Messages from Self

I've written before about listening for God's whispers, those messages from the universe that lead to great discoveries. There's another kind of message that we receive daily, messages from self. Sometimes the messages are helpful and some times not so much. Let's examine the different types of messages that might flow into your life.

Some times the messages are like drops of rain. They slowly descend into our minds like little pings of rain. They can be gentle and soothing or they can hit hard and sting. These drops occur off and on over time. Pay attention to them or they can become a thunderstorm. These are little subconscious messages, at times they are warnings that if ignored create problems. People often refer to the raindrops as intuition, gut feelings that are best listened to.  

Other messages are like the gentle ebb and flow of the seasons, creating a cycle in our lives. Some cycles, like the seasons are useful and fill a need within us of a pattern of existence. However other cycles are less useful and become a vicious repetition that we long to break but feel trapped or defined by. These cycles send messages that make us doubt ourselves, that diminish who we are, and rob us of the joy we are suppose to experience in life.

The important thing to remember about self messages is that we do have control over them. We can filter our messages into a gentle flow that doesn't overwhelm us but rather supports us. Yet the very most important thing about our messages is that what we seek is what we find. We are influenced by the messages both from self and others that we let into our lives. It always reminds me of this quote:

Guard carefully the things you embrace, the seeds that you plant and the path you follow. What you seek is also seeking you. It is a dual relationship that you can bring into being. Take care that your messages move you closer to the things you want. 

Hugs and may your week be filled with messages that you can embrace and bring into being.

Fear: A Powerful Weapon

Fear is a powerful weapon of evil. It suffocates us with darkness and crowds the joy from our hearts.  It lures us into actions that perhaps we could otherwise avoid.  Unfortunately anxiety, worry and fear crowd in during the holiday season. The season of joy and peace can be transformed into a dark wasteland.

We can overcome fear, anxiety and worry by remembering to breathe. To let ourselves concentrate on the here and now with out worry of what might be around the next corner. God has our backs no matter what lies ahead. He never gives us more than we can handle. He teaches us through both trials and joy.

 

 

It's not an easy thing to do....to let go....and realize that God has this. Even when it feels like we are walking a tight rope hundreds of feet in the air.

 

Breathe

Pray

Look for joy

Do something fun

Sing

 

Give God a chance to work.

 

Hugs to each of you and may you let go of your fear and let God grow in your life in unexpected ways.

 

 

Living in Your Heart or Your Head

 

This morning as I headed out for a brisk walk/run I didn't know I needed to do some serious musing. I didn't know that God was going to bring into my life an experience that would bring clarity. Life has been complicated lately and it's easy for anxiety and stress to take its toll. As I looked up at the spacious blue sky filled with white clouds, it lifted me. My heart lightened and I knew there was a message here from God. The language of the soul is so often found in the wonder of God's creation. 

I started to ponder whether I am living in my heart or my head.

Living in your head is stressful. It creates versions of events and of the possible future that may or may not be accurate. Living in your head makes you think you are all knowing. When,in fact, most of what we conjure up are sheer fabrications that bring us to the brink of frustration and freeze our hearts with anxiety.

Living in your heart is a joyous experience. Now don't confuse this with being ruled only by emotion. That's not what I mean by living in your heart. Living in your heart creates an environment that allows faith, hope, and peace to fill your inner being. It fills you with a calm sense of knowing there is meaning in the universe.

At one point, I noted a plane's dark trail marring the seamless white backdrop created by the clouds. In life we experience dark trails that spread across the whiteness of our days. The beauty disrupted by so many human issues that cannot be avoided. As I walked I continued to watch that dark trail and reflect on it. While this is a "thinking" process it certainly felt more like a "heart" process because it came to me that over time the dark trail left by the plane was slowly dissolving and the white clouds gradually overtook it, sealing back together in seamless white beauty.

Life is like that. The blemishes of life fade and are overcome with other things. Sometimes its difficult to wait for that to happen. Yet if we can wait in our hearts instead of our heads we will save ourselves a whole lot of grief.

 

Hugs to each of you and may all your caterpillars become butterflies!

August Theme: Sing

I've been a little preoccupied with life and blogging less and I REALLY miss it. It is through writing that I often ponder things and work through confusion, doubt, or any of those stumbling blocks I wrote about earlier.

I've been getting back on track in August as far as my personal reflection time and writing but not so much here at the blog. So I decided to "pop in" this morning and talk a little about the August theme and a little about Silence and Solitude Week which is coming to an end this weekend.

Sing is the theme I picked for August because I think it reflects both praising God and also of living a joyful life. I have written often about the joyful life and I truly believe that God wants us to live with joy. He has given us the marvelous gift of life and I seriously doubt He wants us to spend that in sorrow, doubt, anxiety or fear.

It's not always easy to sing. I'm not Pollyanna enough to think that. However I do think we can train ourselves to "let go" of past events that so often plague our minds, to be just a little kinder to ourselves and others and to look for ways to express our own unique joy.

Silence & Solitude: We are in month 8 and finally I think I have achieved a bit of wisdom on this idea of silence and solitude. The very first month I realized how hard it was going to be to find silence and solitude and even those fleeting moments I found it, I wasn't quiet sure what to do with it.

This month I decided to get up an hour earlier which gave me a greater chance of finding silence and solitude. I also made sure to have both TV and radio off and to avoid electronic devices. This hour was simply for reflection, writing (by hand) and reading. Sometimes it simply meant sitting and letting my mind clear from the whirlwind of life. It came to me that so often we complain that we can't hear God but are we ever quiet to give Him a chance to speak?

Hugs to all of you and may you feel joy in your life every day in some small way.