Beginnings

Just as the old year passes away, a new one sprouts up to take its place. Many will think in terms of resolutions to plan for the year ahead, to become better people in whatever manner they desire. The resolutions may deal with the person they appear to be, thinner, richer, all outwardly apparent changes. Few will reach into their hearts and minds to get in touch with who they truly are.

One’s concept of Self is what the Universe directs us to explore and express at this time. Who do you want to be? How do you want to make your mark on this world? What do you stand for? This is what is begin asked of many of us during this time. It is not a matter of whether we are right or wrong, but whether the things that we express are worthy of our dedication and resolve.

Take time to look behind your own masks at this time of year. See what you do that is not in line with who you want to be. Align your heart with the beliefs that you have. Walk your talk. If you are not doing this now, seek out the courage and the persistence to do so in the future.

Be gentle with yourself as you move in this direction. It is easier said than done. But when you are able to remove the conflicts between what you say you are, and what you truly are, you will find that being genuine with everyone you meet is a great blessing.

Who Are You?

It is common practice to associate ourselves with our work, that is, we identify who we are with what we do for a living. The upside of this is that we stake our personal integrity, our best efforts in the manner in which we perform the job. The downside may be that we don't know when to quit. If we end up taking our work home with us, we literally become our job. The job discolors our relationships: family, friends, lovers, all of them.

If this has happened to you, it is time to step back for a time and be certain that you express the person you are on the inside. You are not your job. Your job is your tool for paying your bills. It is helpful if you enjoy your job, but be assured, you are NOT your job.

The first step to reconnecting with who you really are is to take a weekend to sit with yourself. Meditate. Look into a mirror--looking past your reflection to see what occurs around you. If necessary to concentrate, do this in a dark room with no sound, using only a lighted candle reflected over your left shoulder. Think about all of the things that make you who you are. Are you a happy person? Do you like music? Are you comfortable in nature? Just allow the thoughts to flow as you focus on what makes you, "YOU." Do this a few timjes for 30 minutes at a time for a good picture of your Self. Write it down.

Next, when you have a list of characteristics, sort them into columns under the headings of "like" and "dislike." Use all of the characteristics that you have identified. Give yourself a pat on the back for all of the characteristics you like. For those you dislike, decide which are actually under your control and which are not. You may want to write goals to help you overcome the characteristics you dislike that are under your control, working on only one at a time. What is outside of your control is probably a stressor for you and may take deeper work to change. Chances are, these are things imposed upon you by someone else. It may mean that to change the characteristic you will have to evict the other person from your life. But that is not a decision that you have to make at thist ime.

Let us focus now on the characteristics that you like about yourself. We call these your strengths. These are skills, personality traits, ways you cope and interact with others that result in positive actions or feedback from the people around you.

While everyone is a jigsaw puzzle of positive and negative characteristics, we gain greater happiness through thinking about and expressing the positive. This is who you want to be, who you can be, who you are.

Help!

From the time we are very young, we are encouraged to learn to do things without the assistance of another person. The intention is for us to feel a sense of accomplishment and thereby, increasing our self-esteem. However, all too often, those who love us go a little too far in their insistence that we do things for ourselves and we end up living our lives feeling as if we cannot ask someone else for their help.

It doesn’t really matter what it is, but we feel that if we need to ask for help, that somehow, we have failed. There is nothing further from the truth. In fact, rather than being a sign of weakness or incompetence, asking for help is the recognition that we, like everyone else, have our limits and that the task we have undertaken is something that can and should be shared. In this scenario, asking for help is a sign of wisdom.

Are there flags that go up to let us know when we should ask for help? Not exactly. But if we are in some way uncomfortable with something we are doing—physically, emotionally, mentally or spiritually—then it is time to ask for help. Whether that need is for medical assistance, help with our labors, a seemingly unsolvable problem, or a matter of spiritual confusion, it is not only acceptable, but advisable to ask for help. You needn’t wait until you are on the brink of physical, mental or emotional collapse. Ask and it shall be given unto you!

May you be richly blessed!

Fighting the Dark Side

Sometimes we believe others are intentionally putting turbulence on our path. We feel hurt, perhaps angry, and the first thing that comes to mind is to seek revenge. So we may think dark thoughts, hoping ill comes their way. But truly, by doing so, we are limiting the Light in our own lives and bringing harm, disappointment and sadness to ourselves. The more we think about it, we create an opponent of tremendous power who is making bad things happen in our lives. And it’s true! Why? Because we have given our own power away.

Consider this: If we feel things are going badly for us, and we believe the source is the jealousy or Evil Eye of someone outside of ourselves, instead of giving the person our own power, refuse to think about what he or she may be doing to us. Instead, use the power of protection, in Kabbalah, Aleph-Lamed-Daleth, to bring them into the Light. Visualize the letters as black fire on white fire and wrap the suspected person of your maladies in it. You are sending the person great power to overcome the evil that surrounds him or her, while eliminating his or her ability to harm you in any way. In the physical life, the individual may experience a life lesson which offers the change to grow spiritually. What he or she does with it is up to him or her. And, you may be surprised, but you may find that the person allowing negativity into your life is none other than you, yourself, therefore learning a valuable life lesson as well.

May you be richly blessed!

Employing Patience

One of life’s greatest challenges is in learning to wait for the good things we want. We can use affirmations day in and day out, but when things don’t happen as fast as our Inner Timer thinks they should, our fear that good will never come takes over. We stop saying our affirmations, rejecting them because they don’t work. But this is key: it’s not stage magic where the trick happens in a snap. It takes work. It takes a connection with the Creator. It takes work.

If you repeat the affirmations for a week and don’t see results, you quit. If you have been a Doubting Thomas all your life, all you’ll get is “no” answers. If you don’t truly believe in the unseen Intellect of the Universe, you will get nowhere. You’re just saying words, just as when you proclaim your belief which you don’t actually feel. And if you aren’t grateful for what you do receive, why would the Creator give you more?

Think of your spiritual work as the 3 P’s: Prayer, Perseverance, and Patience. Connect with the Creator, keep working every day, and wait for the Universe to solve its Rubik’s Cube of movements to make everything perfect for your desires to take form.

May you be richly blessed!

Beautiful Days

The sun is high in the sky and the sky is bluer than blue. The temperature is warm enough to keep you comfortable with just a light breeze to make the humidity low. What nicer a day can there be? We feel energized and happy when the weather is this way, and we get lulled into thinking that all is right with the world, when the same old wars, arguments, dangers, etc., are still out there. In fact, on days that are otherwise perfect, we should have the energy to work even harder to make these feelings go all the further. Through our prayers and meditations on harmony, peace, healing, and love that dispels all darkness and danger, we can make days such as this go all the further, reach deeper into the future and bring greater and greater light into our world.

Speak and think positively. When we find ourselves believing that all is lost, we ARE lost. This requires that we pick ourselves up by our bootstraps, dust off the seat of our pants and keep walking anyway. It is hard. It is unbelievable. Because we have to admit that there is a future out in front of us on the path where life will be what we want it to be. It may be different than it is right now, but the way it is, is what put us in the position of negativity we've gotten into to begin with. Different, therefore, is better. So believe, affirm, believe, affirm, and believe! Keep that picture postcard perfect image in your mind's eye and know from your heart that you can get there. Speak and think positively. It makes all the difference in the metaphysical world. So even on these beautiful days with perfect weather, remember to keep that positive energy flowing through prayer and meditation in whatever manner works for you, whatever makes your connection to the unseen world strong and capable of pushing the negative thoughts, events, and violent situations at bay. We can do it!
May you be richly blessed!
Rev. Sandra

Natural Disasters

Dear friends,

We are entering into a time when natural disasters are a significant part of life. True, we did not find ourselves facing the "end of the world" recently, but we are finding that our beloved families and friends across the world are suffering at the hands of natural disasters which humble all of us to recognize the power and splendor of our Mother Earth as she attempts to heal herself.

There is little that we can do to protect our loved ones from the onset of these disasters, beyond prayer and visualizing the White Light shielding them and their homes. This has been shown to work when we release our fear and negativity and focus on the protective power of the Light. We need not be experts, and just visualizing, or holding the thought in our minds, is enough to add to the protection and healing going out into the world.

Any time we attempt to bring greater Light into the world, we are honoring the Metaphysical Universe and helping to bring greater balance and peace into our lives and those with whom we have a connection. Do this, my friends, and we may be able to restore the balance in nature and promote harmony amongst all beings here on earth.

May you be richly blessed!
Rev. Sandra

All That Is

I open myself to the blue of the sky

Its sweet, infinite breath all around me

Lifting me up, up, up beyond the chaos

That shuffles the people in their cars and homes

And I slip into the Light, absorbing and reflecting

All the good and gracious gifts that smile through me

So I remember how it is in balance, perfect balance,

That keeps all the world safely stirring in harmony.

And I let the Light pass through me to the needy,

To the hurt, the injured, the sick, the hungry, the poor,

So that they can have what they need right now

And I let love fill me, work through me,

To chase away fear and arrogance

So that the infinite good of the Creator is all that is.