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True Gratitude

by Rev. Dan Strodl, O.M.C.

Ten years ago I went to a talk by Sarah Breathnach where she shared about the value of doing gratitudes. She suggested doing five gratitudes every day and see what happens. I started doing them that night, and noticed I was appreciating things in my life I used to take for granted. And a list of gratitudes kept growing.

Then a few years ago a new kind of gratitude came in to my life. As upsetting, fearful, or judgmental thoughts came up, I stepped back, quieted my mind, and invited Holy Spirit to show me a new way of seeing the situation.

The first miracle that caught my attention was with my rich non-biological sister. She was terminally ill, and she told me that she was leaving her millions to her adopted daughter. I didn’t say anything, but inside I felt upset that she wasn’t going to put me in her will. I asked Holy Spirit, “How you would have me see this?” And what I received was “You will always have enough.” This brought me back to peace ... why would I ever need more than enough?

The second miracle that stood out for me was when I had an appointment with an oncology consultant to get the results of the cancerous lesion on my nose. I had met him before and found him in a hurry, unhelpful and he made no eye contact.

Before I left home I went to Holy Spirit and asked for a new way of seeing this situation. What came back was “Treat everyone as your angel.” So I went to the appointment and treated him as my angel. I softened, smiled, and blessed him with loving thoughts. OMG! ... he made eye contact and smiled back. Then he gave me the prognosis, which was that I had a spot on my nose that was cancerous. He said I could have it removed with a new treatment which was non-invasive, but I would have to wait three months. The thought of having cancer growing on my nose for three months was so upsetting and I told him that. My consultant angel then offered me the phone number of the surgeon’s secretary. He said to call her and see if she could get me an earlier appointment.

I went home and called the secretary, and I treated her as my angel. She said she would speak to the surgeon and get back to me, which would probably take two to three weeks. So I sat there feeling helpless and alone.

Five minutes later the phone rang and it was the surgeon’s secretary. She said there had just been a cancellation and could I get there in fifteen minutes. I flew there like I’ve never moved before, and fifteen minutes later I was on the operating table. All went well and I had a successful operation.

These two miracles really got my attention, and from that day on, whenever my peace was disrupted, I turned to the Holy Spirit for a new way of seeing. With this simple practice and with all the blessings I receive every day, my gratitude list went from things of this world to true Gratitude. I am so eternally grateful that the Holy Spirit is always there 24/7, giving me a new way to walk in the world, always being there for me, always ready to return me to peace love and joy.

Rev. Dan Strodl O.M.C., is a Pathways of Light minister living in London, UK.
Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)  Web: danstrodl.com

© 2018, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice and website address are included.

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The Chronic & Critical Illness Support Group

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

Have you ever thought: How on earth am I ever going to change my mind about this illness when it is so painful, so debilitating, so strongly impacting my life? How can I say that this is not real, it does not exist, it is just illusion?

In The Chronic and Critical Illness Group we talk about these topics and offer ways to see things from a different perspective.
For example, last month (we meet by teleconference once a month on the first Sunday) we talked about “How can I accept that I have decided to have this illness?” 

This seems to be where a lot of people just walk away and can’t go on to accept that there is a decision that they have made to avoid a worse fate than this illness. And yet, we have to look beyond our body, our current physical situation to find within ourselves the event that was unacceptable to us that we moved away from it, and we need the Help of the Holy Spirit for this.

For example, as a child we may have been so upset over our parents’ fighting and criticizing but we didn’t realize that it was their choice based on their beliefs. Without this understanding a child’s mind decides it is their fault … “I am bad, I am the reason they are not loving me. I need to try harder. They are supposed to love me. If they don’t love me, then it must be my fault. I did something wrong, and I have to try harder to get their love. This must be true because I don’t understand how else it could be.”

So we find something that either gets a compliment or some negative attention. We repeat this over and over again until it becomes our ‘truth.’ We don’t believe anything else will bring the desired results. When we blame ourselves, we can’t imagine that we deserve better results, better health, better worthiness, better love because we don’t realize our parents behavior was their acting out their beliefs. 

For a child who has lost the sense of their loving Essence, there seem to be no alternatives. The child has to find his way in a confusing world full of hardship, sorrow, pain, and difficulty. Our small mind tries to make sense of this nonsensical world, but we never can.

So, it is helpful to talk to someone who can find our error in our thinking. We continue to walk around with this world view because this energy will play out what we believe in our lives.

Or we can go within and ask the Holy Spirit what needs correction. As we recognize the thread that leads us to our childish assumptions and silly errors, we may experience guilt and horror because we can’t understand that anyone could forgive us, that anyone would still like us, let alone love us.

Yet we are here to help each other do just that. We need each other to see the Love, the Light, the Beauty that resides in every person and in every thing because God has placed it there. And it cannot be removed. It is permanent, guaranteed and unchangeable. We grow through relationships with our brothers and sisters.

There is a way to get past our blocked perceptions. In our monthly meetings, we help each other understand, at least in concept, how to find another way to see our situation. We bring not just Course passages to mind, but also suggest other authors who have experienced similar difficulties and have shared ways they used to move beyond the hardships with the help of the Holy Spirit and the principles of A Course In Miracles.

We also talk to anyone who would like one-on-one help by connecting in various ways — email, phone, Skype, or in person. There is no charge and no obligation. It is confidential, and there is no judgment.  We are here to forgive and see the Light in each other. We share our loving thoughts and our experiences. We want to help you heal your mind; that in turn has a powerful effect on the body. The body is a mind reader, and like a computer, it reads what it is programmed to do. And we look at what program you have accepted as the only one, and bring it to the Light.

We come together to correct the old program we have accepted as children, or from our world around us, and replace the old lessons with what we receive from Divine Wisdom, from the Holy Spirit, from our Higher Self, or from the Divine Universe … there is only One Divine Realm, and that is our Home.

We want to help you remember Home.

You don’t need to be terminally ill or in chronic pain to join us. These discussions are for everyone who is trying to gain insights into living in this ego world. There is another world beyond this one and we can get there any time, and under difficult or better circumstances.

We would welcome you wholeheartedly.

The link is on the Pathways of Light website. Or contact me, Maria Kingsley and I’ll send you the phone number to call. We also record the discussions and I’ll be happy to send you links to any one of them.

Help is available, and all you have to do is ask.

Rev. Maria Kingsley is a Pathways of Light minister living in Tucson, Arizona. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)  520-780-0170 P.O. Box 35122 Tucson, AZ 85740

© 2018, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice and website address are included.

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What I Hear My Brother Say Is Up to Me

by Rev. Myron Jones, O.M.C.

It is, therefore, your choice whether they support the ego or the Holy Spirit in you. And you will recognize which you have chosen by their reactions. (T-15:II.4:5)

I asked the Holy Spirit for an example of this so that I could understand it better. How can it be my choice whether my brother witnesses to the ego or the Holy Spirit? He immediately brought to mind someone I used to work for. I didn’t like or trust this man. Everything he said or did reflected my dislike for him. His words to me, and his actions toward me, seemed to be an attack and I did not feel safe around him. I always expected him to fire me at any moment, and each attack seemed like a preamble to that.

What I did not see at that time is that I had an ego-driven attitude toward him and he was reflecting this back to me. My ego and his ego seemed to be in a pitched battle all the time. The loss of peace this caused me was too much for me to bear, and so I finally decided to end the war. I asked the Holy Spirit to show me a different way to see this man. I told Him I wanted to love this man.

My intention set the stage for the Holy Spirit in me to communicate with the Holy Spirit in Him, and the only communication the Holy Spirit knows is love. Very quickly, I began to notice so many good qualities in him. I began to enjoy our conversations and I found him very easy to work with. His words seemed kind and conciliatory.

It was as Jesus said: “It is, therefore, your choice whether they support the ego or the Holy Spirit in you. And you will recognize which you have chosen by their reactions.” Well I certainly saw a change in communication with him. Perhaps he was always the man I came to know and I simply heard from him what I expected to hear. When I changed my mind about supporting the ego in me, how I heard his words changed. It is a lesson I am not going to quickly forget.
Learning to Accept Magnitude

I find it very reassuring to know that the Holy Spirit can keep my magnitude clean of arrogance. I want to live in my magnitude but not let it be tainted by the ego needs and desires. In the past, I tended to play small because I was afraid of this. I was afraid to claim the power of God in me, afraid my ego mind would be using it. This was because I was not yet clearly identified with my Self and still often I identified as my ego. Now, it is the other way around, and I am clear that the ego is on the way out, and I am not afraid of it anymore.

For the Holy Spirit to guard my magnitude, I must watch the decisions I make about myself and let Him decide for God for me. For instance, I am a minister, a teacher, and an author. If I decide that makes me special and that people should treat me special because of it, I am deciding against God. I am using my gifts to inflate my littleness to give me a false sense of magnitude.

If this were to happen, I would ask the Holy Spirit to correct my thinking by deciding for God for me. This is how I do my part to side with the Holy Spirit. I simply give Him permission to correct me when I am misusing the power of God that is in me. I feel pretty safe with this power now. I know the difference now between being arrogant and being truly humble. I feel safe claiming magnitude because I am happy that I am being used for His purposes and I know that I am not useful through the ego self, but through my surrender of the ego self.

I do join with you, Jesus, in deciding for holiness for me. I will work with you to restore the awareness of magnitude. Here I am, Lord. Give Yourself through me. I surrender the little self that I have so long treasured so that there is nothing blocking You. I think of the power of God working through me to help complete the task Jesus chose for himself and I am flooded with joy. There is nothing I want more than to know myself as the host to God.

Rev. Myron Jones, O.M.C., is a Pathways of Light minister living in Westlake, Louisiana. Read her inspiring Healing Journal articles on the Pathways website. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Myron’s website is: http://www.forgivenessisthewayhome.org

© 2018, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice and website address are included.

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Are You Holy Spirit’s Assistant?

by Rev. Barbara Goodman Siegel, O.M.C.

Reflecting on a spiritual counseling session I had done with a client earlier in the day, I felt that somehow I had missed the boat in my advice to her. This client has been feeling extremely overwhelmed with the duties of being a caretaker for her very ill partner as well as having the responsibilities for their home and pets. I have felt that she is doing far more than she needs to (baking bread, caring for a fish tank that she would gladly give away, not being willing to hire someone to clean the yard of dog poop, etc.), but she is in such a habit of doing these things that she is reluctant to let anything go. (I suspect that it also gives her a false sense of control in a situation over which she feels she has no control.) I have suggested that she ask Holy Spirit to help her write a schedule of what needs to be done and what she can release, but this suggestion has been met with great reluctance.

This client is a long-time A Course in Miracles student. Intellectually she knows (as we all do) that she should ask Holy Spirit what to do, but seems afraid she won’t “hear” Holy Spirit’s direction or that it won’t help her find peace and may make things even worse. I did want her to feel she had Holy Spirit’s help so I told her that she has a full time assistant, Holy Spirit, and that Holy Spirit is there all the time and is completely free of charge.

But, as Course students, we both knew that the way it really should go is the reverse: Holy Spirit is the manager and she is the assistant. Holy Spirit will tell her what to do, when to do it, and how, and then she can do it with Spirit’s help and she need only do what she is guided to do. I knew that if I told her this she would ask me how she would know it was Spirit and not her ego talking to her as her ego has been very loud of late. So, the next morning, in my Course study and journaling time I asked Holy Spirit about it and the following is the conversation we had. 

Me to Spirit:

You lead and we follow, correct? But how do we do that? Like today, I am thinking of going for a manicure/pedicure. Is that what you want me to do? I have no idea. Really! Is it just the holy encounters that you want me to have and it doesn’t matter what I do? I don’t know how to know and that is what I want your help with. Do I get a mani/pedi today?  Do I wait until next Tuesday, the day they a give discounted price? Do you even care? Is there something you want me to do today that I haven’t even thought of? I think you see how confused I am especially when it comes to the trivia of everyday life. Indeed, I think I am embarrassed to ask about anything so trivial as a mani/pedi, but the Course says we are to follow your direction in everything, so I am willing to listen. Please help me in how to hear. Is it moment by moment? What if I need to make an appointment?

I “hear” this answer from Divine Spirit:

OK, Barbara, I get it. Sometimes it is moment by moment and sometimes we need to look ahead, so it is going to vary and nothing is too trivial to ask me about.  If you choose to get a mani/pedi today, are you at peace about it? Does it seem like fun or does it seem like a chore. Are you fighting something else in your mind concerning what you feel you are being guided to do and pushing it out to do this, or does going for a mani/pedi feel good? Above all, do you feel you can do it with joy, love, and peace?

When you feel you can do whatever it is you are thinking of doing in joy, love, and peace, than I am with you. When you force it, when it just feels like a big, exhausting chore, than you are choosing to lead and I am no longer in charge. Look at your thought of what you are going to do and ask yourself, “Does this feel like drudgery or joy?”  Let Me lead in joy. 

I always lead in joy, love, and peace, even if what I am telling you to do is dig a ditch, clean a toilet, write a bestseller, or build a beautiful building. It doesn’t matter — one is not bigger, greater, or more significant. All that matters is that you do it in joy, in love, and in peace. That is why My lead is important because everything we do together is done this way! Remember in the movie The Shack, when the main character tries to walk on the water alone and can’t? Jesus (a symbol of the Holy Spirit) says to him: “This works better when we do it together, don’t you think?” And then they run together across the top of the water having the best time ever!

Even in the most horrific time of the main character’s life, finding his murdered daughter’s body and forgiving her killer, he can bare it because I am with him and I am holding him in love and compassion. Can you imagine if he had found his murdered daughter’s body without Me there? Oh my! Could he have gone on living? Thank God (literally) we do not know the answer to that question.

This is the best answer I can give you, Barbara. Start each day by joining with Me and re-dedicating yourself to being My assistant. Let Me lead the way. Listen and you will hear (or feel) my direction. You do this well when writing (as does your client, by the way), now take it into all you do. When finishing one thing, stop long enough to hear Me tell you or feel Me guide you to what our next task or activity is. Also, please be sure to allow Me to say that it is time to have fun. (Something you might be resistant to.) Just like the above example of running across the water, I like to have fun! I also know we need to rest in God, so we will allow for that. It may be in meditation or in literal rest. Don’t anticipate, don’t worry, and don’t try to plan everything. I am in the present and I am here always and forever. I am that I AM. Stay with Me, let Me lead. The way will be easy when I am in charge.

I love you and I love your willingness to follow Me, now translate your willingness into doing. The more you do this, the easier it will become until it is second nature. Start where you are, but start! There isn’t going to be a better day or time than now. To wait is to suffer. To wait is to push away your enlightenment. (Please see the word “lighten” in that statement as it literally will lighten the weight you try to carry alone.) To wait is to consciously choose darkness over light, hell over Heaven. You are very aware now of which choice you are making, so no more excuses. What will it be? What do you want? 

Me: I want to follow You!

Holy Spirit: Then you know what to do and I am with you. Let’s begin. I promise you that there is nothing to fear. Your day will flow easily and you will go to bed at night with a smile on your face, peace in your mind, and love in your heart.

I sent this article to my client with great gratitude for the lesson and healing I had received through her concerns and questions. I hope this answers her questions and I hope it helps you, dear reader, with yours.

Rev. Barbara Goodman Siegel, O.M.C., author of “Finding Your Self in the Mirror: Awakening Through Mirror Affirmations for the 365 Lessons of A Course in Miracles,” is a Pathways of Light minister living in St. Louis, Missouri. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Web: Barbaragoodmansiegel.com Finding Your Self in the Mirror is now available at http://www.pathwaysoflight.org. Click on Store, select Books inspired by ACIM.

© 2018, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice and website address are included.

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