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January-March, 2017

Get in the Game

by Rev. Cathy Silva, O.M.C.

I heard it loud and clear. “Get off the sidelines and into the game.” I was on the Pathways of Light annual meeting call and we were each asked to speak a message from Holy Spirit to the group. There were so many wonderful supportive loving messages and words shared as we joined together to share about the year prior and the year ahead. There was a pause and then I heard it as clear as day as if it were just for me.

There was another voice in my head too. The doubting voice of the ego that seem to be mocking me, “Okay Rev. Cathy, now that you’ve become an ordained minister, what are you going to do now?” Well, that was a very good question… what indeed. When I made the decision to finally listen and act on the calling to become an ordained minister two years ago, it was followed by the prompting to step back and lay aside all that I was doing professionally. Specifically, my business and coaching work. My coaching work also felt like it was my calling, but my lofty ideas of how I thought it should play out caused much resistance. I didn’t want to approach my new ministry in the same way. I very much wanted to let it unfold rather then forcing it to match my limited ego-driven ideas.

So I consciously stepped away. And all the while I wasn’t working on my business or ministry, Holy Spirit was working on me. I was presented with perfect opportunities to heal. Opportunities like relationship challenges, a persistent skin rash, and a ‘hellish’ presidential election. With each opportunity I became more aware of my need to ‘fix’ and solve the world’s problems with my own ideas of spirituality and love. I literally felt the conflict, separation and fighting I witnessed manifest in my body. I have realized this ability I have of taking on other’s emotions and problems. Through my work as a coach I’ve also learned that I cannot effectively coach or help anyone who is down in the muck if I get down in there with them. 

The thing is that the conflict and muck was not anyone’s but my own showing up in my face in a way that I simply could not ignore any longer. 

There I was on the sidelines, longing to be put in the game and play my part and helping us all to win. You see this was my Calling. I know in every fiber of my being that I am here to help us Awaken; to remember our true Identity as Love.  Through Self discovery work I’ve learned I have the Gifts, abilities and life experiences that perfectly equip and prepare me for this Big Game of Awakening. But I cannot be truly helpful and play my part if I’m solely focused on the other players and what seems to be happening from my perspective on the sideline.

The Pathways of Light curriculum and the principles of A Course in Miracles that my ministry and life centers around are about my own awakening first. So the game is not about fixing or making the world a better place. Or even about spreading love and light all over the battle field or sharing ACIM quotes on social media. I’m sure it’s somewhat helpful but it doesn’t go away.

“The course does not aim at teaching the meaning of love, for that is beyond what can be taught. It does aim, however at removing the blocks to the awareness of love’s presence, which is your natural inheritance.” (ACIM Introduction)

Love’s presence is my natural inheritance. It’s what I am. It’s what you are. It’s our birthright to be Happy and have fun in the game of life.

My part is in being willing to take a good honest look at where I am blocking that Happiness and what’s keeping me out of the game. 

I needed to look at what the skin rash and my emotions around the election process were showing me. I thought the skin rash was the result of my reaction to the election, so my first move was to disengage a bit from Facebook and hide all the political ads and posts that came up on my feed. It was pretty successful but I still had the skin rash, and it was getting worse by the day. ACIM Workbook Lesson 136: Sickness is a defense against the truth came into my awareness and was the focus of my journaling exploration.
I will share my thought process with you —

“No one can heal unless he understands what purpose sickness seems to serve.” (W-pI.136.1:1)

Wow, what possible purpose could I be giving this affliction? — Holy Spirit I am willing and open to See. I’ve noticed the itching and pain goes away when I’m working with a client or being in the present with something I enjoy.

“Sickness is not an accident. Like all defenses, it is our insane device for self-deception.” (W-pI.136.2:1-2) I chose this to deceive myself? How could that be? Why would I do that? That’s just insane!

“And like all the rest, it’s purpose is to hide reality, attack it, twist it, or reduce it to a little pile of unassembled parts.” (2:3)

I’m still playing small, still on the sidelines, even though I keep saying I want to be in the game. I’m hiding my light by not acting on the inspired ideas and opportunities presented to me to take this message of Love more public. I am protecting myself from judgment, conflict, and the possibility that I might ruffle some feathers.

“The aim of all defenses is to keep the truth from being whole. The parts are seen as if each one were whole within itself.” (2:4-5)

I’ve heard the idea from other teachers about ‘disembodied souls.” Perhaps there is something to that. In attempt to convince myself that I am not a body as is taught in the Course, perhaps I have attempted to defend against it and attack it. As if to say to my body, “I am not you; you are sick and weak and imperfect!” This body has been used and abused and mistaken for who I am. It’s been used as a barrier (defense) to protect myself and protect others. 

It is true. I am not a body. But the reality I need to face is I am in a body. This body named Cathy in this life I am living. I have wished for another body, one that is perfectly healthy and strong and fit. Just as I’ve wished for a different life; imagining I should do something different, be something different, do more for others.

The lesson goes on to say that, “defenses are not unintentional, nor are they made without awareness.” I’ve known all along what I was doing. And I masterfully accomplished it. I was hiding my light and holding back from fully expressing the Love that I am.

“Defenses are plans to defeat what cannot be attacked. What is unalterable cannot change. And what is wholly sinless cannot sin.” (W-136.11:6-8)

The Truth is — God is. I am. Love is. I am Love. There is nothing I have done or not done to change that one iota.

“Truth has power far beyond defense, for no illusions can remain where truth has been allowed to enter.” (W-136.14:1)

So this is my new aim, my game winning strategy and what I need to practice — To lay down all defenses and simply remember the truth, and allow the truth to replace the illusion I made.

As I do this, I am guided as to what to do. I finally was ready to be rid of the rash and decided to let down my resistance to going to a doctor about it. I told my husband I was ready. I was able to easily get an appointment in the walk-in clinic.  On the way, I prayed to Holy Spirit to be with us and for it to be a simple straight forward diagnosis. The doc walked into the treatment room, took one look and without me needing to tell him, described my symptoms perfectly. He said in short “it’s scabies, and this is the treatment.” Just like that. It’s no longer needed.

All limits and the purpose I gave my body to protect myself and others is simply laid aside.

“As these are laid aside, the strength the body has will always be enough to serve all truly useful purposes.” (W-136.18:2)

Which leads me to Lesson 137: “When I am healed I am not healed alone. This lesson begins by stating that “sickness is a retreat from others, and a shutting off to joining. It becomes a door that closes on a separate self, and keeps it isolated and alone.”

So ultimately what I am healing is the illusion of being a separate and unique body; the false idea that I can or need to be apart from others in order to protect myself and heal. It’s in the joining in the Spirit of Love in the present, with our companions, that we all are healed.

“When I am healed I am not healed alone. And I would bless my brothers, for I would be healed with them, as they are healed with me.” (W-13715:5-6)

As this healing has taken place, Spirit invited me back into my coaching work again and I’m noticing other opportunities to serve with Pathways of Light and having a ball playing in the game. Our Big Win is the Happiness we share as we awaken to love’s presence together.

Rev. Cathy Silva is a Pathways of Light Minister and Life Purpose Coach in Punta Gorda, Florida. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Web: http://www.cathysilva.org

© 2016, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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January-March, 2017

Gratitude for My Friend

by Rev. Peggy Rivera, O.M.C.

I love this time of year. The weather has cooled off a little bit. Even though I live in Florida, we still get a break from the extremely warm temperatures of July through September. And at Thanksgiving time, I am always reminded to pay attention to the things I am so grateful for, even if sometimes we lose the very things and people we love.

This is the time of year that we reflect over the past year and acknowledge all that we have learned. Some people really struggle during the holidays because it is a reminder of the people that are no longer with them. This year we lost a wonderful and lovely friend, she was my teacher for the Pathways of Light 900 courses, Linda Wisniewski. I loved her dearly and I will miss her tremendously and I know everyone who knew her feels like I do. Her light could brighten a room. It is no wonder that she left us during this time of thanksgiving. Because she is such a light that anyone who shared time with her would find themselves inspired by her, and grateful for the opportunity to know her. I am so thankful she came into my life. She was a wonderful teacher, she was so loving and kind. She never failed to let you know she was happy to even hear your voice.

Linda really taught me about loving unconditionally. She often laughed and said “no guilt, I’m innocent.” She really brought home what it means to be non-judgmental. She reminded me that God doesn’t judge, we do. But that is also why we are here, learning to accept everyone as they are because we are all one.

Sometimes I think I have gotten past something that I held a grievance over and I will feel really good about myself, thinking I have really come far. Then something will trigger an old feeling and suddenly I think, “Whoa, what happened there?” I have learned that often times there are layers to my feelings. And I realize that when I have been triggered, it is another opportunity to heal at an even deeper level.

Our emotions are like diamonds. They have many facets. For the diamond to really sparkle, you have to clean all the facets. This doesn’t mean you have to dwell on old feelings and keep them alive; it just means you can acknowledge them so you can understand and heal.

Living with buried feelings really does keep you imprisoned, but looking at them and shining them off sets you free. This is because if you don’t look at them, the tendency is to bury them and keep acting out from that place. If you don’t want to live in the past, you have to set it free.

We do that by looking at how the emotions have created patterns that keep repeating themselves throughout our life. Then we ask Holy Spirit to show us how to see differently. This is how we really heal — we see what needed to be learned in this earthly sojourn. Every time we allow ourselves to really look at what lies beneath the surface, we gain clarity and the ability to love deeper than we did before. We realize there is really no need to forgive anyone because what we have experienced is an illusion that we created that actually brought a deeper healing.

With all this said, I feel so happy to have had the people in my life that have been my teachers, some taught me through very painful experiences and others, like my beloved Linda, taught me through more love, more understanding and more kindness. And even though I will miss her physical presence, I know she is one of the guiding stars that will forever be near, guiding me and all of us who need her.

Thank you Linda for being my teacher, and thank you God for bringing us together.

Rev. Peggy Rivera, O.M.C., is a Pathways of Light minister living in Palm Bay, Florida 305-322-6610 Email:7seas@bellsouth.net Web: http://www.revpriveralifeministries.com

© 2016, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this copyright notice and website address are included.

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January-March, 2017

Pinot Noir for the Higher Good!

by Rev. Maria Felipe, O.M.C.

When you give everything over to the Holy Spirit, where to go and what to do becomes obvious… and in my case, it feels easy! This was the case with my book Live Your Happy, forthcoming from New World Library in April, 2017.

I had no plans to write a book. I suffer from dyslexia, and honestly I don’t like to write or read much. But as I’ve learned since becoming a minister, nothing is up to “me” — it’s a matter of what serves the higher good.

In this case, Pinot Noir and Facebook helped me serve the higher good. After having a yummy glass of wine I wrote a paragraph that I felt could be in a book, and posted it on FB as “an excerpt from my book.” (Never post when drinking!) D. Patrick Miller, a literary agent and original publisher of The Disappearance of the Universe by Gary Renard, responded and inquired about my book! Well, I did not have a book; it was the Pinot Noir talking!  After several conversations that led me to letting go of the belief that I couldn’t be a writer, we decided to create a book proposal. In a few months, we had a book deal!

How did this happen? I got out of my own way, but most importantly I stepped into full trust. I didn’t try to make it happen, nor did I let the book define me or become a “big deal.” I used the teachings from the Pathways of Light ministerial program and ACIM, and embodied them fully. No compromise!

From the book: “The secret of living your happy is that you don’t have to find something or someone that’s missing before you can claim it. But it is useful to identify any barriers that get in the way of living your happy — including fear, impatience, and doubt. We’ll look more closely at those barriers as we go along. For now, just be willing to give up whatever might be blocking your well-deserved joy. This is how you will get out of your own way and let the will of God — which is the same as the intention of love — be accomplished instead.”

The book is not so much about understanding the truth, but rather experiencing it. This is something I struggled with when I read self -help books; I’d understand the material and feel really good for a hot second, then I was back to my own ways. I’m hoping that my book speaks to your true Self in an easy and joy-filled way! But as I mention in the introduction: “It’s not necessarily easy” — you have to want to change, or the cuckoo-mind of the ego will have its way with you.

As I step into this new world of being an author I am not sure what’s going to happen. But I am sure that I will be living my happy no matter what happens.

Rev. Maria Felipe, OMC lives in Los Angeles, California. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Web: http://www.mariafelipe.org Her book Live Your Happy will be available April, 2017 in bookstores and Amazon.com

© 2016, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this copyright notice and website address are included.

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January-March, 2017

Our Only Function to Find Peace

by Rev. Joanne Kraenzle Schneider, Ph.D., O.M.C.

It’s fairly safe to say, we are all searching for peace, whether we know it or not. The Course teaches that salvation is the only way in which we can find peace of mind. (W-pI.65.2:3) Yet, how do we practice salvation?

Salvation and forgiveness are the same. (W-pI.99.1:1) Thus, salvation, being forgiveness, is looking past our distorted view of the world, our perceptual errors. (ACIM, 2007, pg. xi) It is a letting go of the past and the future and being with what is. Salvation, or forgiveness, is our only function (W-pI.65) and the only way we can reach our goal, peace of mind. (W-pI.65.2:3) Yet we have taken on so many competing goals, for example, family goals, work goals, household goals, life goals, even spiritual goals. These goals reflect things we want to achieve in the world and are predicated on our distorted world view, not on salvation.

To find peace, we need to look past this distorted world view and learn to drop thoughts about the lingering past and the looming future. We need to be willing to sit with a quiet, forgiving mind to open the door for peace. Yet when we take time to be present, to quiet our mind, as in meditation for example, we are flooded with a constant “mental dialogue” that many of us call chatter (Singer, 2007, p. 7)

Most of us have, at least at some point, viewed the chatter with frustration and annoyance, even to a point where we gave up trying to meditate.

The Course provides an alternative view for this chatter. “Rather, try to uncover each thought that arises to interfere with [salvation]. Note each one as it comes to you, with as little involvement or concern as possible, dismissing each one by telling yourself: This thought reflects a goal that is preventing me from accepting my only function.” (W-pI.65.5:4-6)

As an exercise, close your eyes and quiet your mind. When chatter arises, note the goal of the chatter and say to yourself, “This thought reflects a goal that is preventing me from accepting my only function.” Then let the thought drop.

As I watch my mind, I have mental dialogue about what I will say to someone to resolve a situation at work. I note that the goal is to resolve an issue. I say to myself, “This thought reflects a goal that is preventing me from accepting my only function.” I let that thought drop. Quiet.

Then more chatter about how I need to do something; the goal, to complete a task. “This thought reflects a goal that is preventing me from accepting my only function.” I let the thought drop; I forgive. Quiet.

Chatter again, this time the chatter is about the steps I will follow to do a project; the goal, to complete the project. At this point I notice that I believe that getting these things said or completed helps me reach a goal in the world. I also recognize that these world-based goals give me a false sense of peace of mind. There are only more goals to achieve, each giving me a sense of achievement, but no peace. I want out of this rat race.

Going back to the Course, my real function, salvation, is the ONLY way to find peace of mind. “’My only function is the one God gave me.’ This is the only way in which you can find peace of mind.” (W-pI.65.2:3)

Thus, it might be as instructive for you as it was for me to take some time to recognize the goals you have substituted for your only real goal. Recognize that your thoughts reflect goals that are preventing you from accepting your only function. After you have done this for a while, “interfering thoughts will become harder to find.” (W-pI.65.6:1) Then tell yourself, “On this clean slate let my true function be written for me.” (W-pI.65.6:3-4)

Even more important than the words, “try to get the sense of being willing to have your illusions of purpose be replaced by truth.” (W-pI.65.6:5) Take on the willingness to forgive. Let go of past and future thoughts that reflect world goals. Let them drop, forgive them, and simply be with what is. Recognize the peace that comes with being with what is, with a willingness to forgive. Be willing to forgive the goals you have substituted for your only goal. Recognize that salvation is your only function to reach peace of mind. And, remember that, “My only function is the one God gave me. I want no other and I have no other.” (W-pI.65.8:2-3) Adopting and living in this recognition offers us escape from all of our perceived difficulties. (W-pI.65.3:2)

References:Singer, M.A. (2007). The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger.

Rev. Joanne Kraenzle Schneider is a Pathways of Light minister living in Festus, Missouri. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

© 2016, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this copyright notice and website address are included.

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