Friday, October 25, 2013

STEPPING OUT IN FAITH

You gotta believe! That has been the motto of many a person and even pro sports teams over the years. While many of us fail to see that we demonstrate great faith in many things every day we still exhibit faith very often. The biggest problem many of us have is that we "misplace" our faith in things we do not want to see manifest instead of placing our faith in things we do want to see transpire. You don't think you have much faith huh? Hey, most of you will soon get behind the wheel of an automobile and start the ignition. Right? And you don't stop to wonder if the ignition will start(most of the time) and you don't think about all it entails for an auto to crank, no, instead you just have faith that it will start when you turn the ignition on. Likewise, while you are driving down the avenue you place a lot of faith in the other drivers around you, in the traffic signals that they are properly working etc. And when you go to slow down you have faith that the brakes when applied will stop the car. I know this is a simple illustration of faith but faith is faith no matter what label one applies. We use our faith every moment in this life oft times in a negative way. How many times have you heard someone say--Hey, I never win anything- but still you see them buying a raffle ticket. A case of misplaced faith to me. Any way I know faith is a very personal thing to each of us but still I think we should all try and keep our faith on a positive track. Why it seems to be that we can easily believe in something "bad" happening to us, but can't find the same conviction of faith when it comes to believing that something "good" will come our way. Here's hoping that each of you will take a close look at your "inner" beliefs or faith and see if they can be redirected to a positive view. Martin Luther King Jr. once stated this: "Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." May you all reach out and begin the ascent to your highest goals and ambitions in a perfect faith in all you do. And please remember that as life rewards you with all good things just take what you need and share the rest with those less fortunate. The very best I wish for you and yours now and forever!

Friday, October 18, 2013

RIGHT OR WRONG

I often have trouble in trying to see any one thing as right or wrong. I have come to find out that there is just way too much of the gray area with things. And thus any thing can be either right, wrong, or somewhere in between. But in this world oft times we feel the need to define our belief about something as either right or wrong, no room in between for anything else. And I do feel this leads us down a narrow road that is awash with all kinds of ruts(challenges, troubles, illness, etc). It is one thing to firmly believe something is true but yet another thing if that belief precludes another's perception of things. I have found this is extremely true when it comes to things of a spiritual nature. As I've stated many times I am not a religious man nor do I claim to have possession of life's answers. But I do try my best to keep an open mind when it comes to things spiritual. Most religious folks would think I am damned to hell after this life because I don't adhere to a particular faith nor do I believe in a Devil, I don't believe in a God who is vengeful, nor one who sits in judgment either for us or against us. But I do believe in a world where we are ALL one and that one day we will again merge back into the Universal Mind or Spirit as I call it. But again, these beliefs are personal to me and I'm sure you have your own beliefs as well. The purpose of this writing is to let you know that when I finally awoke to the fact that I did NOT have to be right all the time, then my life became a whole lot easier. I gladly share my beliefs with anyone who wants to listen but I will not ever feel the need to defend them as I once did. You know what? I may be way, way, off in my beliefs but at least I don't have to try and prove them right. Here's to hoping that you are confident and secure in your personal beliefs, also that you have an open mind so that you can accept others as they are, and a warm fuzzy feeling in knowing that one day all humanity will again recognize their oneness and that we will at long last understand the truth. In the meantime if you can just do a little something nice for another human being then please do it now. This world as I see it needs a lot more kindness so let that kindness begin with you today. I wish you all the very best of everything now and always.

Saturday, October 5, 2013

LICKING YOUR WOUNDS

One thing for certain in this uncertain world is that sooner or later we are all gonna get injured by someone  or something. These injuries can range from small time to really big epidemics. And the injuries can be physical, mental, or emotional, or a combination of all of these. No one is immune from them and they will tend to come in bunches. But even though we will all have to deal with injuries of some sort we can overcome them with the right usage of mind and spirit. Have you ever seen a dog who has been cut or scratched up licking their wounds with the tongue? They do this because it is an inherited trait they are born with to help heal any wounds they may receive. But if you continue to watch them they will immediately cease the licking when the wounds start to heal. After that, they go on about their lives with not much concern about the old wounds. But funny as it may sound, we humans sometimes insist on keeping the licking going on long after the wound should have healed. And oft times we even begin to actually like licking them all hours of the day. Of course I don't mean we actually lick our wounds with our tongues the way a dog does, but we do what is inherit in our makeup to aid the wounds to heal. But if we continue to lick(keep talking about them, using them as excuses for one thing or another, feeling sorry for ourselves, blaming others, cursing our "bad luck", or any number of ways to keep the wounds open and sore) then we become like the dog whose wounds never heal because they refuse to stop licking them. And that is when we allow our wounds to continue to harm us in our everyday life in ways we don't ever realize are happening. So today I would hope that each of us will examine all of our open wounds, gently lick them for a short time, and then stop all the licking and allow them to completely heal. That is the only way I know for us to "get over" our injuries and get on with living. My hope is that all of your wounds are light and that they will be quickly healed. I leave you now with a quote from John Lennon(my favorite singer and artist of all time) who once said :"If its dying you want that's okay, but if it's living you want then get on with it." And as always please try to remember to be the very best human being you can be and do something nice for someone today! "HUGS" to all.