Category Archives: Oneness

Looking Through the Eyes of Love

Posted on by
7
This is the image of two hands coming together with the sky in the background making the shape of a heart

© 2jenn/shutterstock.com

Have you ever had times when every one and every thing is agitating you and you feel like what you most need is a vacation from people in general?

 

On a typical day, we all have an infinite number of opportunities to react to situations that trigger our own fears and insecurities. The driver who suddenly cuts in front of your car may spark you to react with an angry gesture; a work associate who adamantly disagrees with you may cause you to be overtly defensive of your own point of view; being on the receiving end of someone hurling cruel words may cause you to retaliate with a vengeful response; or experiencing a food server with a negative attitude may cause you to respond in an unkind, judgmental manner.

 

When you react to someone else’s fearful words and actions with the same defensive energy, you are perpetuating separation and adding to the negative energy of the situation.  This ultimately results in everyone’s feelings being hurt, as well as a serious breakdown in communication.  When you find yourself in a reactive mode and feeling pulled into other people’s dramas, it is a sure sign that it is time to expand your perspectives to focus on more than just your own personal reality.

 

Perspective is the overall viewpoint from which we see our world. We don’t actually see our perspectives.  We look at life through our perspectives, much the same as we see through a pair of eyeglasses. While we cannot control everything that happens in our lives, each of us is responsible for choosing how we want to interpret and respond to life events and situations.  If we change one letter in the spelling of the word responsible–to responseABLE–we are reminded that we are able to choose our responses to life. Since our responses are based on our perspectives, we are each able to change how we experience life in an instant by changing the lens through which we view our life experiences.  Ultimately, we have a choice:  We can view life from the perspective of fear, which results in mindlessly and defensively reacting to the negative energy of people and situations; or we can learn and grow from every person we meet and every situation we encounter by changing our view of life to see through the eyes of love.

 

Looking through the eyes of love is a conscious choice to perceive people and their situations with compassion and understanding. When you exercise compassion, you are empathetic because you are able to sense the feelings that are motivating another person’s actions, rather than judging their obvious outward behavior. Rather than focusing only on your own personal situation, compassion enables you to see a situation from the other person’s perspective as well. It is through compassion and understanding that you can resonate with another person’s feelings by remembering that, just like you, every single human being you will ever meet is also experiencing pain, sickness, and loss in their lives. You also begin to stop taking people’s reactions so personally – the way someone acts is a projection of how they feel about themselves – not an evaluation of your self-worth.

 

Choosing to perceive life through compassion and understanding, rather than judgment and defensive reaction, opens us up to a whole new vista of life.  It is like looking through a special pair of eyeglasses that enables you to have an emotional x-ray vision that can see the issues of fear that are motivating someone’s negative and offensive behaviors. The person who cuts in front of your car may be going through a divorce; the work associate who relentlessly argues with you may have a serious mental imbalance; the person who is speaking to you with unkind words may have just lost her job; and the restaurant server who had a negative attitude may have just gone through the loss of a loved one.

 

I experienced the value of perceiving a situation in a compassionate way a couple of years ago when I was waiting in the checkout line of a local grocery store. The cashier appeared to be rude as she haphazardly threw the purchased items into bags and never once looked up to smile or greet any of the customers.  I was fourth in line, and the annoyance and judgment of each person who preceded me intensified as the line progressed forward.  When it was my turn to be waited on, I gently asked a simple question:  “Are you having a difficult day?”  The woman who was cashiering looked up and stared at me, her eyes brimming with tears.  “It is more than a difficult day – I am so upset I can hardly breathe. Today marks the one-year anniversary of the day my daughter was killed in a car crash.  She was only 4 years old.  I don’t know how I can even live through today.”  My heart ached for this woman, and I found myself giving her a long, spontaneous hug.  “Thank you for understanding,” she replied. As I left the grocery store, I was so thankful that I had not judged the cashier and had taken an extra minute to ask her that simple question.

 

When we choose to look at people and situations through the eyes of love, we are acknowledging that we are all emotionally vulnerable and that every one of us is  experiencing tremendous challenges in negotiating our spiritual journey here on earth. Not only are we being kind to others, it is also one of the most self-fulfilling ways to honor our own soul.

 

I welcome you to share ways in which you are aware that your perspective has greatly influenced your relationships with others.

 

Love and Light

 

Sandra

 

Living From the Inside Out

Posted on by
1
This is an image of words written in the form of clouds that say CORE VALUES

© phloxii/shutterstock

 

 

We live in a physical world where there is a great emphasis on defining ourselves by title, power, money, and material possessions. This model of life is based on living from the outside in and centers around ego gratification, trying to control other people and outer circumstances, and material accumulation. If we are living from the outside in, we are likely to feel that we never have enough of anything and that no matter how successful we are, there is a sense of emptiness within our souls. It is not surprising that many of us have adopted this perception of life because it is based on the competitive, survival-oriented way of living which is the predominant model that has been demonstrated and taught to us by our parents, caregivers, and teachers.

 

 

As we expand in our spiritual evolution, most of us are seeking to realize a deeper purpose for our lives and are longing for a sense of inner peace. This requires that we reverse the center of our lives from the ego-based desires for outer approval and material gratification to centering our lives around our inner core values. In others words, we need to shift from living from the outside in to living from the inside out.

 

 

What Does Living From the Inside Out Mean?

 

 

Living from the inside out is a model of life which evolves from viewing the world from the Perspective of Oneness and is based on spiritual values and cooperating for the good of the whole. When you see the world from this vantage point, you remember that you are connected to the Source of Divine Love, as well as to everyone and everything. When you live from the inside-out, you are living in integrity, which is to say that you are integrating every aspect of your being – Soul, Mind, and Body – with the values of spiritual love.

 

 

Soul – Your soul is your connection to Spirit and becomes the center of your existence and the highest authority for how you choose to live your life. You access your spiritual wisdom by listening to your intuition and honoring your “gut level” feelings. Your self-worth is determined by your connection with Universal Love, not by how others perceive you.

 

Mind – You choose perceptions that are based on the qualities of Spirit: unconditional love, respect, cooperation; and you use your energy to create the quality of life you choose, rather than to fearfully react to others and your outer world of experience.

 

Body – Your body and material world align with your spiritual values and you create a physical reality that is in harmony with the values of your soul. Because you are reflecting your true self, you attract people and situations that resonate with your True Self.

 

 

Living in integrity from your spiritual core center incites motivation, passion, and inspiration because you are honoring your commitment to bring the gift of your Essential Self to the world. When you live from the inside out, you are living in harmony with the Oneness of Spirit, creating unity and harmony within your inner personal life, as well as the world all around you.

 

 

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs

 

 

Do you have any insights that you would like to share with us regarding how you have learned to live from the inside out?

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

 

For more information on Living From the Inside Out, order the book, “The Power of Oneness, Live The Life You Choose.”

 

 

What is the Spiritual Significance of Pain?

Posted on by
7
This is an image of a monarch butterfly emerging from its chrysalis

© Doug Lemke/shutterstock

 

 

While it may not be our favorite part of life, at some time or another every one of us experiences mental, emotional, and physical pain and disease.  Perhaps the most obvious benefit to feeling pain is that it certainly gets our attention.  Pain is like the indicator lights and alarms in our cars indicating something is amiss.  Chances are that we ignored some rather obvious clues before the panic lights came on, such as getting gas, changing the oil, or recharging the battery.

 

 

The same is true in our personal lives.  Many times we experience mental, emotional, and physical pain only after we have ignored many warning signs.  How often do we abuse ourselves by not paying attention to the many subtle messages that come in whispers–messages to trust our intuition, slow down our work pace, exercise more, eat more nutritiously, spend more time with our families, or forgive someone?  If we continue to ignore the “whisper messages,” the symptoms escalate until we are forced to pay attention due to a major mental, emotional, or physical crisis.

 

 

Like the indicator lights, pain is not a permanent condition in and of itself.  Pain is a symptom telling us that we are sensing something in our lives that requires healing.  In other words, we are literally feeling dis-ease with the misalignment of our physical reality with our spiritual truth of unconditional love.

 

 

Because we cannot separate the body and mind

from our soul connection to Spirit,

pain registers physically, emotionally, and mentally.

 

 

The obvious place we sense pain is in our bodies because our bodies physically indicate the ease and dis-ease within our lives in a very apparent way.  Although we have a tendency to dismiss bodily pain and illness as “just physical,” in truth, our bodies are the visible physical signals indicating deeper, underlying emotional issues calling out to be healed.  Many times the physical symptoms we see and experience correlate with the emotional issues we need to resolve.  For example, we may say that someone in our lives is a “pain in the neck,” and sure enough, we physically experience pain in the neck.  We may be experiencing an emotional break-up with a loved one and physically feel pain in the heart . A long-term, serious illness is many times a very large symptom of a spiritual issue that requires our full attention and is ready to be healed.  It is like the Universe is shouting out to us to pay attention to something.  For example, an auto-immune disease is a disease in which the body attacks itself–a symptom that calls our attention to the need to unconditionally love our physical bodies.  For some of us, pain registers more obviously in the form of mental imbalance and illness.  While there are a myriad of medical diagnoses to describe mental illness, the bottom line is that mental illness, physical illness, and emotional pain are all indications that our soul is not feeling aligned with how we are experiencing our physical world.

 

 

We can struggle with pain or we can move to a deeper level of healing by listening to the messages that it brings:

 

 

Many times our greatest growth periods come through the experience of pain.  Those of us who have experienced a dark time in life through serious illness or emotional trauma know the opportunity it brings for enormous wisdom and insight.  Sometimes we have to experience the contrast of darkness in order to find the light.  Indeed, there are lessons within our lives that may be much more apparent in the darkness of our despair because we focus more intensely when there are fewer things to see.  It is like walking into a dark room–at first we can see nothing, yet after our eyes have had a chance to refocus, we begin to see particular items in the room even though the room is still dark.  Likewise, we can have some very profound insights about areas of our life that need improvement when we are slowed down by injuries from an accident or while we are quietly lying in bed recovering from an illness, away from our hectic daily routines.

 

 

Painful experiences also remind us how to be compassionate and non-judgmental toward others.  We can theorize about what it might feel like to have a serious sickness, deal with a drug addiction, go through a divorce, watch a friend or relative experience an anguishing death, lose a job, or have serious money problems; but it is the actual experience of living through these types of painful times that opens our hearts to express tenderness and total compassion to others who are wrestling with their own challenges in life.

 

 

Pain helps us to appreciate the pleasures in life.  It is through the contrast of pain that we also come to appreciate the pleasures of life.  I understand, first hand, that serious illness and long-term physical, mental, and emotional pain can be extremely overwhelming and very distracting.  All the more reason that it is crucial to our overall well-being to adopt a frame of mind in which we are committed to learn from our experiences rather than allow the pain to control our lives.  Although pain is not pleasant, it is a temporary experience that is part of our human spiritual growth and evolution.  Like the caterpillar emerging from the cocoon, it is uncomfortable but ultimately a part of  the process of humanity’s transformation from a world of separation to a world of Oneness.

 

 

  “Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. 

 

Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart may stand in the sun, so must you know pain.

 

And could you keep your heart in wonder at the daily miracles of your life, your pain would not seem less wondrous than your joy.”

– Kahlil Gibran

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

 

 

I welcome your sharing experiences with how you are dealing with or have overcome painful experiences.

You are the Artist Painting the Picture of Your Life

Posted on by
Reply
This is the image of a painter with their palette of beautiful an colorful oil paints

© kuznetcov_konstantin/shutterstock

 

 

Each one of us creates our personal reality through our perceptions.

 

Perception is how we interpret our environment through physical sensation. Whether we are conscious of it or not, our perceptions determine the way in which we see and experience absolutely everything in our lives. One way to understand our individual perceptions is to imagine that we are all born with our own personal paint brushes and a palette with an infinite array of colors. Our lives are the neutral canvas on which each of us paints our own individual pictures, depending on how we perceive our experiences.

 

 

The greatest divine gift given to humanity is free will

to choose our personal perceptions.

 

 

Will is defined by Webster as follows: to determine by an act of choice; the mental powers manifested as wishing, choosing, desiring, or intending. When we are aware that we can choose our perceptions, we empower ourselves to live consciously and, through our thoughts and imagination, we can choose how we want to perceive our experiences.

 

 

Each of us is an artist painting our own personal reality

through our unique perceptions.

 

 

We tend to label only certain types of people as “being creative,” such as dancers, artists, singers, sculptors, and chefs. The truth is that each one of us is an artist painting our own personal reality with the brush of every thought we have.

 

 

While we may all be looking at the same scenery, each person’s picture is different because we all sense life in a unique and individual way. One person’s picture may be delicate brushes with a few objects of pastel colors, another a very busy picture in broad strokes of vivid colors, yet another in all different shades of the same color with no objects at all. Two world-renowned artists demonstrate this contrast of world view beautifully. Picasso expressed his feelings through dramatic and bold art using seemingly random strokes of deep, vibrant colors. Monet’s art was a gentle expression of nature through pastel colors using delicate, intricate strokes.

 

 

This is why we can all experience the same thing, yet have entirely different responses. It also explains why ten people can interpret the same situation in ten different ways, each one thinking that he or she is “right.” It does not matter how anyone else sees the scenery, the individual pictures of how we perceive situations with our minds are what is real for each one of us.

 

 

Understanding that everyone has an entirely different way of perceiving their life experiences helps us to embrace another person’s point of view without judgment. It also helps us to appreciate the infinite number of ways in which each one of us expresses our feelings and views of life. Through our acceptance of the differences within each other, we honor the gift each one of us brings through the genuine expression of our true self.

 

 

You can read more about how we create our own reality through our perceptions on page 36, The Power of Oneness. Live The Life You Choose.

 

 

What are some ways in which you express your creative nature?

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

Creating Visions of Your Desired Reality

Posted on by
7
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

What is the Difference Between “Giving Up” and “Letting Go?”

Posted on by
5
This is an image of a beautiful and happy women with open arms

© Pressmaster/shutterstock

Most of us have been barraged throughout our lives with messages about the importance of “never giving up,” so the thought of ever “letting go” might seem weak and powerless.  In fact, you might perceive that these two concepts are totally opposite.

 

 

So what IS the difference between “never giving up” and “letting go?”  Actually, I believe they are different sides of the same coin.

 

 

Never Give Up

 

 

Many of us associate the phrase, “never give up” with a perception of having a relentless, uncompromising, pre-conceived idea of how we view things should be, as well as maintaining a dogged determination to make it happen. This interpretation feeds into the illusion that we have control over other people and outer circumstances and can prove to be very exhausting and frustrating.

 

 

I believe that the loving, spiritual meaning beneath this phrase
is never give up on YOURSELF. 

 

 

In order to stay true to yourself, it is healthy to never give up on:

 

     1.  Remembering that you have the power to co-create with the Universe.  You do this by praying, imagining, clarifying dreams, holding visions, and setting goals that serve to take you in the direction of creating the qualities of life you choose to live.

 

     2.  Persisting to have the enormous amount of courage it takes in order to face your fears head-on.

 

     3.  Mustering up the inner strength required to handle the many set-backs that occur when things do not turn out in the specific ways you have imagined.

 

     4.  Rising above the criticism that you face from people who do not support you in your dreams, visions, and goals.

 

     5.  Committing to take action on the infinite numbers of things you need to do to cooperate with the Universe to make your dreams of a better life come true.

 

     6.  Having the faith to believe that every experience you have is taking you in the direction of Wholeness, no matter how it looks in your physical world.

 

     7.  And that’s where “letting go” comes in.

 

 

 

Letting Go

 

 

Many of us associate the phrase “letting go” with giving up, resignation, quitting, and “losing.”  Far from the truth!  Actually, “letting go” is an attitude of tremendous inner spiritual strength.  It means that after we take full responsibility for honoring our personal roles in co-creating with the Universe by “never giving up” on ourselves (items 1 to 6 above) – we then “let go” of trying to control how everything manifests in our lives.

 

 

Simply stated, “letting go” means letting go of our personal attachment to outcomes.  When we “let go,” we are not sacrificing anything.  Indeed, we are creating a vastly larger space to allow for the  Infinite Potential of the Universe to create magnificent outcomes that far transcend our human perceptions.  This is because we are choosing to put the limitation of our egos aside and  accept  that Divine Love is at work in manifesting how our thoughts, words, and actions appear to us in our physical world – even when the outcomes don’t coincide with our personal ideas. “Letting go” is having the faith to accept that the Universe is totally cooperating with us through the power of unconditional love.

 

 

When seen from this higher spiritual perspective, we can see that  “never giving up” on ourselves and “letting go” of our attachment to outcomes are two dynamics that actually work in perfect harmony!

 

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

You Are Worthy!

Posted on by
2
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

Choosing to Have the Courage to Be Yourself

Posted on by
4
This is an image of a bright blue sky with beautiful clouds with the the word Courage written into the clouds

© phloxii/shutterstock

 

Ironically, one of the greatest fears we humans have is that we will be vulnerable if we express our true self to the world.  In an attempt to “protect” ourselves, we many times project emotions which we do not authentically feel, display behaviors which are designed to please others, and say things we don’t really mean.

 

 

Why do we do this? 

 

 

We live in a society in which we are conditioned to focus primarily on outer stimulation. From earliest childhood, many of us were taught by well-intentioned parents, teachers, and caregivers to define ourselves by what other people think of us.  Seeking the approval of others quickly became the major motivation for most of our behavior patterns, starting very early in the lives of many of us.  As a result, we may have developed a belief system that our self-worth is determined by the opinions of others rather than learning to develop our own sense of self-esteem based on inner values.  Unless we became aware of this perception and chose to change it, we most likely continued to perpetuate this belief into adulthood.  

 

 

Why does this cause pain in our lives?

 

 

One of the tenets of the Universal Law of Manifestation is that we attract what we project.  Accordingly, if we do not project our authentic selves, we will not attract responses from other people that align with who we truly are.  For example, most of us have been in numerous life situations where we have knocked ourselves out trying to please someone by being the selfless mother, father, spouse, sibling, or friend.  We emotionally gave and gave until eventually we felt depleted.  We were desperately seeking approval for our heroic deeds.  When we did not get back what we considered an appropriate response, we felt totally unappreciated and, perhaps, even rejected.  This seemingly selfless approach is far from selfless because it cultivates an environment where everyone is looking to everyone else to feel regenerated.

 

 

Does it take courage to express our true self?

 

 

Of course it takes courage to live an authentic life in which we are projecting our honest self, rather than hiding behind layers of veneers that we have designed to deflect the hurtful thoughts and actions of others. It is important to remember that  “courage”  (root word cuer, meaning heart) does not mean the absence of fear; indeed, we all have fears.  Having courage means that we make a conscious choice to live from the heart by choosing thoughts, words, and actions that are aligned with our spiritual values of kindness, cooperation, and respect for self and others. Interestingly, when we are being who we truly are, we are actually able to detach from needing approval from everyone else because there is an inner peace and sense of confidence that comes from living in integrity.

 

 

The only real “safety” any of us has in life is the security of being our authentic selves.  Every single one of us is amazingly special.  NO ONE ELSE CAN BE YOU!  No other human being has your particular personality, your one-of-a-kind brain, your special body, and your extraordinary soul. YOUR UNIQUENESS is a contribution to all of humanity.

 

 

When you express your TRUE SELF to the world, you are sharing the physical expression of the Love and Light of your soul. What could be more “safe?”

 

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

The Power of Prayer

Posted on by
2
The image of a peaceful and beautiful woman praying with light streaming on her face

© Subbotina Anna/shutterstock

 

 

In the midst of a physical world in which we are all being tremendously challenged to grow mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, there is nothing more effective in bringing us peace and balance than prayer.

 

 

“Prayer” is a word that is many times used in a completely religious context. 

 

 

While prayer is a part of most religions, it is so much more than a practice or ritual that is specific to any religion. Whatever differences we may have in our personal and religious perceptions, studies consistently show that the majority of our world population believes in a spiritual Supreme Being.  The terms we use to describe this Supreme Being are very personal and depend upon our individual beliefs. In religions, this life force is referenced by many names, some of which are God, Jehovah, Adonoi, Yahweh, and Allah. Some of the spiritual terms used to describe this creative life force are: Creator, Creative Source, Universal Love, Oneness, Supreme Being, Source of Unconditional Love, and Universal Source.

 

 

 
It does not matter what we choose to call this Source of Unconditional Love – We are all connected to it! 

 

 

As we awaken to our truth, we are remembering that we all have a direct soul connection with this Field of Unconditional Love. This awareness also helps us to realize that prayer is much more than a religious exercise – it is a human experience!  We do not need to do anything to “qualify” ourselves to be able to pray, nor do we need to be sanctified in any way. Our ability to pray is as natural as breathing. Since we cannot define it in human concepts, we can only experience it as a constantly emerging energy of life within and all around us. We can feel it in our hearts as unity, expansion, and wholeness. 

 

 

Prayer is the bridge that links each of our individual souls to each other and to the Source of Unconditional Love. 

 

 

When we pray, we are opening our hearts and minds to inviting the energy of unconditional love into our lives. I think of prayer as having a radar connection to “Home.” While we are immersed in darkness – it is our point of reference in the midst of confusion and chaos. Our prayers are always answered. Sometimes we don’t recognize the universal responses to our prayers because they do not manifest exactly in the ways that we are expecting from our individual perspectives. Because prayer links us into the “Power of Oneness,” it is our connection with Infinite Potential, so there is no limit to the blessings we can receive through prayer. Prayer is on a frequency that resonates with divine light – the same light that is the core essence of each one of us – and has the potential to transform any person and any situation in ways that far transcend our human rationale.

 

 

Ask and It Is Given

 

 

The essence of this immortal message has been echoed so many times, in so many ways, and in every language; and yet are we really listening to this message? It is such an awesome and wonderful truth that we find it difficult to believe: WE CAN ASK FOR ANYTHING WE NEED!  Indeed, the only reason we receive so few answers to our prayers is that we ask for so little!  It is through prayer that we can remember truth in a world of drama and illusion, receive inspiration even when we are totally discouraged, and ask for direction whenever we feel lost. The energy that comes into us through prayer gives us the strength to move forward even when we feel vulnerable and fragile.  As we perceive prayer in this light, we realize that it is not necessary to be in a state of panic or misery to justify praying, nor do we have to wait until we have free time or are in a special place.  In fact, prayer is so much a part of our nature that we can pray anytime and anywhere: in a church or in a sports stadium; alone or in a crowd; with our eyes open or closed; aloud or in silence.

 

 

Most importantly, prayer helps us to remember, at the deepest level of our being-ness, that no matter what we are seeing and experiencing, no matter how challenging our situations may be, and no matter what our human differences are, every one of us has the ability to access spiritual truth through our direct connection to Infinite Wisdom.  WHAT A POWERFUL REALIZATION!

 

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

How Can We Access Our Inner Spiritual Wisdom?

Posted on by
Reply
This is an image of a chalkboard with colorful chalk that says, "Follow Your Intuition"

© YuryZap/shutterstock

 

 

Living a life of spiritual integrity requires that make we make decisions and choose perceptions that align with our inner spiritual wisdom.  This sounds rather simple, but how do we access our inner wisdom?

 

 

Many of us associate the thought of accessing inner wisdom in an esoteric way, such as: going into a lengthy and deep meditation in an isolated environment; seeking seclusion in a monastery; spending time in a distant place such as an ashram; or, at the very least, needing to be completely alone in a quiet place.  While all of these techniques are highly effective in accessing spiritual wisdom, the truth is that every human being has the ability to instantaneously and directly access the universal field of intelligence from wherever we are, at any time, and all of the time through intuition.  In essence, we are each a conduit for a constant stream of limitless wisdom.

 

 

One of the definitions of intuition is, “the immediate knowing of something without the conscious use of reasoning.   Because intuition is a right-brain function, it isn’t something we can analyze with our minds.  Intuitive messages bypass the judgment of the mind and come directly through to the heart, thus the saying, “the truth is within.”

 

 

How Do We Perceive Intuition?

 

Because intuitive messages come through the heart, they are perceived through our senses.  These feelings are sometimes described as “gut level,” “sixth sense,” “inner wisdom,” “inner knowing,” and “flashes of imagination.”  Many of us actually experience physical sensations when we hear or see something that coincides with our truth.  We may suddenly get goose bumps, feel a tingling sensation, spontaneously take a deep breath, feel an electrical current going up our backs, or sense an overall wave of energy moving throughout the body.  These sensations are indications that our bodies are literally resonating with the energetic frequency of the truth of spirit.  We can also get physical indications when something we are hearing or seeing is not truth.  Usually it is a contracted feeling, such as a knot in the stomach or throat, shortness of breath, or a sudden chill.

 

 

Every person has intuition.

 

 

Although we all sense it in different ways, and some of us even deny sensing it at all, every person has intuitive abilities–it is part of our human nature.

 

 

The reason it appears that not all of us are intuitive is simply because some of us listen to and act upon our inner messages, whereas others simply dismiss them as insignificant.  We many times ignore our intuition because we want to validate our intuitive messages with our left-brain logic and analysis.  When we attempt to do this, we choke the spontaneous flow of wisdom coming through to us because messages of spirit are infinitely larger than the logical paradigms of the mind.  An example of this is getting an intuitive message to write a book and rationalizing all the reasons why it is not a “good idea” before exploring all the possibilities of why it is possible.

 

 

How can we distinguish the difference between “intuitive feelings” and “impulsive feelings?”

 

 

When we get an impulsive message, it is usually initiated by our ego in the form of a whim to immediately do something, whether it is in our greatest good or not.  Our impulse may be to indulge in an addictive behavior, such as overeating, or to run out and buy something we neither need nor can afford.  If it is an impulse, chances are we will change our minds if we wait for a while or sleep on the idea.  Also we are likely to feel guilty or unfulfilled after acting impulsively.

 

 

Intuitive messages, on the other hand, are relentless and persistent.  Even when we ignore them, they have the tenacious habit of resurfacing time and time again.  Intuitive messages are always in our best interests, causing us to feel uplifted and fulfilled.  Because intuition connects us with our Oneness of Spirit, the messages it reveals to us are always rooted in unconditional love and pure truth.  We develop our ability to perceive intuitive messages by listening, trusting, and acting upon them.  The more we do this, the more we empower ourselves to live our lives with spiritual integrity.

 

 

Love and Light,

 

Sandra

Home| Our Mission| Sandra's Insights| Testimonials| Vision of Oneness| Meet the Author| Products| Contact Us
© 2014 The Power of Oneness, LLC