Daily Inspiration 2-8-18

"Hate, it has caused 

a lot of problems in the world, 

but has not solved one yet." 

-- Maya Angelou 

[Classic post from 10-21-16]

The word Semite has come to mean Jew or Jewish, but the word began to describe a wide area of people who spoke certain languages, and interestingly enough, the majority is Arabic.

I'm reading a huge and fascinating book by Ron Chernow called, The House of Morgan - An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance. The history of that family and others in their association spoke often of being anti-Semitic, or hating to deal with Jews, and avoiding any association with them and making that clear with all of their partners.

I've read or heard that sentiment many times, and I have never understood what it means. So I went to Google search and typed in, what are the reasons for Antisemitism? I didn't even have to go past page one as I printed out about 20 sheets of paper from three different sites explaining it as best they could. I was amazed that after all the Antisemitism in the world to know that the reasons were just plain stupid and had no merit that I could find. There was a long list of potential reasons, and not one reason had merit to me. Not one. Yet, all this hatred for a group of people sharing a religious idea and a certain heritage, and there was no difference between one who was devout and one who barely recognized the Jewish faith. All thrown in together in the hate room.

Of course, this has been going on for so long, even if there was a valid reason, no one can remember it. And, to this we have added anyone in the Muslim or Islamic faith, whether devout, or barely recognizing there is the Islamic faith, there they are all in one hate room, but a separate hate room from the Jews because we certainly don't want those two huge groups plotting together!

Then there were the Japs, the Nazis, the Protestants vs. the Catholics, the Filipinos, Mexicans, South Africans, Indians, and well, this list is pretty much endless, as well it comes back on the Americans from other countries. It is simply amazing how much hate there can be in the world.

And, here's the best and worst of it: it begins and ends with me. And you. And them. Every bit of it is in our mind. We created it, or we believed it when someone else made it up and passed it along. And, each and every one of us gets to choose to believe it or to turn away from hate. 

This is also the complete silliness of war. Military generals in our own armies have said, "let's go nuke 'em!" As if that would make their mind clean. We cannot make something on the outside of us into the scapegoat for what we are thinking. We must begin inside ourselves. Do we really want to hate other people? Are there really good enough reasons for hatred? I could find none in history for hating Jews, and none for hating Muslims, or any others. Even if that reason did exist, it would exist only in our own mind.

Just writing this makes me tense inside. So, I relax, let that business go, fall away, be not part of me. Instead, I turn on my love light and love them for the specialness that they have and of the grandness of who they are. I appreciate their diversity, their differences. I have no need to join them in their thinking, but I can appreciate it, as I appreciate the diversity in Mother Nature, all the thousands of varieties of plants, trees, grasses, fruits, vegetables, dirt, rocks, mountains, all around me.

I don't hate the mountain and love the valley, or hate the so-called weed and love the so-called good plant. They are all creations by whomever, or whatever our Creator is, long before I came to be here. Who am I to hate the Creator? But, the hatred of people has nothing to do with the Creator, except in that we have been given the free will to think on our own and make choices on our own. We choose. We choose to hate. And, we choose to love. What does hate serve? Maya says that hate "has not solved one [problem] yet." It never will. It never will. It cannot.

This all applies on a global scale, as well as on the scale of our daily living. We get to choose what we will think and believe. A belief is simply a thought we keep thinking. We get to choose how we want to feel. We don't need reasons to make a choice. We can choose to feel good for no reason and we can choose to feel bad for no reason. How do I want to feel? Great question. What is the reason I feel this way? Does it really matter? What is the value of hate? Hmmmm. Good question! Nothing on my list. What is the value of love? Well, to me love is all.

Whenever some thought or a thought from someone else makes me tense up, I recognize it doesn't feel good. This is our perfect guidance to lay down the rope, relax, breathe deeply, and release. It takes only a few seconds. Once the tenseness is gone, love automatically fills in for me. It is something I have learned to value and practice. It now guides my entire life.


Worldwide Hatred or Worldwide Love Begins With One Person's Thinking And Feeling. Choose As You Will. 

Spread Some Joy Today--as you make that choice.

Daily Inspiration 2-7-18

"Knowledge is a priceless gift. 

But the illusion of knowledge 

can be more dangerous than ignorance."

-- Pico lyer 

[Classic post from 10-20-16]

This wonderful quote that I gleaned from a TED Talk reminds me of the final 2016 Presidential debate last night.

But, more than this, so many of us might think we know when we don't, and for a variety of reasons, we feel that we should know, and that we will fail, and look stupid if we don't know, so we might then be encouraged to pretend we know, to use sound-bites that demonstrate that we have control of some of the words of knowledge, and sometimes we are even successful at fooling people. But, alas, we don't really know.

As long as we realize we don't know, even if we think we should or need to pretend that we know, we are far less dangerous than when we don't know and have forgotten that we don't know, and have adopted with some authority the illusion of knowledge, or the illusion that we know. In this case, we've gone beyond thinking that we know into the place of knowing, and yet it is still true that we don't know, it's just that we no longer care.

What is wrong with not knowing? What is wrong with admitting that we don't know? What is wrong with being open to being taught? What is wrong with allowing others to help us? What is wrong with feeling vulnerable? Why do we think we have to know when we don't? What value is there is pretending we know when we don't? Hmmm. Interesting questions. 

I own a business that works with the Internet. The Internet is a humongous thing. It is vast. It is complicated. It is ofttimes very technical, and even that is complicated. At the same time, it is simple. We all make use of the Internet in one or more ways and may not have any technical knowledge, or need any. To know the Internet fully is not necessary to make use of it. In fact, to know the Internet fully is pretty much impossible.

Yet, that being said, there are a lot of people who pretend to know, who have the illusion of knowledge, and they can be dangerous. Sometimes I have pretended to know more about it than I do and every time I've been caught not knowing. So, I pretty much have stopped pretending. I admit that I don't know.

Of course, there is much that I have learned about the Internet in the process of doing business within that realm, but pretty much what I have learned is that there is so much that I don't know, perhaps a million times more than I do know.

It's funny sometimes when I'm talking to a knowledgeable Internet person who is surprised when I don't know something, and so they wonder how I can be in business and not know. I have to say that this is an interesting concept, but it works. I'm certain that the seemingly knowledgeable person that I refer to also knows many times less than he or she claims to know. It's just that they have the illusion of knowledge maybe or they could have gone beyond to not caring what they don't know.

Well, I could go on, but I'll stop here. What is wrong with not knowing? I don't think there is anything wrong with not knowing. Besides, there are numerous people who know more than I who have been willing to share their knowledge. I think we each are in these same places in our lives. We help fill others, as they help fill us. It is only in our ignorance and being closed because we think we know that gets us in trouble. As we admit, even celebrate that which we do not know, we are open to the truly magical world of learning. 


"You're Only As Strong As Your Readiness To Surrender." -- Pico lyer 

Spread Some Joy Today--by chilling with your killing and becoming more willing.

Daily Inspiration 2-6-18

"The way to work with resistance 

is by relaxing." 

-- Michael A. Singer 

[Classic post from 10-19-16]

This morning I'm taking part of one page in easily one of the most powerful books I have ever read, The Untethered Soul, by Michael A. Singer. If you haven't read it, I absolutely recommend it. I've sent it to my entire team and many other friends to share the love just a bit. And, this post is meaningful to me because I have figured out what Michael is saying here, although we use different words in some of it. It is about resistance and what it does within us and how to deal with it. In essence, the quote above says how: by relaxing.

I've called it letting go of the rope. I'm a very visual thinker I guess, and when I can 'see' a thought, it helps me understand it better. When we are holding that rope as if we are in a tug-o-war game with another opponent or multiple opponents, or it is also true that our opponents need not be people, but can easily be thoughts, beliefs, ideas, scenarios, and more. As we hold that rope, there is a great deal of resistance within our body and our mind too.

We're tense, our muscles are taut, we are struggling for our space, where we want to be, to hold on to our point of view, or any number of reasons that we are holding that rope. We are resisting the pull of our opponent(s) and often those opponents are within our own thoughts.

I usually say to drop the rope, let go, lay it down, turn toward peace. This is exactly what Michael refers to using the word relax. We simply and exquisitely relax. As we relax, all that chatter becomes white noise, and as we return to our inner peace, even the white noise disappears.

Michael says, "This process of relaxing through resistance is beneficial to everything in your life." I agree. By making the choice to relax, let go of the rope, turn toward my inner peace, this act has dramatically improved my life. Major.

He adds, "Deep inner release is a spiritual path in and of itself. It is the path of nonresistance, the path of acceptance, the path of surrender." Another word I use often that I learned from Abraham, Esther Hicks is to allow. They call it the Art of Allowing. Learning to allow everyone and everything around you to be what it is without my needing to attempt to direct or control it.

Michael adds, "The key is to just relax and release, and deal only with what's left in front of you." In other words, ignore, or rather, release allowing the noise around you to control because it is way too much. Overload. Bring it to a simplicity by giving your attention to only what is right in front of you--here and now.

Here's the best part. He says, "You will feel much more love than you've ever felt before. You will feel more peace and contentment, and eventually, nothing will ever disturb you again." I wholeheartedly agree. As I have practiced letting go, I have experienced love as never before, and it is the unconditional love that blows me away. And, peace? Oh my goodness, yes. Love and peace together is I think, that contentment he mentions.

I no longer have the silly responsibility of changing the world or even really changing me. I simply let go of the rope, let go of my own resistance, tenseness, and my jumbled confused thoughts. I just let go of me. Once I've let go, I can feel the love welling up within me for all that I was previously resisting.

As he said, "eventually nothing will ever disturb you again." I'm not quite there yet, but I am so much closer to that. I can say now that there is very little that disturbs me, and once I realize that I am acting disturbed, I consciously lay the rope down and come back to love and peace.

Try it for yourself. Next time you feel tense inside, muscles taut, thoughts swirling during your day, stop! Let go of the rope. Relax. Breathe. Spend a few seconds in peace and feel the love well up within you. It doesn't take long, a few seconds will do fine. Then return to your day, your tasks, your meeting, or whatever you were doing. I predict you will see a dramatic difference, but what is better, is that you will feel different. Viva la difference!


Is That Worthy Of Practice? It Is For Me! 

Spread Some Joy Today--by releasing your resistance to all the blocks you've installed to your own joy. Really, that's all it takes. It is effortless.

Daily Inspiration 2-5-18

"The meeting of two personalities 

is like the contact 

 of two chemical substances: 

if there is any reaction, 

both are transformed." 

-- Carl Jung 

[Classic post from 10-17-16]

On Friday morning, I had a fascinating experience. I went to Walmart to pick up a few things. On my way in, and as is typical around this store, a needy person was asking for spare change from someone to my left. I thought that I would catch her when I came back out and give her some money.

When I came out, I was prepared and as I turned the corner, she was no longer there, but in her place was a tall black gentleman standing and he seemed to be preaching. I pushed my cart over and stood directly in front of him, and faced him. I was within 2-3 feet of him. For just a moment, he was ever so slightly startled that I stood there so close but did not move and he didn't miss a beat in his message.

He had a deep, pleasant, and booming voice. I don't think he would need a microphone in a large auditorium. His message was all about coming to Jesus, stopping our sinful ways and such. It wasn't hell, fire, and brimstone, but it wasn't as positive as it could have been either.

I stood there for at least 2-3 minutes staring at him, smiling, giving him love and attention. Other than that one moment of being startled, he didn't even acknowledge that I was there. He didn't look at me directly, although I was looking at his face the whole time. His head was going back and forth preaching to what he might have imagined was a big crowd, but essentially, I was the only one giving him or his message any attention at all.

I thought that perhaps he might say something to me, ask for a donation, ask me directly to come to Jesus, or anything else to even acknowledge my presence. He did not. I was amazed.

After the time I was there, I turned my cart and headed to my truck. I passed a lady who said something about the weird old man out of his mind, yapping away. I said to her, "he is enjoying himself and doing what he loves to do." She seemed surprised by my remarks.

People are amazing. Just watching them is fun and insightful. I was in this guys face so to speak, with a huge grin on my face, enjoying his wonderful voice and his act of speaking out his thoughts and feelings. I would have loved to sit down and have a long conversation with him, but he had his job to do and he was very much into it.

The fact that he didn't move away from me, side to side or back away, I thought was so interesting. I was very close to him and he stood where he was the whole time I was there. We were about the same height so we were eye to eye.

I've never had an experience like this before. I've certainly seen numerous people preaching outside, but this was so different. It was intimate. It was powerful. I felt nothing but love for the man, and I was truly enjoying hearing him speak while watching the determination on his face. I could tell he meant what he was saying, and I was enjoying him; albeit, his choice of perspective on the message was not for me.

I did agree with placing my focus on God. I love a little story by Alan Cohen in his book, The Dragon Doesn't Live Here Anymore. He was upset that two friends of his had a falling out and parting of the ways. He talked with his teacher about how badly he felt about the breakup, and that he didn't understand it.

The teacher asked him, "what kind of happiness is that? You have let their actions determine your happiness. They were together and you were happy. Now they are apart, and you are unhappy. What will you do if they get together again? . . . Be happy? Do not invest your happiness in the outside world, which is constantly changing and can never bring you real peace. Why not place your happiness in God, the unchanging, Who will never let you down?" 

I think this is what the man at Walmart wanted to say, but he didn't know how to say it. He was commanding rather than encouraging. That might work with some, but Alan's teacher will capture more with his or her message.


Love And Enjoy People As They Are. I'm Sure We Would Appreciate That Sentiment From Others. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by seeing all the many ways to experience joy in your life.

Daily Inspiration 2-4-18

"Anything worth doing 

is worth doing poorly 

until you learn to do it well." 

-- Steve Brown 

[Classic post from 10-15-16]

Following up on yesterday's very simple, all profound statement to choose to feel good, here is a quote from Abraham, Esther Hicks to ponder for your Saturday:

"All the resources you will ever want or need is at your fingertips. All you have to do is identify what you want to do with it, and then practice the feeling-place of what it will feel like when that happens. There is nothing you cannot be or do or have. You are blessed Beings; you have come forth into this physical environment to create. There is nothing holding you back, other than your own contradictory thought. And your emotion tells you that you're doing that. Life is supposed to be fun-it is supposed to feel good! You are powerful Creators and right on schedule. Savor more; fix less. Laugh more; cry less. Anticipate positively more; anticipate negatively less. Nothing is more important than that you feel good. Just practice that and watch what happens." 


Practice Is The Best Part Of The Journey. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by simply allowing it by letting go of your resistance to it. That's all it is. It is there all the time if you will only let go of your cares and worries and allow. Even a minute at a time is progress!

Daily Inspiration 2-3-18

"There is nothing 

more important 

than to feel good." 

-- Abraham, Esther Hicks 

[Classic post from 10-14-16]

As I got up this morning, I was thinking about all the hundreds of books that I have read and continue to read on self-development, spirituality, so-called self-help psychology, so-called new age, etc. I am drawn to one and then another, and another as if they were breadcrumbs along the path guiding me. I learn from each of them. I find value in each of them, and they are all the same and yet they are all different too.

I was meant for this journey, and in my later life, I am meant to share what I've learned as I have digested it, and am able to speak of it in my own voice as I have come to know it. All of that fascinates me. I could be doing a lot of things in my life, and yet this time that I spend with these Daily Inspirations is to me the most valuable thing that I do or even could be doing right now.

This morning, I wanted to share the single most important lesson that I have learned in my life: to learn how to feel good, and learn the value of feeling good, and how it can direct my life. You could also say choosing happiness, or as Michael Singer so delightfully said it, to practice unconditional happiness.

As I look back, the thing that guided me the most was my own sense of universal application. I would read an author and they would spell out their plan of salvation and have 50 points about it and all these 'should's,' and 'must do's' in order to get to inner peace. I read and considered, and took what resonated with me and left the rest there.

This is the perfect way to learn as far as I'm concerned. If it feels good to me, or rather, as it resonates with me, it is truth to me. As it feels off or bad or does not resonate, I've learned to simply let it be.

I've read the Bible twice cover to cover and I did that before I started going to church at age 45. I remember a pastor saying that the Bible is the only book that is true and that all truth is in the Bible and that you have to take the whole of it and not pick and choose what feels good to you. I completely disagree. God is still writing through authors today. She didn't stop at one book. And, though there isn't value in all of it in that way to me, there certainly is value in there that has resonated with me as if it was meant only for me.

What I mean by my own sense of universal application is this: To me, the message needs to be simple--really simple. It has to be able to be understood by a child. I love Albert Einstein and his thoughts on this subject. He says, "out of clutter, find simplicity." That is what I search for most: finding simplicity out of the clutter. He says, "if you can't explain it to a six-year-old, you don't understand it yourself."

I learned the real value of feeling good from Abraham, Esther Hicks, and I have also learned it from several other authors such as Joseph Campbell, where he said, "follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls." 

What is it to feel good? It means to vibrate at a higher level. It means to follow your heart. It means to love yourself, love others, love what you do. It means to appreciate everything that is around you--all of creation. It means to appreciate your own value and the value of all of those on the planet regardless of what might be said to the contrary about them. It means to seek the light rather than the darkness. It means to turn our eyes and heart toward God, the Universe, All-That-Is. It means to feel deep within that which resonates with our inner being, our Immanuel, our soul, or whatever words might please you.

It means to practice these things and not save them for later in private. It means to run our business with things that feel good to us like integrity, service, providing value, exchanging value, caring, giving others the benefit of the potential doubt. It means practicing kindness, courtesy, patience. It is being at peace within whether we are in heavy traffic on the freeway, listening to complaints, or letting go of overwhelment. It is releasing resistance, letting go of the rope, not being concerned about who's right and who's wrong, who's to blame, who should pay, who's doing what we disagree with.

Feeling good is love. Feeling bad is fear. In this world of duality, and to make it as simple as it can get, there is love and there is fear. Truly, it is simpler than this: there is love and there is turning away from love. There is choosing to feel good, feeling good, acting as we feel good, and there is turning away from that and calling it anything you like to justify that point of view.

This is not something you should do or not do. Only you can choose for you. I do it. I practice it. I'm getting so much better at it by practicing it. I keep what resonates, and let the rest go. I resist less and less each day. I choose not to fight. I choose to love. I choose peace. I choose freedom. I choose to appreciate everything--to experience life in its fullness. The joy that has expanded in me brings me to tears quite often. I am in love. To learn to feel good is the single most important thing I have ever learned. Ever.


What Is The Value Of Feeling Good For You? 

Spread Some Joy Today--by allowing your joy expression.

Daily Inspiration 2-2-18

"We need only to align 

 our thoughts with appreciation, 

 for contentment 

is not so much a state of affairs 

as it is a state of mind." 

-- Alan Cohen 

[Classic post from 10-10-16]

I love to quote Alan Cohen because he is prolific, so there's a lot of wise tidbits available, yet mainly it is his divine point of view. He sees the world as I want to see it, and I am more each day. He expresses the calm understanding that James Allen talks about, and that I have long desired. He does all of this with a style of writing that is smooth going down and delightful in my digestion.

I've read many of his books but had never read his first book the launched his career--a career that I might like to refer to as a common sense spirituality master. As Jesus did his teaching with parables, Alan shares his down to earth spiritual thoughts with little stories. His first book from 1981 is, The Dragon Doesn't Live Here Anymore -- Living Fully, Loving Freely. Even today it is still selling well. I'm only part way through but I'm not in a hurry as I am savoring each paragraph because it is delightful.

The quote above came from the chapter, Enough Is Enough. It's not about getting fed up, but more like realizing the wealth in all things is already within. He talks about the difference between the unhappy ones who are always seeking, while only those who are constantly finding are fulfilled. "And finding is not something that happens to us--it is something we do." 

But here is what I want to bring out of the early part of this chapter that I find a great value in and have practiced myself. He says, "For the past few years, I have been practicing a very powerful mantra: "Perfect!" He says it is not a mantra to use in meditation, although it certainly could be used that way, but is a mantra to use in our daily lives.

I use, "Perfect!" often, and also, "Excellent!" It doesn't matter what it is that is going on around me, it only matters how I process it. Alan says, "It's not so much what we do that counts, but what we think about what we do." So to resolve in our mind that whatever it is really is perfect, makes it perfect, even if it wouldn't have normally been to our liking. It's a point of view and one that we may not have normally taken, but as we do so, the world around us changes. Wayne Dyer said that "when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change." And, I can tell you from personal experience this is absolutely true.

It's about perspective and our thoughts about that perspective that guides us throughout our days.


Perfect! Excellent! I Am Enough! I Am Injoying Myself! What A Wonderfully Magical Day! 

Spread Some Joy Today--by aligning our thoughts with appreciation today. It is love, joy, peace, contentment, and more in that one word.

Daily Inspiration 2-1-18

"We can't all be stars 

because someone has to 

sit on the curb and clap as I go by." 

-- Sebastian Horsley 

"How to get rid of the ego as dictator

and turn it into messenger and servant and scout, 

to be in your service, is the trick. 

 -- Joseph Campbell 

[Classic post from 10-8-16]

Yesterday, I announced a major change in me that is bubbling up within and though part of me struggles against it, this change cannot be stopped. I have wanted it a very long time. One could say that it is a lifelong journey to get here because it certainly has been as I see and feel it.

I realized what one part of this major change is yesterday. It is the release of my ego controlling the talk in my mind.

I've been whacking at it in various ways by becoming aware that it is there and in what it is saying. Most of it is under the surface like the biggest part of an iceberg, but a sufficient amount comes through my lips to make me wish I could suck it all back in, reconsider what is said, and then to say it without the unbridled assistance of my ever-present ego.

Yes, I've been working on this for quite some time and making some progress, but I want much more. I want full and complete control. Even beyond that, I want it completely under wraps. I don't ever want to listen to its inane defensive babbling again.

The volcano that I referred to yesterday has born a fissure eruption and a rather significant change in my ego ranting was addressed. I was talking with someone and I said something that probably sounded like I was upset by someone else's choice and how it affected me. Based on her comment that she would be upset by that as well, I stopped immediately, and told her that I am not upset by that, and that these were simply facts in the issue, and that my goal is to serve at the client's behest, and I would very much like to leave the egos out of it. I said that if we can leave the ego out, it will serve the greater good.

I've never said anything like that before. But, you know what happened with that statement? My ego was completely gone. It went into hiding. It said nothing. That has never happened to me before either. It used to always have a lot to say in justifying, rationalizing, analyzing, blaming, and being on the defensive.

You cannot imagine what a joy that was for me. I felt totally at peace on the entire subject, and the entire situation. Even this morning, I feel at peace with it, when all the times before when discussing this issue, my ego was ablaze with defensiveness. What progress! What a change! And, to know that this is only part of the change in me that is welling up is so exciting!

Of course, the other realization about this that I had was that this was a whole lot like unconditional love. In business? Could there be such a thing? That answer is a definite, yes!

The source behind this change was my asking for it, and in trusting the Universe has my back as Gabrielle Bernstein says. It is trusting in the Lord, as I wrote in that song back in 2000. It is letting go and letting God. Or as Gary Zukov wrote in The Seat of the Soul, "Try looking at life as a beautifully well-organized dynamic. Trust the Universe. Trusting means that the circumstance that you are in is working toward your best and most appropriate end."

For a very long time, I've been learning to really let go of that rope and trust. I have tested it before and it held true, and now that door is opening wide. I am walking through it in sheer joy as a changed man.


My Ego Has A Place, But I Have Stripped It Of Its Dictatorial Authority. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by finding that place within you where you can feel that you are fully supported, honored, loved. That is where you really are.

Daily Inspiration 1-31-18

"The answer to the questions, 

Do I have a free will? 

and Is intention working with me

as an all-pervasive universal force? 

is Yes. 

Can you live with this paradox?" 

-- Wayne Dyer 

[Classic post from 10-7-16]

I have arrived at a place of major change in my life. I've known this intention was coming for some time, and through my free will, I have been choosing to resist that change with resistant habit patterns. I know this because these habitual resistant patterns used to feel good and they no longer do, and this unconscious intention that I've been praying to show itself is now breaking the surface like a volcano does prior to rocking the neighborhood.

This is not something that has come about in a day or a week or even a year, but like a volcano has been slowly but surely coming up, and though I've asked for it and knew it was eventually coming, did not know the timeframe. It is very near now. I can feel the ground shaking periodically so to speak.

Yesterday, I wrote about trust--having a sense of certainty in allowing the Universe or God to come through. Many things are now beginning to make sense to me that in weeks and months past felt like confusion, being lost, out of sync. At the same time, growth in my awe of life all around me has been occurring.

In Wayne Dyer's book, The Power of Intention, from which the quote at the beginning was gleaned, he lists what he calls four steps to intention. They are, discipline, wisdom, love, and surrender. And, although I may be taking this out of this context, I feel that these have been major steps in my life. For the last many years, I have been in the loving place. Anyone could see that in my writing where it is exposed clearly. Now, as yesterday's post indicates, I am entering the surrender place, that place of trust, of allowing, of giving, of accepting the direction I have been praying for.

Have you ever felt any of these things? I think others do. I was listening to Gary Zukov reading the 25th-anniversary edition of his famous life-changing book, The Seat of the Soul. He said something that instantly made sense to me, and I believe mirrors with different words what Wayne Dyer's quote said. He said that there are conscious intentions and unconscious intentions. Using Wayne's words, free will, and intention.

It seems to me that often our free will or conscious intentions struggle against our Spirit's intentions. I have written about this in many different ways, and it seems so real and true. I might call that being out of alignment, as Abraham, Esther Hicks might say. And, then there is in alignment where our free will and our inner unconscious intentions work as a team, such as when I am trusting, feeling good, allowing.

It reminds me of the autumnal equinox which just passed on September 22nd of this year. The 90 and 100-degree heat may continue to try to come through, but it is essentially done for. It is resisting the change of the unconscious intention of the seasons and it is also doomed no matter how hard it tries to hold on to summer.

Such is the case with me right now, and yesterday was a day that made this clear to me. A glorious day! Even though I played my resistant game as I have been for a long time now, I could easily and wisely see the change is taking over, and it won't be long now. The time is at hand.

I celebrate this change with all my love, and though I may yet consciously resist a bit longer, I can feel the joy coming, and major changes in how I live the remainder of my life.


The Place Where Free Will And Intention, Or Conscious and Unconscious Intention Are In Alignment With Me. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by recognizing when it's time to let go of the rope and soar.

Daily Inspiration 1-30-18

"God's love and grace

are not daunted by

your fears, self-doubts, 

or dark fantasies. 

Grace seeks not to fix, 

but to affirm." 

-- Alan Cohen 

[Classic post from 10-6-16]

Have you ever heard someone telling you one or more things that are going wrong in their life, and then when they are done with their admission, you begin to itemize things that they can do to fix it (in your opinion, of course) only to have them reject each one in turn?

It seems to be a very common thing--one might even say, a natural thing--to try to help someone fix a problem. And, it seems that in these situations, we have many suggestions, perhaps even ones we have used ourselves in similar circumstances.

I'm certain that God never would see this situation this way. God would not offer solutions to a problem that doesn't really exist. As Alan said at the beginning, "God's love and grace. . . are not daunted." Not daunted by any of our attempts to cover up the real higher selves that we are beneath the dribble of our fears, self-doubts, and more.

God's love is unconditional. No matter what. This means that there is nothing and no things that we could possibly do to dissuade God from loving us fully and completely.

As I was thinking about some of my readings of late, it seems to me that we pray a lot and trust very little. We hope a lot and are certain very little. What would our lives be like if we really and truly trusted in God, in God's grace, and God's assurance, and especially in the depth of God's unconditional love? Would we act differently? Would we fuss over these little fears, self-doubts, or dark fantasies? And, how would we interact with others? Would we be more supportive and not critical? Would we share the unconditional love with others that we feel from our Source?

This is not something we should do. It is something we can choose to do. The more I remind myself of that song, of the unconditional love I feel from time to time, of the presence I sometimes feel, the closer I get to trusting. Sometimes the silly cares of the day tend to get more of my attention, and this happens more because it is in my face at the moment than that I believe in it more. As the bridge of the song says, "when what I want may disagree," not as if I'm actually arguing with God, but yet at the same time, I am. Then I come to my senses again and remember and then "I will pray and let it go, and trust in God."

Alan Cohen adds, "If you could love yourself as God loves you, you would simultaneously become the Lover and the Beloved." What a wonderful place to be.

So as I go through my day, the more I remember that I am loved, the more I will remember to love those in front of me. The more I remember that I am forgiven all, the more I will remember to forgive those in my life, in my business, in the world. The more I remember the Grace that is constantly given me, the more grace I will be able to give others.


And, That Makes My Day Pretty Dang Wonderful! 

Spread Some Joy Today--by trusting, injoying, sharing, loving.

Daily Inspiration 1-29-18

"The most profound way 

to practice releasing resistance 

is to see clearly 

how we don't want to let it go." 

-- Gabrielle Bernstein 

[Classic post from 10-2-16]

About a week ago, I bought Gabrielle Bernstein's latest book in print and unabridged audio. It is titled, The Universe Has Your Back - Transform Fear To Faith. What's interesting to me about this is that I have bought all of her books, and read a portion of her first, Add More ~ing To Your Life, have not yet read the others, and yet I devoured this one. It's so interesting how things work out.

This book is full of powerful wisdom for me. It sort of reminds me that I am on the path I meant to take, and it has tools that help me practice staying on my path. I say my path because somehow I know deep within what I chose before I came here and these things that I often stumble across are reminders and expanders.

Since I talk about 'letting go of the rope' all the time, I have long realized that it is my resistance that causes any ills in my life. It is in the letting go of resistance or letting go of the tug-o-war rope that brings me back into alignment, back into love.

This book reminded me so much of a favorite book from 1992 by Marianne Williamson, titled, A Return To Love. Both are teachings using A Course in Miracles as a foundation. So many of my favorite teachers use that same foundation, such as Alan Cohen, Gerald Jampolsky, and many more.

In the introduction, Gabrielle quotes A Course in Miracles: "We must not seek for the meaning of love but instead seek to remove all the barriers to love's presence." In other words, remove the resistance, let go of the rope, and even more important, return to love. It is the idea that love is our truth or all that is, and that everything else is simply hiding the truth.

Often when we are learning or expanding on a thing or our thinking, we feel that we fail to be perfect at it, even for the level we have achieved, and so we can beat on ourselves about failing, missing the mark, not being there yet, or whatever. Gabrielle says that "we can forgive ourselves for not doing things perfectly, and we can forgive ourselves for holding on to old patterns. Honoring this shadow side of ourselves is the way to heal our resistance." 

But, here's the key to the whole book to me: Recognize where I am, what I am feeling, honor it, then turn back to love, or choose again. In other words, we can stay there if we want, but all of that is fear. Don't get upset by it, just acknowledge it, honor that it is an honest feeling, then choose what we already know is better and move on.

Throughout the book, she openly admits to her own resistance, even as far as she has come in her own learning, yet she becomes aware by how she is feeling as to where she is at emotionally and even physically. The healing path is always turning to love again and again and again.

This is the practice that I often talk about. We think we should finally arrive and no longer have to practice, but the practice is never over. It is the journey. There is no destination. The journey is our life, and so we can choose to practice, or we can choose not to choose.

She points out often how we don't want to give up our control: our judgments, fear, the relentless manipulations of the ego, and more. We resist. It's true, and it is also okay, but some people just don't want to change, don't want healing, are happy in a mysterious way to be unhappy. She mentioned how Sigmund Freud realized that some of his patients didn't improve because they did not want to improve, and that this realization changed his entire practice.

The theme of the book is also the idea that the Universe is always guiding us; albeit, we are often clueless about that. She shares many ways to communicate with the Universe and to seek openly the divine guidance by letting go of how things will come to pass, and just believe that somehow they will and it will always work out perfectly--even when sometimes there seem to be obstacles along the journey. It's all perfect.

There is so much value in this book for me, yet the single most valuable idea is as she says, "Our happiness is a direct reflection of how quickly we can restore our fear back to love." She adds, "The miracle isn't how well we avoid fear; the miracle is how quickly we return to love."

As I go through my day, and I feel that low vibration of a fearful thought, such as anger, resentment, disappointment, and such, when I realize or become aware what I am thinking by paying attention to how I am feeling, I can accept and honor that, and then, I can choose again. I can choose love.

It's kind of like going fast on a merry-go-round, then getting off and trying to walk a straight line. We may be caught up in it for the moment, but in a very short time, we can return to clarity and better control.

I have been practicing this in earnest for quite some time now, and I can tell you from my own experience the joy that is contained in how fast I turn to appreciation, to feeling good, to love. It is a very powerful idea and practice.

The Practice Of Choice. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by remembering it is joy that you really want.

Daily Inspiration 1-28-18

"How does it feel 

to live the life 

of your dreams?"

-- Albert K. Strong 

[Classic post from 10-13-16]

Wallace D. Wattles, in his book, The Science of Getting Rich, that was the initial inspiration for the movie and book, The Secret, says that after deciding what we really want, we must, "act in a certain way." He goes on to say that we need to focus on the present holding with faith our inner desires. He says for us to "put your whole mind into present action. Do not give your creative impulse to Original Substance, and then sit down and wait for results; if you do, you will never get them. Act now. There is never any time but now, and there never will be any time but now." 

He says not to worry about yesterday's efforts or work, concentrate on today, right now. As well, he says, don't worry about tomorrow and what will or will not come, there is only right now to deal with and that if we will "hold with faith and purpose the vision of yourself in the better environment, but act upon your present environment with all your heart, and with all your strength, and with all of your mind," it will be yours. For him, to act in a certain way is to give our best to the tasks and needs before us right now regardless of where we would rather be.

Wallace D. Wattles wrote that in 1910, and he is one of so many, who have said the same thing in various ways. As we focus on what we have to do in front of us, we release our immediate preferences, quiet to some degree the inner chatter about our preferences and all that surrounds them, and in doing so, we find a certain peace in our immediate present which opens us to what will come next for us.

I just finished, The Surrender Experiment, by Michael A. Singer, and he says that concentrating on the moment and the things to do in the moment was exactly what was needed. His approach to the moment was the same, but rather than having faith in what he wanted, it seems that he simply released his desires of outcome completely. It seemed that he wanted nothing at all.

At first sight, that is what it seems he did--but only for his worldly desires. He let them go completely and surrendered to whatever the Universe or Life would bring. He would immediately struggle for a moment or so, and then let go of his inner chatter by concentrating on what was in front of him and being amazed at what came next. But, in truth for him, he was holding on in faith to his most powerful desire, that of releasing himself, letting go of the mind chatter, and being one with the moment, in peace, one with Life itself. His desire wasn't of things, or situations of the world, but of inner peace and tranquility.

We all have wants, strong desires, dreams for the life we want to live, and many of us are perhaps already there, living that, though there is always more when we are ready for more. There are as many wants, desires, and dreams as there are stars in the sky, but I think in all of them, by following the advice of these two spiritual guides and doing with all our heart what is in front of us at the moment, will suffice to guide us toward that which we would like better. In fact, in Michael A. Singer's place, as many others too, he attracted far more than he could have ever imagined possible.

It is said that we can ask and it will be given, and in our asking, we are thereby clarifying what we would prefer, and this can be helpful for us. To God, or the Universe, or Life, or All-That-Is, this is not needed for It. That is already known, and as we learn our various ways of getting out of the way, dropping the rope of resistance, allowing, we may be then surprised at the path having led us to what we wanted, and often far more than we imagined. We can often actually see that magical path when we turn and look back. As we focus on what is at hand with our heart, head, and hands, we only need faith--trust--that the path we are following is true.


Make Your Work Today A Gift To The Universe! 

Spread Some Joy Today--by giving your best, living your best, loving your best.

Daily Inspiration 1-27-18

"The ultimate judge of your swing 

is the flight of the ball."

-- Ben Hogan 

[Classic post from 10-16-16]

As this quote relates to golf, and it speaks of truth being told by the effects of our actions, it seems like a great point of view, and certainly somewhat poetic in its expression. However, it is but one point of view of the event.

One could take a view from outside at any point where the event can be seen and come up with a different view to express. There could even be a criticism of the swing, the stance, the posture, the hands and grip, the follow through or lack thereof, the choice of club, the angle of the club, the dampness of the grass, or a hundred and one other thoughts about this one simple event.

At the same time, the event can be complicated dramatically in having the event take place in a tournament, and even more dramatically in the final shots of the tournament where everything, even a lifetime of work is poured into this one critical shot. We do tend to take the simple and complicate it, and the more points of view there are, the more complicated it gets.

Then there's the memory. Years later someone recalls the event. It was a big event, an important event, and all the points of view that were there have a point of view in their memory, complicated more by their own recollections of so many other events, how they are feeling that day, and any number of other influences mingling around that memory.

Then, many years beyond this distant memory, where most, if not all of the points of view have passed from this point of life, one takes upon the task of recreating the event from those records that may still exist, which may include a handful of the points of view who bothered to recall their memory to paper or other record such as telling the story to someone else who is currently available or who recorded it for posterity.

At the same time as the event itself, there are untold numbers of interconnected events as in the lives of the people involved that led to this event and their participation in it, including other factors that perhaps have some bearing on the event, the progress of the event, or the outcome of the event.

In other words, the more you look for, the more is going on. It is no longer an event. It is history. This is history, and it is told in all manner of ways. Yet no matter what depth one goes to in order to understand the event, it cannot be fully understood. Not even when the event took place. For the now that was the event was so full of information, it could not be contained in any record as a complete event. It is simply what each point of view says it is, whether at the event in real time or as history at any point in the future.

This is the same with the people who are involved in the event. Each of them is unique and brings all of their accumulated living to the event with them. They can be judged by points of view on any point of that accumulation, as well they can judge themselves in that same way, and yet this is but a point of view, isn't it?

I have studied much history, and particularly of the United States, with special attention to selected events and in-depth biographies of many of the people involved in the events, with focus on the accumulated living of that person.

I have realized that this study of history is interesting, but not Truth. There is no Truth, but only points of view. I love how Albert Einstein said, "Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods." But, don't take this wrong. I am interested and enjoying history. It is simply that I try to keep it simple in that I enjoy the story and find appreciation in its expression without taking it too seriously. What I mean by taking it seriously, is that I allow it to be as it was expressed, but I don't get upset by it. I look at it as it is stated and let it go.

This does not mean that I do not learn, or that I do not use what I have learned in it within my own life. I certainly do. One of my favorite quotes by Abraham Lincoln is this: "I don't like that man. I must get to know him better." This is like history to me, not only of events but certainly of people. It applies in history. It applies in my life today, right now.

I can only judge from a point of view, and I am taught by history that my point of view or a point of view is so limited as to be almost insignificant. To judge from this place is to be as ignorant as to not have known at all.

I have learned to love people more, to appreciate them, for their circumstances in history, for the various points of view that might attack them righteously or without any merit other than their own personal or political agenda. This affects me today in choosing to love people regardless of what others or any other recording might say about them. These are merely points of view. I may have my own, and I cannot see from their view, so I take that as an expression of a perspective.

I choose to love them in all of it. I choose to love the events they were involved in as is going on here today. History is being made every second of every day in each and every point of view. Each of us chooses what to think and feel about that.


I Choose To Love, And To Enjoy The Story. And To Learn To Broaden My Point Of View. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by giving everyone the benefit of doubt. Seek to find something to appreciate in another and events. This will open the door to invite in more and more joy. Your point of view is malleable.

Daily Inspiration 1-26-18

"Everything you are against

weakens you. 

Everything you are for 

empowers you." 

-- Wayne Dyer 

[Classic post from 10-4-16]

This quote by Wayne Dyer leapt off the page when I first saw it this morning. I've known this for some time now; however, I've never seen it said quite this way, and in this way, it is said so powerfully, and clearly.

This is one of the things I dearly love about learning. I can read many things on a subject from many authors, and then I read one that says it just so, and my ultimate goal of understanding is achieved in a moment.

It reminds me of a time when my wife and I had two teenage relatives living with us who were thought to be slow learners because of their grades. They weren't slow. Lazy, perhaps. But, I really think they weren't inspired. In school classes with 30-40 kids at a time, it is easy to have several fall by the wayside.

Anyway, we began having some fun with them learning new words, and reading, and having them tell us what they just read, or rather, their understanding of what they read. I'll never forget one of the words we all learned. It was obsequious. Fascinating word. We found that they could easily repeat or regurgitate what they read, but they weren't understanding it, so as we played with that, they grew and grew in their learning. What's more is that they were excited, engaged, having fun doing it. Learning really is fun.

Anything I spend time and energy fighting drains me. Anything I spend time and energy praising inspires me anew. Pushing against something takes a lot of energy, whereas, delighting in something gives me more energy.

As I go through my day finding potholes to complain about, I am like a leaky tire soon to go flat. As I go through my day finding things and people to appreciate, I find that I have increased energy and joy.


Struggle? Ease! Hmmmm. I'll Take Ease, Thank You! 

Spread Some Joy Today--by opening your eyes to all of the joy that is surrounding you. It has always been there awaiting your attention.