Believe

It is essential we have faith in our life.  We must recognize the importance of this essential ingredient to lead us down a path of manifesting what we desire and believe.  Too many people allow themselves to think life just happens, life just does not happen.  The intent we place in our minds creates a powerful force to draw what we desire into our lives.  It is so important to be careful of what we think, what we believe because we create the situations in our lives to bring about what we think.

There have been many books written about this subject, teachings and writings throughout the centuries, and during this period of time in which live, we must too harness the power of this truth.  We must only think about what we want and truly desire.  We must cast aside doubts, self-defeating thoughts and negative thinking in exchange for real belief, uplifting thoughts and positive thinking.  The result of changing our expectations in all areas of our life creates an ocean of possibilities to achieve what we desire.  We must overcome our own stumbling blocks to realize this truth.

Today, I want you experiment believing there is a certain goal or desire you long for realized in your life.  Take a moment to visualize this picture of your desire and capture the feeling of all your senses once you have what you want.  Paint a very vivid picture in your mind and using all five senses to  imagine how it feels to touch, taste, smell, see and hear the outcome of your desire, the more vivid detail you create, the more likely you will feel as if you have already experienced the realization of the result.  It is like making a movie of your desires with you as the main character immersing yourself in your feelings of realizing your dream.

Another action step towards developing a mind-set of receiving what we long for and bolstering our faith is to evaluate who supports our dreams.  The most important relationship we have in our life is with ourselves, so we must decide to be positive, optimistic and expectant.  We must choose carefully the relationships we have with others to support our dreams.  Do our co-workers, family members and closest friends support who we want to become and what we want to embrace in our lives, or are they a deterrent to achieving our aspirations?  We need to only associate with people who embrace our dreams and are willing to empower us to move the obstacles out of our lives to manifest our utmost desires.  They are not jealous or envious of what we seek rather realize our achievements elevates our relationships to a higher level of understanding.

We must decide to love, to care and to embrace others and their dreams.  The more we love others, I believe the greater the propensity for us to realize what we seek in our lives.  Love is one of the strongest emotions, and when we decide to love someone we give them a part of ourselves.  It is through this act of giving ourselves away that the universe opens our hearts to receive.  There is no need for us to complicate the understanding of this matter.  All we have to do is believe, feel and love and in doing so, we will initialize the momentum of the realization of our dreams.  It all begins with faith.

Believe!

Some Thoughts...

We cannot have grace if we continue to live in sin.  I read a verse tonight from Romans 6:1-2, where Paul writes how can grace abound if we continue in sin?  During the past few years, I have prayed intently, and realize the outcome of my prayers is due to the fact that in part that I have not lived without sin in my heart.  During my lifetime, I have broken every commandment.  I am not without sin; my heart has held malice towards others of which I have not been ashamed.  But it is wrong, very wrong and unfortunately, I am fool. 

Like all humans it is so much easier to hold resentment rather than to admit our own fault forgiving others so God’s forgiveness may work in our hearts.  It is so easy to become judgmental, rather than to live on a higher plane.  There are times in our lives when we must let go.  We must decide to let go of the past and let go of the hurt relinquishing whatever we feel in our heart and trade it for a new beginning.

For some it seems so easy to toss their past into the fire and walk away, and for others there is a greater struggle to embrace the possibilities of a new future because their vision is so clouded with memories, hopes and possibilities of what could have been.  I am one who has always been counted in the later crowd.  So today, I look ahead with great anticipation to a brighter future based upon the possibilities of what might be as envisioned in my heart, mind and soul.

Living a righteous life or one marred by giving into sin is based upon our daily choices.  God wants us to choose righteousness clinging to faith of what great possibilities lie ahead rather than to stumble into a quagmire which prevents us from receiving the evidence of living with His hand upon us.  We can pray all we want, believe all we want, but if we do not live as He desires, than all the praying and all the believing are for nothing. 

We must have faith that as we walk upon this earth, the greater our trust, the bigger our vision the more likely we will evidence the results of His grace upon us. 

Dear Heavenly Father,

We praise you for your abounding grace, for the miracle of salvation, and for the peace you offer to place in our hearts.  We confess unto you that we are sinful, that we have rendered ourselves powerless by worshiping others rather than you and trusting in our works to bring harmony in our lives.  We have witnessed heartbreak, upset, discouragement, and realize you have something greater in store for us.  We are thankful for your wisdom, for your grace in all areas of our life, and for your son and our salvation.  We pray this day you provide clarity in our hearts so we may release the past. We ask that you give us vision to see the positive possibilities of our future.  We also ask for your strength to propel us to live unflinchingly this day and in the future believing the best for our lives.  In Jesus most holy name we pray, Amen.

New Discoveries!

Discovery… that is a good word discovery!  It is a good descriptor to express a more progressive depiction of living an advanced life.  It is through discovery we learn who we are, where we are going, and what we are seeking.  Sometimes we make discoveries without the intent to even do so, most the time these findings are positive and could be the cause of a breakthrough in our lives.  However, unearthing sorted details of a dark cloud may be cause for undue controversy we never intended to mine.  Needless to say, living an advanced life living on the edge of innovation and discovery is much more interesting than existing in an enclosed universe of nothingness.

I believe you are reading these words because you choose to be an explorer rather than living a life void of creativity, ambition and challenge.  You realize your life is about making a difference, leaving a mark; it is not just about existing, but fulfilling a purpose for your existence.  Of course your days will not be filled only with serious stoic intentions, but smiles, laughter and joy.  You find gratification in pleasure and achievement and base the value of your life upon the realization of your own happiness.

You choose not to be selfish, rather selfless and give the best of yourself to others.  People are thrilled to meet you, excited about working with you and enjoy engaging you in conversation.  These same people feel more successful just knowing you and feel a greater level of encouragement because of your acquaintance.    You bring joy to the world.  In fact, bringing joy to others is one of your mantras.  It is not because you always are bearing gifts, instead it is because you bring many smiles, hope, belief and are convicted to genuinely care for others as it is your true nature.

Being an explorer in life requires we always look for new discoveries.  These discoveries are new friends and acquaintances we meet, ideas we read about, concepts we learn, self-realization of the facts in our life, and of course the influence of others upon our lives to affect positive change.  Today, I want to challenge you to increase the stretch of your reach, to decide to live up to your capabilities, to possess a zest for learning and live with passion fueled by an inner enthusiasm to live voraciously.  Make this your mindset and today you will make a new discovery.

You are Alive!

Life is an adventure!  So many times I hear individuals remark that they really are not that adventurous.  However, we are all explorers living lives of great adventure attached to this rock called the earth. We all are spinning fast around the sun in our galaxy traveling throughout space in our own little part of the universe.  We are all born with only so much time, and in the time we are given, our purpose should be to live all-out full speed ahead!  It is amazing that so many choose to live quiet lives of a mere existence rather than with true bravado.  We owe it to ourselves to live a life filled with adventure.

Our adventures can be many leading us down great paths filled with outrageous love.  So many are scared to reveal the inner nature of who they really are.  They are great lovers who long to pour out the passion in their soul, display their affections and love with true authenticity.  Inside of them is an overflowing spring and those so lucky to encounter these individuals are showered with a cascade of true affection refreshing their hearts with a deluge of caring.  If only these lovers would outwardly reveal their true appearance.

For others, sincerity springs forth from their souls in their attempt to make the world a better place to live and their mark is felt everywhere they trod.  Those who encounter them are filled with peace and long to learn more about them, and are happy to stumble upon their presence.  They build others up, lead with ambition pouring out their energy creating societies and leaving in their wake improved conditions in the hearts and minds of all they meet.

Life is an adventure!  My dear explorer, please choose to live this day and be unafraid to pour out who you are on this world.  You are needed and the love in your heart will never be exhausted.  God will constantly refresh you.  Shower your love everywhere and if you feel it is not reciprocated this day, it is okay, because at some moment if you choose to live expressing the freedom in your heart, you too will feel the rain drops of love upon the aura of your soul.  Your skin will be refreshed and you will be led to a roaring river causing you to stretch yourself and as you move downstream into the delta that leads to the sea where the waters will calm your spirit and you will find yourself in the clutches of another new day.  A day in which you can live with more courage, provide more love and realize your choices will lead you to a greater life.  A life to share with others, a life to dedicated to your own self-improvement in hope to be the change this world so desperately seeks.

Be daring, be bold and live!  You are alive…

Live Courageously!

Courage is to remain true to yourself, to recognize the best of who you are and to be unafraid to reveal yourself to the world.  In doing so, you transform yourself, gain confidence and live a transcended life.  Living true to yourself creates an internal accounting that provides you a freedom experienced by only those who choose to be holy to themselves.  You join an elite club of individuals who have lived throughout different ages in the annals of time, and find yourself a kindred soul to the greatest throughout eternity.  For you, there is no living a partial life, no regrets, you embrace your past no matter the hurt you have experienced realizing it makes who you are in the future that much more remarkable.  You choose to live, learn, travel, love and to do so voraciously, because it is your inherit nature as your personal decision is to live a life embracing freedom.

You have discovered true peace of mind, freedom from fear, anger and guilt.  You daily make choices to live with deep caring dissolving the nagging anxiety from your past, and propelling your mind and soul to a new level thinking and feeling.  You find yourself in love with you causing a tidal wave of passion to be released drawing events and people into your life leading to a real treasure.   You realize the value of the present, and the presence of those that God has brought into your life providing cause to elevate your level of living.

Courage is a product of faith and sometimes faith is the result of courage.  Your choice to live with bravado and great daring removes all anxiety creating a feeling of liberty freeing your soul and gaining self-sovereignty.  You reinvent yourself and find your self-talk more expressive, and with those whom you engage discover your openness and candor to be refreshing, liberating and enlightening.  You finally arrive at a place in your life, holy ground if you will, to stand tall with arms stretched-out reaching to the heavens above in thanksgiving and praise for this moment.  You pray that God continues to bless you with a shower of peace to be shared with all those whom you meet, embrace and love.

It is our free will that enables us to create our own lives, today declare your independence from bad thinking, those who hold you back; and with self-determination run swiftly onto the field.  Feel the breeze upon your skin, the sun as it warms your lips, smile, choose happiness and allow the gratefulness that dwells deep within spill over upon the souls of all you meet.  This is your day my friend, live courageously!

Elevating your Life with Love...

Love elevates your life!

This past year, I wrote a blog post entitled ‘love’, and stated, “love elevates your life!”  So upon pondering this thought wanted to share how love changes us, provides us with faith, anticipation, and provides a platform of optimism in our lives.  I have been deeply in love before in my life, unfortunately the person of my desires was incapable to remain in love with me, and I learned some things.  I believe that love is a choice, we have to decide to be in love with someone.  The greatest moments in our lives is when we meet someone who causes our internal body chemistry to change and our dopamine levels rise and oxytocin flood our brains.  Okay, that is a little too scientific to seem romantic!  The greatest moment of our lives is when we meet someone whose charisma overtakes us and we cannot help to want to listen to every word, see every smile and experience the sparkle in the eyes of our hopeful lover.   Hopefully, that sounds a little more idealistic and passionate.

Love causes us to become starry-eyed, amorous, and more tender-hearted.  We idealize our love interest, we ignore their faults and get caught up in the state of infatuation.  Infatuation is good to a point, however it does not last.  Another state of love can cause us to lose ourselves and to become what our love interest wants and we surrender ourselves and in the process sacrifice our souls.  Then there is the state of love, the best of all ‘unity within duality’, where we maintain our independence but yet are dependent upon our lover.  Instead of forfeiting our souls, together with the one we love our lives are illuminated realizing through a balance of support and challenge we empower one another to live freely and become more.  In this state, we allow our lover the freedom to grow, provide positive encouragement and support them in their quest to be the best person they can become.  Likewise, we are also encouraged with the same enthusiasm to be who we want to be, and not only are we supported, we are challenged to grow and become more.  Infatuation is about nothing but support, however it is in this state of unity with duality that our lover not only supports us, but challenges to be all we can be.  We must maintain a balance; it is not a state of perpetual challenge beyond our means, a cause for resentment or our relationship will die. 

Love elevates our lives because it is not only our one and only that we love, but our parents, children, other relatives, friends, co-workers and others we reach out to.  We are able to affect change upon all those we touch by remaining positive, optimistic and provide a platform for them to realize their internal power to become more.

Love elevates our lives when we learn to forgive, to say we are sorry, please forgive me and to those who ask for the same, to be able to declare with all earnestness, you are forgiven.  We must forgive to forge our relationships into a state of maturity.  It is not like we will never disappoint or hurt the ones we love, because unfortunately we are human and we must choose to live and love on the same level as God Almighty.

Love elevates our lives when we decide upfront how to handle disagreements, how to fight fairly and engage in exchanges which will ultimately empower our relationships.  Disempowerment is not a choice to be considered, and unfortunately in our society, too many people never address this important issue rather to put it off until a threshold of bitterness ensues and it is nearly too late.  Real love is to grow by learning, studying and growing together with the acknowledgement love needs nurturing.  Staying together is a choice based upon realizing a great relationship requires tending and work, but also realizing the end result is so worthwhile.

Love elevates your life because you are able to give the best of yourself to someone, to share who you are, who you want to become and you allow them to impact your life as they also equally are unafraid to reveal themselves.  Love elevates your life by sharing on all levels physically, mentally, spiritually and you dissolve the worst of who you are in exchange for the positive in your lives and believing the best about one another.

Love elevates your life when you reveal your soul, and you are able to also experience the soul of the one you so most deeply care for, and in doing so experience true freedom.

Love elevates our lives, because the more we love, we discover the more love we are provided and become more capable to love more.

      

A Reflection!

Today is the last day of this year, I am satisfied there is much that I learned in the past twelve months and experienced personal growth.  This year was good as I regained confidence, stretched myself to new levels of understanding and made a decision it is okay to reveal my heart to those closest to me.  The quest to conquer Kilimanjaro and experience life in Africa and walk on the ground of another continent, embrace others and to share my life with complete strangers who became my friends was well worthwhile.  I believe when we are able to separate ourselves from our daily lives and the stereotyping others place upon us, without fear of judgment we then can reveal and live as who we really are.  We decide in our anonymity  to be fearless, and in this state of courage we unveil our true selves.

This has been a good year to rediscover the inner recesses of my soul and decide to choose to live more in the moment rather than to continue to live in the past.  I probably feel deeper than most who know me, and because of my true ability to love deeply, care without constraint, I also feel more hurt, more pain.  Conversely, I am also able to love with more passion, care with greater sensitivity and express myself more vividly. 

The message I have for you is this:  Be true to yourself, be true to your soul.

The sparkling of our eyes is a reflection of our soul, we see this when we look into a mirror.  Today is a good day to look into a mirror and mentally capture the twinkling of our eyes and maybe in that moment connect internally with ourselves and rediscover the spark of passion deep within.   We then can carry on with a smile.

In 2012, I plan to reveal  more of my true self, the person who has boundless energy, high ideals, goals to be achieved, and love to release upon my friends, family members and those who do not even know me.  I plan to hug more, kiss more and help those whom I care so deeply to uncover who they want to be.  This is a good year to live without fear.  This is a year to be bold, a year to express who we really are and be true to ourselves.  We owe this to God our creator, we owe this to ourselves.  And as we love more, others will love us more too.

Dream, live and love!

Living to Make a Difference!

Living a visionary life is the real charge that our Lord has given us, to live without restraint in taking His word to the world.  For most Westerners, we are content with living small lives, but living small lives does not create personal fulfillment or for that matter fulfill the true will of God.  He has created us in His own image, we are to be His beacons on this earth to open the minds, hearts and souls of others; and it requires more than a small faith and a small effort.  Today in our world, every six seconds a child dies due to malnutrition or under-nourishment, a horrific sad fact.  The question at hand is what are we doing today in our daily efforts to reverse these statistics?  As sad as this fact is, as much as these physical deaths are such a tragedy, there are so many souls lost due to unbelief in God’s saving grace.  We must question our contribution to this malady.  We must question our efforts to save the souls of others and by what means we can achieve the great charge we have been given by our Savior to reach the world. 

Sitting on the sidelines of life is not an option.  You and I were never created to watch life, rather to live life boldly and to the fullest extent.  We are here to help others.  We are here to create links of understanding between other human beings, between each other and ourselves.  We are here to see the face of Christ in every person we meet.  Now I of all people realize how challenging this sometimes can be, but if we begin to live our lives with this thought, we can begin to make a difference.  We are here to protect those who are not able to stand up for themselves, to feed those who are hungry and engage those who have misguided thoughts to seek understanding by learning of Christ.

I do believe a balance of support and challenge in our lives allow us to live more fully, and today choosing a mission to fulfill the works of God in the hearts of others will provide an avenue to live in this state of equilibrium.  No one ever said life would be easy, on the contrary, people are people and there will be days of heartache and sadness, however living to a higher standard will create a ripple effect that will impact positive change in our world.

Personal leadership requires making decisions, sometimes decisions are not always popular with everyone affected, however choices have to be made.  The choices we make are based upon moving in the direction God has chosen for us as outlined in His word.  It is no easier today than what it was for Abraham or Moses, but possessing a great faith and taking action on our faith is the life we are destined to lead as Christians.  Some may believe our modern day world is so much more sophisticated than that of many centuries ago.  However, every time we watch the news and learn of murder, betrayal, theft, adultery, crime and lies we are reminded how much our world is separated from God.  If our faith is real, then we need to reach out and begin by making a difference every day.

Today, get on your knees and pray for the strength of the Lord to enter your heart, for the Holy Spirit to fill your soul with His presence, and lead you to the path for what you are destined.

God Speed! 

Who do you want to Be?

Who do you want to be?
What do you want to be known for in your life?

What places do you plan to travel and discover?

What kind of a relationship do you want your kids to say you have with them?

Is your love life vibrant, exciting, enticing and exuberant?

Do you enjoy open communication and mutual understanding with those most important to you?

Who do you want in your life?

Who do you break bread with each week?

To whom do you display your greatest kindness?

Do you really want to die with the music left inside of you?

Is where you reside and live holding you back from being all you can be?

Are the people you are surrounded by positive, optimistic, hopeful, possess advancing personalities

and want to live the fullest expressions of who they can be?

Do you value peace of mind?

Do you realize your happiness is dependent upon you?  No one else!

Do you value love?

Who do you embrace and who do you kiss?
Who loves you?

Do you value communication?
Who needs your thoughts?

Who needs you need to drop a note, send a letter or special card?

Do you encourage others to live their full potential?

Real freedom is experienced in letting go?

Do you trust?

Who are you true to?

Real trust is found in being true to yourself.

Who do you want to be?

Are you that person now?
Is there anyone stopping you?
Is it you?

Live Magnificiently!

When we live up to our highest values, we expand our lives and grow our sphere and we become more holy rather than living a life of our lowest thoughts.  Life is to be a quest of magnificence and each day is a new canvass to carry out our highest aspirations.  We must be grateful for the gifts we have been given, and in a state of gratitude we begin to step onto the welcome mat leading to a multiplicity of opportunities and understanding.  We are to transcend past our weakest thoughts and realize the bliss we can choose for ourselves by desiring and living lives exhibiting our best character.  When we live up to our hightest values, we live lives of greatness and express our best and true selves.

Thought for the Day!

This morning while listening to Joseph Prince, he shared some thoughts which I would like to share with you.  These thoughts come from I Timothy and will challenge to think if you focus on the word conscience.  Joseph Prince said, "peace is of the conscience; and joy is of the heart."  The way he related this is when Jesus appeared before the disciples after the ressurection, He said, 'Peace Be With You and that resonated with the conscience of the disciples'.  Jesus then showed them His nail marks and they experienced joy in their hearts. 
Here are the verses for you to reflect upon...
I Timothy 1:5
The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
I Timothy 1:19
..holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith.
When we become discouraged or disoriented with life, we must continue to live to a higher standard in our conscience or we may shipwreck our faith.  In new millenial terms shipwreck could be substituted with plane crash.  We all know very few if any survive a plane crash, so it is important to protect our thoughts, to hold onto our faith and thus we grow in spirit.
There are many of us who face everyday challenges and life does not always present itself as easy, so I hope these words will provide a reflection for you to live a greater life with faith, hope and peace.
May the Peace of the Lord Be With You!

Incorruptible Beauty!

^“Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” -  I Peter 3:4 NIV

^“Rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.”  – I Peter 3:4 KJV

The incorruptible unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit…

Wow!  This scripture, this thought makes one realize we must choose to live our lives on a higher plane, and upon doing so, find ourselves of real value in God’s sight. 

So, here we are asking ourselves: how do we live each day with a gentle and quiet spirit?  It begins with a mindset to realize we are servants.  We are here to serve God and we are here to serve His children, our brothers and sisters in humanity.  We are here to be caretakers, lovers of life, respecting His word and choosing to deeply appreciate others we encounter as a part of our existence.  Now, this may seem a little pollyanna as how are we to truly appreciate and love everyone who becomes a part of our existence, as there are those we rather would not embrace.  God would challenges us to pray for others, accept and love and treat them as if they are our family and very own blood.

Maybe if we decided to commit ourselves to really live with ‘the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit’, then our lives may change.  There are those individuals whom we have met that possess this exact trait.  Upon encountering them, we leave their presence more peaceful and with a refreshing calm which overtakes us.  I know you have experienced this, it is not often, but I know you have.  Most of us would choose not to live with what seems a more passive mindset.  However, is it truly a ‘passive approach’ these remarkable individuals choose as their mode of living?  Perhaps, they have decided to choose a more robust way to live, which includes always seeking peace.

As we reflect on the first three fruits of the spirit, should we find it so surprising it is peace, love and joy.  We ponder: the unfading beauty or the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet soul.  Why do live any other way?  Are we such fools not to realize if living as one who loves, sincerely cares, and seeks to enrich the lives of everyone regardless of who they are, or their lot in life, we ourselves evolve to become more beautiful.

I think of Mother Teresa, is this how she lived her life?  Of course, she is one of many examples; and there are those individuals we have encountered on a more personal level.  And today, taking the lead of these persons, we too choose to live a life of servanthood, and daily fixate ourselves on the choice of living more gently, more caring, more giving.  In doing so, we evolve and our spirit gradually transforms to become more beautiful. 

My hope for you my reader, is that you are able to live a magnificent existence, a superb life filled with joy and happiness.  And, at the end of each day before you lie down to rest find yourself pondering - have I lived this day, today - a life which is precious in the sight of God? 

Peace to you!

Live Brilliantly!

The definition of our lives is dependent on our ability to capture the multiplicity of opportunities which lie before us.  Every day is like a new page in the chapter of our lives, every day is so important to really live rather than to take a casual flippant attitude towards letting it slip by.  Our lives are comprised of years, and years comprised of what we do with each day.  We all should be so wise to not let one day just slip by without making a difference in our own lives.

How do we make a difference in our lives?  We make a difference by deciding who we are, choosing to live a more refined life by resolving to enhance the life of every person we meet.  We are to look upon each person we encounter as the most important person in our lives at that moment, and upon doing so we truly impact them with our presence.  When we are blessed to hold an infant child, every morsel of our attention is placed upon that baby because we want the child to feel loved and special.  In the same manner, if we choose to exhibit that level of caring to others in our life, we impact them, as well as ourselves.

After holding a baby, it changes us.  It is not uncommon after a woman holds a baby that she tells everyone she meets the remainder of the day, guess what I did today? ….I held a baby.  So, the idea I am attempting to impress upon you is treat every person you meet as that special baby, and then see how your life is influenced by others.  And you will also be influencing others as they you.

Truly our life is greater when we realize and embrace the notion that it is the relationships in our lives which allow us to live an enhanced life.  Obviously, we may not have a genuine connection with every person we meet, however if we are sincere in our reaching out and remain true to our cause, we will know the difference.  The difference is vastly more important to ourselves as it is our life we are attempting to always enhance.

Today, notice the sunrise and sunset, be unafraid to gaze into the eyes of those you meet, look into the windows of their soul and take note of their persona.  Be faithful to yourself, take a walk and pray for others, and in your mind list everything of which you are grateful.  Decide to love yourself, and realize that God placed you on this earth to make a difference, and without reservation choose to be that difference in the life of one person each day.  Simply compliment someone, write a note, take a friend to lunch, maybe ask another how they feel. 

By the way, it is okay to live without reservation.  When we have the urge to make a positive remark or compliment, and we choose to rather not say it and keep it to ourselves, we miss out on expressing our true selves in that moment.  It is better to be yourself and live a more extroverted life rather than to live in an internal world which causes one to miss out on real living.  Do not hold back!  Live how you truly want to live, this is your life now… you are the master, remember that and take action!

Decide to be a lover today, love God, love your life, love others, love what you do, and above all choose to really live and not miss out on one opportunity to be your most expressive and creative self, and your life will change.  Live Brilliantly!

Thoughts

Tomorrow, I leave to travel a world away to East Africa.  While there in the plains, I will see the faces of small children who did not choose to be born to the life of which they are destined.  For us Westerners, it is good that we understand how blessed we are to be born into the luxurious life we live no matter how we feel about our lot in life.  We are the fortunate ones!  Very few Westerners are starving or dying of thirst for lack of water.

My objective is to only post the most positive of my thoughts rather than to share the dark places within my soul.  It is best if we always share the brightest of all lights within ourselves to illuminate the lives of others we contact.

An empty soul or heart void of love is much worse than empty pockets.  Today, look around at all you possess:  your clothing, your bed, your pillow, your phone, computer, car and the list can go on.  We are all so fortunate to have so much.  Pray a great prayer of thanksgiving!  Then think about others who are less fortunate and recognize how they are able to find beauty in the soul of one another.

True caring, real empathy and deep love seem to be a rarity these days, most people are always willing to accept less.  My stance is rather than to live a life of contentment, we should live a life of real bliss.  This is so much a greater cause and is definitely worth the effort to discover.

May God Bless You!

Look and Speak in the Direction of Where You Want to Be!

Today, I want to write to you my friends.

I want to write to you that we draw everything in our lives to us, and if we want to change our lives, it must begin with our thinking.  Obviously, changing our thinking is a real process because sometimes we get ourselves hung up in a quagmire of hurt, disappointment, frustration and anger creating this feeling we can never leave the rut where we have placed ourselves.  This is where I want to begin today, helping you to acknowledge inside of you there is so much potential and power, it all comes down to a personal choice of which you have to make.

I have definitely had my share of disappointments in life, to know me and understand the essence of who I am is to experience a person who always perseveres.  I do not believe in giving up, people who give up many times stop short of the greatest of opportunities, experiences and relationships, in my book, they are fools.  It is better to exhaust all avenues towards striving forward to a dream, rather than to quit.  When one quits, they fail themselves and most likely fall short of the greatness that lies within or a greatness to be discovered illuminating their lives.

It is important to realize we are the ones responsible for choosing our own destinies.  It is also important to realize we cannot always help the choices of others in our lives.  There are some important moments when we must decide to change the direction of our own sails when the ‘wind of opportunities’ have stalled.  Sometimes business opportunities cease, relationships end or we face other small and large tragedies, rather than to keep a course where there may be no breeze to carry us to greater destinations, we allow ourselves to remain in the stale water.  After a while, we must realize it does us no good to stay there.  So we finally choose to change the course of our direction discovering a new wind in our sails, a new breeze to refresh the skin on our face and we look forward to today with confidence, and a new eagerness, and a great hope. 

We then decide for ourselves there is a great prospect of a plethora of opportunities.  When we believe in a new reality, we set in motion the people, places and events drawing them to us.  Sometimes it seems like it takes a long time; the reason is we continue in our ambivalent feelings and thoughts.  We really can’t sit on a fence.  We have to make a firm decision about our futures, and upon choosing to do so we chase after a new dream and with a firm resolve realize a new reality.  It all begins with the picture we paint in our minds, that is why it is so important to be careful of what you think.  So my friends, think only positive, optimistic thoughts.  Norman Vincent Peale wrote in his book, The Power of Positive Thinking, “A man who is positive and optimistic and undertakes his work with the assurance of success, magnetizes his condition and draws unto himself the creative forces of the universe.”

Today, choose only the best thoughts you can think!  You are a magnet, with every thought you think you draw a new condition into your life.  You only deserve the best!  God only wants you to have the best, so rather than continue down a path of mediocrity filled with hurt and pain, only think of joy, happiness, fulfillment and contentment painting and creating a life of magnificence.  You are the one who holds the brush, choose wisely as you dip it into your palette, find the colors that represent the life you really desire.  Love, happiness, contentment and self-actualization are only a few thoughts away.

I love you and respect you too much, not to tell you this, and for myself, I too must daily practice and believe.  My hope is we can all create great lives of destiny realizing no matter what the remainder of the world thinks or how they want to live, we have made our choices.  We are living magnets, so let us choose what we desire. Today, let us attract and believe only the best, and live brilliantly!

What do you believe?

A view from the hills on my daily hike.

What do you believe?

What do you expect in your life?

How do you choose to live?

Are you ready for real love?

What do you believe?

Everything is easy.

Abundance is everywhere

Feeling good is natural

What do you believe?

You know what you want

You have deep faith

Broaden your horizons

What do you believe?

You have vision

You take action

Your dreams become reality

What do you believe?

There is no more pain and sorrow

There is only optimism and hope

Nothing can keep you from what you want.

What do you believe?

You are magnificent!

Your future is bright…

Your life is becoming more spectacular every day!

What do you believe?

You are loved

In fact, you are showered in love

And you like it!

What do you believe?

Tomorrow looks fantastic

There is excitement to be felt in this day

Your future is painted in the way you handle yourself this day

And every day!

What do you believe?

I love you

And I always will

My love will never waiver

You have total confidence to know that will never change.

What do you believe?

What do you want in life?

And why do you want it?

Choose to seek the truth, the real truth

I wonder what you will discover.

What do you believe?

Today is a great day to learn

Today is a great day to live

Today is a great day to love

What do you believe?

What are you feeling in this moment?

Your feelings bring about truth

If you do not like your life, change your feelings.

You are the one responsible

No one else.

Live today like there is no tomorrow!

And finally, realize what you believe will be your reality.

Choose to believe

Choose to love

Choose to be loved

Choose to live.
Remember it is your life,
It only belongs to you, no one else.
Choose to live it!

Decide to Love

What do you value?

Today as you reflect on what is important, I want you to realize to achieve real power in your life you must decide to love.  You see, if God is love, and He is… then as Saint Paul suggests, ‘we are to become imitators of Christ’ then we too are to become love.  When giving away our love, we forget about ourselves, our selfish ambitions, personal needs and desires and focus upon the wishes and requirements of others.  Loving is more than being there for holidays and easy moments, loving is to continue to love when our feelings are hurt, others forget us, and we are not always considered a top tier priority.  Loving someone takes patience, and an understanding desire to know the future will be brighter, more positive and completely fulfilling.

The more we love, the greater our lives are fulfilled. 

The more we love, the more passionate we become.

The more we love, the more in touch we are with the Holy Spirit within.

The more we love, the more we give away.

The more we love, the more God provides us.

The more we love, the more empowered we become.

The more we love, the more we are loved.

The more we love, the more we fulfill our destinies.

Today, choose to love for the sake of living a greater life, strengthening your personal values and becoming more.

Choose to Live!

Painting By Michelangelo

"The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it."
- Michelangelo

What do you fear?

Why do you fear?

Are your fears real?

Do you have faith?

Why do you have faith?

Why do you believe your faith is real?

Look at yourself in the mirror, are you real?

What makes you think you are real…. a reflection?

So, if you can see yourself, then you know you must exist.

Can you see your thoughts?

How do you know they are real if you cannot see them?

Of course, you and I know are thoughts are real…

Your life is a reflection of your thoughts.

Then why do we give power to fear, rather than to faith?

Jesus said, “Have faith!  If you say unto this mountain go throw yourself into sea and do not doubt, it shall be done.”

What mountain lies before you?

Do not give power to your fears.

Feed your Faith...

There is nothing you cannot accomplish!

Choose to live bigger than you are today.

Walk each step with faith

You can choose to live small or large...

The choice is yours…

What do you choose?

So many choose to live their life without living it!

Please don’t let that be you!

Recognize the strength that lies within you.

You are awesome!

There is so much power within you to accomplish much.

Do not doubt!

Be faithful to yourself.

Be faithful to God.

Today, choose to live not just a mere existence...

Stretch yourself.

Decide to chase a dream…

Then do it!

'Choose to Become Whole'

Today, I want to share with you that you must work on yourself to be the best person you can possibly become.  There is so much to you, great capabilities to achieve great success in every aspect of your life.  Celebrate your individuality!  You do not have to be like other people, you do not need to follow the crowd - follow the beat to your own drum; it is quite okay to do so. 

As you explore all the possibilities of your life, what do you feel are your greatest attributes?  Your ability to connect with others, be a friend, a good listener, perhaps one of your best qualities is to provide acts of service to others.  Maybe you possess a great intellectual mind and are capable to solve large complex problems or successfully negotiate tough deals.  Maybe you are very skilled with your hands and able to create, build, repair, and restore large and small to the most complex and the simplest of gadgets.  No matter your talent, capitalize upon your innate ability and through discipline you will develop many skills.

Today is a good day to choose to recognize the great qualities of all those in your life.  Instead of focusing on your similarities, maybe you should choose to learn about your differences and embrace them.  Allow your significant other to be themselves and allow them to flourish in their individuality.  A great mistake many couples make is to be strive to be alike in everything and in doing so limit their own uniqueness.  This is a sad statement. Rather, I encourage you to support your differences in the way you think, see issues, and in your personal interests.  It is okay to have differences rather than be in relationship where you mimic one another in everything you do.  None of us need a clone, rather we need someone to enhance our lives, challenge our thinking and stretch us to grow to become more.

In our pursuit to live uniquely, rather than in a homogenized relationship, we choose to openly accept our differences and realize it is okay.  We also celebrate our similarities noting the glue that ties us together in our relationship.  The glue is our shared values, lifestyle choices and commitment level to those important to us in our lives.

A great concept in our relationships is to decide to allow each other the freedom to be ourselves.  When we recognize why we were initially attracted to someone it is usually because there was something special about them and also they shared our same values.  In my book, character is very important, what attracts me to a woman is someone who is confident in her demeanor, has high values, and loves herself and others.  Maybe not everyone needs that in someone they seek, but it is essential we each learn what is our (turn-on’s) so to speak because those traits are the prerequisites we desire in those we bring into our lives.

I hope these thoughts are causing you to realize the importance of recognizing your uniqueness and that of the special person in your life, or those you want to enter your life.  I want you to live an unparalleled existence with great happiness, joy and with unbounded love by unbinding the most important person in your life providing them the freedom to be his or herself.  In doing so, you provide them with a great gift and with mutual understanding you too will be showered with the greatest gift of all to be yourself.

You will then find in allowing each other this great freedom, a new math 1 + 1 = 1

An Adventure!

I find it intriguing all the books, magazine articles and the enormous amount of literature and media about relationships.  As men and women in our 21^st century society, we make it too complicated and create this labyrinth of entanglement.  So why can’t it be simple?  I love you and you love me.  We embrace, we kiss, take one another’s hand, smile, laugh and love. 

A great relationship begins with two people who are willing to discard each of their complicated components.  Life is pretty simple, find someone who commands your every thought and attention and love them.  The challenge is how do we find someone who we are completely mesmerized with and who also is willing to love us in the same manner, or be ready for love and accept our love. 

Love in itself is about giving yourself away, to forget about selfishness and to share the best of our own individual nature.  I believe in all my writings you as the reader have a great idea of what I believe about love.   At first, when we fall in love with someone, it is a choice and after awhile we become entranced, and it is no longer a choice if we truly love.  You see, we can’t help ourselves from loving the other person, it becomes a part of our personal nature and we love and love.  Some people call this obsession, of course it is obsession, what do they think real love is?  We all want to find ourselves obsessed and to be the obsession of someone special.

I really do believe some people have a greater persona to love than others.  Some individuals are very guarded, this idea of guarding one’s heart is so selfish.  The only motive in guarding oneself is to protect oneself from hurt. The greatest lovers to ever grace this earth, always open themselves to all possibilities, hurt, pain and the possibility of misery are worth the real prize in finding and experiencing true love.

In our life’s adventure to find true love, we must sometimes forget the past, it does not matter.  Only the promise of what this day holds and the vision of what we can conceive about our future is what makes a difference.  The best place to start in our endeavor is to first love ourselves.  Take inventory of every wonderful trait you possess, because everyone regardless who we are has this most magnificent person inside of ourselves.  Some of us bottle up all our feelings, or perhaps have been trampled upon in the past and have settled for mediocrity rather than revealing the distinctive brilliance which lies within our souls.  So without question, forget the past, forget about those have trampled upon you, also abandon every doubt you have a tendency to cling to, and decide to live with passion and faith.  Inside of your heart there is great beauty, a radiance to be revealed, so sumptuous that others in life will be attracted to you.  You see my friend, this is the place to start in your quest for real love, to love yourself.

Why would you want to be in a relationship with someone who did not love themselves? How in the world would they be capable of loving you?  And if you did not love yourself, how could you love them?  It would not be fair, and without the balance of this parity of love, you have nothing! 

So to find true love, be everything God created you to be.  In fact, decide this day to release your real personality, your most charismatic self, and in doing so you’ll find peace and personal happiness that will lead you to and draw others to you who also are in love with themselves. Your life will be more magnificent than you have ever dreamed, and the special person you have been waiting to discover will find you.   

"A Prayer"

Dear Heavenly Father,

We glorify you for the creation of this magnificent universe and especially for those special people you have placed into our lives.  We confess unto you that we are not always perfect, we long to be perfect, but we cannot help ourselves to sin.  We thank you for the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, for His love and sacrifice covering all our sins with His blood.  We pray today that you would change our hearts to be like you… loving, caring, giving, forgiving without a thought of selfishness upon our hearts.  We ask that you place your Hand upon us and direct the Holy Spirit to lead us this day down the right path in life.  In Jesus our Savior’s Most Precious Holy Name we pray.  Amen.