Dear Friends,

This week in the LIFT SOMEONE UP Theme I would like to honor Maya Angelou,  a dynamic woman who loved who she was and loved her life!   Her story is featured in the Essence Magazine.   “Her Phenomenal Life & Poetic Journey” is written so profoundly and beautifully.
Maya talks about being a Black Woman. Maya says, “In the past 25 years we have witnessed, as Black women, enormous change, the greatest being an increased awareness and, in many instances, realization of our power. It is, I believe, one of our most significant achievements….”
Maya’s strength and authenticity cross all color lines. Women everywhere can look up to her and her accomplishments and follow her consistent path of integrity, following her heart, taking risks for justice and being tremendously courageous.

I believe a  noble, courageous, self assured woman is one wing on the butterfly. A brave, principled, honorable man is the other wing. When in balance the butterfly can soar and knows no limits.

I would like to share some of Maya Angelou’s  sayings and quotes from the magazine to uplift and inspire you.

“What seems to be a kind of vibrancy in me is from having called on spirit, having called on God to fill me, and the:
‘I’m enthusiastic! I’m up! I’m doing! I’m believing! I’m trying! I’m failing! I’m losing! I’m finding! It’s all all right.”

“If I am not good to myself, how can I expect anyone else to be good to me?”

“We cannot waste time bemoaning our state.”

“You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off you.”

“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”

“One isn’t necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential.  Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous or honest.”

“You use power accordingly to how you acknowledge it inside yourself. Determine your goal of destination and know why you want to go there.”

“I believe that each of us comes from the creator trailing wisps of glory.”

Have you ever needed a lift, a kind word, a prayer, a reminder of your True Worth and Spiritual Greatness?
We all need that kind of love and support.  When we remind ourselves we are all on the earth plane together, journeying in life, we sense our connectedness with each other.  When we forget our God Essence,  isn’t it wonderful to get that phone call from a friend that just lifts our spirits  or someone in the store tells us we have such a nice smile or a letter comes in the mail from someone expressing gratitude.  It changes our life energy and direction  in that moment.
I believe we are all here to LIFT each other UP everyday in some way.  So today, make that phone call to someone who has been on your mind and LIFT them up. You will know what to say for God is always guiding you, loving you and being you in those precious moments.
Below is the beautiful song by Josh Groban.  If you have a moment, go to his YOUTube and listen to the magic of these words.  You will be Lifted and Raised Up! Now go out and Lift and Raise up another on their journey in life!

“You Raise Me Up”
Sung by Josh Groban
When I am down and, oh, my soul, so weary;
When troubles come and my heart burdened be;
Then I am still and wait here in the silence,
Until you come and sit awhile with me.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up to more than I can be.

There is no life – no life without its hunger;
Each restless heart beats so imperfectly;
But when you come and I am filled with wonder,
Sometimes, I think I glimpse eternity.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up to more than I can be.

What a beautiful quote from Teal Scott.  Listening without judgment is truly an act of compassion. Sometimes we are so ready to hammer in our “point of view,”                 we forget to listen.
When we don’t listen, we tend to find fault, blame and walk away in a huff.  Even if we think someone has a ‘wrong’ point of view, when we listen with an open heart we begin to understand where they are coming from, and why they have a different view, idea or solution than we do.
It is OK to agree to disagree. This softens the energy around the discussion.
Jesus the Christ told us to “Agree with thine adversaries.”
He did not mean for us to ‘give in’ or be a door stop. He meant for us to truly listen and acknowledge another persons view with a kind and open heart.  When we do this, the ‘other’ person is more responsive to listening to us.  Kindness and compassion are tools for bringing down the walls of bitterness, misunderstandings, and disagreements.  Next time you are in a disagreement with someone, just …
Stop, Sit and Listen.

Affirmation:
I freely give in secret.
I freely receive in grateful quietude.
I am gently led in and towards my Magnificent Obsession!

Last week we saw a Turner Classic Movie called
“Magnificent Obsession” with Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman. We had no idea what a spiritual movie it was.  Rock Hudson was a “Playboy,” not caring about anyone or anything but himself.  Due to his reckless behavior and some sequential events he causes another man to die. In his inept way to make amends, he finds himself falling in love with the widow. In his relentless pursuit of her, he causes her to fall in front of a car resulting in her becoming blind.  At his wits end, he meets an artist who tells him the one way he can find his path, is to recognize his Magnificent Obsession. Rock does not know how to do that, so the artist says, ” To find your Magnificent Obsession:
GIVE to others. Give to those who do not have, and ask them never to tell where the help came from. Give without expecting payment or anything in return.   As Rock begins to do this he also re-discovers his passion, his love for medicine.  As the relationship with Jane goes uphill and then downhill,  he realizes the only thing left to do is to complete his doctor program and become a surgeon.
I don’t want to tell you how it ends, but Rock’s Magnificent Obsession with his two loves come together in the most beautiful way.  In the end we all realize, everything that happened that appeared “bad” was ultimately meant for good!
Does this sound familiar??? What man intends for evil, God intends for Good!
Lesson:  The more you GIVE, the more you are led to your Magnificent Obsession where you make a unique difference in the world.  Regardless of appearance, ALL is meant to bless you in your life’s journey.
This movie is based on a true story.

 The GPS on the car dashboard proves that there
is more than one route to our goals.
–Robert J. Bannon   

Dear Friends,
We were attending an interfaith community’s event this past weekend and I was talking with a gentlemen about Visioning, and Seeing the Goal. We talked about how we feel God is Divinely Orchestrating our lives and even when we get off track, we somehow, through many life experiences, seem to get back on!  This was a wonderful conversation with a person whose faith is different than mine.  He told me a story about driving his car and  when he took a wrong turn the  GPS would revise/reconstruct his route. Eventually he got there.  He said that is just like GOD. We may get off course from the Divine Plan of our lives, and yet God gently (and sometimes not so gently) revises the plan and direction so we will eventually get to the Divine Goal/Good.  I loved that illustration of God continually guiding us and still giving us our free will to make mistakes and take the wrong turns. The beauty is, we will arrive! It may take longer than we had intended, however we will arrive!

Travel with Trust!

Summer is here and many of us are planning vacations. Hence, we plan, we pack,      we travel.
In our planning and in our packing think about the words stated above.  “How LIGHT do you travel?”  And I don’t mean clothes…. Pack these LIGHT ideas into the suitcase of your heart and mind.
L – Life is an adventure. Laugh  and be Light hearted in all situations.
I – Invoke the Presence of God .from start to finish.
God goes before me and makes my way easy, effortless,
and Inspiring.
G –  Be Grateful you have this opportunity to travel. Many people do not. Be a Gracious Guest wherever you are and see the Good in all people and in all situations.
H – Help another traveler on the way. What goes around comes around.
T – You are on a Tremendous Adventure.
be Thoughtful and allow enough Time wherever you go.
Happy Travels

Dear Friends,
What does it mean to be FULFILLED? Does it mean you have everything you want? No, because we as humans always seem to want more!  Being fulfilled in the moment is taking the time to say, “Right here, right now I am happy. I have everything I need. I am fulfilled.”  Choosing to be happy is a moment by moment decision.  Just take a walk down your street and look at LIFE as you have never looked at it before. Find something new you have never seen before, a flower blooming, a bush growing, a tree swaying and lifting up towards the sky and say THAT makes me happy.  I am so grateful to be here at this time and day to see these beautiful God creations. Continue on your way and look for more things that make you happy, a puppy coming up to you to be petted, a bird singing just for the joy of singing, joggers running past you with a feeling of  health and well being. That makes me happy.
Happiness and fulfillment in everyday events is a choice. We can see the JOY around us, the Merriment of Life, the Fulfillment of God in everyone and everything.  The more you say, I am happy, I am fulfilled with the feelings of gratitude, the MORE Happy and Fulfilled you will be!  You are raising your vibration to the highest level and sending out the magnets of magic that will bring back to you even more JOY.

“I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, to be realistic, to remember the limitations of being human.”
–Oriah Mountain Dreamer
I love this statement from the book The Invitation.  JOY, is the highest vibration of our soul and what we  long for in our Divine Purpose and Life Plan.  I believe it is OURS to have now and forever.  We can find JOY in the most ordinary moments of our life when we stop and recognize them. It is dancing in the living-room to music you love.  It is singing at the top of your lungs to a song that speaks to your soul.  It is jogging, walking, skiing, surfing and feeling the wind tousle your hair and the way it makes you feel when you are done – exhilarated.  It is sitting at the table with your loved ones contented. Joy is seeing a baby wrap its little fingers around yours and smiling up at you. Joy is when we are with a group of friends and we feel we belong. More than that, we feel we can be truly ourselves, transparent, showing all sides of us.
Think back to a moment of JOY in your life. Didn’t you just Love it!?  LOVE and JOY go hand in hand, so what do you Love?  I used to tell my children, “Do what you LOVE and LOVE what you do!”  It is the only way to live. When you Love what you do, you do it well! Never apologize for being GREAT at what you do. It is God’s Greatness within you that does the work and  always says YES.  There is a place and a purpose uniquely carved out of time and space  for you.  It calls you.  For it is GOD CALLING YOU to be JOYFILLED in this earthly life.  It beckons you- so invoke it, call it forth and let go of what no longer serves you.
Be Happy, Be Merry, Be Joyful!

“You are joy, looking for a way to express.  It’s not just that your purpose is joy, it is that you are joy. You are love and joy and freedom and clarity expressing. Energy-frolicking and eager. That’s who you are.” – Esther Hicks

Dear Friends,

It’s May, It’s May, the Merry Month of May! This month we will be exploring the High Vibration of being Merry, being Joyful, being Happy, being Fulfilled.  JOY is an attribute of the Divine, Our Source and Creator. YOU are JOY in Expression. As Ether Hicks, author of Ask and It Is Given, says ” YOU are JOY.”  According to Esther’s Emotional Scale, JOY is at the TOP along with Knowledge, Empowerment, Freedom, Love and Appreciation. Think for a moment of a time in your life that brought you absolute JOY; so much JOY you were bursting at the seams. Take that FEELING and just Be with it, Live it again. Keep up the high vibration and IMAGINE your deepest heart felt desires. Feel the Joy in the creation of your dreams. Remember Mind does not know whether you are making it up or it is ‘real.’  JOY attracts JOY. Ester says….”the skies will open for you and the non- physical energies begin instantly to orchestrate the manifestation of your desire.” Right now let us LIVE in JOY, as JOY, because we are JOY.  ***