I feel the pain of those who suffer from addiction. You feel powerless, out of control, and you beat yourself up.  I have worked with many people with various addictions and have seen many cured. The way this happens is to find the root cause of the addiction. Most people will blame the chemicals in the various substances or the endorphins in the brain. I have found however that the culprit is Love. In my regression when asked what the message was to get out to the world, the answer was, “Everything is love and we were given fear to know love fully.” If this is true then we are here to experience our separation from love.

Let’s use smoking as an example: If a smoker is asked why they smoke the number one answer is almost always, “it relaxes me.” Using this as a simple model, if we look at this through the love and fear paradigm, we very quickly realize that love is relaxed and fear is stressful. To further the example when you are in a loving relationship, you allow yourself to relax because you can be yourself.

"For fast-acting relief, try slowing down."  ~Lily Tomlin

Watch a smoker sometime. The smoker will come outside to have a cigarette. They will have a furrowed brow, look stressed out; they scramble for their smokes, finally shoving one in their mouth, light the lighter and take a big draw. The next thing that happens is a huge exhale. The smoker has used the cigarette to allow themselves to relax, to “feel” good. Because they don’t allow themselves to relax and feel good normally, they associate the feeling with the cigarettes and they run back for the next one.

It is the same with any addiction there is. The addiction is allowing the person to relax and be themselves. Love is the relaxed state. Every religious tradition in the world has breathing in it somewhere. The Buddhists do breathing meditations until they feel blissful. The Hindus have “fire breath” with yoga. The Christians call it the, “breath of God.” If you take a moment to breathe deeply and allow yourself to relax on a regular basis you quickly find the addiction powerless. So instead of a smoke break, take a breathing break, but don’t do it in a “designated smoking area” or as I call them, “Fear Zones.” Enjoy the freedom of being able to breathe anywhere you want. Relax.

"The man who doesn't relax and hoot a few hoots voluntarily, now and then, is in great danger of hooting hoots and standing on his head for the edification of the pathologist and trained nurse, a little later on."  ~Elbert Hubbard

I am a true believer that we all find our various paths to the same source. Recently I was confronted with an interesting dilemma. I, over the past year, have spoken to many organizations around the country and have always been very well received. I have been blessed to meet many fantastic people of varying beliefs. In my personal belief system, there is room to love and accept anyone else’s beliefs. I also am very much in the mindset that I can respect them if they do not agree. During this past year I was with a group who had many different beliefs, but every one of these beliefs had a very esoteric base. When a new person who had a very practical side confronted them on their beliefs (in a constructive fashion), they decided that the person was no longer welcome.

“Be curious, not judgmental.” ~Walt Whitman

I find this kind of false spirituality disturbing. To be spiritual is to be accepting not excepting. When people sit on their faith as a discriminating pedestal then I have to wonder such things as would Jeshua have done the same? To proclaim a spiritual nature and to exclude someone because of a belief other than your own is to be based in fear. As I travel about the country, I speak to groups and am told that I make a difference. At these groups I meet some people whose beliefs are far from my own. Many are so far away from my own that I know I would never agree with what they say. I still would never exclude them from my meetings because anyone who tests your faith is doing you a great service. If someone grates upon your personality it is because they are showing you a side of yourself that needs work. Usually that side being exposed is a fear of being wrong and thus not loved.

“Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they're supposed to help you discover who you are.” ~Bernice Johnson Reagon

The issue I see in the exclusion of such people is that you would be putting on blinders to learning more or even seeing a broader possibility. This is the same thinking that created the crusades and almost every war the planet has experienced. It is a fear based reaction. False spirituality is a failure to live lovingly. It is judgmental and uncaring. I welcome people in my life who have a brutal honesty to them because I always know where I stand and I am always reminded of my faith. I Love them for it. I welcome the lively conversations and, as I told my assistant Holly many times, I enjoy the challenges. I grow spiritually with every one.

“Judge not lest ye shall be judged,” is a great statement from Jeshua. It tells you that if you judge, people will look at you more closely as well. Think of this though: If you judge, are you not judging yourself as judgmental?  Is judgment a place of Love? To be judgmental is to be unloving. God is LOVE. I am saddened by the group’s choice, because I feel that the teaching I brought to them fell on deaf ears. No one is more important than anyone else. "Love one another": that is all Jeshua asked. I pray that this group will find their way back to a truly loving and accepting place. I hope that they will see Love for Love and find their way home again.

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” ~Jeshua

Thoughts. Thoughts are the stone thrown into the pond of creation. Thoughts held to, ride the ripples until the ripples become waves. When the wave finally crests a manifestation is born in the physical. Thoughts come in many forms. Visual images are the first that come to my mind. I know when I visualize a thought that the possibility of the manifestation is simpler, because I already ‘see’ it. In seeing, I can feel it’s being already in my experience. My awareness that it is already happening is the receiving element that brings it into creation.

Simple awareness is creation. As I go through life many things have put images in my mind. After going on six USO tours overseas including a few trips to both Iraq and Afghanistan, I became a CNN junkie. I was hooked on seeing what was happening overseas, in the places where I had been. I found myself mired in the negative news that would come from the image creating device before me. It stopped my forward motion to the point that nothing was being achieved. This past year I canceled my cable television. What a freeing moment it was. There was a period of time when I missed the shows. After a few weeks, however, I found that I was more productive, and my relationship was the better for it.

Negative thoughts, especially those that are accompanied by images, throw the stone into the pond. I have shifted my input to be predominantly positive, and so, I have a more positive outlook. All of the teachers of the past say that a positive outlook is imperative to creating a positive world.

”Keep your thoughts positive, because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive, because your words become your behaviors. Keep your behaviors positive, because your behaviors become your habits. Keep your habits positive, because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive, because your values become your destiny.” ~Mahatma Gandhi

Negativity breeds more negativity. Positivity breeds more positivity. The awareness of a positive world creates a positive world. If each one of us would create in a positive mindset for even a short amount of time, imagine the world we could create. We would be active participants in the creation of a new earth experience.

Science has proven that we spend more time in our subconscious mind than in our conscious mind. By consciously shifting our outer expressions to positive inputs of news and people in our lives, we are actually creating a new past of positive expression.  Doing so allows our conscious mind to begin to subconsciously create from a positive place, which alters not only our lives but the world around us. I recently found a cool website called positivenewz.com. It only shows news that is positive, and I love reading the stories that are on it, because I feel upbeat when I am done. It alters my inner feelings, which in turn creates my outer expression.

For a few weeks can you focus on the positive in the world instead of the negative?  Give it a shot. See what happens to your world if you do. I dare you to be happy.

“The positive thinker sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible.”~ Unknown

Do you have faith? If you do then you shouldn't need to know 'how'. I am forever talking of creating a life of joy and prosperity. If I were to break it down to it's simplest form I would say,"Ask, Believe. Receive." The integral part of the statement is the core word of the three: "Believe." They call it a "leap of faith," to jump without seeing the net. Knowing full well that you will receive what you ask for is a choice. It is not an impossible reality for anyone. You sit there knowing in full faith that you can read. In your mind you have declared,"I am going to read this blog post." You do not know what the next words are and yet, as you read along in full faith, the words will be there for you to read. You know they are there.

      “You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith.” ~ Mary Manin Morressey

When someone asks "How?," they are in fact declaring that they do not have. Faith implies a certain lack of information.  When you decide to believe the desired result is coming, the Universe begins a creation. In getting mired in the 'How' your mind sends a very clear picture to the Universe that you don't have it, and so it never comes. I tell stories all the time of manifestations in my life. Each story is based on a leap of faith. I have been very blessed to witness the 'How' after the fact. It is amazing how things align themselves when you create in full faith of the outcome.

What do you wish to create in your world? Think of it now. Picture the having of it clearly in your mind. Can you imagine what it would feel like to have it? Feel it. As you feel what it is like to have it, realize that in this present moment, you know what it feels like to already have it. That sensation is the basis of the faith that will rush in to your experience. Hold the feeling knowing full well that it is coming. Ask God/Universe for it, and trust that it is on the way.

“Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach of proof.” ~ Kalil Gibran

I tend to use my personal prayer formula when I ask. The important aspect of asking is that you only need ask once. After the asking, you just believe it is coming. Believe with a blind faith. It is called 'blind faith' because you can not see the 'how'. After you have acquired your desired result, then look back and marvel at the how. In the Bible it says,"Ask and you shall receive." It does not say."Ask and if you can figure out how, you shall receive." Jeshua also states, "Whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith." So believe, trust, know that you are getting what you ask for and soon it will walk through your doorway into your reality. 

“To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.” ~ St. Thomas Aquinas

Yesterday I was flying home from my California and Oregon speaking trip. On the trip I have been reading a book given to me by a dear friend, The Prophet’s Way by Thom Hartmann. I have been having some great realizations while reading it, and one very profound experience occurred on the flight back.

In the book there is a part that asks you to put the book down and have a fully present moment. You see, we as humans tend not to be fully present. We look ahead of ourselves at what we are going to do, or worse, what we are “trying” to do.  Then there are those times when we are looking behind at what has happened to us in our lives. The book asked me to do something other than live in a different time frame, just for a moment.

I closed my book on the flight from San Jose to Minneapolis. I sat observing where I was. I didn’t judge. I just observed. Realizations of my life in the present began to flood in. I was on a plane traveling. I appreciated that I had the ability to do so. I appreciated that I had been placed in a large comfortable seat with plenty of leg room. I was fed, clothed, and alive, enjoying a life of ease in comparison to many others in the world. I was grateful.

Then something happened that rocked my world and brought me to tears. A hand reached out and took mine. I felt a loving presence beside me, and I realized that I had another person in my present moment. In that present moment Kelly felt compelled to hold my hand. I began to realize the depth of love we have for each other, and in my present moment it filled my heart to overflowing. I turned to tell her and almost couldn’t as the tears fell from my eyes. I explained what I was doing and how her simple gesture in that moment meant so much to me. She smiled, made a joke, and kissed me. My present moment is so great and I appreciate it all the more. I am truly blessed in my life.

“These days man knows the price of everything, but the value of nothing.” ~ Oscar Wilde

Take a moment. Don’t do anything. Don’t think about your plans or reminisce about the past. Take a moment and be fully in the present. Appreciate all that you have. Realize that you are a lucky one. Obviously you have a computer. Obviously you can read. Obviously you have the time to afford reading this. The place you are must be warm enough for you to not have to focus on warmth. Are you fed? Appreciate the smallest things in life, because in this present moment you are living them. Someone else’s present moment may be hungry, cold, sick, dying. Appreciate the smallest things and realize how completely fortunate you are in the now moment. Love, you.

I am grateful that in this present moment I have you to hear these words with your heart. I appreciate that I am able to read and write. I love all of my friends. I love Kelly and Kynan most of all. I appreciate that I, with God, have created an amazing life.

“One today is worth two tomorrows.” ~Benjamin Franklin

thank you

Thank You

THANK YOU

Take a breath. Feel the air enter your lungs. Look around. See the room that you are in. Listen. Hear the sounds of the world around you. Know. Realize you are alive and well. Many times in our lives we forget to appreciate the smallest of things in our lives. It is the mere appreciation of those things that can bring more things to appreciate into our lives.

Our modern society has been built on material acquisition. Bigger houses, faster cars, more stuff are the driving force in many people’s lives. I think it is okay to have them. I also think it is okay to acquire them without attachment. Material possession will always be a measurement used by some to judge success. But right now, in this moment appreciate the ability to breathe, feel, see, and know. There are many in the world that can’t. You are living in a world of physical experience. The physical experience is enhanced by material things, not the other way around.

“Don't underestimate the value of doing nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering.”~ Winnie the Pooh

Build your joyful life in the appreciation of the smallest most insignificant things in life. The more you appreciate the more you feel a swell of joy within you. That swell of joy then attracts more things to be joyful about. Your material possessions are representations of the level of joy within. It is when we “praise false idols” that our experience becomes less. Material possessions are the false idols of a modern world. Having them is fine. Defining yourself by them is a pathway to depression.

I sit here today on a prolonged speaking trip through Oregon and California. Looking out the windows of a new friend’s home, I see a beautiful pasture with cows meandering by. There is a slight rain falling and the grass is lush and green. The old wooden fence beside the window is weather worn with moss growing on it. The view is lovely. It could be Ireland or some far off land. I sit here appreciating the beauty of this moment. I recognize that this is the moment I have and I choose to love it. Love your moments.  If something in your sphere is less than joyful today, I am truly sorry. But it is on the most troubling days you need to recognize and appreciate the things that are right and appreciate them. As the troubling manifestation passes, the appreciated things will carry you on and through.

I appreciate you.

“There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread.” ~Mother Teresa

If you look back at some of the Avatars of the past, you will very quickly and easily find that each said that the path to enlightenment (or "the kingdom" in Christianity) is within. People search and search for an outer path to enlightenment and each of the "enlightened" ones told us to it was an inward journey. I find that when I choose to meditate more often, my thoughts are clearer and my contentment and relaxation are more visceral. 

So what is enlightenment? I have found in my experience that in setting down the fear-driven emotions for a love-based contentment, the world seems brighter. A light is shined on my experience. My conscious decision to relax and feel the love makes my outer world more brilliant. Buddha said, "What we think we become." That being said, let's look at one of the realizations one must make to find enlightenment.

If indeed what we think we become, then we must come to the realization that we are the creator of our experience. You are the creator. In seeing this as truth, the real-ization of enlightenment comes in our thought. Find within self the awareness that you are the creator. Choose wisely the path that makes you feel joyful.. Joy is the loving representation of a loving state. In choosing Love over fear and releasing the fear in our lives, we automatically set down the burdens and become enlightened.

Take a moment and take stock of your current life or situation. Is your current life joyful or fearful? Does it feel good or bad? If Love is the positive state and fear is the negative state, then if indeed you are feeling negative about a certain area in your life, there must be a fear associated with it. In choosing to focus  that area in a loving positive outcome, your thoughts will create for you that experience. As your life becomes less dense with the weight of fear then you are in essence enlightening your world. Thus your outer experience is the direct result of your inner experience.

The mere realization that you are responsible for the world in which you live is a profound and humbling experience. This is true because you have to take credit for the good and the bad. But to compound the bad by responding negatively to the negative aspects of that realization is counterproductive. Take stock and accept that is how it is. It just is. No judgment of self must occur. The very thought of judgment is indeed creating another negative that you would have to purge. Realize where you are and then real-ize the different experience if you so choose.

The "path" that everyone is seeking is thought.  Choose the thought of a joyful enlightened life, and so the outer world will shine brightly back at you as a reflection of your soul. Then you are enlightened.

         Origin:
1125–75; ME < LL apocalypsis < Gk apokálypsis revelation, equiv. to apokalýp(tein) to uncover, reveal (apo- apo- + kalýptein to cover, conceal) + -sis -sis

Are we headed to disaster? Are we looking at the catastrophic ending of all? Are we about to face the most fearful event that has happened to humanity? Is that what was said in Revelations? No. Let’s start with the words. As you see from above, apocalypse means revelation.  What does revelation mean?

 Revelation 

c.1303, "disclosure of information to man by a divine or supernatural agency," from O.Fr. revelacion, from L. revelationem (nom. revelatio), from revelatus, pp. of revelare (see reveal). General meaning "disclosure of facts" is attested from c.1375; meaning "striking disclosure" is from 1862. As the name of the last book of the New Testament (Revelation of St. John), it is first attested c.1400 (see apocalypse); as simply Revelations, it is first recorded 1691.

So ‘Apocalypse’ means “Revelation’ and revelation means basically, a revealing of information from the divine. So is the revelation of St. John a prophecy for the end of the world? There is a lot in the revelation, and it has been interpreted so many times and ways. Edgar Cayce, the most famous psychic ever known, while in trance, stated, ". . . it was a road map for enlightenment." That each of the “churches” represented a chakra center. Others have interpreted it meaning things from history that have already passed, citing Nero and Napoleon. The words are mystical and are from someone trying to decipher visions of future events with a mind that had no knowledge of future technologies. Imagine if you had a dream where you saw your body disintegrate to particles and disappear. Wouldn’t that scare you? Now imagine you live in Star Trek world. It is only the transporter, something you would use frequently. The vision of it would be scary but the reality of it is not. St. John talks of Armageddon. What does that word mean?.

  Ar·ma·ged·don   (är'mə-gěd'n)    

[Late Latin Armagedōn, from Greek, from Hebrew har məgiddô, the mountain region of Megiddo : har, mountain; see hrr in Semitic roots + məgiddô, Megiddo.]

So Armageddon means the mountain of Megiddo. So the very word implies the specific place of a cataclysm.  The mountain of Megiddo overlooks a valley. I have stood on the very mountain spoken of, and looked down in that valley. The valley is one of the most fought over pieces of land on earth. Generation after generation has fought on the battle field of Megiddo, including Napoleon himself. So If there were to be a fearful event in the world, the place of that event would be centralized on the mountain of Megiddo in Israel. There is a battle going on in that region today, as there has been for millenia.

So here is my question to you: If the Apocalypse is a Revelation and the Revelation is a revealing of information, and the information is a catastrophe at Har Megiddo, and it has already been happening for generations, and you are still here. . . What is there to be afraid of? Make your personal experience joyful.  Create a loving place, and have your own apocalypse by realizing that you are creating your experience. It is only a revelation away. Where you are is probably not Har Megiddo, so keep creating from the place within that is not focused on fearful events and prophecies that are difficult to understand because of interpretation.

In the Words of my friend ,”Love one Another”

Just a thought.

Tomorrow is Valentine's day. I know. I know. It was yesterday. My point of the title is this: Choosing one day a year to express your love and romantic intentions to the one you love is, I feel, the wrong way to go about attracting the loving life of your dreams. Don't wait. Tell them you love them today, tomorrow, next week,  everyday. Take the little extra care in celebrating your love everyday. Don't allow yourself to get into a rut of having to have a holiday to remind you of the fact that you have this amazing person in your life. Express your love to them daily. Let them feel the love you have for them. Be daring by letting your love be truly unconditional. If they are having a crabby day love them anyway. That bad day is not a condition whereby you love them less. Love them. In loving them, you are loving you. Unconditional love given, is returned in kind. Conditional love always creates strife. Don't waste your opportunity. Love them in the present moment of your experience and the next present moment you will see your life filled with love in return.

“The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.” ~Morrie Schwartz