I stopped and looked out over the ocean at the stunningly bright moon and noticed that I was standing right in the center of the moonbeam.  There was a shaft of light leading directly from the moon right to my feet.  I shouted, “I’m right in the center of the moonbeam!”  Linda stopped where she was and looked out over the water and responded, “No, I am right in the center of the moonbeam.”  I ran a few steps and stopped again only to find I was once again in the center of that light.  We laughed and ran to and fro, stopping every few steps to confirm that, no matter where we stood, we remained in the core of the light.

We experienced a powerful, unchangeable, universal truth that night on the beach.  The TRUTH is we are always at the center of the light of God. We cannot be separate from that light, we cannot run or hide from it, we can only lose focus and start giving our attention to something other than God. You see, being “at the center of the moonbeam” did not depend on where we were standing, but rather on what we were focused on. When we turned our eyes, our minds and our attention to the moon, we were always going to be directly in its light.

In our lives we always have a choice of what we will focus on and what we will give our attention to. If we focus on the presence of God, and turn our eyes, our hearts, and our thoughts towards God, we will be fully aware of our connection and will see that we are bathed in the perfect light of God. If we turn our attention to things like separation, pain, anger, lack, unworthiness, unforgiveness and fear, we will no longer see that light and the connection to the infinite will appear to be broken.

The most beautiful reminder for me is that I did not have to beg or plead for the moon to shine on me. I did not have to do certain deeds or prove myself worthy. My mistakes, my wounds, my quirks…none of it mattered.  The moon knows only to shine, just as the light and love of God know only to shine. All I had to do was look up and stay centered and I found myself sourced by, connected to and bathed in pure light. The next time a full moon shines and you stand at the water’s edge, I invite you to look up at that moon and I promise that wherever you are, whatever you feel, however you are showing up in the moment, YOU will be right in the center of the moonbeam.

That connection is my source of ideas, wisdom, insight, clarity, direction and answers.  My work is to remember it is there and to take the time to feel the connection and listen to the guidance. This guidance is not coming from anything or anyone outside of me, but from the very essence of my being.

Connecting with and listening to divine guidance is not difficult, but it does take practice. In the professional world, skilled artists of any kind spend countless hours in practice on their craft. Pro golfers hit thousands of shots out of sand traps, opera divas hit every note on the scales countless times, and pianists play their compositions over and over and over again. The consistent practice helps to build cellular memory so that when the Master’s Championship is on the line or the curtain goes up on opening night, their cells know just what to do.  Such is the same with our connection to guidance.  If we practice each day on the simple, seemingly unimportant decisions then when it comes to the life-altering ones, our cells know what to do.

The process of making the connection has three simple steps. Whenever we have a choice or decision to make we first pause and take a deep breath.  Second, we pray our prayer, such as “Spirit, speak to me”, or, “God I am listening.” Finally, we open up and wait to receive the answer we are looking for. Everyone experiences divine guidance differently.  Some people hear a still, small voice, others see an image or vision, and for others it is more of a feeling or knowing.  As you work with this spiritual practice, you will begin to know quite well just how your guidance shows up.

Think about the word, “GUIDANCE”:  God, yoU and I… DANCE!  Connecting, listening to and following divine guidance is indeed a dance with the Universe.  It is accepting the invitation to live life in a place of flow, grace and ease.

Listen carefully to the core of your being and you will hear….”Shall we dance?”

In my opinion, the most necessary, challenging and misunderstood of all spiritual practices is that of forgiveness. Forgiveness is vital to our spiritual well-being because when we choose not to forgive we find ourselves in a place of blame, anger, resentment or even guilt. When we allow that energy to consume our lives we then become a magnet to draw more of the same right to us. Author Susan Patton Thoele says, “We need to be able to forgive, because if we don’t, we put our foot right down on the hose of our life force.” The practice of forgiveness keeps us in the flow of our good and releases damaging negative energies from our lives. I believe it is as necessary to our survival as food and water.

The challenging part is that when we have been terribly hurt, wronged or betrayed we withhold our forgiveness because we believe strongly that the event “shouldn’t” have happened that way or the person “shouldn’t” have done what he or she did. One of the greatest and most freeing quotes I have ever heard about forgiveness comes from Gerry Jampolsky who says, “Forgiveness only happens when you give up all hope for a better past.” WOW!  What a revelatory thought! How often do we go over and over an event that happened and try to re-write it the way we wish it had gone?

We stay stuck in the event and all of the negative energy surrounding it because we are hoping for a better past. The truth is, however, that if it already happened…it is NEVER going to change! We cannot change it, re-write it or re-live it differently. The past is complete. The only moment we have is right now and in this now moment is where all of the love, peace, abundance and magnificence of God exist.

The great misunderstanding about forgiveness is that people often think if they forgive someone for hurting, wronging or betraying them then they are essentially saying, “It’s OK…I forgive you”. People think that forgiveness automatically condones and/or excuses the behavior. A paradigm shift can happen, however, when we make the critical distinction between the person and the behavior. Hurtful, harmful behavior is wrong, unacceptable and never OK, but the person that committed that harmful act is a child of God. When we do this great work we forgive the person, we do not condone or excuse the behavior. Every person in our lives is a child of God, acting out of their own wounds, hurts and fears and sometimes when we act from that place we end up causing harm.

When we no longer expend our energy attempting to re-write the unchangeable past and when we can, despite the behavior, behold the divine perfection within each person in our lives, then we shall truly be free.  Remember, dear ones, that, “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” –Lewis Benedictine Smedes

Namasté is an ancient Sanskrit word that essentially means, “the divine in me honors the divine in you.” There are three key components to the practice of namasté. First, we come from a place of understanding that we are made in the image and likeness of God and that our true essence is divine. Second, we recognize that truth for another. Finally, we not only recognize that truth, but we ACT accordingly. When we come from a consciousness of namasté, we seek to honor, to bless, to appreciate, to serve and to love others.

In my 25 years in Unity, I have experienced literally thousands of namasté moments. In a ritual called an “Angel Wash” I have walked down the center of two lines of people that blessed me with honoring touch and whispered words of affirmation in my ear as I passed by. At retreats, I have led participants in finding a partner, looking into their eyes and singing “You Are the Face of God” by Karen Drucker. Time and time again at youth events and church services I have joined in the practice of extending our hands towards an individual or group and saying, “We love you, we bless you, we appreciate you and we behold the Christ in you.” In each of these moments my heart has been opened and I have felt the presence of God. Namasté moments like these always bless me but, given the context, never surprise me.

Just recently I was truly blessed and pleasantly surprised by a magnificent moment of namasté. While on vacation in Orlando, I was awakened by beautiful singing coming from out in the hall. I got dressed and went out to discover that in the expansive atrium of our hotel there was a Hindu wedding taking place. The singing I heard was sacred chanting welcoming the bride down the aisle. The entire thing was an incredible sight to behold. Guests and wedding party alike were dressed in traditional finery. They wore intricately beaded saris and sarongs and a jeweled bindi adorned the center of each forehead. The ceremony was filled with rituals and traditions involving the families of the bride and groom. I wept at the beauty of the entire scene.

Many hotel guests had gathered to watch this amazing sight. On the balcony next to mine, a woman sat and watched with her eyes wide and wet with tears. I noticed that she was wearing a name badge from the convention that was taking place in the hotel. I recognized it because I had walked through the convention center from the parking lot the day before. It was a national conference for the Knights of Columbus, an organization that describes itself as “the world’s foremost Catholic benefit society.” So, here she was, a devout Catholic, bearing witness to a traditional Hindu wedding.

She turned towards me and as our eyes met she said, “Isn’t it all just so beautiful?” There it was… namasté. She could see the holiness, the sacredness and the beauty in the people and the illusion of religious separation was shattered in that moment of oneness. I felt my heart break wide open and allowed the tears of gratitude to flow. I believe we are here to practice namasté not only in the comfy confines of our happy Unity world, but everywhere, everyday, with everyone.

I discovered recently that evidence of this profound truth has literally been around me all of my life. I am a native Floridian and grew up walking on the beach searching for shells.  When I returned home for Easter I took another walk and found myself almost instinctively looking down by my feet, seeking the perfect specimen to put in my pocket and bring to my altar.  As I looked at all of the different colors and shapes and sizes, the words of a song by Karen Taylor-Good began to ring in my mind:  “Shells are little homes, that once fit but were outgrown, little lives that moved on becoming larger selves.”  It was a true revelation as I allowed this truth to wash over me.  Every seashell washed up on that shore represented letting go. Sea creatures will live in a shell so long as it fits and serves them well and, as soon as it does not, they leave that shell behind and move to another that is a better fit. What a concept!

As I reflect back, I discover that the reason I clung to those things is that they felt safe in some way.

In my life I have had to work at mastering the great wisdom of those sea creatures. There have been times when I have gracefully let go of a job, relationship, habit or belief that no longer fit or served me. Then, there have been those OTHER times… times when I have held on for dear life and stayed in situations or continued with behaviors that were not at all in my highest good.As I reflect back, I discover that the reason I clung to those things is that they felt safe in some way. They were familiar and comfortable and in some cases I was allowing them to define me. Each time I held on too long, I ended up getting dragged uncomfortably to my next phase of being. The holding on would result in pain and heartache and sometimes even sickness. Whenever I let go easily and with conscious intention, it would result in incredible blessings.

So how do we know when it is time to let go?  The only true and unwavering answer I know to that question is to connect with Divine guidance and ask. We are always in connection with Spirit and every answer we ever seek is found in that connection.  We can access this limitless source of answers through the activity of prayer and meditation. As we get quiet and listen, we will know without question if the right next step is to let go.  Remember the deep and profound words Kenny Rogers heard from a gambler while riding on a train… ”You’ve got to know when to hold em and know when to fold em.”  Preach it, brother….preach it!

An aspiring writer was hired as an editor for the Kansas City star newspaper. Not long after accepting that position, he was fired from it, because he “lacked imagination and was short on ideas.” That man’s name…Walt Disney.

“In order to attain the impossible, one must attempt the absurd” – Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don Quixote.

An African-American girl was born the daughter of a maid in segregated Mississippi in 1954. She was bounced from home to home, molested repeatedly and got pregnant at the age of 14 as a result of abuse, only to have a still-born child. She was turned away from half-way houses and forced to sleep on the porch when her own mother didn’t want her in the house. That girl’s name…Oprah Winfrey.

As we move through life we will often have the experience of other people telling us what we can or cannot do or who we should or should not be. We always have the choice to believe it… or NOT!

Our incredible way-shower and master-teacher Jesus taught us that, “With God, ALL things are possible.”  Jesus’ life and ministry showed again and again how to abide by that promise. In many of his miracles the people around him tried to tell him that he couldn’t do what he intended to do. Each and every time he refused to buy into the judgments and limitations of others and stepped out in faith. When a hungry crowd of 5,000 sat before him and he held in his hands only a small basket carrying a meager amount of food, the disciples insisted that there was not enough. It says in scripture that he “looked up” and prayed a prayer of gratitude. Some think he was looking up to pray to a God in a skyward heaven, but he was, in fact, simply looking away from the appearance of lack so that he could stand on his faith knowing that with God all things are possible. Those 5,000 were fed and there was bounty left over.

True faith is about living life under God’s laws, NOT humanity’s limits. Do you have a dream or a desire in your heart today? Quite often when we have a big dream and share that dream with others we get inundated with all sorts of “evidence” and “facts” about how difficult, or even impossible, that dream is. We have a choice when we are presented with all of that evidence to buy into the illusion of impossibility or to shift our awareness away from false limitations and into the consciousness that there truly are no limits in God.

Step out in faith and follow your dreams and as long as you are dreaming anyway… DREAM BIG! When it comes to the Truth that, with God, ALL things are possible, we have a choice to BELIEVE IT… or not.

I recently got to be up close and personal with my humanity.  I was in a situation where I was unquestionably being mistreated by someone.  I had a really interesting array of responses to this situation. I went through anger, frustration, victimhood, blame, shame, guilt, sadness, grief, revenge, hopelessness…you get the idea.  I was fully immersed in my humanity! I mean, if being human was an Olympic sport, my reaction to this situation would have earned a perfect 10 (even from the East German judge)…not that there’s anything wrong with that!  Being fully human is completely a part of our process… but too much of anything…even something fabulous…can become unhealthy (think 15 boxes of Girl Scout cookies in one day)!

The intriguing thing to me about it is that there was this amazing thread of rationality running through me the whole time.  Any time I stopped and really looked at what was happening, I could see, without question, that how this person was treating me actually had nothing to do with me.  I knew the Truth with total clarity.  You see, how people treat us is never about us at all.  It is always about that person’s wounds and judgments.  For example, someone who is shutting me out and pushing me away might be afraid of being abandoned and just wants to beat me to the punch. Or if a person is always criticizing me it might be because he doesn’t feel comfortable in his own skin so he has to redirect attention onto anything other than his own faults.  So, when I realized I knew THAT…I couldn’t help but wonder…WHY IS THIS STILL SO DIFFICULT?

After a few more days at play in my humanity, an interesting thought occurred to me.  How someone else treats me may not be about me, but how I respond is TOTALLY about me!  In this circumstance I was choosing, again and again, to surrender my power, to take things personally, and to focus on outer circumstances instead of God.  The moment I realized this, my energy began to shift and every day I felt stronger, clearer and more connected to my true source, my Divine and limitless source of love and support.  When I clearly understood my limiting human response to the situation, I returned to a place of power within my own being.

So there it was, right in the midst of my raw humanity…a glimpse of the magnificence of me.  I will continue to be grateful for the human experience and the perfect imperfection of it all!

To understand the importance of emotional healing we must first have a clear understanding of who we are and how we are designed. We are three-fold beings, made of Spirit, soul and body. These terms are used in many ways in different teachings and traditions and I personally struggled to understand this three-fold nature of being until I finally heard it explained in a way that made my heart say, “YES!”

Imagine, if you will, a lighthouse. A beautiful structure designed to light the way and welcome ships into its harbor.  The lighthouse has an actual physical structure, a building that helps the light do its work. Within that structure is the light. The light is pure, brilliant and perfect and knows only and always to shine in all directions. Around the outside of that light there is glass, and the light must shine through that glass. Over time, the glass can get dirty, smeared, smudged and even scratched. Soot and sea spray collect on the glass and maybe passers-by might write messages in the soot and dirt. As the glass gets darker and dingier, less of the light can be seen by the world.  The light is no less brilliant or perfect, it is simply limited by the clarity of the glass.

Our body is the vehicle that enables the perfection that we are to express in the world as it is meant to do.

We each have a physical body, like the structure of the lighthouse. Our body is the vehicle that enables the perfection that we are to express in the world as it is meant to do. We have within us a pure, perfect and brilliant light, which is our Spirit.  In Unity we call this light the Christ, or the spark of divinity. The light that is our essence is unchanging and knows only and always to shine in all directions. We also have a soul, which is the sum total of our memories, beliefs, thoughts and emotions. The soul is like the glass around the light. As we go through life, we experience hurtful things that make the “glass” dingier and darker. People write messages in our glass like “Not Worthy” and as the light shines out through that belief, it projects unworthiness.

So here we are conscious and aware on the spiritual path and we have discovered that our “glass” is smudged and dirty with limiting ideas and beliefs about ourselves and the world. What to do?  Well, “SPIRITUAL WINDEX” of course! What is Spiritual Windex? Any conscious act or practice that is meant to bring us back to the Truth of who we are.  Each time we come apart for a while to pray and meditate, the glass gets cleaner.  Taking spiritual education classes, attending transformative retreats, forming a supportive prayer group, working with a therapist or spiritual counselor, reading an inspirational book, practicing self-care, being in service to another human being, and joining a spiritual community are all ways to heal the hurts of the past and clear the way for the incredible pure light of our being to shine forth brilliantly and unhindered.  Today, and every day, use a little Spiritual Windex on your soul.  The world needs your light!  Let it shine!  Let it shine! Let it shine!

          Early on in my journey I was always trying to do it “right”.  I would pay close attention to what those around me were doing and begin to mimic it straight away.  If my friends were into chanting…I would quickly become the Queen of “OOOOHHHMMMMM”.  When those about me started journaling, I bought just the right kind of pens so as to emote deeply on those pages.  When someone said, “You’ve got to read THIS book…it has all the answers!” I would be in the car on the way to Barnes & Noble faster than you can say “Feng Shui for Dummies”.  I was always trying to sing someone else’s song.  I was a spiritual mockingbird.  The sad part is, I was so busy trying to mimic everyone else, I couldn’t hear the song my heart was trying to sing.

          One example I remember vividly is when the book “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron came out.  Everywhere I went someone was reading it, talking about it, taking a class on it, etc.  So, of course, I jumped right in.  One of the components of the book was a daily practice called “Morning Pages”.  You were supposed to wake up in the morning and sit down with a pen and paper and write three full pages of whatever flowed into your mind.  My friends were raving about this practice!  They shared how freeing it was and how creative they felt and how so many wonderful things flowed onto the page.  Me…not so much!  I would drag myself out of bed and sit bleary-eyed at my table with my pen in hand.  As the pen and paper met I would begin to express deep spiritual truths like “why am i up this early and what in the world am i supposed to be writing anyway this is the stupidest thing i have ever heard of I need coffee I want to go back to bed blahblahblahblah”.  I made it through exactly one week of “Morning Pages” and then that book went back onto my shelf to await the next church yard sale.

          In the last few years I thankfully find myself in a place of greater maturity in my spiritual journey.  I have begun to find joy in following my own heartsong and my own guidance about what fits who I am and how I want to know God.  Just the other day I finally found MY version of “Morning Pages”.  During Christmas time I started a tradition of sitting in my living room at night after the house was quiet and just enjoying the sacred peace of the Christmas tree.  After the tree came down, I found myself still drawn into that space for a time of quiet contemplation before bed.  A few days ago, a thought came to me that I needed to make sure to remember the next day so I grabbed a note pad and wrote it down.  As I sat there reflecting I got a wonderful ministry idea so I grabbed the note pad and wrote it down.  Then another idea came, and then another and by the time I was ready for bed I had 3 pages of insights, thoughts and ideas written down. 

So now I have my own spiritual practice, born out of my own heart’s song.  Not sure what to call it.  Maybe “My Creative Lullaby” or something catchy like that.  I don’t know if it will sweep the nation or land me on Oprah but ultimately I don’t care.  It is mine.  It works for me.  Try it if you want to…or don’t.  I encourage you to get quiet and listen deeply.  What song is YOUR heart trying to sing?

I hear a lot of talk from people about finding “true love”.  So many people limit that idea to finding one person to fall romantically in love with and share their life with. Romantic love is amazing and wonderful but the truth is that it is only ONE way that the power of Divine Love expresses in us and in the world.  I believe if we break out of the traditional and limiting definition of “true love” and learn to share, feel and experience it in limitless ways then we will truly be able to realize Heaven on Earth!

True love is actually everywhere! When my little poodle jumps and turns in circles again and again expressing great joy that I have arrived home after a trip…  that’s true love! When you take a moment to be in awe of God showing up as breathtaking beauty in a brilliant sunset, the smell of fresh rain or the sweet sound of a flowing stream… that’s true love! When you are talking with a friend and sharing that someone said something hurtful to you and your friend quickly wants to step in and protect you and reminds you who you really are…that’s true love! When you decide that a person or relationship is unhealthy for you and you bravely say, “No more!” that’s true love! Where does true love show up in your life?  In the eyes of your child; in the embrace of a loved one; in an inspiring song; in a bite of your favorite food; in the sound of laughter; in a quiet moment of prayer… all of it is LOVE!

The most magnificent thing about love is the Divine paradox of it! The more you give away, the more you have! You can’t love someone or something without feeling that love moving through YOU! In fact, all of the love you ever feel is actually coming from WITHIN you. People and things around you don’t put love into you, they call forth the love in your heart and bring it fully to the surface so you can feel it.

So all this month I invite you to pay attention to every blissful moment of true love that happens for you. Allow an endless stream of love to flow forth from you in all directions and watch how instantly you feel healthier, more joyful, lighter, more present, more centered and more deeply connected to God.  In times of joy, in times of grief, in times of work, in times of play… ABOVE ALL… LOVE!