Grace and Clarity

Don’t you just love the saying, “You can’t change what happens to you but you can change how you respond”?  I love that affirmation because it empowers me to make better choices now for a more positive tomorrow.  However, the Guides recently shared that this philosophy is only part of the complete energetic picture:

“You have heard it said that you may not be able to change what happens to you but you can change how you respond.  However, that is only half of the equation.  What you  need to know is that by changing how you respond, you change the effect.  Therefore, the full equation you need to memorize is:

You may not be able to change what happens to you but you can change how you respond.  And by changing how you respond, you change the effect.“

When we think about all the ways life can lay itself out, we realize it is like a giant web of possibilities.  When something happens near us, we have the power to choose whether we turn right or left at that juncture.  But what the Guides are further reminding us is that there is a subtle alchemical reaction that is triggered by each choice we make.

It would seem that our conscious choices retroactively stimulate certain elements in the original equation to manifest.  If I choose response “A,” the original event affects me later with an energy of joy and empowerment.  If I choose response “B,” the original event later fills me with a sense of fear and limitation.  Because linear time does not exist in Energetic Reality, the cause and effect relationship can run forward and backward with our response actually precipitating specific results from the original event after the fact.  Hard to wrap the mind around, but amazing to contemplate all the same.

What this means is that I have the power to alter how a circumstance affects my life later.  When I am in a difficult situation and I choose to respond with positive Energy, the original circumstance affects me in a different way than if I had chosen to respond with resistance and fear.  The initial event appears the same, but my response triggers a different effect in my reality than if I had unconsciously trudged forward in pessimism or anger.

So the next time an unexpected event pops up in your life, realize your full power in the situation.  Not only do you have the power to choose your response, you also have the power to extract from the original circumstance the kind of Energy you wish to have dominate your life in the days to come.

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit http://www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

I once saw a show on television where Dr. Phil told a couple in crisis, “At any given time, you are either helping or hurting your relationship.  There is never a time when you just coast.”  Yesterday, I saw an ad for toothpaste that claimed every day my teeth are either getting yellower (yikes!) or whiter (enter their miracle product) but never staying the same.

So I guess it was these not-so-holy assertions that primed me to take notice when a spiritual teacher made a similar comment about our daily growth.  My mind had already embraced the possibility that my relationships, like my teeth, needed daily attention.  From there it was a short leap to opening to this powerful but simple statement made in Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsch.

“Everything you think, say and do declares, ‘This is who I am.’ “

I have long believed that the spiritual Path is one of ultimate responsibility; that we alone create our reality and manifest the growth that comes from our reaction to the world around us.  But the concept that each and every idea, word and action constitutes who I am today calls me to a whole new level of responsibility.  If that’s the case there is no in-between, no hedging, no gray area.  With everything in me I am daily choosing to assert, “This is who I am.”

So who do I want to be today?

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit http://www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

Ever felt like you are sparring with life?  Ever find yourself trying to move through your day in a conscious way only to receive an “unexpected” blow to your sense of peace, joy or vitality?  In those moments it is easy to begin to live in a reactionary way, to become cynical and feel victimized by your own life.  Recently I asked the Guides about some challenges in my daily experiences and here is what They shared with me…

“Understand that if you cease to fight life you are working in tandem with your own best-laid plan, designed by your very own wise soul to help you become your most radiant and joyful self.  You, yourself plotted the course.  You, yourself prepared the way that would most efficiently lead you to the outcome of radiance and illumination.

Just like a child can see a harmless shadow and imagine it to be a ferocious monster so, too, can you see your life as your adversary.   And the more you fight it, the more you find yourself in bondage to experiences which you would not desire.  But the wise one knows to open to that which lies before her, to find in it the lessons that were meant to be found…lessons scripted by you for you…like points on a treasure map leading the way to the great reunification with the Divine.”

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit http://www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

One of the most discussed aspects of spiritual practice is how much to engage the “outer world” in daily life. Some philosophies teach that living in a rarefied environment like an abbey or ashram is the best choice for spiritual growth. Others espouse the idea of embracing the daily world fully and just devoting a certain period of time each week for spiritual practice. Recently I asked the Guides about this balancing act and here is what They shared with me…

“Confusion has arisen through the misunderstandings of eons of those who believe that what IS, here and now, should be rejected. What IS here and now is to be embraced, for it is the very reason you have come (to this physical existence).

“It does not take a person of great intellect to realize that if they put hard-earned money into their wallet, get into a car, drive across the city to a store, park the car, walk in the store…it does not take great intellect to realize that they are there to buy something and that they should then do so, thereby fulfilling their intent.

“To come into physical form and to reject (meaning to cast judgment upon as being unworthy) the physical and emotional aspects would be to make all of the costly preparations of entering into that experience void. It would be like saving up money, preparing to go to the store, taking the trouble to drive through the traffic only to arrive and stand in the middle of the store and just stand there. It makes no sense.

“Would it not be wiser to go into the store and to delight in all of the things, knowing that one chose to be there, that this is the just reward for the money saved? Knowing that this is the culmination of the many layers of preparation and delighting in the fact that this is that very culmination? There is beauty to be had in that.

“It is true, it is not of great value to go into the store and blindly, unconsciously shop. It should be a conscious act. Those times when you unconsciously engage in the physical or mental are not the Highest. You may be living and feeling, but are you conscious of it? Not often.

“So the answer, as usual, lies between the two: Are you there to enjoy the physical, emotional and mental realities? Yes. Could you be more conscious about it? Yes. So pause before an enjoyable act and affirm your consciousness of it.

“Before ingesting a meal pause and say, ‘I paid a high price for this body, and in this food I will take delight.’ Before physical activity such as hiking, ‘I paid a high price for this body and in this experience I will take delight.’ With companions, ‘I paid a high price for this body and in this conversation with another I will delight.’ At work, ‘I paid a high price for this body and in this job I HAVE CHOSEN I will delight.’

“It is best that there be a greater consciousness in what you do, for you paid a high price for that incarnation and in it you should delight!”

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit http://www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

As we move toward the blessing of another year, we hear people everywhere talking about New Year’s Resolutions and goals.  The intimation is that if we just focus on something really hard it can come to pass, that if we just want it enough it can be our reality.  But the Guides remind us that there is another component that determines our reality.

Contrary to what we may have been taught, the Guides tell us that this component is not the higher will of a judging God or the whim of a deity whose favor can be bought.  The often-overlooked component that determines our reality is the inner condition of our own hearts and minds.  The Angels tell us:

“Your mental state influences choice and choice determines action and action is what influences your reality.  Action, if you trace it back, begins not with thought but before that–with the state of the heart and mind.  Your reality begins with the belief that you are unworthy, that you are separate from others or the Divine, that you are lacking and someone needs to save you from lack, that you are a victim and that reparations must to be made.  As long as these inner conditions exist, the thoughts based on them will continue to thrive and the actions based on those thoughts will continue to form a certain kind of reality, regardless of what you think you may want to the contrary.”

These words remind us that if we wish to be a kinder person, for example, our work starts not with simply saying kind things to others, but with reconciling our own self-condemnation.  If we want to lose weight our work begins not with the counting of calories, but at the moment when we first wake in the morning and tell ourselves we are powerless or flawed.

Whatever it is you wish to achieve this year, you absolutely have the ability to make it your reality.  But make no mistake: The creation of our future lies not in the actions, or even the thoughts, we harbor within.  Our future lies within the private recesses of our beliefs about who we are and whether or not we are worthy of creating, possessing and enjoying the life of our dreams.

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

It’s not news to you, I am sure, that we are living in an uprecedented time of change in human consciousness.  Talk of “12/12/12” and “12/21/12” is everywhere and even the media at large is getting its share of the action.

But what does that mean for those of us who have been on the spiritual many years before these special dates came center-stage?  For us, the Journey is not just beginning because of some interesting date on a mysterious calendar; for us, December this year may feel like business as usual.  And some of you are wondering, “Is that OK?”

I had a student the other day mention how she has felt led to hold a higher spiritual awareness–not just on the publicized and celebrated days of December, but every day.  It seems, she said, the world has been awakening across the last few years, not just the last few days of December; and I told her I could not agree more.

A few years ago, I asked the Guides about how to proceed at this important time of consciousness-raising in human history.  “What should I pray for?”  I asked.  Always faithful to answer my call They told me clearly, and I have been praying this way ever since.  Perhaps you will find this simple directive from the Angels to be a helpful template for you, too.

At this time in human evolution, pray:

“May Light manifest one thousand fold.

May MANY hear the Truth.

May the world know Peace and heal the Mother (Earth).

May civilizations rise up and honor Her (Mother Earth).

May hollow religions fall and true spirituality arise.”

Perhaps you will find this a helpful prayer when you are at a stoplight or in the check-out lane at the store.  Maybe you can use it as a way to jump-start your own daily prayer practice.  I wrote it on a post-it note and put it in my medicine cabinet to say while I brush my teeth.  Sacrilege?  Not if you believe the words of the great disciple of Christ who implored his followers, “Pray without ceasing.”

I have found I often wish to connect to the Divine, but don’t always have much to say.  This prayer gives me a way to come to center, add to the Light of Consciousness and feel the Presence of the Divine without taking much time or creativity on my part.  I  can simply affirm what I have been told to affirm and know that in doing so I am a part of the solution, not a part of the fear.  On every ordinary–or extraordinary–day on the calendar we can use prayers like this to grow the Light of Truth and make a difference…no matter how small.

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

Ever felt like your emotions, thoughts and body are all you are in any given moment?  These aspects of who we are sometimes ‘speak’ so loudly it’s hard to remember we are spirit, as well.  Today I ran into a great reminder from the Angels that instead of being mostly body–with just a little spirit mixed in–it’s actually the other way around…

“Just as a sheet of ice sits atop a pool of slowly freezing water so, too, is there a sheet of human existence that covers a depth of experience in Higher Realms.  That thin covering…can no more change the Truth of your soul than can one sheet of ice change the water beneath it.  Your humanity is nothing but a covering.”

Many times the Angels have reminded us that our physical form and its thoughts and emotions are like a costume the soul wears for a time.  As we approach this Halloween season, let’s be reminded of that!  When you see a princess, a goblin or a cowboy remember that the costume you wear can no more change your spirit than can a child’s costume rob them of the beauty that lies underneath.

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

How was your day today?  Did you enjoy the quiet flow of life unhindered by challenges and fear?  Or did you have one of those days where everything seemed to hit you at an odd angle, slipping into your vulnerable spots like a gap in the proverbial armor?

Whenever I struggle with a day which bounces me around from one odd encounter to another, I tend to start judging myself.  “Could I have done better in that situation?  Why didn’t I think to be a more attentive listener?” and on and on.  But the Guides remind us that our work here is not an easy one and that we must be patient with our growth.  Indeed, They often refer to the monumental work we are here to do as a Mission–a specific opportunity to learn and evolve in this lifetime.

The next time you judge yourself for struggling amidst the challenges of this world, remember Their loving words:

“Yours is no small Mission indeed, and you would do well to respect yourself highly and more than you do.”

We are all called to treat ourselves with patience and respect, not because of what our minds say or our bodies achieve, but because of what our souls are made of.  We are the stuff of Universal Consciousness and within us lies the courage to grow, learn and become.  I’d say that calls for a pat on the back and a “Well done!” from you –to you–every now and then!

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

Every now and then we get a chance to evaluate the kind of impact we are making on the world around us.  Whatever means the Universe uses to give us this reality check, it is not one to waste.  In such moments, we are afforded a critical opportunity to check in with how we are affecting the shared existence of humankind and all of Nature.  The Guides recently shared a clear indicator of how we can know we are manifesting high-quality Energy around us:

“This is the proof of having shared love with someone: all involved are inspired to action.”

Clear as a bell, isn’t it?  When others touch our lives in love–the love of compassion, patience, selflessness, forgiveness–we find ourselves inspired to give or create or pass it on in some way.  And when we touch another’s spirit with love we can see the fruits of that love ripening in their lives too, which in turn inspires us to keep giving more.

Of course, we do not give in love just so we can applaud the harvest of our shared Energy.  Instead, we scatter the seeds of loving kindness everywhere we go, as often as we can.  Then if we ever doubt our ability to uplift others, we can smile at the radiant inner gardens others are growing and know, “I helped create beauty there!”

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom

Over the years I have heard of many philosophies which espouse the idea of rejecting the physical world in favor of spiritual endeavors only.  I myself spent several years apart from society in an attempt to devote myself entirely to spiritual practice, only to find that even in the most rarefied environments our practical lessons find us!

Indeed, the Guides and Angels remind us that we are in this physical reality for a reason.  Perhaps that reason is to learn balance, perhaps it is to learn the mystery of paradox, perhaps it is just to enjoy the gifts of the bountiful Earth as we grow.  Whatever the reason, the Guides remind us that the two realms are compatible and are meant to work together for our Evolution:

“Today is another day to breathe and to live and to enjoy.  But it is also an opportunity to reaffirm to yourself that you are as sensitive to the Divine Voice as ever, even as you dive into your physical existence.”

May we always remember that we are in this unique reality of both form and formless for a reason.  To deny one in favor of the other is to live a partial existence, bereft of the opportunities of growth waiting to assist us.  Balance is not an easy pose to strike, but it is one that brings us the ultimate in physical joy and spiritual growth!

To read more of the Angels’ Words of Wisdom, please peruse other selections from our Wisdom category or visit www.hopeofthenewage.com/Wisdom