we have set out to create, its opposite will show up. Perhaps this is to allow us to dig down into our faith to fuel the rest of the miracle, or to fuel a greater one. It is easy to talk about faith when things run smoothly, but to remain steadfast to our purpose even through rough waters, through repeated storms, is a different kind of faith.

After my book came out, my faith was tested, not only with deeply emotional issues, but in looking at my response to those things and what they might be teaching me. These events required me to be able to love without getting drained. There were financial struggles, calling for me to navigate a sea of obligation while still steering my ship in the direction of my purpose and my dreams. My journey for the last several years has required faith, required going against the grain, taking leaps that might not make sense in the worldly ways, quite often feeling alone and without much support. All of that got ratcheted up when my book was published - getting in the way of my focus. I bounced between clarity and confusion, determination and defeat, but I never totally left my course.

Two month ago, through these difficulties, I started hosting an online radio show that would allow me to share my gifts further, and also to put them "out there" in a bigger way, not worrying about what others would think. On the show, Awakening to Angels & Spirit, I give spiritual insights and then devote most of the show to intuitive "readings" for callers, helping them rely on angels & spirit for guidance, offering myself as a vessel for those messages. The show, like the book, required financial investment from me. It was at a time when I had drained myself financially on this journey of discovering my gifts and sharing them. This was an even greater leap, because it put me on the spot, where I publicly stepped into an arena that is often criticized and mocked. Even though I had fears about whether or not I could do it, I felt such a force and energy behind me that I readily committed to it and didn't look back.

So many times, I have been told that I have changed someone's life. That is uplifting and humbling at the same time - humbling because I know that it came from a Source that is greater than my imagination or my ability to comprehend at this point in my evolution. But as I stepped forward and began the radio show, it seemed that even more hardship came my way. More doses of heartbreaking experiences, more doses of financial upheaval. But I have stayed the journey so far.

Throughout these latest twists and turns, one part of me that has been affected significantly has been my writing. I have been able to post small things on my facebook fanpage (Seeing Miracles Every Day: A Course In Miracles), but have not been able to comprise anything of measure. I have been in a drought. This last week brought another disappointment. I felt broken, but rather than fighting the feeling, I surrendered. My surrender was not in the way that we often think of surrender - of giving up, howiever; what I surrendered was not the goodness, but the fear. I surrendered to a higher power and to all the miracles that can work from that space. I let go -- again! -- of elements of fear that were still inside me, lurking and trying to hide so that they could come out later. I dug into myself to find more traces of doubt -- more traces of unworthiness -- more lingering bits of some belief that I did not deserve the wonders of heaven. I purged. I asked God to once again strike me with the lightning bolt of enlightenment - and this time in an even deeper way because of the growth that I had already received on this journey. I asked to again be lifted up to that space of all-knowing peace that set me on this ride to begin with. I promised I would be willing to share or make myself available for that if it was meant to be.

I asked and I received. A peace and joy came over me where I could see the path - see the miracles and the promise ahead, and this time, it has stayed. It has not been moments that have flashed and then dwindled -- it has lingered and grown. So I continue on my journey for now, not knowing exactly where it will take me, ready to shift and change direction as needed, but here -- and feeling on course again -- at least for the moment, and that is all I can concern myself with. The moment is where our power lies.

As Louisa May Alcott said, "I am learning to sail my ship." The storms may come and they may scare me, but each one teaches me. And each one gets me closer to the Promised Land. It is within my glimpse and it is beautiful beyond expression.

The Prayer of the Beautiful

This morning, a post on facebook made me think about how we often attach to the idea of our sin, our mistakes, our perceived flaws so much when we think about God. Through our conditioning, we sometimes focus on our shortcomings when we connect to Him, rather than our goodness. I believe that doing so creates a detachment and a separation, rather than a greater connection. I think perhaps it is why so many in the world feel empty or are searching to fill some void.

So I thought about what the best and most immediate methods for changing those thoughts might be, and how we can most easily and directly shift our relationship with God. I wrote this little prayer that can serve as a reminder to come to God in our best form, thinking the very best of ourselves, so that we might remember our own perfection and thereby connect with God more effectively. Say this when you pray and it will set up a new avenue of positive connection and will open you more readily to the pure love that God always showers upon us, if we will only learn to accept it and believe that we deserve it:

The Prayer of the Beautiful:

God, thank you for creating me in perfection, and for helping me see my own beauty when I turn to fear or doubt about who I am, who you created me to be. Help me to see my beauty in each moment, knowing that you love every part of me, even the things that I have come to think of as bad. You know why those thoughts are there, and know what their purpose is or what challenges I have faced, and you are with me always in helping me remember. Help me also to see the beauty in others, and in every situation which I am presented, feeling gratitude for every experience, knowing that You and your angels are my guides. I promise to seek to see good in everything and everyone, knowing that doing so will show me the way home to You, the way to eternal joy. Amen.

Say this in your prayers and feel yourself lift up, feel the empowerment that comes with it, and then use that energy to fuel you to do something good for the world. Share that light another in your kindness, in your willingness to see each person as beautiful, just like you.

Have a blessed and joyous day. You are beautiful...So choose to see beauty, and behave beautifully.

Parasite or Pearl?

When we go through hardships in life, it is easy to feel broken or battered. Sometimes it is difficult to see any possible benefit from the hardship, especially when struggles seem to follow one after the other. But our difficulties help us create pearls from our lives - pearls of both wisdom and beauty.

Consider how a pearl is formed in an oyster or mollusk. It is from a parasite that presents itself within the oyster - an irritant that the oyster must protect itself from. By protecting itself from the parasite or irritant, by forming a barrier around it, the pearl is made...beauty comes from within the oyster, and from what was previously just a parasite.

If we apply this to our lives, we can more easily understand and appreciate our own hardships. We are the oyster. We are given irritants in order to bring out our gifts of beauty to the world. Our hardships allow us to create magnificent works of art from our lives. Without the parasite, the oyster would still leave a lovely, even if more ordinary, shell behind; but with the irritant, it produces a rare and wonderful jewel for the world. Our irritants help us produce pearls that enhance the beauty of the world.

One thing that stands out to me, beyond the usual pearl analogy, is that the oyster must protect itself from the parasite. It cannot just live with it as is and produce a pearl, but must form a barrier to protect itself from the harm that might be done by the irritant. In forming that protective barrier of calcium carbonate, the oyster produces the beautiful pearl. If it had not protected itself, it would become diseased and die.

We sometimes feel guilty for shutting out the parasites or irritants that surround us, those situations or persons that attach to us and hold us back, causing us dis-ease. But each such obstacle allows us to produce a work of art if we protect ourselves from it, and essentially shut it out from harming us. We should not feel guilt for creating barriers of protection in our lives. Our purpose is to create beauty through love and through finding our gifts and using them. If irritants attach themselves, it is also our responsibility to shield ourselves from their harm. When another has introduced friction or situations that can hurt us, we must protect in love, not attack. Like the oyster, if we simply isolate the parasite in such a way that it can no longer harm us, we are forming pearls in our lives, we are using the abilities and gifts that God gave us in a way that brings beauty. We are not only helping our own situation, but we are turning a parasite, an irritant, into a work of art. We help ourselves, and we transform another to a state of beauty.

Find ways to peacefully and lovingly address the irritants in your life, things that you might only have seen as parasites or difficulties that you were burdened with. Consider that each is an opportunity to build a pearl, if you will only see it as such and quietly, peacefully shield yourself from its harm. Create the pearl through embracing your hardships, through seeing them as gifts, as foundation for your unique work of art that will contribute breathtaking beauty in the world. By seeing in this way, you can release yourself from being a victim and understand that you have everything you need within you. You can be grateful for your hardships, realizing that they are gifts - and that realization is the greatest gift of all.

May love and light shine upon you today. Namaste.

God's Will Be Done

I was thinking about the phrase, "God's will be done" and what it really means. It is one of those phrases that has been pounded into our heads through repetition, but that we may seldom really think through in any way other than on the surface. I truly believe that God's will is for us to have joy, and that we are fully connected to God only when we are in that energy of bliss. But when we are confused or not committed to that, or sending out mixed messages about what we want (or thinking that we don't deserve blessings), God still tries to get us to joy. His vision or perspective is much greater than ours - so the path may be different from what we see. When the path seems foreign or unlike what we envisioned, we think it is bad, that things are going wrong - or that we are being punished - but it is really just God's direct route to get us there.

If we remain in joy no matter what is happening around us - if we find that place of peace within our souls knowing that God is always with us and is trying to send us deeper happiness and love - then we can cruise through the difficulties much more effectively. We don't need to ask "why me?" because, on a deeper level, we know that we are safely on the route to that joy that is Heaven within our souls, that place we have become so detached from in this world. God's route is the most direct and quickest path. Along the way, we may have upheavals, but these are merely signs of things that we need to address, or perhaps change in our lives, letting go of baggage or things that are holding us back from that heavenly peace.

If you begin to look at each hardship as a sign, or something that you need to learn or to let go of, then the path becomes so much more clear. These negatives will pop up to give you a chance to release them, or to change your thoughts about them, each one as a gift to allow you to progress in your consciousness, to allow you to more quickly be what you came here to be, do what you came to do -- to allow you to find your joy to fuel it. When the "problems" get more absurd, or seem as though you keep having the same sort of issues pop up over and over, then it is God's message to you even more loudly and clearly.

For example, it may seem to you that others take advantage of you regularly...but what you should ask yourself is why you keep getting in that position, then learn to say no once in a while. It is not about them, it is about you. You may also feel intensely negative vibes when around certain people that seem to get stronger and stronger. Consider that you may be progressing to higher vibrations, making their negativity more noticeable and less tolerable to you. Instead of getting angry at them or expecting them to change, remove yourself from its vicinity, even if only from the standpoint of emotional attachment. Begin to release yourself from these old destructive patterns, and you will feel your spirit rise.

Remember that each piece of this puzzle is God speaking to you...the things that frustrate you may be God showing you where you need to shift your own thoughts or attention. When you step out of the victim position and feel empowered by setbacks, knowing that they are guideposts for your change and your awakening, your world will change. From that, you will also change what you are putting into the world and will begin to make a more positive contribution from your new energy of joy.

God's will be done!...Be joyous! BE LOVE! THAT is God's will, and the will that you should have for yourself in order to align with God and experience the miracles that he offers. Go out and have a joy filled day, listening to God's clues for the direction toward your bliss.

Peace on earth begins with the joy and peace in your heart.