“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.  ***

I AM going to step out on a limb and let GOD grow a tree under me!                         -Rev. Edwene Gaines

Dear Friends,

We just returned from an amazing ANTN Conference in Atlanta.  We Played and Prayed in the  Divine Nature of the beautiful wooded area of Simpsonwood Retreat Center and were Sacredly Awakened every day to the truth of our being.  The Chattahoochee River ran next to the retreat and we enjoyed early morning walks on the trails and the 11 circuit labyrinth. Our guest speakers were over the top GREAT! We were inspired by Rev. Mark Anthony Lord,  Rev. David Ault, Rev. Edwene Gaines, and Bishop Rev. Dr. Barbara King.    This week we are focusing on our God Power of Abundance. Today I want to share the wisdom of the Prosperity Queen, Rev. Edwene Gaines, author of many prosperity books including The Four Spiritual Laws of Prosperity.

Here are wonderful words of truth she shared with us.

• God is your Source! (not your boss or job)
• When funds seem lacking ask, “How can I give more, serve more, love more, not how can I get more.”
• The best time to “give” and/or tithe is when you feel unsafe financially. Totally TRUST in God!
• All financial debt is about forgiveness. Debt is a way to punish ourselves. Start a forgiveness journal and write in it twice a day. Remember to forgive yourself. Ask “Have I put anyone out of my heart today.”
• Tithe! “A tithe is 10% of all you receive given where you receive your spiritual food (church, faith center, minister, teacher, friend…etc) Its purpose is to acknowledge God as the Source of your good. The promise in Malachi 3:10 is that when you tithe, the windows of heaven open for you.  It is important to pray believing as you tithe, clearly stating in what form you want the windows of heaven to open for you.”

Dear Friends,

This month we are exploring the God Powers within us. This week we will activate the  HEALING  power within. We are created out of the very essence of God, so we inherit these beautiful sacred wonderful powers.  As we align our heart, mind, and consciousness with the Truth of our Being, our body responds. We are  expressions of God so Spiritual wholeness is ours forever.
Two of my favorite meditations by Dr.Ernest Holmes in the Science of Mind text pg 508 are as follows:

He is Mighty Within Me to Heal
God within me is mighty to heal.
He healeth me of all my diseases and removes all fear from me. My God within is now healing me of all sickness and pain and is bringing comfort to my soul.
God is my life, I cannot be sick
I hear the voice of Truth telling me to arise and walk,
for I am healed.
***
I Do Not Inherit Disease
There is no inherited tendency to disease of ill health.
I am born of Pure Spirit.
False ideas cannot be transmitted from  one to another, and I am free from (human) race suggestion.
My Life is from Above, and I remember that I was always Perfect and Complete.
An Inner Light shines forth and frees me from the bonds of false belief.
***
If you are experiencing any dis-ease, say these beautiful affirmations over and over until you feel re-aligned with the energy and vibrations of your God Self.

HEALING is your Powerful God Quality. Activate it !
Health and Wholeness are Yours NOW!

“According to Buddhism, all beings are imbued with a spark of inner divine light…. The Jewish mystics use similar words when they speak of the inner spark or the spark of God. The Koran, referring to man, talks about the little candle flame burning in a niche in the wall of God’s temple. Almost inevitably a spiritual search becomes a search for divine or sacred light. By cultivating our inner core, we search for this light in ourselves as well as the divine.” – Lama Surya Das http://www.adishakti.org/his_light_within.htm#sthash.0vM1bI4m.dpuf

Dear Friends,

In the early morning, while still a bit dark, I was sitting quietly in my favorite meditation chair. I asked what message I need to hear today and all of a sudden I saw a tiny shadow at the window. I looked more closely and saw it was a moth trying to come in. It was so attracted to this soft Himalayan Salt lamp I have on my meditation table and persisted for quite a while. This reminded me of how we are ALL attracted to the LIGHT, the Light and Glow of God. Each of us in our own way are seekers of the Light. We each seek to become a true expression of God. As a New Thought minister I believe God’s Call is always here and available and we as human spiritual beings are continually attracted to the Good, to the essence of God. Even the plants and trees we see raise up towards the sunlight.  We have even seen the tiniest weed and flower grow through a crack in the cement, finding its way towards the Light. As our souls seek the Light of God we come to realize the Light has always been there for us because God’s Light is in us.  Once we awaken to this Truth that the Light is within, we know it is in everyone and everything.   There is only God being God in all, through all, as all, even in and as the tiny moth.

 “I realize that I am one with the eternal newness of life. All that Spirit is creates in and through me. My body is alive with the life of God.  My body is illumined by the light of God. There is no darkness of discouragement, despair or defeat. My mind is refreshed in that One Mind that eternally gives of Itself to its creation.”                                             – Dr. Ernest Holmes, Founder of Religious Science

Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body. Proverbs 16:24 ESV

WORDS.

Words are so important to us.  They communicate our thoughts and feelings in many different ways such as; speech, pen, hand motions and computers etc. What would we do without them?  When learning a new language we must memorize 1,000’s of words just to feel adequate in a conversation.  Knowing the meaning and nuances of words is essential to our life.  Science has created ways to show how words vibrationally look on a screen. Harsh, loud,angry words have a very jagged look while words of love, joy, & comfort look smooth and easy.  We as energetic spiritual beings truly FEEL the vibrations of all the words we use and the words we hear from others.  Some vibrational words come at us like a hurricane, and others like a gentle floral breeze.  How are you using your words today?  Be the gentle breeze that uplifts whomever you meet. All that we say, the way and how we say it, goes forth and affects others, then circles back and affects us as well. Speak in a circle of love my friends.

“Just as the Sufi dervish whirls for absolution amidst his material world, so must we transcend our physicality into something greater, something more.” The Whirling of the Dervish by Haafiz Karim

Dear Friends,

I love the phrase in the quote printed above. “Something greater, something more…”  To me this always means newness, growth, and transformation. Our word for the month is  GROWTH.    In March we begin to see new buds forming, new sprouts springing  up from the ground, new babies being born etc. Even grass, weeds and mini flowers find their way through asphalt or cement.  Everything in nature has a calling to GROW into something greater, something more as the caterpillar bursts forth from its cocoon into a beautiful butterfly, no longer encapsulated, but free to fly and soar to the sky.  At different stages in our lives we may be in the “growing up stage,” in the cocoon, and when we are ready, we burst forth into NEW GROWTH, a higher consciousness, and wholeness in our  physical, mental, emotional and spiritual body!  Where are you in your GROWTH today?  What is calling you to emerge into more of your Greatness, more of your Spiritual Magnificence?  The Calling is saying find JOY in  who you are and what you do.  You are a beloved expression of God, heir to the Divine Throne with the Mighty I AM Spirit moving in you, as you, being you now and forever!!! ***

I and My Father are One
-Jesus the Christ

Dear  Friends,
The beautiful phrase above says so much more than those 6 precious  words. The Master Jesus also meant everyone is ONE with the Father, the Mother, Creator, – God.  So, if I know I am One with God, then I know everyone is One with God. Therefore I am One with All my brothers, and sisters everywhere.  We are all One and part of God’s Divine Orchestration, and “instrumental” in doing God’s work.  We have all heard orchestras play.   When the musicians know their part and are watching the conductor, the music is melodious, magnificent and magical.   When only ONE player is out of sync or his instrument is out of tune it AFFECTS the entire performance and musical piece.   In Life, when ONE person is feeling off, sick, harmed, malnourished, abused, scared, or injured WE ALL feel it either consciously or subconsciously. We are all living and feeling all human consciousness.  When we meditate, let us go deep into our hearts, know the Truth and be the Light for all our brothers and sisters. Let us send out our energy of Love, Joy, Peace, Prosperity, Harmony, Health and Success to All beings.   Our spiritual gift is knowing the truth of our own being, and knowing this truth for others. Our human gift can be to help and support those physically  in need, in our community and/or globally. Mother Teresa said, “It is not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving.”
We Are Our Brothers & Sisters Keeper!

Dear  Friends,

We are going through the most wonderful experience. A few months ago  I was on our balcony looking out at our beautiful hills in the distance.  I then looked down at our backyard and realized the old swing and slide set no longer served its purpose.  I  stood there envisioning a beautiful labyrinth in its place.  I had no idea at the time how that would manifest.  It was a silent longing and call.  Well,  the Universe heard and we started on a journey only God could have Orchestrated!  The day I decided to search for someone to take out the swing-set, I found a “Haul It  Away” Ad and they came out that very day!  I called a friend who is a labyrinth expert and facilitator who came over and gave us wonderful ideas. We did more research on designs and sizes. Steve, being a former architect did the measurements.  We found a company who would come out and put in the special dirt and seal it. We made 4 trips to two Rock Quarries and hand picked  the labyrinth rocks – 814 lbs.  The design creation began one Saturday and it organically evolved and was completed.  We wondered what we should place in the center of the labyrinth, when a friend came over with a gift.  It was a 2′ high statue of a child praying. That was the answer to our prayer.  At one of the Rock places we were  given a beautiful hand held size Rose Quartz.  That too is in the center.   And the story goes on with more wondrous miracles and happenings!  Every day on this sacred labyrinth building journey we invoked the Power and Presence of  God and called forth DIVINE ORCHESTRATION,  for we knew the Highest Guidance would always come through.   God Always Has The Way, where to human sight there is no way.   Have a sacred intention,  then surrender it completely to Divine Orchestration, and watch the joy, fun and miracles begin!

I do believe we create a Divine Plan for our lives and we have the free will to carry it out. The more we listen and quiet our minds and hearts we HEAR our calling, our purpose and our Spiritual Plan and Divine Destiny.  We celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ at this time of year, because he represents the birth of our Christ Consciousness within us.  Have we stepped off our Christ Conscious road this year? Have we side-stepped, then come back on? Have we totally forgotten what it is that is calling us?  In God, As God, Of God, it is never too late to step back on the road, to realign our hearts and minds with our Christ Self. Today in the midst of our Christmas activities let us stop and be present to the Christ in Christmas.  It is your Christhood to recognize and draw forth. It is always  present in and as you.  Come and recognize who you are, affirm it, declare it and BE it.

And So It Is! Amen