Remove the filters that obstruct your grace

A programmer brainstormed for hours to solve an issue on his laptop. His expectations were high and frustration growing. He felt he should know the answer, but resisted believing in himself. As he watched a t.v. show on crab fishing, the ship's anchor triggered a revelation. He realized another kind of anchor would enable his code to work. Was it a heavenly sign or a subconscious plea to remove his own mental filters?

An aging grandfather began to get meaner. People who thought they knew him wondered if he really knew himself. He deliberately stopped his meds, realizing the nature of control triggered hallucinations. Suddenly, he began to utter words with no conscience. He shocked and offended. Could this have been an unconscious way he was choosing to remove his own censorship filters? Would years of repressing how you truly think and feel redefine freedom and the role of divine grace?

An alternative healer created traditional roles in society. This person wanted other people to know and appreciate the kinds of ideas she stood for inside, but fear has been known to trigger feelings of anxiety. As her perspective enlarged, she sent out energy vibrations to invite people into her life who empowered her to validate what she was. Could an essential part of true listening require us to detach from our prejudices, frames of reference and ingrained desires? Is the act of consciously removing filters the ultimate gesture of love?

Divine grace is something freely given from an indescribable source. Its a force you cannot touch or measure, but you evolve to believe its real. You slowly discover you create filters or blocks that obstruct answers you already have, things you already know. Some of them you acknowledge. Many you disregard. You cannot know how many signs slip by.

You may think you are dreaming. You may assume grace resides in the depths of your mind or, emanates from something beyond you. Regardless, events unfold to tickle you awareness, to invite you to awaken. If you recall nothing else from this post, remember three things;

1) Distracting some layers of your awareness stimulates other layers to think more creatively.

2) As you grow to value your true self, you do things of immeasurable value.

3) Genuine love requires courage and self-discipline.

Hear the plea of your true self

People will quickly disregard what seems to be "a freak of nature." And yet, a closer look reveals other possibilities.

To reflect on my wedding reminds me of certain events. After the ceremony, the wind died down and the ship floated idly on the open ocean. It was serene and magical. Little did I know at that moment, how enchanting it was to become.

Out of the blue, I was prompted to say a silent prayer.  Then, I called aloud with conviction, "Angels, let there be wind!" I voiced this for everyone to hear. Apparently, my plea was also heard by others, attuning on another vibration or wavelength.

Much to the surprise of wedding guests, the wind came up with gusto. Multiple sails expanded. People smiled in disbelief. I joked, "you should hear what I do after hours!" clearly under-estimating my own power.  The hundred-fifty foot vessel sailed back into the harbour at a glorious speed. We moved out of conditioned patterns.  This process had long ago begun.

Although people view things from their own vantage point and colored by their own beliefs, they all experience the same phenomena. Why is it that one person would believe in telpathy or divine, heavenly intervention, while others would create explanations based on completely different logic? Note:

1) You  cannot grasp everything as it is through human thought.

2) You have never lost and can always restore faith in what you do not see.

3) That which evokes your discomfort confirms things you would prefer to deny. 

4) Energy takes different forms and enables you to build on your sense of self. 

5) You may experience things you do not like to hear, but that does not make them untrue. 

Recall Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit." Its possible he meant no identifications or sense of self that would distract you from the truth of the unseen. As you evolve to sense a voice and a thinker within, you may also notice something imperceptible has taken possession and liberated your soul.

10 Revelations to expand your mind

Life experience teaches.  You choose what to retain and what to disregard.  Consider these ten revelations.  Choose to reflect differently and observe how you expand your mind;

1) You are never upset for the reasons you assume.

2) No matter how painful a situation seems, it will pass.

3) Each action stimulates your mind to think for itself again.

4) Until you grow self-aware, you reframe distractions.

5) You seek whatever you are not meant to find.

6) Impermanent things conceal the power of the present.

7) Everything you do is a cyclical way to realize where you are.

8) A journey into silence provides all you need. Simply listen.

9) The mental concept of who you are is unrelated to the truth.

10) What is forever formless, imperceptible and unknowable reveals secrets of the unseen so you begin to remember more.

5 Ways negativity helps you

When asked to choose adjectives they would use to describe effects of negativity on their life, the vast majority of people would reply with more negative thoughts.  Common human reactions to negative feelings include denial, indifference, repression and even ignorance these feelings are created at all. This misses the crucial issue: that negativity serves you.

If you reflect on conditions you have experienced that evoke anger, frustration, bitterness or other similar sentiments, then you are likely to conjure up images of people and places you would prefer to forget.  Part of you may wonder how this could be a piece of a healing process.  Consider these five ways that negativity helps you to turn your life around for the better;

1) It raises your awareness. From the moment you become aware of a negative thought, mood or sensation, you have no reason to feel discouraged. In fact, this is a sign you are redefining success. In order to stop identifying with inner states and ego, and stop permitting them to control you, you must move beyond your own reactions. You must view them from an external perspective. As you reach this juncture, you realize many other people do not know what they do.

2) It encourages detachment. Contrary to popular belief, discomfort is not meant to generate fear or your impulse to repress or run from these feelings. As you shift focus, you realize negativity actually encourages you to step back from your conditions.  This empowers you to view your life with greater objectivity. You are being taught to examine situations from different vantage points in order to better understand yourself. Detachment may be used to gain deeper insight.

3) It shows opposites create balance.  You may have heard for every action there exists an equal and opposite reaction.  The same can be said for feelings.  As you learn about love, you also learn about fear.  As you learn patience, you discover the point to impatience.  As you experience a sense of justice, you are also formulating views of injustice.  You discover two sides balance every picture.

4) It teaches how the mind operates.  It may surprise you to discover the mechanism for self-justification.  The mind distorts facts. It prompts you to condition certain kinds of counter-productive perception.  You decide what you like and dislike, perpetuate an internal judge. This is depersonalized through awareness.  You move from getting emotional about things, to noticing thoughts, feelings and subtle ego motives.

5) It guides you to deeper insight.  As you discover how your thoughts create opinions, you also gain insight into reasons for your rigid positions and narrow-minded ideas about identity.  You gradually learn any suffering you feel can be alleviated by taking responsibility for your inner state.  You can develop strategies to become more consistently alert, more attentive to the nature of your thoughts and feelings as well as why you create them.  You open up to new ways of "seeing."

Barack Obama & 10 lessons to excel

The inauguration of of Barack Obama as the forty-fourth U.S. President is meaningful to everyone, even if they do not know it yet. This man represents different things to different people, but in many ways, he symbolizes the realization of a dream.

Your own dreams may invite you to follow a similar road or, a road far less travelled.   You may be inclined to ignore what bothers you, or be unwilling to delay action when having patience would be more suitable.  In the end, you are totally dependent on yourself to initiate and follow through on plans.  Consider ten lessons I gain from Obama to help you excel;

1) You can be anything you choose. Society and people around you will tell you what they believe you can and cannot do. These views may emerge from prejudice, history, bias, judgment and counter-productive emotions.  Venegeful thoughts only limit you.  Your action reveals to what degree you accept society's rules and status quo standards. As you move beyond them, you realize you create your own rules.

2) You realize synchonicity matters. You can choose to take advantage of everything you perceive to happen. Many people will say they cannot realize a goal. Why? Excuses include; "it does not feel right" or, "circumstances are against me." Reframing what you sense and feel enables you to realize everything happens for good. You need not grasp why people view events as they do. Everything is a sign to help you. 

3) You sense serendipity is in your favor. When you seem to be in a certain place by accident, you are not.  In fact, you have an aptitude for having revelations by accident.  This mindset actually defines the direction of your life.  Some people take advantage of this and become more aware of their inner power.  Other people do not.  Your choice is best for you.

4) You know you conquer obstacles.  As you recall the experiences and choices of your ancestors, part of you may be think walls in front of you are intimidating.  Remind yourself how far you have already come to get where you are right now.  You would not be able to reach milestones unless you were the kind of person determined to grow.  You already demonstrate commitment, focus and drive. This inspires you to continue directing it in ways that make sense.

5) You turn your face to God.  This can be viewed as symbolic and spiritual rather than religious.  It shows your faith in higher forces that guide you to make choices that feel good, that are for the right reasons, and that serve others. It is not what you do that matters, but how it makes you feel, and how it recognizes the universal equality and potential of every person.  You become more willing to find meaning in things greater than your role or results from a single project or experience.  You find value in shared spirit, in making gestures of generosity, showing humility and compassion. 

6) You need not keep your enthusiasm in the closet.  Each time you act to share how you feel, part of you you may suppress it.  In the past, you may have been teased, criticized or reprimanded.  You may have broken down and cried in frustration.  Yet real people show you that you are loved for who you are. You are encouraged to communicate what brings you joy in life. As you move to accept yourself, then you discover communities, settings where you feel more welcome. You send vibes based on love or fear.

7) You are encouraged to grow in ways that resonate. People often assume one must learn things in a certain order or that certain interests cannot go together. People will judge your choices based on what they would do. They react according to their discomfort and whether they choose to face it. If changing focus resonates with you after doing something completely different, then do it. If you switch directions, jobs or activities in ways that do not seem logical to others, that does not matter. Do what feels right. Listen to your intuition.

8) You move to view yourself as you are. As you remove your own labels, you progressively remove the excuses that prevent you from acting instinctively. You move to decondition beliefs and behaviour that no longer serves you. When you tell yourself someting is not possible because of the color of your skin, your religion, gender, or some other external feature, then you do not allow yourself to view the real you.

9) You sense intrinsic value in everyone.  As you transcend self-created obstacles, you begin to develop altruistic attitudes limitlessly. You realize to practice love and compassion effectively requires the willingness to deepen insight into yourself. You stop telling yourself reasons why things cannot be done and choose to focus on creating ways they can. You sense you merit opportunities to create and measure your own joy and fulfillment.

10) You choose to acknowledge problems and act. Progress evolves from taking responsibility, not from denial, playing victim or, trying to "pass the buck." If you see garbage on the ground, you can choose to do nothing because you did not do it or, you can choose to pick it up, inspire others to make different choices.  Many people sense what is wrong or why their efforts are not working, and yet, they do nothing.  You will not outgrow your counterproductive habits until you choose to explore possibilities open to you to reform.  This is a process of recognizing the need to respect yourself and others differently, and to find the courage inside to change.