Greeting the New Year With Hope!

This is an image of a diverse group of hands holding up colorful letters that spell HOPE.

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The three most important words that most of us have heard from our early experiences in church or school were faith, hope and love. Isn’t it interesting that faith and love are in the present tense and can be felt and experienced by others, as well as yourself, in the moment.

 

Webster defines faith as “a strong belief or trust in someone or something;” and love as “a feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection, as for a parent, child, or friend.”‎

 

Hope, however, does not typically generate as strong an emotional response as either of these words because it does not create an emotional experience today. It is a feeling or a mindful wish for tomorrow or some point in the future. That point in the future is most likely a goal or vision we have set for an outcome that we desire.

 

So what is hope?

 

Wikipedia says that hope is: “an optimistic attitude of mind based on an expectation of positive outcomes related to events and circumstances.” Hope, therefore, is the internal wish or, as some would say, a prayer for something to occur.

 

We, as a country, hope for peace and the end of wars. We, as a family, hope for unconditional love and support. We, as individuals, are always hoping for a better life filled with the qualities of health, joy, and prosperity.

In a physical world that is filled with crime, poverty, war, and disease, it is easy to get caught up in the fear of what we see and to lose hope for a better world.  Let us never underestimate the power of hope. Hope gives us the ability to endure hardships while working toward a positive outcome. When we have hope, we can experience all the difficulties that life has thrown in our way, and we can climb out of the depths of despair to achieve our goals and to realize our dreams.

 

As we look forward to a successful and pleasant 2015, it is important that we continue to remember that our hopes and dreams are the inspirational fuel that ignites our passion to create a physical world that reflects our eternal connection with Universal Love.  When we have hope, we persist in focusing on the light even in the darkness, and anything is possible.  In the words of Samuel Smiles, “Hope is like the sun, which, as we journey toward it, casts the shadow of our burden behind us”.

 

May this year be your best year ever!

 

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

 

 

Sandra Brossman is the author of The Power of Oneness, Live the Life You Choose and the featured presenter in Live the Life You Choose DVD.  To learn more about how you can align your life with spiritual truth, order the book or DVD box set at  http://www.thepowerofoneness.com/products/

The Ultimate New Year’s Gift: Self-Love

This is the image of a chalk board with the text, "I Love Me" written

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New Year’s is the time of year for reflection and for making life changing decisions that bring about improvements in your life.

 

Many of us spend the first day of the year living in regrets for things not done and focusing on unfulfilled dreams.  Dwelling on the past is likely to cause you to feel powerless and judgmental about yourself.  More importantly, dwelling on mistakes of the past deprives you of focusing on the golden opportunities of the present.

 

This year, vow to give yourself the ultimate gift – self-love.  Self-love is not about narcissism, vanity, and ignoring the needs of others.  Self-love is about being kind, respectful, and forgiving of yourself.

 

Where do you start? Grab a pen and tablet!  Doing the following four very simple exercises will help you to start your New Year in a wonderful, healthy self-loving way:

 

  1. Make a list of everything for which you are thankful.  Gratitude opens the soul to acknowledging the many blessings you already have.  This is not just the “big stuff,” like getting a promotion.  It also includes the basics we take for granted, like having food, water, and a warm place to call home.  We tend to forget how many people in the world do not even have the basics to survive in life.

 

  1. Write down 10 of the biggest “mistakes” you think you have made over the past year.  Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and one-by-one, forgive yourself.  Honestly, it is as simple as saying, “I did the best I could with what I knew at the time – I forgive myself NOW.”  This is perhaps the most healing thing we can ever do for ourselves because we free ourselves to move into present time, where all new possibilities exist!

 

  1. Write down at least 10 major lessons you learned from the “10 biggest mistakes” (item 2) –  Success is so much more than the absence of failure.  It is about learning and growing from every experience we have – both “good” and “bad.”

 

  1. Write down 10 things you choose to accomplish this year.  Be sure to begin each statement with “I am (the ultimate words of creation), state it in the positive, and say it as though it already is accomplished, i.e. “I am increasingly treating myself with love and respect, and I am attracting people who love and respect me in all my relationships.”

 

It is never too late to bring in the change that you have always wanted to see around you. Let this New Year be the one that will see you being at the forefront of introducing new ideas and new concepts to make the world a better and safer place.

 

Happy, Healthy New Year!

 

Sandra

 

 

Sandra Brossman is the author of The Power of Oneness, Live the Life You Choose and the featured presenter in Live the Life You Choose DVD.  To learn more about how you can align your life with spiritual truth, order the book or DVD box set at  http://www.thepowerofoneness.com/products/

 

The Healing Power of Human Touch

 

This is an image of two toddlers hugging each other.

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We live in an age where technology can connect us with almost anyone anywhere, all in a matter of seconds, through texting, email, Facebook, Twitter, and Skype. Through social media, we now have the capacity to almost instantly message out updates of our lives, pictures of family and friends, opinions about people, political viewpoints, birth notices, death notices, jokes, and even pictures of what we have had for dessert. Technically speaking, we have never been more connected. . . . . or NOT!

 

Paradoxically, in the midst of all this instantaneous communication, enormous numbers of people are feeling desperately lonely. So what is missing? Perhaps we have become so preoccupied with living in our heads, that we are becoming disconnected from our body-mind connection. Indeed, in many ways, we are becoming a human-touch-deprived society.

 

Human touch is as vital to our health and happiness as food or water. From the time we are born to the time of our death, we crave human touch. Touch is a means of communication that is so critical that research shows that infants deprived of direct human contact grow slowly and even die.

 

Even as we grow into adulthood, scientific studies have proven that touching someone in a caring nurturing way has the capacity to help the body in many ways, such as:

 

• Decrease stress and anxiety
• Strengthen your immune system
• Lower blood pressure
• Increase endorphin levels (your feel-good hormones)
• Help you to sleep better

 

Beyond the obvious positive effects on our body, human touch also creates the ability to restore our minds and bodies with our spiritual connection. When we physically touch someone in a kind, loving way we are doing something which technology cannot do – we are communicating our feelings of love and acceptance at a level that is far deeper than words. Gently rubbing someone’s back, giving a hug, holding someone’s hand, and even a pat on the back can go a long way in nourishing that person’s soul, as well as your own; for when you touch another person in a kind way, you are blessed in return. Touch transmits love, and love has the power to heal everyone and everything.

 

The next time you feel lonely or in need of physical and emotional reassurance, find a person or an animal you care about and give them a hug! The power to heal another is literally at our fingertips!

 

Love and Light

 

Sandra

 

 

Sandra Brossman is the author of The Power of Oneness, Live the Life You Choose and the featured presenter in Live the Life You Choose DVD.  To learn more about how you can align your life with spiritual truth, order the book or DVD box set at  http://www.thepowerofoneness.com/products/

 

How Would You Change Your Life Now If You Knew You Had Only One More Year To Live?

This is a gold image telling you to change your life now.

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We all know that no one is going to live in this lifetime forever.  Sooner or later, we all need to face that, for better or worse, our lives here on earth will inevitably come to an end.  It’s kind of like the “pink elephant in the room” expression indicating that we are sometimes uncomfortable discussing the obvious.

 

Ironically, we tend to become most clear about what really matters in life at the end of our lives, not when we are born.  It really is a paradox:  Although we have to live life going forward, we can best understand life by looking back.  This fact is evident in that many people, when nearing death, are gifted with a phenomenal clairvoyant retroactive vision in which they totally comprehend the parts of life which were most important to them.

 

So how about if we reverse the sequence and tap into the wisdom that people have shared at the end of their lives and use these insights to guide us to live our lives to the fullest in present time?

 

Bronnie Ware is an Australian nurse who spent several years working in palliative care, caring for patients in the last 12 weeks of their lives. She recorded their dying epiphanies in a blog called Inspiration and Chai.

 

“When questioned about any regrets they had or anything they would do differently,” she says, “common themes surfaced again and again.”

Here are the top five regrets of the dying, as witnessed by Ware:

The most common of all was:

 

1. I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the one others expected of me. Most had not honored even half of their dreams. She found that they went to their death realizing that this was a choice they had made, and they deeply regretted having never really lived their dreams, or even part of them.

 

2. I wish that I hadn’t worked so hard. This came from many male patients she had nursed. They regretted missing their children growing up and the companionship of their spouse or partner. She primarily worked with elderly men because this generation didn’t have as many women who were breadwinners. All of the men deeply regretted spending so much time “on the treadmill” of work and giving in to the drive to get ahead. As I suspected, no one ever said on their death bed, “I only wish I had worked harder.”

 

3. I wish I had the courage to express my feelings. Many had repressed their own feelings to keep the peace, either with a spouse or family members. As a result, they settled for a mediocre life and didn’t realize their own potential. She said many had developed illnesses related to carrying the resentment and bitterness for so many years.

 

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends. They would realize, too late, the importance of close friendships and in the last stages of life didn’t have the time to track them down to tell them how sorry they were. They were caught up in their own lives and let important friendships slip and realized too late how deeply they regretted this. She observed that love and relationships were ultimately the only thing that mattered to all of her patients in the end.

 

5. I wish I had let myself be happier. She said this was surprisingly common and that many did not realize that happiness is a choice they could have made all along. Because of their fear of change, they pretended to themselves and others that they were content. Deep inside they longed to really belly laugh and be silly and not care what others thought. On their deathbed, what others thought was not important.

 

I would add two more very important suggestions for living life to the fullest measure:

 

1. Forgive yourself for any ‘mistakes’ you think you have made.

When you forgive yourself, you can forgive everyone else, and nothing creates more peace than forgiveness.

 

2. Say, “I love you” to as many people as you can – Expressing your love is the greatest gift you can ever give to yourself and to everyone you meet.

 

Having read this blog, we have come full cycle back to the question in the beginning:

 

“How would you change your life now if you knew you had only one more year to live?

 

I welcome your insights.

 

Love and Light

 

Sandra

 

 

Sandra Brossman is the author of The Power of Oneness, Live the Life You Choose.  To learn more about how you can align your life with spiritual truth, order the book at http://www.thepowerofoneness.com/products/ 

 

Are You Paying Attention to the Miracles Around You?

This is the image of two Doves flying in a beautiful blue sky

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We live in a world in which we have become addicted to stimulation.  It seems that no matter where we go, our five senses are bombarded in environments that are too loud, too bright, too fast, and too aggressive.  Not surprisingly, this overexposure to external stimulation is causing us to become desensitized to the miracles of nature that are all around us.

 

I am sometimes overwhelmed by the abundance of gifts the earth graciously and unconditionally provides for us with no effort on our part.  The air we breathe, the water we drink, the plants we eat, and the earth beneath our feet are but a few of the phenomenal gifts we tend to take for granted.

 

When we slow down, take a deep breath, and stop reacting to the external commotion, we stop “looking for miracles” and begin to notice that there are miracles all around us.  Whether we are paying attention or not, Nature lovingly and generously reveals her innate wisdom to us regarding every aspect of life.

 

Three spring seasons ago, I put a statue of a dove, with the words “peace” inscribed in it, out on my bedroom terrace. I had just moved from a large house and was concerned that, now living on the 14th floor of a high rise, I would no longer be able to enjoy listening to the bird songs that I dearly love.  Since I believe we can communicate with animals, I placed a potted plant on the terrace and sent out a telepathic invitation to the doves to visit us.

 

Within two weeks, two doves showed up and built a nest within the plant I had placed for them on the terrace. They have continued to return several times a year, every year since.  Because I’ve earned their trust, they allow me to get within 1″ of their nest, talk with them, and water the plant. They have blessed me with a front row seat to witness their amazing procreation process, beginning with their mating (they mate for life).

 

What follows their mating process is an extraordinary dance of nature where the male and female work in total concert.  They work together in building the nest, laying of the two eggs (she lays the eggs while he protects her), and sharing the responsibilities of alternately scouting for food while the other one sits on the nest.  It does not matter how cold and windy it may be, they remain unswervingly committed to protecting the eggs until they are hatched.  For weeks after that, they take turns protecting the nest and bringing food back and forth.  When the chicks are old enough, the male and female patiently demonstrate to the babies how to fly from the nest, down three feet to the terrace floor, and back to the nest. After a few weeks, they both leave the babies alone for hours at a time and come back several times a day to feed them and check on them. Within a few weeks, the babies are on their own! They don’t get kicked out of the nest, nor are they abandoned – they are given all that they need to begin discovering the world on their own and then set free to experience life. What is really amazing is that after the babies leave the nest, the parents return one more time, sit on the terrace rail, and coo together for hours. I know they are thanking us.

 

So why am I going on and on with my dove story?

 

I am reminded of so many lessons in life as I observe these beautiful creatures: The extraordinary things that can be accomplished when working together; the integration of male and female energy; the power of the number “2,” (representing love); their relentless dedication to their life purpose; the demonstration to the babies of how to survive; their uncanny wisdom in knowing when to free the babies to explore life on their own; the innate ability of animals to communicate with each other, and, even more amazing, the ability of the animal species to communicate with us humans.

 

I recently looked up the meaning of the dove totem. Although they are best known for their symbology of peace, they are also representative of gracefully moving through the veil between the material world and the metaphysical world of Spirit. How perfect!

 

So here we are again – back to Oneness!  Like the doves, we have the ability to work together in peace and harmony, to lovingly support each other, to bravely fly from the comfort of our “nests” into the unknown, and to move through the veil of our present physical world into the spiritual reality of unconditional love and Oneness.

 

All of these miraculous lessons are so beautifully and simply taught by the mere presence of two doves!

 

Love and Light

 

Sandra

 

 

Sandra Brossman is the author of The Power of Oneness, Live the Life You Choose.  To learn more about how you can align your life with spiritual truth, order the book at http://www.thepowerofoneness.com/products/ 

 

What Matters Most Is How You See Yourself

This is the image of an orange tabby cat with his paw on the mirror as he looks at his reflection

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When you look into or pass by a mirror, what is the first thing you do?  If you are like most people, your first response is to criticize the image reflecting back to you.

 

There is a huge full-length mirror in an elevator lobby in my building that compels anyone who is waiting for the elevators to catch a glimpse of themselves.  I always find it interesting to hear what people say:  “Boy, I look tired,” “My hair looks terrible today,” and “Ooh – I am really gaining weight” are a few of the most common things I hear. I don’t think I have ever heard anyone say something positive about their own reflection.

 

Of course, it is rather uncomfortable to say aloud that you think you look wonderful when you are in a public place.  So the question is: Why do we think it is all right to say something negative about ourselves in a public place?

 

Most of us have been socially conditioned to worry about how other people think of us.  While there is nothing wrong with trying to emulate the qualities we admire in others, we do ourselves a great deal of harm by judging and criticizing ourselves when we think we are not measuring up to our perceptions of other people’s expectations.  Chronic self-criticism produces guilt and shame, and shame is an emotion that continues to perpetuate a negative self-image.

 

So where does our self-image originate? Beginning early in our childhoods, we are mentally programmed with beliefs which have been influenced by years of social conditioning, religious doctrines, family structure, teaching institutions, and customs.  When we were young children, we did not have the mental capabilities to screen what was our personal truth and what was someone else’s, so we unconditionally accepted the perceptions of our parents and people around us as absolute truth. If a parent consistently scolded us by saying we were “bad,” or a teacher in kindergarten told us we were “not bright,” we most likely accepted these statements as gospel.  Because we needed to look to others for our survival when we were young children, we tended to adapt our thinking and behavior to gain acceptance and approval from others.

 

If you have had a lot of positive programming as a child, chances are that you have developed a healthy sense of self-esteem by learning how to focus on your strengths.  If you have had a lot of criticism as you were growing up (and most of us have), you may have developed the habit of constantly looking for your shortcomings. You can spend your whole life living backward by blaming the people who passed on their fear-based beliefs, or you can move into present time by living your life according to your own authentic values. If we truly want to heal, at a soul level, we need to transform the foundation of all of our beliefs from fear to love, beginning with ourselves.

 

The next time you look into a mirror, look into your own eyes and tell yourself what you most need to hear: “I deeply and completely love and accept myself.”  If you are at home, say it out loud.  If you are in public, think it to yourself.  You cannot say or hear it too often because the most basic human need we all have is to be loved and accepted.  If this is a message we want to hear from others, it is a message we need to first tell ourselves.  This practice will help you to develop the habit of focusing on your light and inner beauty because it is based on the unconditional love of Spirit.

 

One of the most touching and simply written summaries I have ever seen regarding self-esteem was written by the 8-year old daughter of a close friend of mine.  Her assignment was to look at a cat looking in a mirror, with a tiger reflecting back.  She was asked to look at the picture and explain her thinking on the following statement:  “What you think of yourself is more important than what you think others think of you.” Following is her response:

 

I think that the statement and picture mean that you need to be proud to be you and to think of yourself as amazing, talented, and very, very special.  Do not worry about what other people think of you.  If YOU think you are great, smart, and doing well, that is probably what other people will think of you.  If not – no worries. In conclusion, be happy with who you are.  Your opinion of yourself may not be the same as others, but that does not matter.  YOU ARE STILL SPECIAL!!

 

Love and Light

 

Sandra

 

A portion of this message is an excerpt from the book, The Power of Oneness, Live the Life You Choose.  To learn more about how you can align your life with spiritual truth, order the book at http://www.thepowerofoneness.com/products/ 

 

When is the Last Time You Said, “I Love Myself?”

This is the image of a green chalkboard with writing that says, "I love myself"

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This question may sound silly – but think about it.  These are the words we most long to hear from others, and yet we rarely say them to ourselves. If we don’t feel comfortable saying this to ourselves, how can we expect to be comfortable in accepting this message from others?  What is even more interesting is that the majority of us have actually never said, “I love myself.”

 

I recently led a spiritual workshop where the topic was about our creative infinite potential as human beings.  Through my extensive journey of personal healing, as well as many years of facilitating energy healing sessions and spiritual workshops, I have come to understand that the only way we can even begin to comprehend the vastness of our infinite potential is to start with the fundamental principle of self-love.  For this reason, I suggested an exercise which involved pairing up. One person would say, “I love myself,” while the other one listened with complete attention, and then they reversed the roles of speaker and listener. Not only did I request that they repeat this mantra aloud to each other, I also suggested they affirm this statement about 25 times. At first, it was apparent that the suggestion to participate in this exercise seemed a little awkward for everyone.  Because of our social conditioning, their initial feeling was that it would be much more easy to say “I love you” to someone else than it was to say “I love myself.”

 

Nevertheless, this open-minded, spiritually attuned group was willing to give it a try. It began as a cumbersome exercise of people dutifully reciting “I love myself” to each other.  Because the words aligned with the truth of spirit, we could each feel that what began as a mind exercise quickly deepened into expressions of the heart as we continued to repeat this affirmation to each other. Within minutes, the room began to swell with echoes of “I love myself” coming from everywhere. What a beautiful sound! It became quite obvious to all of us that what had begun as an uncomfortable exercise had transformed into an experience of inspiration and truth.

 

 

Why does it feel so uncomfortable to affirm “I love myself?”

 

 

Most of us are taught from early on in our childhood years by parents, caregivers, teachers, culture, traditions, and religious teachings that it is selfish to love ourselves.  We carry these childhood beliefs into adulthood without even realizing it. In order to spiritually evolve, it is essential to understand that “self-love” is not the same as “selfish.”

 

 

What is the difference between “self-love” and “selfish?”

 

 

Each one of us has been created by the energy of unconditional love.  As we remember this truth, we come to recognize that our natural state of being is LOVE.  When we choose to be loving and respectful of ourselves, our energy resonates with Universal Love and opens our hearts to a connection with our Higher Self.  This empowers us to access limitless energy for inspiration and regeneration from the Universe.  As a result, we have plenty of energy to express our love to others, resulting in generosity – not selfishness.

 

“Selfish,” on the other hand, is an emotion that centers predominantly on the needs and desires of self without consideration of others. Because it is self-centered, it focuses on ego and disconnects us from Creative Source.  Selfish behavior blocks universal love from flowing to and through us.  This results in looking to everyone else outside of ourselves to fulfill our needs and desires. Being around people who are acting selfish is typically a very draining experience.

 

 

Can simply affirming “I love myself”

really change how I feel about myself?

 

 

The simple answer is yes. Our feelings are the emotional barometer indicating whether our thoughts are aligned with our spiritual truth.  When we think kind and loving thoughts about ourselves, we are aligned with the spiritual truth of oneness and love, and we feel inspired and uplifted.  When we think unkind and judgmental thoughts about ourselves, we feel separated from our Creative Source and are bound to be living in fear.  It takes practice to change old habits. Practice this affirmation with a supportive friend or relative.  Another very effective way to affirm this new thought form is to stand before a mirror, look deeply into your own eyes, and say, “I love you.”  Louise Hay, famed spiritual coach and author, suggests you do this until you are moved to the point of tears.  It is then that you will know that you have embraced what you are saying to yourself with your heart.

 

 

Can I come to truly believe what I am saying?

 

 

Every belief we have is rooted in a repetitious thought pattern.  Because we have the power to choose our thoughts, we can consciously transform our outgrown beliefs of separation by changing our self-talk and the messages we convey to ourselves at any time in our lives. Our thoughts create the beliefs that form the foundation for how we live our lives. Our beliefs determine the words we speak, our words result in our actions, and our actions manifest our physical reality.

 

While it may seem very strange to you at first, persevere with affirming that you love and accept yourself.  To see yourself in the light of love is to embrace the truth of your True Self.  Since what we project is what we attract, you will also attract other people who love you for who you are.

 

Be kind to yourself!

 

Love and Light

 

Sandra

 

The Path to World Peace Begins Within

this is an image of a heart-shaped earth with clouds and a rainbow symbolizing world peace

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As the debate over whether U.S. lawmakers should give President Obama authorization to launch a military strike against Syria continues, many of us are once again feeling the enormous inner conflict and deep sadness that comes with trying to reconcile the stark contrast between war and peace. Because our natural spiritual state of being is unconditional love, I truly believe that, at a soul level, every human being desires peace.  The question is:  How do we create it?  

 

 

The emphasis is on the  word “create” because peace is a sense of well being that originates from the inside, beginning with the intention of the heart.  If we are “looking” for it, we will not be able to find it  because peace is not something that comes to us from the outside.  The condition of our physical world is a giant mirror reflecting back to us the collective thoughts of every person who is part of our earth family. Since thought is creative, whatever we focus on expands. Therefore, what we are seeing is an indication that part of our human society is predominately focused on judgment, violence, greed, and crime. 

 

 

We can point a finger of blame wherever and to whomever we want, but it does not change the truth that each one of us has played a part in creating the condition of the world in which we live.  Perhaps it has been in seemingly minor, passive ways, such as getting caught up in the turmoil and conflict of the world by watching and listening to endless news reports of violence and acts of desecration. Or, it could be as intensively aggressive as being a perpetrator in a massive heinous crime.  Judging who is “most wrong” renders us powerless and only creates more separation and discord between us and within our lives. 

 

 

We can only change the quality of our collective personal reality by taking personal responsibility for the part we have each played in creating it. Since all change begins at the level of self, when we change our individual lives, the world around us changes as well.   

 

To create peace within your own life, try some of these basic ideas. You will be amazed at what unfolds! 

 

 

Meditate – Create a space of at least 20 minutes every day to sit in a place of peace and quiet.  Your meditation can be as simple as sitting on your sofa and focusing on your breath.  The importance of this cannot be overstated, for it is within the silence that you can remember your mind and body connection with spirit. 

 

Pray – Ask for divine guidance as to how you can best bring peace to the world; envision what a peaceful world looks like. Most importantly, imagine the feeling of peace within your own heart.

 

Forgive –  Let go of the need to be right.  All conflicts, whether it be in personal relationships or between countries, originate from the perception that one party is “right”  and the other is “wrong.”  Would you rather be right or do you prefer peace? (You may find it helpful to read my blog on Forgiveness, April 23, 2013.) 

 

Live consciously – Align your thoughts, words, and actions with the spiritual values of love, respect, peace, and cooperation.  This requires diligent practice and is the most effective way to live a peaceful life.

 

Be mindful of what you feed your mind –  Stop watching violent entertainment shows and videos and modify the amount of time you spend following the news. There is a difference between being informed and immersing yourself in the fears of the world.  Instead, spend more time reading, watching, and listening to information that inspires you and nourishes your soul. What you put into your mind is what it feeds back to you.

 

Commune with Nature – Spend more time outdoors in the beauty of nature.  Nature regenerates your body, mind, and soul and balances your energy.  

 

 

Even though the status of the world may seem overwhelming and out of our personal control, we each have the power to contribute to world peace. It begins with our personal lives, starting in this present moment.  Every person makes an enormous difference in creating harmony within the world.  Like a drop of water, every single thought we have ripples out into the massive sea of the collective thoughts of all humanity.  By choosing thoughts of love, we automatically unite with other like-minded souls in forming a field of energy that has the infinite power to exponentially create an entirely new world.

 

 

NOT ONLY CAN WE CREATE WORLD PEACE, 

IT IS OUR SACRED MISSION TO DO SO!  

 

 

As always, I welcome your thoughts.

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra  

Creating Visions of Your Desired Reality

Image of a stick figure with the words, "Dream Big" in the foreground

© Anson0618/shutterstock

 

 

The more we evolve in our personal spiritual healing, the more apparent it is that there is a large gap between our present physical reality and the ideal experience of a world of unity and wholeness.  How, then, do we get from where we are to where we want to be?  How do we stretch out into new realities which we have never seen with our physical eyes?

 

 

We all have dreams tucked away in our hearts of our ideal version of life.  Whether we remember or not, each of us has the extraordinary ability to bring our dreams of a kinder, more enlightened world into our physical reality through the practice of creating visions.  Visions are mental pictures, inspired by the soul, clarifying the quality of life we truly want to experience. While ordinary sight is our ability to see tangible things with our physical eyes, we also have the amazing capacity to see from an infinitely, more expansive perspective–we can see with our mind’s eye (also known as our “third eye”) by imagining something we want to see which is not yet visible in our concrete physical world.

 

 

What is the purpose of creating visions?

 

 

Visions give meaning and purpose to our lives because they are the mental images which guide our actions toward a desired outcome.  Visions originate at a soul level and fuel our passion for living.   In the immortal words of Aristotle, “The soul cannot think without a picture.”  When we truly understand this, it is hard to imagine why we would ever want to live our lives without conscious visions of new realities.  Most of us would not consider building a house without a blueprint of how we want it to look when we are finished–we would not mindlessly start digging out foundations, drilling holes, and nailing up walls without any idea of what we want to create.  Yet, when it comes to the most important structure we can ever build, the context of our lives, we tend to aimlessly react to situations without ever taking the time to envision the ideal of what we want to accomplish.

 

 

How do we know what we want to envision?

 

 

The seeds of our visions are within our dreams.  When we speak of dreams, most of us think of the unconscious messages we receive as we sleep. Our nighttime dreams link our conscious with our subconscious and reveal our innermost thoughts and feelings.  Although nighttime dreams many times appear to make no sense (from a logical point of view), they often provide us with spiritual guidance and insight.  Our dreams are not only revealed in the unconscious messages that are received as we sleep, but also in the conscious desires we constantly carry within our hearts that are begging to be expressed through our actions.  Our daydreams express our aspirations and are many times revealed in the “I’ve always wanted to” statements we find ourselves saying. It is that irrepressible inner drive we have to do something no matter how illogical it may seem – that inner voice that relentlessly speaks to us of things we need to do in order to honor our need to genuinely express our true self.  If we have suppressed our heartfelt desires for a long time, we may think we no longer have any dreams.  The truth is that no matter how long we have squelched dreams of what we want to achieve in our lives, they remain within our hearts until we claim them.

 

 

What are some effective ways in which you can reinforce your visions?

 

 

While dreams are the seeds of all new possibilities, they can only come true if you support them with your actions; and, as always your actions are a choice. Below are a few suggestions for activating your visions:

 

Focus – Since visions are fueled by the soul, focus on the qualities you want to experience in life (such as love, joy, peace, harmony, fulfillment, health); rather than material accumulation.

 

Written and verbal statements – Words have creative power! Develop a habit of talking and writing about what you WANT to see in your life, rather than complaining about how things are.

 

Meditation/Visualization – It is very effective to take 5-10 minutes every day to find a quiet space, close your eyes, and  imagine yourself experiencing a desired situation.  It is particularly effective to imagine how it FEELS to be experiencing what you desire.

 

Prayer –  Ask for divine guidance as to how you can best serve humanity.  This will attract opportunities into your life that align with your talents and interests.

 

Pictures and Drawings – Visions can be literal or metaphoric.  Drawing pictures stimulates the imagination and brings your mental pictures into physical visibility.

 

Gratitude Journal  – Writing in a journal about what you are grateful for opens your heart to receiving the flow of Universal blessings that are already there for you.

 

Physical Enactment  – Pretend that what you are imagining has already come true and that you are acting out the vision.  For example, if you desire to move to a new home, start cleaning out your closets and get organized as though you have already signed the contract to buy a new house.  This sends out a powerful message to the Universe that you believe in your ability to be creative.

 

Be Open to Outcomes – When you consistently hold a vision of living the quality of life you choose, the Universe answers in ways that are for the greatest good of all.  Let go of trying to manipulate how your visions unfold and surrender the outcome to the far more magnificent infinite potential of the Universe.

 

 

Ultimately, we are all here to love and be loved.  Each of us is internally programmed with special gifts and unique ways to bring unconditional love into this third dimensional reality.  Visions make it possible to ignite your dreams sparks by transforming the passive mode of merely wishing for something into the far more dynamic mode of pro-actively co-creating with the Universe.  With practice, you will discover that your visions create a guiding light that magnetizes you to live in the light of spiritual love.

 

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

You Are Worthy!

Sign with clouds behind that says, "Self-Worth

© Andy Dean Photography/Shutterstock

 

 

Do you constantly long for wonderful things in your life that just don’t seem to be happening?  Perhaps you are hoping for more love in your relationships, greater financial abundance, a career you truly enjoy, and better health.  You have worked hard, may have thought about the quality of life you desire in countless ways, imagined it, and prayed for it – and still, it just doesn’t seem to be manifesting into your reality!

 

 

So why aren’t your hopes and dreams for a better life coming true? 

 

 

In your pure state of spirituality, there is a higher aspect of yourself that already knows you deserve to be loved, joyful, healthy, peaceful and living in abundance. This is the natural way of being your Essential Self, or often times referred to as your Higher Self, that is connected to spiritual truth. When your thoughts are in harmony with your truth, you remember that you DESERVE to receive all of these blessings.

 

 

There is also another aspect of yourself, which is the ego part of your mind, that dwells on thoughts of fear.  All thought is creative, so whatever you are experiencing is a giant mirror reflecting your predominant thoughts.  When you focus on fear, you create fearful circumstances.  When you choose to focus on unconditional love, you create loving experiences.  Since fear is the opposite of love, when you choose thoughts of fear, you are blocking the flow of blessings that naturally flow to you through the energy of unconditional love.

 

 

One major way in which we block the flow of blessings manifesting into our physical reality is through guilt and shame.  

 

 

When we hold on to these self-defeating fearful emotions, we are basically sending out a conflicting message to the Universe:  “Yes, I ask for all these blessings to come into my life; but no, I can’t accept them because I am not deserving.”  By doing this, we are separating our Spiritual Self from our Physical Self and are standing in our own way of receiving,  Not surprisingly, we don’t feel like we are in the flow of life.

 

 

If you are feeling guilty or shameful, you are most likely dwelling on the past and judging yourself for all the things you have said or done to hurt yourself and others. Perhaps the rationalization you are using for holding onto guilt and shame is that you feel the need to punish yourself for the many things you may have said or done in the past that you now perceive as “wrong.”  The problem is that this type of self-flagellation does not heal anyone or anything. In truth, holding onto guilt and self-punishment is a form of ego that confirms victimhood.  If not expressed and transformed, chances are that your feelings of guilt and shame will turn into long-term resentment, bitterness, and anger because you are not being kind to yourself.

 

 

Express your feelings

 

 

Feeling guilty and shameful at times is human and appropriate.  This is why it is important to be honest with yourself about your feelings and express them in a constructive way.  Talking with a non-judgmental friend or professional health practitioner, spending time with people you love, participating in physical activity, and being with nature are just a few ways to let out your emotions. Expressing your feelings of guilt and shame is healthy – on the other hand, making these feelings a permanent foundation for your beliefs about yourself  is extremely damaging.  It can become a constant excuse for denying yourself the quality of life you want to live.

 

 

Forgive Yourself

 

 

After you express your feelings, FORGIVE YOURSELF.  Forgiving yourself does not mean that you just forget about everything.  Forgiveness is a choice to stop living in the past and adjust your thoughts to focus in present time, where all possibilities exist.  Forgiving yourself actually requires that you take full responsibility to choose healthier thoughts and actions.  Since the past is already behind you, you now have a choice:  you can drag along the pain and sorrow of your past experiences, or you can carry forward the lessons and growth that you have gained from dealing with the many challenges in your life. While this may seem like an oversimplification, this single decision will have a healing effect on your thoughts, your feelings, and your actions – in other words, it will change your whole reality!

 

 

Then make a commitment to yourself to be as honest and kind as you know to be to yourself and others from this point forward.  This intention, based on forgiveness of self and others, requires an enormous amount of practice every day in every way.  It is more than worth it because it harmonizes your thoughts with the frequency of Universal Love and will clear the way for you to receive the infinite blessings you DESERVE.

 

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra