suicide is so final

Experience the mystery of God!

eye 2 - 2014

“The most beautiful and profound emotion we can experience is the mystical. It is the source of all true art and science. He whom this emotion is a stranger who can no longer wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead, can’t know that what is impenetrable to us really exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty which our dull faculties can comprehend only in their primitive form, this knowledge, this feeling is at the center of true religion.” Albert Einstein

The time has come to liberate ourselves from the ego and experience God!  God is Love the exact opposite of the ego.

How many of us blame things on God? For example we say that something that happened must have been God’s Will or God’s Plan? Even the Insurance Industries describe disasters as “An Act of God”!  Is an earthquake, a forest fire or a hurricane an act of God?  We could blame an earthquake on the shifting of tectonic plates or forest fires and hurricane’s on Global Warming BUT that would mean pointing the finger at ourselves.

Some people don’t like to mention God these days because that mystery, whatever it is, now seems to be out of favor like an old computer or girdles.   Only the people who are politically on the far right or are religious fundamentalists get to believe in God.   But, I’m a liberal, I’m on the left and I believe in God!  I know other liberals who believe in God aka the Creator, Yahweh, a Supreme Being, or the Great Mystery.  Atheists don’t think there is such a thing and they may be right but I bet when push comes to shove and they are in trouble they say “God Help.”

In The Course In Miracles,  Manual for Teachers,  20. (pg. 51) What is the Peace of God, states: “It has been said that there is a kind of peace that is not of this world.  How is it recognized?  God’s peace is recognized at first by just one thing: in every way it is totally unlike all previous experiences.  It calls to mind nothing that went before.  It is a new thing entirely.”   The past just slips away and in its place is everlasting quiet.  Only that.”

Our busy ego mind does not like quiet.  Are you aware that your mind is always running on some life theme, a problem or fear of the future?  The Manual goes on to say “God’s peace can never come where anger is, for anger must deny that peace exists.  Who see’s anger as justified in any way proclaims that peace is meaningless and must believe it cannot exist. Therefore, forgiveness is the necessary condition for finding the peace of God.”

This is probably why people don’t think God exists.   We enjoy our anger too much to forgive.  If we enjoy the anger we won’t forgive so our minds are busy hating and never quiet enough to allow the experience of God, which the ego mind does not want you to have anyway.  So it keeps the anger going and the idea of forgiveness never enters and our chances of experiencing the quiet which allows the peace of God is hijacked!  We don’t think God exists.  We do not have to allow or give the ego thoughts that kind of power.  When the thought comes just say “that is not what I choose to think.”  ” I no longer want to hate and be angry.”  Or This I do not choose!

We can give up anger if we want to.   We can and will have the experience of the peace of God if we are willing to do that.  When we give up anger we are forgiving, letting go and choosing peace.  We give up attacking, judging or condemning  and we experience the quiet mind and the peace of God.  Replace attack and judgment with love.

We can *silence the ego and the Course indictes that we can  because it states:  “How is the peace of God retained once it is found?  Returning anger in any form will drop the heavy curtain once again and the belief that peace cannot exist will certainly return.”  So this indicates that we can and will experience God, as we work on giving up anger, and sure enough when anger returns we will feel that heavy curtain again.

“Stop for a moment now and think of this: Is conflict what you want, or is God’s peace the better choice which gives you more? A tranquil mind is not a little gift. “The memory of God comes to the quiet mind.” 

We need to decide to forgive everyone and everything including the world!  “Forgive the world and you will understand that everything that God created cannot have an end, and nothing He did not create is real.”  God created you and you are as real and as eternal as He!  Yes, bodies die but never the eternal spirit that you share with God, as his Son.   God did not create the ego, the false self, He created His Son as Spirit like Himself.

His, God’s Will is without opposite.  His Will is yours.  “The mighty Will of God Himself is His gift to you.  He does not seek to keep it for himself.  This is your heritage.  God’s peace is the condition for His Will.  Attain His peace, (let go of anger and forgive) and you remember Him.”  And you will experience the “radiant beauty” Einstein suggested in the above quote.

*One way to silence the mind is to do the Workbook lessons.  This self study program helps identify the ego and leads you to the mind you share with God.

You are LOVED!!

A Course in Miracles – Manual for Teachers,  #20. What is the Peace of God. Page 51

http://www.acim.org

http://www.facim.org

http://www.miraclecenter.org

 

To everyone I offer quietness because I want it for myself. When I give I receive.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Are you running on Ego-matic?
The other day I was tooling along not watching my thoughts (as the Course of Miracles asks us to do) but one finally got my attention. It didn’t feel good, it was: “Why doesn’t she do something with her hair?” What part of my mind would care about something as insignificant as someone’s messy hair and why?

When our thoughts run unnoticed, they can easily jump to egomatic. This is not a word my computer thesaurus recognizes but I know what it means. It means senseless; usually condemning; mostly ugly; and always a thought of judgmental ego separation. The mind has been programmed from birth into two columns: love and fear. Everything not from love is in the fear column and that amounts to hundreds perhaps thousands of distinctions. The ego has an endless list. The choice is simple: Heaven or Hell.

When practicing the mindfulness of the Course In Miracles we are in the “heaven” column. We are looking through the Self, i.e. the eyes of Christ, of love, with kindness and accepting of what is. If we ae on egomatic, we are in the “hell” of darkness, believing our misshapen thoughts are true.

Thinking someone has messy hair is up to me. No one can make me think anything. When I think a thought of love, what am I giving/receiving? If the thought is condemning what am I giving/receiving? What I give OUT, I also receive IN.
When my thinking is judgmental: I’m the one with the problem; I feel separate and alone; and in believing it is true, I’m also receiving guilt. That’s why I didn’t like the feeling.

We don’t realize what we do to ourselves, our soul when we place a judgment on someone. Instead of giving the thought away, projecting and getting rid of it, we are in effect keeping it, and making it our problem plus getting a dose of guilt. I judge her for being “messy” but I must also be “messy” in order to know what it is. Projecting is a trick my ego plays to get rid of my messiness by seeing it in someone else. It doesn’t work, I still messy.

In A Course In Miracles, Lesson 108. To give and receive are one in truth.
P.2. “True light that makes true vision possible is not the light the body’s eyes behold. It          is a state of mind that has become so unified that darkness cannot be perceived at all.”

Isn’t that the state of mind you want to live in? When you catch the silly judgments think what this lesson reminds us to do. Simply say:

             “To give and receive are one in truth. I will receive what I am giving now.”

Do I want to receive the judgment I am dishing out? The lesson goes on in paragraph 8.

P. 8.  “Then close your eyes and for five minutes think of what you would hold out to          everyone, to have it yours. Say:
           To everyone I offer quietness;
           To everyone I offer peace of mind;
           To everyone I offer gentleness”

Wait. How do you feel? What you offered will come back to you in the amount that you offered it. That is giving and receiving. Instead of offering judgment or “messiness” to my friend I now offer acceptance and that is what returns to me.  Offer quietness daily to keep control of your thoughts and how you are feeling.

Check yourself by asking: “how do I feel?”   I was in hell judging my friend’s hair when I realized I didn’t “feel good” and that feeling of being in “hell” helped me see the egomatic thought process.

We have been trained well throughout our formative years and adult lives. But now I can awaken to the fact that my thoughts have consequences on me. We are told that stress causes illnesses. Where does stress come from but our thoughts? This lesson gave me the chance to change my mind and offer quietness to everyone. And when I did, I received quietness.

Go to http://www.acim.org – Workbook Lesson 108 – click to have it read aloud to you!

Remember: You are the Light of the World and God IS the LOVE within your Holy Mind!

Have a Heart

 

Mt. Shasta's HeartHave a Heart!  Mt. Shasta’s heart.   Remember: Go your heart, the love within is your guide!

We live in a dualistic world: war and peace; hot and cold, short and tall and the list goes on. We also have a dualist mind that contains two thought systems: the voice of the ego or the voice of the Holy Spirit, truth and peace.

Watch your thoughts and you will figure out which voice you listen to.

The bad news is that the ego is the default system that is always running.  It is the voice that makes you miserable.  Do not listen to it.

The good news is that YOU are the one with the remote! You are in charge of changing channels.

We are listening to the ego’s sly thoughts when our judgments are of someone or yourself. Worried or fearful thoughts of guilt or envy are certainly egoic thoughts. However, they are just thoughts. You don’t have to believe them. Ask yourself: How do I feel? To my mind the ego is always comparing, sizing up the situation, and a master at separating us from others.

For example one night I woke up worried about a planned trip. I could see my mind was going crazy with various scenarios and worry. However, I was worried about something that was in the future. I was projecting fear into the future. The ego went crazy building the case that I was going to miss my plane, or get air sick or stuck in bad weather, etc. I finally realized what was happening and changed channels. I repeated my favorite mind calming phrase “I rest in God” from Workbook lesson 109 and went to sleep. Choosing peace is a practice and a decision.

This example clearly shows that there is a part of the mind that is separate from the ego. It is the decision maker within that chooses, when you are aware enough, and you realize you are not at peace. Always ask: “How do I feel?” If not peaceful then it is up to you to change your thoughts.

I am forever and always inspired by A Course In Miracles,  and in particular Lesson #106.

 

Let me be still and listen to the truth.

“If you will lay aside the ego’s voice, however loudly it may seem to call; if you will not accept its petty gifts that give you nothing that you really want; if you will listen with an open mind, that has not told you what salvation is; then you will hear the mighty Voice of truth, quiet in power, strong in stillness, and completely certain in Its messages.”

http://www.acim.org

Suicide is hurtful

Janpanese Anenomes

Suicide is hurtful – FIND INNER PEACE NOW – it is possible.

You are loved! You are Love – this is your identity, but if you are listening to the ego you will never know it or feel it. The ego is not YOU. Your powerful mind can choose between the ego or the Love within. It is a choice but maybe you don’t see it that way.

I really don’t want to write about suicide. I’d like to pretend it never happened in my family. It is especially painful when you lose someone you love and for me, one I brought into the world. I never, ever in my wildest dreams, thought that suicide would be a possibility. There was so much to live for.

Writing about it is painful but I hope this helps you, whether you are contemplating it or trying to keep someone from it, so you might understand how to possibly avoid this horrific path.

How to help:
If you know someone is depressed or hurting ask them to talk about it. What’s wrong? What’s right? If it feels appropriate say: “I know you are suffering. Would you ever consider taking your life?” Perhaps they will lie but you need to know if it is something they might consider. And they should know how worried you are. I should have done that. I knew he was suffering but I didn’t know how much or that it would lead to terminating his life. A life I loved.

Follow your intuition about what to do but you may need to visit them NOW. I even asked “Should I come to see you” The answer was “No!” But go anyway! Someone who is that sick does not know what is right for them. They may need the comfort of your physical closeness even if they don’t realize it or want it.

We never suspect that when someone is suffering, that suicide is an option. So go to them NOW. Go to them, hold them, take them into your arms tell them how much you love them! Take a leave of absence or if you need to, use vacation days, get in the car, a train, plane or bus and GO. Why? Because if they do complete this terrible thing you will feel guilty for not letting them know how much they mean to you and for saying in person, what your heart needs and wants to say. The act of actually going to someone says a great deal about how much you care.

Maybe you cannot go in person but call them and tell them how much they mean to you. Tell them everything you appreciate about them. Thank them for the love and the gifts they have given you and even describe them. Send them cards, flowers or a gift representing your love. Send a card every day.

Make them repeat back to you that you love them: Have them say “I know you love me.”

If it feels appropriate ask them what they are grateful for or what they appreciate and love. Gratitude is so healthy and if they can find the spark of gratitude inside they will also access the love that they are. Ask “What do you love?”

Counting blessings is a way to realize accomplishments and what is important in life.

“Love is never far behind a grateful heart and a helpful mind.” Quote: A Course In Miracles

Suicide is FINAL.

Once it’s done, it is over and you cannot bring them back.

IMG_8603

Contemplating Suicide?
If you are contemplating suicide because of a struggle with addiction go to http://www.innerpeaceforyou.me and click on “The gift of addiction.”

This website is dedicated to finding inner peace. Perhaps it will give you a way to look at life anew and help you find the peace that is always within you.

When you have inner peace you have everything you need. Find help – it is out there. Don’t suffer in silence. Talk about it, tell someone how you feel and how desperate you are.

You are loved! And you are Love – that is your identity but if you are listening to your ego you will never know it or feel it. The ego is not YOU. Your powerful mind can choose between the ego or the Love within.

Love is patiently waiting for your recognition – It holds you even if you don’t know it. Know it.

Other sources for awakening to your Truth:

http://www.facim.org
http://www.acim.org
http://www.opengatesangha.org
Google:
Eckhart Tolle
Byron Katie
Eben Alexander