It's been far too long since I last connected to you and you have been sorely missed.
In my absence, life has applied just the right amount of pressure to help me release another dimension of my true authentic self. Since then and even now, this new level of understanding and existence is truly empowering my identity and purpose to a whole new level. The journey in becoming is, I'll use Ellie's word here, delicious.
We as women are often bombarded with messages telling us who we should be, what we should do, and how we should look and although this messages can be helpful, they often miss a key component...telling you just how perfect you are right where you are. This has been my lesson of late.
When we forget who we are because we're focused on what we should be doing, we get disconnected from and out of alignment with God, the Universe, and our spiritual true self. Not that we shouldn't be working mind you, work is necessary. However, I believe moreso now than ever before, that what we should be doing is only those things that aligns with our passion, purpose and truth. I know we hear this message all time but do we, have we really listened?
I really do enjoy the process of creating and working but I realized that I was doing so for the wrong reasons. That became abundantly clear when I started experiencing health problems and a decline in abundance in every area of my life. The lessons learned came from many sources and I'm thankful and grateful for their influence in my personal growth and development. I have been reminded that everything happens, good or bad, for the purpose of my higher good. When I realigned to and with my vision, a vision I never truly lost sight of, I made a decision to let go of everything that no longer served me, which ultimately meant leaving my job and taking risks to follow my deepest heart's desire. What has amazed me about this decision and process is how much peace I've been experiencing even in the midst of uncertainty. And, to my surprise, more and more opportunities that align with my vision is manifesting in lightening speed.
Sometime the most difficult choice we can make is to listen to our own heart rather than others or the world. My question to you is, are you listening to be YOU or not?
Looking forward to connecting to all of you and new sisters more often.
How I have missed you!! The business of living well has, unfortunately, kept me away from all of you far too long. I just couldn't let today pass without taking, even the briefest of moments to say, I Love You all and hope to connect and see you soon.
May today be a day we all choose to let love flow from the inside out AND from the outside in.
Good morning my BraveHeart Sisters! May today be the BEST day of your life !
Since November 2009, after attending RELEASE, I have been on an amazing journey of transformation from the inside out. Literally, my personal and professional world violently and graciously released anything and everything that truly no longer served my purpose or my destiny. At first, this was painful and downright scary. I was changing roles and positions, moving from being a teacher, healer and an upcoming entrepreneur to becoming, once again, a student.
I recently found this quote by Gandhi that has really moved me. It says, "Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever." For those of us who are gifted and called to teach, inspire, empower and change lives, sometimes we forget the importance of continuing to allow ourselves to also be taught and be students. It's easier to give than receive.
For years, I have had the honor of living my passion as a professor, marriage and family therapist and industrial psychologist. I became very comfortable "doing" what I'm good at doing. However, while on my journey, I got distracted by being "busy" and taking care of others that in some ways, I forgot to take care of the deeper essence/core of me. This quiet and subtle disconnect started to manifest in strange ways, but of course, I was too busy to really pay attention...I had things to do, people to work with and hopefully heal, school to complete, the list goes on. Well, as one thing led to another, I eventually found this amazing community, BHWGC, an attended a RELEASE with Ellie and Dr. Sugar and as I stated early, things have never been the same since.
Learning My Lessons
I have always believed that women are amazing and have a strength and a holding capacity like no other. Despite any challenge we face, we can handle anything. Why? I think it has a lot to do with our ability to multi-task and compartmentalize. The problem with this is; however, we live in a world where we as woman are constantly being bombarded with something else to do or someone else to take care of which often causes us to forget ourselves or truly address our own heart/soul issues.
That said, here is what I am learning on this new journey of transformation and I hope you will be inspired and empowered to be transformed as well.
First, at the very core of our being IS the absolute truth of our magnificence, our beauty, our wisdom, knowledge, gifts and talents. However, disconnect and distraction from our core often causes us to miss hearing the absolute truth and guidance we need to live fully as we were designed and called to live.
Second, continued disconnect and distraction from our core creates ~ fear. This fear is unconscious as we often relate fear to being afraid of something rather than seeing it as a resistance to living authentically.
Another quote that has resurfaced in my life and has greater meaning now than it did when I first read it is by Marianne Williamson called~ Our Deepest Fear.
Our Deepest Fear
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, handsome, talented and fabulous?”
Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us. It is not just in some; it is in everyone.
And, as we let our own light shine, we consciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
WOW! How true!
And finally, current lesson learned:
Living for others is not my responsibility. My responsibility is to authentically live and shine bright enough so that others would want the same and in that I am to teach truths that can literally set people free from the inside out.
Interestingly enough, most of what I have shared we already know but sometimes, you need someone or something else, or life experiences to teach us the lesson a new way in order for us to truly "get it." This time, I get it! TRULY!!!
As we all prepare for RISE, I pray that all of us take time to re-evaluate our current heart/soul/core condition, release absolutely everything that must go, and be transformed from your heart and then the rest will follow...I promise.
Good morning my BraveHeart Sisters! I have a question for you. How WELL are you?
As an organizational psychologist and marriage and family therapist, I often work with individuals and companies in helping them identify positive ways to improve their personal and professional lives whether that means improving their productivity, handling their emotions and stress or just improving meaningful relationships. While it might be easier to address these issues if they were independent of one another, they are not. That said, it has become important that we learn the essential elements to being well.
I love research especially anything related to personal and professional development, growth and wellness. Those, like me, who love information will appreciate this new finding by Gallup, Inc. Gallup, Inc. is the leading progressive consulting firms in the US helping leaders address issues related to business, government and social improvement. I share this with you because Gallup recently completed a comprehensive study of people in more than 150 countries revealing the "five universal interconnected elements that shape people's lives: Career Wellbeing, Social Wellbeing, Financial Wellbeing, Physical Wellbeing and Community Wellbeing."
As I read through their list and recalled my own passion and background in wellness, I couldn't agree more with their findings. In addition to these findings, Gallup surveyed over 136,000 people in 132 nations and found that wealth and happiness are strongly correlated...obviously. In addition, what they also found was that "everyday positive feelings have even a stronger connection to happiness and 'holistic' wealth." That caused me to think, what are we doing everyday to create happiness in our lives that can and will ultimately create holistic wealth?
In an effort to transform the soul, heart and mind of individuals by promoting a mindset for holistic wellness, here's what I would like to suggest to you as you pursue be-ing and living well and prepare yourself for RISE:
Wellness, in it's truest form, it not just about physical health. It's about focusing on all seven dimensions of wellness (physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social, occupational and financial).
Steps to Being Well !
Wellness is primarily a choice and a mindset. As we all know, our thoughts are powerful. What you think about daily affects what you feel daily, which ultimately affect how you behave or live our lives. Think abundance and wellness and the rest WILL follow.
Wellness is a daily activity of the body, mind and spirit. When each part is honored and given attention to, PEACE is present!
Wellness is constant personal and professional development.
Wellness is about having an awareness to live life purposefully.
Internal wellness (peace of mind) creates wealth for life.
Wellness creates stability, confidence and peace
Wellness is a strategic plan for being and living life well.
As I'm being encouraged by other BHWs to breathe, take one step at a time, nurture and take action for myself, I hope that I inspire you to do the same.
Live Outrageously Well and see you at RISE ~ Much love,
Hello my amazing Braveheart Sisters! It has been too long since I've posted and I have missed you all terribly!!
Life has shifted in so many ways that staying connected seemed impossible, until today. For the first time in several months, I had several free hours to just sit, breathe, and re-evaluate who I am, where I am and where I'm called to go. The blessing in this moment is that in the midst of silence and reflection, I kept hearing the words, "Remember who you are." Instantly, I felt courageous, strong, and sure. Something time and being too busy has caused me to forget.
As I allowed silence to continue to reveal today's lesson, I started to remember all the truths I've learned over the years and those who have made such a huge impact on my overall growth and well-being. That said, I remembered Ellie, Dr. Sugar, my BraveHeart sisters and many others. Wow! An instant surge of energy, excitement and truth came forth causing me to remember the power of connecting to like-minded women...to you.
We all know that today's challenges are overwhelming, to say the least, and often require more of us than we originally expected or care to give. We are constantly bombarded with stories of brokenness, lack and fear. As a therapist, I have never witnessed as much despair, fear, confusion and anxiety as I am now. Too many people are misdirected and focused on the wrong truths. This only causes more of the same, as we all know.
As I reflected on the condition of my clients and even myself, I realized that a theme was merging...a lack of like-minded connection. Being too busy or overally involved in "activities" never truly allows for deep, soul to soul connections. It, being busy, only takes up space and time. I admit I had forgotten that.
That said, I wanted to take a few moments to tell each of you just how important your connection to me, Braveheart and others truly is to your overall wellness, happiness, success and life.
Every time we connect as women, friends and sisters, we deepen our spirits, create opportunities to learn and grow, shift the mindset and energy in our own lives and those around us, and heal with grace and beauty the soul of life itself. It's in our connection that we truly experience God, the Universe, life and each other.
In this moment I release and share my heart, thoughts, prayers and love for and with all of you.
Today’s challenges may have many of us feeling stretched to our limit. It is during these times that our overall personal wellness starts to wan and our ability to cope is easily threatened. If you are currently experiencing any type of challenge, take heart dear one, you are not alone and help is a lot closer than you might think.
For the past few months, while navigating through several challenges of my own, I kept hearing the word surrender and the phrase stay the course. What made these words even more intriguing was the fact that several of my clients would make some type of reference to these ideas but had no clue what they meant or what they should do. Of course, I knew. God and the Universe were sending me confirmations that it was time to go on another journey, a journey of true surrender and faith.
As I pondered on my spiritual assignment, I remembered doing research on the phrase “stay the course” and found that it is a military phrase often used during times of battle or war. The phrase is a metaphor meaning that regardless of any challenge or obstacle one faces, the objective is to “stay constant and maintain an unaltering course while navigating life” [word and emphasis mine]. As I studied, “maintain an unaltering course” it became clear that my choice to stay on course or to falter, would eventually determine my final outcome. We all know this but sometimes we need a little, ok, a BIG reminder to help us get back to the basics of what we know is absolutely true.
As we continue, I would like to challenge you, my BraveHeart Sisters, to consider this truth that surrendering or yielding to our own internal power and authentic truth and staying the course spiritually is essential to creating life-changing present moment experiences, manifesting deep abiding abundance, and movement toward a higher purpose. With that, here is what I have re-learned about surrender, faith, and staying the course.
Surrender
Merriam’s Webster Dictionary defines surrender as 1 a: to yield to the power, control, or possession of another upon compulsion or demand b: to give up completely or agree to forgo especially in favor of another 2 a: to give (oneself) up into the power of another especially as a prisoner b: to give (oneself) over to something (as an influence) intransitive senses: to give oneself up into the power of another: YIELD synonym see RELINQUISH.
Often the act of surrendering is taken to mean something negative such as giving up our power to others or anything outside ourselves; however, I have come to re-realize that true surrender is the development of trust that everything happens for a reason and serves a much greater purpose than our present moment of frustration, confusion and pain. Please don’t get me wrong. Moment by moment experiences is necessary and powerful; however, they are just that…a moment. Yet, creating future moments in our present experiences can leave a legacy that echoes for an eternity. Remember that future moments have everything to do with the development of our current mindset. Our mindset is our beliefs, values, habits and character. During challenging times, these aspects of ourselves are threatened due to our external focus and/or viewpoint of life rather than on our spiritual internal focus and/or viewpoint of life.
When we choose to focus our attention internally or better yet spiritually, the absolute truth will always lead us to freedom, peace and abundance. We must make this conscious choice every day.
"Surrender is faith that the power of Love can accomplish anything even when you cannot foresee the outcome." - Deepak Chopra
Have Faith
We are often encouraged to “have faith” yet many of us question the concept of faith and what it actually means. Again, according to Merriam’s Webster Dictionary, faith is 1 a : allegiance to duty or a person : loyalty b (1) : fidelity to one's promises (2) : sincerity of intentions 2 a (1) : belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2) : belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion b (1) : firm belief in something for which there is no proof (2) : complete trust 3 : something that is believed especially with strong conviction; especially : a system of religious beliefs. The Bible tells us that, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen” ~ Hebrews 12:1.
Ultimately, faith is an internal knowing (evidencing the possession of inside information) in all that is absolutely true. When I surrender to my faith, to all that is absolutely true, all things work together for good and I become convinced that God and the Universe want me to be and have the very best. It is in this knowing that the best MUST and starts to manifest.
Stay the Course
Earlier I mentioned that staying the course is a military term in reference to, “stay constant and maintain an unaltering course while navigating life” [word and emphasis mine]. At first glance when you read this phrase, you might be propelled toward performing some type of action. However, in truth I have come to believe that this powerful little phrase has a much deeper connotation connected to it. Defined, the word stay means to spend time with a person, a place/situation, or to rest. WOW! I am often amazed how the meaning of a word can dramatically change my understanding or the way I see things when I actually know the original definition of that word.
Now, if we apply the idea of resting to our state of surrender and staying in the course, everything changes. Rest literally means to be inactive, still, or at peace. In this place of rest or ease, things and life can move much more effortlessly. When we surrender and stay in the course of surrendering, we are open to experiencing life as processes of movement toward our higher purpose. Resting in our place of surrender means no worries, or anxieties, and no stress. True surrender means living from our spiritual knowing and allowing that truth to inspire and divinely guide our “activity.” In simpler terms, it means trusting that “it is what it is.”
In the next few weeks, may I encourage you to surrender to all that is true and already inside the very core of your being and watch as God, the Universe and life begin to reveal life abundantly.
As you all may remember, Orange County, California experienced several wildfires destroying an estimate of over $59.2 million in property damages starting from 2007 - 2009. One fire that particularly caught my attention was the fire in Brea, CA. Over 10 acres of brush off the 57 fwy in Brea, CA was totally destroyed. I know that freeway all too well. I have traveled that stretch of freeway to and from school and work for the past 13 years. I always enjoyed this drive because of the beautiful, green, lush and rolling mountains on both sides of the freeway. My last memory of that stretch of freeway was seeing it completely burned, black and dead. It was a true heart break. Something so beautiful and free was now gone. Since that time, I now only use the 57 fwy at night, never having to see the devastation left behind by the fires. In truth, I had forgotten how majestic the mountains were, until this weekend.
This past weekend I had an early morning meeting in Orange County, which meant that I had to drive the 57 fwy in order to get to my destination and to my deepest surprise I saw the most amazing thing....the mountains were full, green, lush, feeding life (a few cattle were grazing the fields), and living once again. Instantly my heart jumped for joy and all I could say was, "You did it!" "You defeated death and are living again." "Mother Earth, you won! Thank you!" I realized later how appropriate my statements were being that it was Easter/Resurrection weekend.
Principles to the Power of the Circle of Life
All day long I kept reflecting on that scenery and how alive the mountains were. I was deeply, spiritually moved by this experience. Why? Well, I realized that this was the first time I actually saw the power of the circle of life in full affect. It caused me to realize a truth that we all know, but often are too busy and/or distracted to remember.
Principle Number One:
Despite the challenges, disappointments, hurts and losses we may have had or are currently experiencing, the essence of life has been designed by God and the Universe to LIVE. That stretch of earth along the 57 fwy still knew its purpose despite what happened to it.
One of my favorite quotes is, “We are all spiritual beings living in a human body having human experiences, which often interferes with our spiritual truth.” I so agree. I also believe that within everyone’s spirit is a divine plan and purpose to our true existence. Regardless of our past or what has happened/happening to us, our spirit STILL holds the absolute truth to our design, purpose and destiny. As you seek to know your divine purpose, the essence of life within you will cause you to live, if you'll surrender and allow it to naturally follow its design.
Principle Number Two:
In knowing who you are and your divine purpose ~ BE determined to LIVE. The grass, trees, and mountains near the 57 fwy, knew it HAD to live again in order to sustain the life force all around it, directly or indirectly. There were no questions asked, or doubts, or the need to get advice or permission from something or someone else in order for it to live again. The earth just knew its purpose and did was it was designed to do. I think there’s a HUGE lesson from this truth. BE DETERMINED TO LIVE!
Principle Number Three:
Remember, what has died can live again. It may not look or feel exactly as before, but nine times out of ten, what manifests out of death or a loss is usually better. At the core of this principle lies the power of understanding the power of our choices.
We all know that what we focus on, manifests. Choose to live, to be happy, to be successful and to be well.
The sacred truth to the power of the circle of life is ~ everything is connected to everything and all things must do what it has been designed to do…LIVE.
My Dear BraveHeart sisters, here's my challenge:
Do not just live for the purpose of “living”. In truth, that’s just existing. LIVE according to your divine authentic purpose which is grounded in and based upon what YOU define as true. If your current truth is not manifesting life-giving experiences and opportunities, than change your truth! Remember, your authentic truth is free of everything.
Since graduating with my doctorate in 2007, I have been on a journey to understand why certain people are successful and others are not. This journey has led me to interesting truths some of which I already knew and others I had never considered before. One truth that has become the bedrock to my own transformation, and hopefully that of my clients, is understanding the power of having the right mindset. Whether you're aware of it or not, your mindset, formed by your childhood and current experiences, powerfully shapes your thought patterns and your behaviors, which as you know, will ultimately shape your life.
As I read books, listened to literally hours of audio recordings, webinars and teleconferences, as well as being a conference addict, one thing became abundantly clear. Success, of any form, is strongly dependent upon your mindset. In simpler terms, your beliefs, values, character and habits will either create and manifest success in your life or do just the opposite and bring failures. This fascinated me as another truth emerged from this journey. Successful people have very different beliefs, values, habits AND conversations than the average person when it comes to creating the type of life they want, internally and externally. You know this, but do you understand or have true wisdom about this truth. Knowing and understanding are two different things. From my perspective, knowing is having a good grasp of information or facts. Yet, understanding is having a deep inner truth or wisdom that brings peace or abundance.
I’m excited about what is happening within BraveHeart and Ellie and Dr. Sugar’s passion about helping women globally raise their prosperity hormone. We can all use more money right about now. I’m in full agreement and looking forward to seeing what women will do when they/we are full and release ourselves to change the world. Yet, I also hope that as they deliver powerful truths regarding prosperity and take us on this amazing journey, that we will honor their teachings by preparing ourselves mentally, emotionally, spiritually and behaviorally for this next shift taking place.
BraveHeart sisters, if your mindset is based on external prosperity, research says that the likelihood of maintaining it, whatever “it” is, is pretty slim. Want proof? Look at those who received or won a great deal of money and you’ll see that within a few years and sometimes even months, they are back in the same financial position they were in before the money arrived. Why? Their wealth or prosperity mindset had not been fully developed.
It is my hope that we as women and sisters will take full advantage of what we are learning and receiving from this amazing community.
Preparing Your Mindset for Prosperity:
I am forever telling my clients that their subconscious mind has more power in their life than their conscious mind. That said, the first step in preparing your mindset for prosperity is evaluating what your subconscious mind is thinking. How? For one week, write done every thought you have about wealth, money, prosperity and abundance. At the end of the week, evaluate whether it is negative or positive. If negative, then inundate yourself with positive truths, cds, affirmations, books, etc on the topic or better yet, find a good therapist or coach to help you break down those hindering thoughts. Research says it takes 14-21 days to create or change a habit, but only if you are consistent…that’s the key ~ consistency.
As strange as this may sound, get rid of all clutter. Make room, whether internally or externally for wealth and prosperity. How I did this was by meeting with my CPA and finally getting all my accounts in order. Learned something interesting from this task. By not keeping accurate track of my finances, I didn’t realize that I had more wealth than I thought but poor money habits had me spending money on things that didn’t show my wealth. One of my mentors encouraged me to see how long I could hold $100 without spending it. What a challenge!! I learned that if I didn’t have the available money, I probably didn’t need it. Lesson learned!
Define and then visualize wealth! If you can define wealth, then you can visualize it. We all know how powerful visualizations are and how they work. Enough said.
My new truth about money is ~ money is energy! Never thought about money that way. What you put out, comes back. Are you sending out money for the right reasons? Many of us use money to fulfill an emotional need, which may explain why women seem to always be broke. It is time to learn a healthier way to meet our emotional needs.
And finally,
Remember that wealth and prosperity is your birthright and within your physical being.
I encourage you to participate in the Prosperity Hormone calls, change your mindset and get ready for a new way of thinking, be-ing and living.
I'm so joyous about being alive and truly living according to my call and destiny. Today is the day that we must fully trust God, the Universe and ourselves while letting our inner courage and faith lead us to all that we desire and deserve for the greater good of life and mankind. I truly and deeply pray that you FEEL the same way about yourself and your life.
Well, this weekend was an amazing one as I attended Release again with the amazing Dr. Sugar and her BraveHeart Team and I must say ~ releasing is even more powerful the second time around!
As you already know, I tend to process things a lot. Being an MFTI and an industrial psychologist helps, I'm sure, as well as having a very deep and strong spiritual background. This time, attending Release revealed an interesting truth.
I’m sure you'll agree that many of us have several people in our lives who love to give us their "well intended” comments, thoughts and opinions and in doing so often times they have no clue how deeply their comments have or can hurt us. Even worse, most of the time we ourselves have no clue how deep their comments have gone into our soul and subconscious mind indirectly affecting our own thoughts, feelings, and choices. In subtle ways, eventually these comments start to shape and reshape our very existence and manner of living. I re-realized this truth while driving home from Arizona.
While participating in an energy exercise, I was given a gift ~ a stone with the word "courage" on it. At first, it didn't resonate with me. It was just a pretty stone. Not until Monday morning while working with a client did the message of the gift became clear.
Courage, as defined by Webster is: bravery, fortitude (patient endurance) and spirit. “I’m brave. I’ve accomplished a lot in my life," which is true, yet deep within me I heard, "That’s not exactly true." The spirit of courage helped me realized that my spirit has ALWAYS yearned for adventure and a passion for deep wisdom and excitement. Yet in truth, I had to admit that I may have been a little too cautious and calculated in almost all of my decisions. Then it hit me. I’ve NEVER driven such a long distance before. What was I thinking? A single woman driving early (1 a.m.) in morning all the way to Arizona by herself??? My mother would have had a fit if she knew! I could hear her comments, “Are you crazy? It’s dangerous. What happens if your car breaks down? Blah, blah, blah….” I knew that if I had told her, I probably wouldn't have gone because something in me would have eventually agreed with her "well-intended comments." But from the moment I was encouraged to attend Release; my soul and spirit strongly, continually and lovingly urged me to go. At first, I had too many challenges in the way ~ making it impossible to go. Then God and the Universe cleared the path and I was on my way.
Once home, my gift of “courage” beautifully and lovingly told me that it was time to break outside of my calculated comfort zone and that of others, and embark upon a new adventure/journey in becoming.
This revelation ignited a flow of spiritual truths that has lifted my heart to “trust” fully in the process of living outside my “structured” walls and comfort zone. To do so means living more fully and with aligned intention.
As human beings, we all have an innate primate instinct that tells us often to “play it safe.” At one time, “playing it safe” served us, protected us; however, now is no longer the time to just sit by and watch.
If you pay attention to children, they play and exist with no fear or inhibitions about just being. Unfortunately, as we become adults, life and its challenges start to influence us in such a way that causes us to become stagnate, stuck, or unfulfilled. But this, dear BraveHeart Sisters, is a choice. You can choose to stay in your comfort zone(s) or step outside and continue to learn and grow.
Steps to Stepping Outside Your Comfort Zone
1. Remember, take one step at a time - Start with something small. Little steps eventually become big steps giving you the ability to eventually reach your goal.
2. Stick with it – Each time you allow yourself to experience something new and your repeat the practice of it, it eventually becomes more comfortable. Before you know it, you've mastered a new talent or have a new page to write in your journal.
3. Find joy in stepping outside your comfort zone – Stepping outside your comfort zone will help you create your life and live with purpose and intention. It may be scary at first, but in the end, it’s always worth it.
Faith is believing in God or a Higher Power even when there is no direct evidence of proof. Trust is knowing that God and the Universe has and will continue to guide your footsteps and life, in big and small ways, to your highest good and authentic truth and self.
Over the past few months, life has brought some very interesting challenges that have re-opened my eyes to several truths, the one above happened this morning. As I was preparing for work and processing this week's events, my spirit reminded me that I would either have faith and trust in God's plan and the Universe's ability to manifest it, or not. I knew in that moment I had a choice to make. The choice was easy ~ I choose to have faith and trust.
Many of us already know this truth but we are probably more aware of it at an intellectual level. But, when this truth drops deep to our core or like Ellie says, visceral level, and becomes wisdom, true freedom and peace emerges.
Learning to have faith and to trust at the same time is an interesting journey. It truly is a journey of becoming. When we allow ourselves to experience this journey fully with all its changes and challenges, AND when we allow ourselves to let go of our expectations or rigid results, something amazing happens. Our deepest intentions and desires manifest allowing more opportunities for us to experience our God-given birthright and highest good.
When you have a few moments, look back over your life and remember times when you let go and felt led by God, a Higher Power, or the Spirit. Remember times when you felt an impression to do something, go somewhere or not, when you were warned about a situation or person, or when you were guided to call or help a friend. Each of these moments you were being led on a journey of faith or truth and sometimes both.
I have had several examples like the ones mentioned above and often I trust my "instincts" more than anything else. In one incident, I didn't listen. I didn't trust what was being given to me because it seemed, at the time, to interfere with what I wanted. To this day I regret not listening to that guidance. Although I have let go of the guilt originally connected to that incident, I remember the lesson I have learned. I now trust that my spirit, my core, has the absolute truth for my life more than my external experiences and situations. When I honor and listen to that truth, everything works out together for my highest good and for others, if they are involved.
My dear BraveHeart Sisters, today is the day to decide if you will have faith and trust in God and the Universe's ability to manifest your highest good , even in challenging situations, or not.
I hope and pray that you will allow yourself to go on this journey of becoming as your soul grows and evolves into love, life and all that is amazing.
Have Faith, Trust in God, the Universe, yourself and each other!
I grew up in a family where children were expected to act a certain way at all times. I learned not to show weakness. I learned not to be vulnerable. I learned how to hide.
Over the past few months, God and the Universe have made it their mission to teach me a few lessons in what it means to be vulnerable and the power of detachment. Although I understood the benefit and necessity of these principles as a psychologist, I now realize and am continuing to learn, that I didn't fully grasped the spiritual depth and requirement of these principles. That said, big gulp here, I'm taking a risk to allow myself to be seen by you my BraveHeart sisters.
Having learned how to be strong and being that I'm tall and a full-figured woman, people often describe me as being a "strong woman" and even expect me to be stronger for them. I am strong and I'm proud to say this. Yet, I've also learned that true strength is not being or appearing strong at all times. In truth, such an appearance may probably more of a sign of weakness...but that's a blog for another time.
True strength is admitting you're afraid, you're overwhelmed, you're anger and you need help. But, I learned never to ask for help. Not that this was told to me directly mind you, I did, however, see it indirectly in my family. I saw my family fight for everything and I remember the stories. I know that they had great intentions for all us kids but I now realize that their own fears and teachings were based on childhood and cultural experiences that may have trained and conditioned us to, "never let them see you sweat." This begin deeply engrained in my subconscious mind and spirit, I've worked hard at everything and have had great success. Yet, something has always been missing.
Taking a deep breath!
Those of you who know me, know that I tend to have several deep spiritual moments or epiphanies on a regular basis. I'm so grateful that God and the Universe have given me this gift because it helps me serve others. Now, I realize that at this time in my life, my gift is now serving me.
For the past few weeks, I have been having a hard time sleeping yet in the moments where I do sleep, I have been having some very interesting dreams. You know the ones I'm talking about. You're not fully asleep, but you're not fully awake either. These dreams are vivid with color and so real I can feel the air moving, the colors have an energy to them, and everything around me is alive. Each night for about a week I've been having the same dream but a little more is added each time. For awhile, I thought I was going crazy...lol!
Then the dream took a turn and I had what I guess you can call an out of body experience. Now, I have to admit that this is SO out of my comfort zone, yet it was so right, if that makes sense. Well, while "out" of my body in this dream, I was "flying" around the universe while fully exposed. Dream now turned into a night mare...or so I thought at first. Of course, that freaked me out and I woke up. This, at first, bothered me but now I realized that it is in direct correlation to my current experiences.
In an earlier blog, I mentioned that the CSU system will be laying off several hundred people in the next few weeks. At first, I wasn't too nervous, however, as time continues to move and the financial conditions of our CSU system is "getting more challenging" my anxiety started to rise. Yet, this "challenge" has and is becoming a powerful lesson in learning to live fully in vulnerability and detachment.
Experiencing vulnerability maybe helping me see myself, life, others and the world from a different perspective. Vulnerability is teaching me the power of true faith and trust in God, myself, the Universe and others. The power of vulnerability is taking me to a deeper authentic truth inside that I hope will not only heal me, but allow me to heal others. The lesson I'm learning about true vulnerability is, it's true strength and power and it always creates true intimate soul-to-soul connections. We are so busy with trying to fix or survive life that we often forget to connect to others. Life is primarily about relationship God, ourselves and with others.
As for detachment, this truth is my learning how to let go of all my preconceived notions, thoughts and ideas about how something should work out. This rigid subconscious and maybe conscious stance has, unfortunately, become the norm for so many of us that we may not realized how deep within our core our resistance to "letting go" really is. Attachment to our final results may mean -- we're living in fear! Ouch! I'm learning that rigidness to vulnerability or detachment may be a type of resistance to experiencing something different and/or opportunities to a better type of life. That truth has caught my attention. I'm currently reading and highly recommend others to read the book The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success by Deepak Chopra. Great book.
Through my lessons in vulnerability and detachment, I recently learned that my position has been moved from the critical stage of layoffs and moved to the "safe zone," for a few more months. Well, what-do-you-know, there is something powerful about being vulnerable and detaching from my expectations and especially fear and just learning to have faith, trust and to be...
That said, my BraveHeart sisters, thank you for allow me to show you more of myself and,
What are you not allowing yourself to see, show and/or detach from?
Hello my amazing BraveHeart Sisters. Boy have I missed you! 2010 has begun and with it has come some interesting truths and January is not even over yet.
As I set my soul intentions for 2010, I was determined to have a transformational year from the inside out. I had learned too much. It was time to now implement those truths. The things that held me back in 2009 were no longer allowed to influence my future. I had intented that only the present affects my future and I am in control of all my present moment experiences. Then, WHAM, my first challenge arose.
For years I've worked in the college system as a counselor and as a professor. I love inspiring and empowering others. After years of dedication to this field and my university, I was informed that over 250 positions were being terminated state-wide in June which included my position. YIKES!!!
My first human response was panic and believe me, I did. All the normal typical questions ran through my head: "I just bought a house. Now what am I going to do?" "We just started our own business and it's not strong enough to care me financially." Blah blah blah! The questions kept coming and if I had let them continue, I'm sure they would have completely killed my vision, spirit and intentions. Yet, something happened and I felt this kick deep inside my being (and on my behind...lol...) as if trying to get my attention. Then suddenly, drop! I felt the essence of my soul get fully grounded and then pushed deep into the spirit of Mother Earth inside me who lovingly demanded that I stand my ground and declare my truth. It was moving!!!
I felt my chest rise up, my shoulders fall back, and my eyes gaze toward God and all that is before me and with all the love I can call forth I said, "Here I stand, I know who I am and I will not be moved." Tears started to stream down my face as I knew that I would not let fear or false truths tell me what was the absolute truth. My absolute truth is God is with me. My faith in God, the Universe and myself will cause me to brilliantly overcome. Life is filled with possibilities and I receive those that are right for me always.
Once grounded and then deeply rooted in my spiritual and soulish truth, I started to feel peace and the breath of life moving and flowing through me.
My hope for you today is, when things become challenging, remember what you know is absolutely truth and let that truth ground you. Stay rooted in your authentic truth. For when the winds blow, and they will, you may sway, but you will NOT fall!
Seventeen days ago, my girlfriend and I embarked upon a new goal to be bold in our prayers, faith, and intentions for 40 days. It all started with a powerful conversation regarding our experiences in 2009 and how tired we were of living in the same mindset and having the same experiences.
As we processed, encouraged and empowered one another, this truth of being bold merged from the deepest of our spirits and from that point on, things have definitely been, I'll use Ellie's word here, "evolving".
In earlier posts, I mentioned how my processing being bold is literally causing an intense vibration to move through my body, as if my blood is racing toward my heart. I've been feeling this way for days now and it's getting stronger. The reason, as I process what it means to be spiritually bold, I believe I am activating what has been "slightly" dormant. I'm removing, no, RELEASING layers of human experiences and mindsets that have hidden and blocked my spirit from fully releasing its beauty, grace and power.
That said, let me briefly explain what spiritual boldness means.
Defined, the word bold means: daring or courageous; fearless; striking to the eye. WOW! When you actually get the true meaning of the word, it changes everything. Originally, I always thought of boldness as being hard, aggressive, controlling, very masculine in its presentation. However, applying this definition to spiritual boldness, I now define it as "authentic assurance."
Ok, let me go a little deeper.
I truly believe that we are spiritual beings in human bodies having and living human experiences. This means that our external circumstances often influences, positively and negatively, our internal interpretations and behavioral responses. When stressed, however, our responses typically are negative thereby creating circumstances that condition our continued interactions with ourselves, others and life. In simple terms, we begin to experience what I call "multiple false truths."
However, there is great HOPE in sight.
Our hope is, when we begin to understand our God-given power deeply embedded within our spirits (to live and be well, prosperous, joyful, abundant and successful), our spirits starts to create and manifest an authentic assurance, confidence, groundedness, grace, peace and rest that easily propels us toward greatness that serves not only ourselves but others. In truth, dare I say, when being spiritually bold or when we operate in our authentic assurance, we intensify our feminine energy that we as BraveHeart women must reconnect to and allow to powerful flow in and through us in order to bring about true alignment with God, ourselves, the Universe and others.
My Dear Amazing BraveHeart Sisters,
2010 is the year for women. I'm authentically assured of this truth. I believe that as we all consciously and intentionally, with grace and ease, focus on being spiritually bold, we WILL change this world for good.
Spiritual boldness means being true to your beliefs, values, passions and convictions. It means ease. I've noticed that when I connect and process life through my spirit, I feel less stressed, tension, confusion, frustration and tiredness. Instead, I feel grounded, assured in my direction, purpose and calling. This ease of truth is empowering.
Now, this doesn't mean challenges wont come and my humanity will not respond negatively, NO. It means that when life kicks in, and it will, I can choose more quickly now to respond to it from my spirit, authentic assurance and boldness. Does that make sense?
It is my hope and prayer that all of us will continue to learn from our amazing teachers here: Ellie, Dr. Sugar and many many others and make 2010 our best year and life ever!
Yahoo! It's 2010! Happy New Year to all my Powerful and Amazing BraveHeart Sisters! I am SOOO excited about this year that I'm literally giddy.
In my last blog, I spoke briefly of having BOLD faith in God, yourself and the Universe and using our boldness to manifest greatness in the coming year. In future blogs, I hope to share with each of you powerful ways to do that and how it will literally change your life. But until then and in a nutshell, let me share the following.
Since attending BraveHeart RISE in October 2009 and RELEASE in November 2009 and reflecting upon years of spiritual and psychological training and truth, I've had a transformational realization.
I know we've all heard the quote, "We are spiritual beings living in a human body having a human experience." Well, that statement was re-introduced to my spirit a few days ago during my prayer and meditation time, but this time something clicked. The phrase, "we are spiritual beings..." kept running through my spirit for days. As I listened, reflected, prayed and meditated on those words, the following truths came back to light:
~Spiritually, we already have everything we need. We possess great power and energy in every fiber of our being. God designed us complete, whole, and outrageously abundant. We know this but living and having human experiences often interferes with our rememberance of this truth.
~If we lived from our spirits, the power and energy we have inside us would begin to change everything around us. We would, in-turn, begin to influence external circumstances more than having external circumstances influence us. This is the Law of Attraction in spiritual action.
In truth, I believe we all already know these truths but allow ourselves, myself included, to get so caught up in "doing" that we have drastically forgotten how to "BE" who we were created to be, spiritual beings to manifest the greatness of God, ourselves and each other. As I continued and do so now reflecting on this truth I started to wonder, what would happen if we intentionally began to live as spiritual beings instead of human beings? Is your spirit listening?
Ok. Let's go a little deeper.
Last night around 11:45 pm, I started to have this strange physical sensation. It felt as if the blood in my veins were literally racing toward my heart. I wasn't scared in the least, if anything, I was excited! I I knew that in a few moments it would be 2010 and I have HIGH intentions and expectations for this new year. Suddenly, it felt as if the energy all around me became thick and electrifying. From the depths of my spirit I began to hear, "I manifest greatness, wealth, prosperity, healing..." It just kept going. Over and over again my spirit began to declare what I know is rightfully mine so that I can do what I'm created to do and that's teaching and being love, wholeness and restoration to all those I have the honor of meeting.
I share this with you hoping that as you read this blog, you'll begin to remember who you are and as well as allow your spiritual self, power, truth, energy, loving and life to transform 2010 and beyond into the most amazing year ever!!!!
To Ellie and Dr. Sugar~
Much love ladies for you've touched my heart and I'm sure the hearts of many Braveheart sisters. Thank you!
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