Something to think about – Page 7

Magic & the little things

Published on May 1, 2017 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

670px-User-Completed-Image-Make-a-Rainbow-Rose-2015.11.30-17.22.47.0 HAPPY MAY 1st!!

For years at our house we have celebrated a special day on May 1st, FAIRY DAY!! Since my daughter was very little we created our own holiday to celebrate the magic of believing, fairies, wishes and the little things that bring a little extra magic.

I think life can always use an extra dose of magic, a sprinkling of well wishes, and believing in things that are full of wonder.

Don’t fool yourself. I know there is a little child within every one of you that gets excited over little things like eating a yummy slice of cheesecake, walking under an umbrella as rain is falling all around you, watching shooting stars, hiking a mountain filled with spring blossoms, standing beneath a waterfall, biking down a hill with the wind hitting your face, Colorful flowers, driving in a convertible with the top down, little umbrellas in tropical drinks, glitter on greeting cards, surprises, butterfly kisses, a smile, warm showers, great food, driving fast, a colorful sunset, being creative, playing, the way the sun hits trees, rainbows ….there are lots of magical things that life has to offer.

NOW. MAKE YOUR OWN LIST of things you find that are magical about YOUR life. You don’t have to make a list, but just take a minute and think about it.

What surprises you? What surprises do you LOVE?

What colors in nature INSPIRe you? What colors surround you & why?

What activity brings you so much JOY?

What is your favorite food or drink to enJOY?

What do you like about a night sky? What do you like about a morning sky?

Do you get excited to see a rainbow?

What dream still whispers within your heart?

Do you have special rituals you do with your children? Does it make you both HAPPY?

Where would you go if you could go anywhere?

Where do you want to go in your own town?

Is there something you want to learn or grow from?

What makes you smile?

Hope these thoughts and ideas have you swirling with wonder and gratitude.

Have a BEAUTIFUL day!! -H

amazing-love-quotes-you-probably-never-heard-before-19-638

Lessons learned from the movie With One Voice

Published on January 26, 2017 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

df81b0c84a7dd883a1a26ef015803e95-1 I am a seeker of good things. Religion has always been a tough one to grasp for me on a personal level. I have always seen the lines of division and have a deep longing to understand things on a higher level. This movie talks to a variety of different religious leaders and seekers. It had some good lessons to share.

My hope is you can take something positive away. There are always good things if you look for them.

13235-man-alone-walks-water-path-road-sky-clouds-horizon-1200w-tn EVERYONE IS A SEEKER

We already are that which we are seeking.

“Ultimate freedom is not outside ourselves, it is not only within us, but it is our very nature.” -Buddha

“The intellectual can envision what a utopian society would look like. The mystic knows that paradise is within and that we can offer paradise. That we can offer the nectar of paradise. We can offer the banquet table of LOVE for all of humanity and we can all sit at the banquet table together.” -Sufi woman

If you were to bring in 10 lamps of light in to one place, each would be different from the other in form. But when you look at their light you cannot differentiate one from the other.

We make no distinction of our messengers Were you to count 100 apples, 100 fruits, the 100 would not remain, but become 1 when pressed together. In matters spiritual–there are no parts, no numbers, there is no division.

All the great religions of the world have communicated the same universal message–appreciate the diversity of spiritual tradition by seeing g their inherent unity.

Many religious differences stem from different interpretations of the followers. Ex: Jesus had 12 disciples. Those disciples are not on the same level of understanding [as Jesus], so they each create their own interpretation of a message, teaching, experience, etc. They then share their story to others.

IT IS INNER PEACE THAT LEADS TO OUTER PEACE

Hatred and all forms of aggression will cease to exist in the world. Peace in the world will become a reality when individuals realized that we belong to each other.

“Peace is our true nature. The only way to have peace in the world is when people find the peace from within and then share it.” -Swami Karunananda

“War is more about ABSENCE–an absence of care, community, love, etc. It is an aggressive way to state what is truly NEEDED. Humans want more than anything to be in LOVE.” -Dr. Malidoma Patrice Some

“Anger. Hatred. Fear is not part of our essential nature. Not being open to our spiritual nature that disconnection or dis-association, by itself, moves our experiences to the opposite–instead of LOVE there is HATe. Instead of PEACE there is AGGRESSION.” -A. Hameed Alu

Begin with one person–YOU. You affect those who are in the same room with you. Then they go out into the world and affect others and on and on and on.

“If one person feels deeply, sees deeply into the unconditioned nature of the human heart that experience liberates all human beings.” -Joan Halifax, Roshi

LOVE

“Love is the essence that makes thorns into flowers, which transforms vinegar into sweet wine. Transforms the devil into an angel.” -Dr. Mohammad F

“The only way to LOVE is by giving it.” -J Halifax

“Love is an infinite ocean.” -Sheikha Fariha

All spiritual traditions or practices converge in the belief that…we are one with the great perfection of life.

The mystic honors each spiritual tradition and realizes its importance in creating a medium for every person to discover their own personal truth.

354464-j-r-r-tolkien-quote-the-road-goes-ever-on-and-on-down-from-the THE MANY PATHS TO TRUTH

“The reason there are so many spiritual paths is because there are so many different cultures.” -John Daido Loori

“The many birds in the air, each have their own songs. I have yet to see a crow sing an eagle’s song. They were each given their own song.” -grandmother Lillian Pitwanakwat, Ahishinabe Kwe Elder

“A group of people are gathered together and one person stands up and says, “Salads are the only way.” Another stands up, “Pudding is the way.” Another, “Vegan is the only way to go.” We would think that is ridiculous, but we do the exact same thing with religions. -Swami K.

“Wisdom says I am nothing. Love says that I am everything. Between the two my life moves.” -Hindu

The beginning of Love is to know we are the other. True Love knows no boundaries and illuminates everyones heart. The beginning of Peace is to find it within ourselves. It is our own inner peace that leads to peace within the world. The beginning and end of this journey exists right here, right now.

“Is it possible to look around at all the people everywhere and see the gifts? Start with the gift of LOVE. What would the world look like if we converged our frustration into compassion. Our hatred into love.” -Dr.

SPIRITUAL TRANSFORMATION

“People seek external things.The main mistake people make in life–they seek happiness, they seek meaning in external ways. It is usually only when people have exhausted and convinced themselves that it’s not going to do it that the only other place to look is within.” -Swami K

“What has been invested for inner well-being? We spend so much time creating the external, fixing the outside…”

“Go hike. Stand still. Look at a tree. In the depths of quiet the greatest song can be heard.” -Dr.

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

Sit. Look at what your mind is filled with—what are your thoughts? Are they filled with anger, frustration, kindness, love? That is what you are contributing to the world.

In the end, we are all mystics. We all share the longing to find our divine nature. We need only to look within our hearts and listen deeply, so that we will join the conversation and speak with one voice.

Fairytale Truths

Published on November 5, 2016November 5, 2016 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

offterdinger_schneewitchen_2 We are all ah struck by the childhood fairytales we are told as children. It is the beginning of tales of good vs evil, the wicked step-mother, the beautiful princess, the love story that always ends happily.

The other day I was watching a show & they mentioned how the story of Snow White truly came to be. We all thought it was the whimsical tale of the Grimm Brothers, BUT historians have found evidence there seems to have been real characters–a beautiful princess, a castle, evil step-mother and seven dwarfs. What? you say! My sentiments exactly, so I thought I would put together some real life fairytale stories for your enjoyment. The first of course…Snow White.

09-21-14-16w Maria Sophia Margaretha Catharina von Erthal, to be known as Maria from here on out. Born in 1729, Maria grew up in a castle in Lohr, Germany. The castle is a museum today, and if you visit, you’ll be able to look into a certain famous mirror. It’s believed that Maria’s father, Prince Philipp Christoph von Erthal, gave the looking glass to his second wife as a gift. Sounding a little familiar? Maria’s outlook under her stepmother wasn’t quite so bleak – there was no huntsman seeking internal organs for proof of Maria’s death – but scholars think it wasn’t an easy existence. “Presumably the hard reality of life for Maria Sophia under this woman was recast as a fairy story by the Brothers Grimm,” Dr. Karlheinz Bartels, a Snow White scholar, has said. Oh, and Maria’s story boasts “dwarves” in a fashion similar to Margarethe’s: it’s said that only smaller-statured men were able to fit in the nearby mine tunnels of Bieber. -Mental Floss.com

170px-spieglein One additional, interesting note…the mirror that was gifted to the step-mother said, Amour Propre or “Self-Love” The mirror was likely a gift from Philipp Christoph to Claudia Elisabeth. It was a product of the Lohr Mirror Manufacture (Kurmainzische Spiegelmanufaktur). The mirror “talked” predominantly in aphorisms. The upper right corner of “The Talking Mirror” contains a clear reference to self-love (Amour Propre). Moreover, mirrors from Lohr were so elaborately worked that they were accorded the reputation of “always speaking the truth”. They became a favorite gift at European crown and aristocratic courts.^{[4] -Wikpedia}

Rapunzel

Rapunzel draws upon an early Christian story. In the third century A.D. a prosperous pagan merchant, living in Asia Minor, so adored his beautiful daughter he forbade her to have suitors. Accordingly he locked her in a tower when he traveled. -huff

Princess Grace Kelly

She seemed to have it all, her dreams of acting came true and she was at the highest point of her career & the highest paid & most respected actress. Then a Prince came along and swept her off her feet. The dated and their courtship was depicted as a fairytale romance. They married after a year. She saw a deeper calling for her life and gave up all the glam and fame to become the Princess of Monaco. And with any fairytale there is tragedy…in 1982, Princess Grace and her young daughter were in a car accident. Princess Grace was in a coma for 24 hours before passing away.

sleeping-beauty-l True True Loves Kiss

But perhaps true love’s kiss really can do the trick. In 2009, a woman in England suffered a heart attack and fell into a coma. She began to stir two weeks later only when her husband pleaded her for a kiss— she apparently obliged by turning her head and puckering up, according to the Daily Mail. -Live Science

Well, I hope that was a fun read into the real stories of our beloved fairytales.

Have a beautiful day. -H

Maybe a Life trap

Published on September 20, 2016September 20, 2016 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

769b357f1a75fe8f32e5969f0213b549

I just read this quote and it hit me straight between the eyes. It is so true. I have actually seen a red fox trapped in a steel vice & it had almost chewed its leg off struggling to get free. It was one of the saddest things I have ever seen in my life. I never want to see anything like that again. It was truly soul wrenching. I looked deeply into its beautiful golden eyes and my heart ached for it. I was helpless.

I have that same gut-wrenching heartache for my brother that has become an alcoholic within 6 months. How does that happen! I believe he is choosing a slow death and that pains me to the core. The saddest part of it all is he has a beautiful family. He has a 12-year-old son that enjoys him and just wants to be his best friend. He has so many good things in his life, but he chose to take something to “take the edge off…to be able to talk to people more…to relax…to…”

He is like the trapped fox that is slowly dying. He doesn’t even see it. Okay, maybe he does. He knows he is hurting his body because he is already feeling the pains. He knows the risks, but he chooses to take one more sip. He gets in a car with his family & doesnt think he is buzzed, but the reality is, who truly drinks & thinks they could end someone’s life?? What drinker does?

I am sure that fox did not see the risk in taking one little piece of something that would lead to his doom. Who does? Who thinks that one drink, that one prescription, that one…would lead to something bigger than themselves, something that eventually will be the demise of the good that is in their life. No one steps into a trap willingly.

I don’t have anything against drinking, but I do have something against people who are not responsible or care about the outcome their addictive behavior may cause. We all have relationships within our lives that at times can be toxic. It is when people loose themselves to the traps that those around them fall victims too. That is what pains me most. Please be careful in all that you do & how your choices affect those around you.

-Peace and Love. -H

Look at yourself & ask—What is beautiful in my world today? What will set you free?

2f6e033a1a8b4412bf358af6dbc493f7

Bucket List Life

Published on April 11, 2016 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

DadBudJump This weekend my daughter and I headed to Moab to watch my Dad experience skydiving for the first time. The entire family (5 kids and all their kids–13 grand kids–minus my brother) met in Moab to see the event live in honor of his 70th birthday! It was such a grand occasion we had to be escorted to the airplane hanger because our group was, “the biggest they had ever had.” The kids had bubble wands to entertain them while they were waiting for the big jump, so we looked like we were having a party. There was a group of four other people waiting to watch their friends jump & they literally asked us if we were on a field trip or something. We all laughed out loud and explained the big party.

PapaKids Life is too short and my Dad had wanted to jump his entire life, so we all pitched in to make it a weekend he would never forget. Truly, a weekend none of us will ever forget. Life is about occasions, those special events that make the memories that stay with us forever. None of us will ever forget watching the kids making bubbles that were covering the airplane runway and flying wildly into onlookers. It was magical and lol funny. The adults laughed as we watched our children list off the items they would get if Papa didn’t make it. Yikes!! They were yelling, “his arrowhead collection, his cheese, his car…” they were laughing and being so silly. They made up a special bubble wand salute they gave him as Papa landed and joined the group. A memory all of them will remember. We all screamed and yelled and cheered as we watched their parachutes come in for the incredible landing. One of my sisters almost had a panic attack, a kind stranger was getting the whole group on video, and we all stood there in awe of their safe arrival and then laughed as our Papa was thrown to the ground by his chute and just laid there, almost as if he were so glad to touch the ground. My brother jumped with him, so the most priceless moment for me was seeing them embrace after their jump.

I did not know that my brother 15 years ago had talked to my Dad about going skydiving together one day. This weekend was that day. Checked off their bucket lists!! How AWESOME.

funride

Another side story to bucket lists and how life is too short to wait to do the things your heart desires—last summer we had a dear family friend (40 years old) wake up and have a stroke that affected half of her body. She had to learn to walk again, and was in rehab for months and months. She still does not have full mobility back. It was a wake up call to me that life is too short. I had always wanted a convertible car. I always watched people drive around with the wind hitting their face, the wide open top to enjoy the sky, the sun, the beautiful world all around them. When she had her stroke we were in the process of looking for a new car. I told my husband, “life is too short. I want to get a convertible.” I wanted the memories of being together as a family driving up the canyon, going on trips with the top down, I wanted my one daughter to have special memories with me made in our convertible. This weekend my daughter and I drove to Moab and enjoyed the Arches and Dead Horse Point parks while driving with the top down. We will both always cherish the moments of her filming from the top and getting all of the panoramic pictures her heart desired while we drove. I will always cherish watching her drift off to sleep with the wind whipping her hair and the sun shining down on us. Priceless.

What would you put on your life bucket list? What would you do? What can you do? What do you want to do? Here are some ideas that I have collected from all over the internet to get you thinking…there are a ton of links you can google, but here were some of my favorites. Some good questions to get you started (taken from personal excellence.co) What would you do if you had unlimited time, money and resources? What have you always wanted to do but have not done yet? What if you were to die tomorrow? What would you wish you could do before you die? What activities or skills do you want to learn or try out? What are the most important things you can ever do? What experiences do you want to have? Any countries, places or locations you want to visit? Bucket List ideas I would like to do (taken from daringtolivefully.com): Learn a language, achieve your ideal weight, travel, visit the Grand Canyon, Stay at an ice hotel (at least see one), fly in a hot air balloon over the Loire Valley in France(vineyards, 800 castles and manors, 200 miles SW of Paris), Swim with Manatees, sea turtle or dolphins, do the scorpion yoga pose, hike the Appalachian trail, learn archery, play the harp, get something published, learn something new each day, have a romantic picnic, learn to meditate, ride a segway, have chocolate and cheese fondue, (the following are taken from bucketlistjourney.net) dog sled, just walked a suspension bridge, feed exotic animal (elephant, koala, bear, etc), ride a horse on a beach, sell a piece of my art, enter art in an exhibit, sell something from a blog, go to a drive-in movie, make a house of cards, make something with origami, learn to cook something new, host a cookie exchange, learn to really use chopsticks & make an asian dinner, be a tourist in my own town (see something new), learn to paddle board, rock climb, win something, ask my spouse 50 questions, Say thank you and hello in five different languages, learn to fence, Sleep in a treehouse, put a love padlock somewhere in Utah or NV(makelovelocks.com), see Walden Pond, see the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Washington, learn more about the amazing beach art of Andres Amador, visit Fiji, Stay in a grass hut, see the Eiffel Tower, attend the hot air balloon fest in Albuquerque NM, be flexible enough to do the splits, see the beautiful, white buildings of Greece, drive the coast in Italy, visit Tuscany, gondola in Venice…to be continued. That is all for now. I hope these ideas get you thinking of things you want to do.

Happy planning!! -H

Who can judge?

Published on February 16, 2016 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

8b16a8816f65895a38a39db35e8da4ca

Here are a few great stories that will make you look at the world a little differently. I think many of us are conditioned to judge people’s rank in life, to see a homeless guy or a garbage man, a prostitute and assume we know something about their life [ie: assume they are lazy, on drugs, assume they are drunks, assume they don’t try, etc]. I think we often belittle all we can learn from those have gone through struggles. Life is full of lessons if we take the time to understand how they are meant for each one of us. I hope these videos will make you look at yourself–how you judge & what you can learn from strangers around you.

This is a great story about how one simple, kind gesture can change a heart. It made me think of my brother who struggles with addictions and violent outbursts. If we could all learn from this story & be so brave. http://www.faithit.com/drug-addict-was-terrifying-everyone-on-the-train-70yrold-woman-grips-hand-world-changers/

Who would have thought this garbage man could make such a difference. I love a good story that proves ANYONE can do ANYTHING…Check it out!

What my date with a prostitute taught me about sex, judgement and Jesus: Here is a story about a writer who learned a lot from a prostitute in Malaysia http://www.faithit.com/what-my-date-with-a-prostitute-taught-me-about-sex-judgment-jesus-inspirational/

What do you want for your LIFE!!

Published on November 3, 2015 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

I heard on a podcast recently a great thought that I wanted to share with all of you…it only makes sense, we always ask, “What do you want for Christmas,” “What do you want for your birthday,” “What do you want for your wedding”…I think we should take this questioning and ask ourselves WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR LIFE!!

I understand this is a very loaded question for many, but if you make it as easy as every other question above, WOW, what our worlds would look like!! We would look at our lives in small questions, close goals, simple things that we wish for our life right now. Think about it, when someone asks you a sincere request for an answer for something you would like, for say, your birthday, you genuinely take a moment and can think of something you would like or wish for.

Now, if you could NOT look at your life like a big, huge puzzle that doesn’t have all the pieces yet and begin to look at it like a wish you would make for a Christmas or birthday present, what a gift that would be for your life.

Think about it right now!! What would you wish for? What little desires would bubble up to the surface?

Okay, so now I am going to give you a couple of ideas to help you realize these hidden wishes…

Wish upon a star: Tonight, or the next star filled night, I want you to go outside and look up to the sky. I want you to see all the sparkling white lights that are begging you to make a wish. Pick out a few of the brightest looking stars and begin to make wishes. Say them out loud so your heart hears them. Point to them and begin to go within and find those lost gems inside that want to be free. Let your mind wander and find those thoughts and ideas that you are the most drawn to for your life.

Wishing Cake: One other idea. Go to the grocery store and buy yourself a wishing cake. You could also make your own. It doesn’t have to be big, just big enough to put in a number of candles. Now, take it home and line it with a couple rows of candles. As your light them begin to ponder things you would like to wish into your life. As you begin to think of each wish, say it out loud and blow out a candle.

These ideas should get you seeing and believing in wishing for the things you really want for your life.

Another idea: Make it a family affair and have everyone take turns wishing on stars and candles. It would be fun to hear one anthers wishes, hopes, dreams and help them to realize them for their life.

Yoko Ono had an idea: A Wishing Tree…Write your wish on a piece of paper. Hang the paper on the wishing tree. Ask a friend to do the same. Keep wishing.

Happy wishing. -H

FOCUS

Published on September 29, 2015 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

I just came across the video below that was done by filmmaker Louie Schwartzberg. It is beautiful and I highly suggest you watch it and share it.

I thought it had a great message—What is your FOCUS. What are you seeing within the framework of your life. There is always so much going on around us, but it is the details that make up our life, our visions, our dreams, our reality. So begin to truly see where your focus is. Focus on the beautiful, the lovely, the purest forms of joy, the things that bring you peace, the smallest details that make up your life. AND if you need to refocus—step back and reframe the pictures and images of your life, the directions, the daily details that need to be changed to move you towards the ultimate beauty of your life. It is waiting. It is all around you. You just have to look deeper and have a clearer focus.

http://www.oprah.com/video_embed.html?article_id=59460

The Choices you make…

Published on September 17, 2015 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

I was just reading an article from Oprah that came in my inbox and it contained some good questions. Mind you, they were not mind-blowing questions, just questions we often forget to consistently ask ourselves, so here you go…

Close your eyes and imagine that Aladdin’s genie is standing right in front of you, right now. There’s no one else around; it’s just you and the genie. Here’s what he tells you: “I’m going to give you one wish. You can wish for anything you want, with only two limitations: You can’t wish for more wishes, and you can’t receive a wish that will take away someone else’s free will. But wish for basically anything else, and you will get it. If you wish for 10 million dollars—done! An ‘incurable’ health issue healed—you got it! A big achievement goal accomplished—victory! You get the idea. No one will ever know how you got it; they will think it just happened naturally through the course of life’s circumstances. Also, you can never have another wish fulfilled in your lifetime, and if you don’t tell me your wish in 10 seconds, you lose it.”

Okay, this is it; the moment of truth. Treat this as if it were really happening to you right now. No filtering; you’ve got 10 seconds. Close your eyes—go.

What did you tell the genie your wish was? Write it down.

This morning I have been struggling with how to help my family be HAPPY. I often feel as if I am on a roller coaster of emotions between the two people I love most, so my wish was automatically—to know and understand how to help my family find happiness. The funny thing is, as I am writing this, I am telling myself—you can’t make another person happy. They have to find it for themselves. I know this. It is obvious, but as a wife and mother, I seem to seek some sort of knowing. I pray to know their personal needs, I pray to know how to look for guidance, I pray to be guided on each one of them, I pray for understanding, I pray for patience, I also just cry.

What would you ask for at this moment? What wish would fulfill your dreams, your hopes, your happiness? I think different moments of our lives we would wish for different things…at some point we would wish for the HGTV dream house. At another point in our life, we would wish for our child to be healed from sickness. Another moment, we would wish to have our parents here on earth. A different day we would wish to live in Hawaii. I think our wishes would constantly be changing depending on our changing seasons of life, our moments in life, our depths of spiritual growth, our emotions of the day, our wishes for our families, our health, etc.

I heard a great quote that was from Wayne Dyer’s book, Wishes Fulfilled that said, “Make your future dream a present fact by assuming the feeling of the wish fulfilled.” -Neville Goddard

Wayne Dyer spoke of constantly engaging your life with believing and assuming the feeling that I AM…healthy, strong, beautiful, blessed, in a divine relationship, happy, a marvelous gift to this world, a present mother, a loving wife… this seems like a beautiful way to ask, feel and be in alignment with a greater will for your life. We may not have a genie’s magic lamp, but we have wisdom to use our feelings in a positive way and to help create a greater outcome of happiness, love, peace, harmony, joy, etc. within our life and within the world.

Peace and love to you today. -H

For the other questions on the Oprah article go to this link: http://www.oprah.com/shiftyourlife/Discover-Your-Lifes-Purpose

Do you strive to live in Grace or Nature

Published on August 27, 2015August 27, 2015 by goforthegood1Leave a comment

Yesterday I was down & decided to put in a movie, The Tree of Life. It was a movie full of imagery, music, thought, story…visually it stirred my soul, but the other aspect of the story line was the way we live our lives. Held within the story walls was an emotional war between the mother (who strived to live in a place of grace) and a father who was driven by human nature.

It made me wonder how to hold onto those directions we strive to live in our life. How do you hold on to the need for grace, for light, for love and not be distracted by the fears, ego, society…

So, I am going to google, “How to hold on to grace in our life” and see what comes up. I will leave you my findings to then sprinkle them into your own life. Peace to you.

So, I came across a definition by Dallas Willard that says,

“Grace is God acting in our life.”

To me this is EVERYTHING…every detail, every gift we hold, every breath we take, every laughter, every moment. Through all things God is acting in our life. Everywhere you look, the breeze, the colors, the sounds, the scents, the smiles, the majestic mountains, the crashing seas, the hands that hold one another, the babies born, the muscles that walk, the eyes that see, the hopes, the dreams, the challenge, the changes, the soul of life, it is bigger than anything and everything.

“For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” We must have faith and a knowing that when challenges occur, there is a bigger plan surrounding us. We must look for the seed in which we can grow in this seemingly dark place. This makes me think of a dear friend of ours who is in her forties, is in the beginning stages of a late pregnancy, and just had a full blown stroke. I also think of my sister-in-law who has triplets and today is taking one of them in to find out if she has cerebral palsy at the sweet age of two. My heart weeps for them, my soul is stirred in aching pain, trying to understand the challenges they are facing. I can’t even imagine. BUT, it also makes me see how precious each day is, that life is too short, that we must strive to live, to love, to have faith in tomorrow.

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)

Look all around you. Have you not been given much? Do your eyes see? Do your legs hold you high? Do you hear a whisper from your child? Do you see the sunlight shine down on you? Do you have hope? Do you have love in your heart? Have hope that you have all you need at this very moment. Have a knowing that He will provide for your every need.

Psalms 46:1

Always have faith that God can be your refuge & will give you strength in your time of need. I do find comfort in feeling that when I need Him, He is there. I feel that I am not alone in this world & that I am just a prayer away. I have been reading a sweet book called, “Where angels walk” by Joan Wester Anderson. It is a book full of beautiful stories of angels who have come to the aid of children who were about to be harmed, protected women in scary situations, carried a young boy home who had been bit by a rattlesnake…heaven is closer than we know. Nothing separates us but ourselves. I believe if we call on heavenly forces to help us, they will do all they can to be there.

“Nothing can separate us from the Love of God.” -Romans 8

Isn’t that a beautiful idea. NOTHING can come between us, so we must have faith that we can call on Him, call on angels, know that whatever we are going through, whatever we have to face, we are so close to heaven.

I thought this was funny…God has no phone, but I talk to Him. He has no Facebook, but He is still my friend. He does not have Twitter, but I still follow Him. Nothing can separate us from Him, except us. He longs to be near, He longs to hear your prayers. He is there and nothing can separate us from that love.

Ask and ye shall receive

According to Lifecoach Cheryl Richardson, “I’ve learned now, in working in partnership [with God] and dancing with grace, that when I need direction, I will ask for it.” Cheryl says she uses this mantra: “Give me direction. Let me see the doors that are open, make sure that I see them and open those doors.Answers are around you all the time, but the question is, how present are you to them? “The more present you become to your life, the more you begin to see that there are signs all around you,” Cheryl says.

Take note when you begin to judge or shut down what someone’s saying to you and try to stay open-minded, Cheryl says. “What if everyone that comes into our life is a spiritual change agent in some way? The more open you can be, the more you allow your life to change and the more you see the influence of grace,” she says. “A closed mind is the barrier to living a grace-filled life.”When you see signs of grace in your life, you’re entering into “the dance,” Cheryl says. The dance of grace represents your psychological growth: You realize there are coincidences that occur in your life and recognize that it is part of this divine intelligence working in your life. “As you begin to see those signs, you realize, ‘Wow, I am co-creating [my life] with some kind of spiritual intelligence here.'”

Cheryl says it’s also important to listen, pay attention and take action. “When you get the messages, you need to act on them,” she says.

Well, that is all for today. I hope these scriptures and thoughts will give you something to think about. I think just looking for the many ways God is Acting in Your Life each day and finding gratitude in those things will open the doors to grace in your life, which will then mirror into the lives of those around you. Peace to you today. -H