Index of Blog Posts

With Gratitude for Grace

Index of Blog Posts

(Alphabetical)

Acceptance, The Grace of (November 16, 2012)

Beliefs, The Grace of our (March 1, 2017)

Character, The Grace of (July 1, 2015)

Christmas Memories, The Grace of (December 14, 2013)

Compassion, With Gratitude for (December 1, 2014)

Creativity, The Grace of (February 19, 2014)

Dad, With Gratitude for my (June 20, 2015)

Divine Presence, The Grace of (April 1, 2015)

Faith, With Gratitude for (October 4, 2016)

Firemen, With Deepest Gratitude for the

Grace of 19 Heroic Arizona (July 1, 2013)

Forgiveness, The Grace of (January 10, 2013)

Forgiveness (cont.), The Grace of (January 31, 2013)

Giving, The Grace of (January 18, 2014)

Grace, Being Receptive to (September 17, 2012)

Grace, Messages of (August 21, 2012)

Grace, Peaceful (Canaan in the Desert) (June 14, 2012)

Grace, Recognition of (May 2, 2012)

Grace, Settle into (July 9, 2012)

Grace, The Christmas Present of (December 7, 2012)

Grace, With Gratitude for God’s Sacred (October 1, 2014)

Graces, Even the Tiniest (October 17, 2012)

Gratefulness, The Grace of (February 20, 2013)

Gratitude, With Gratitude for (January 1, 2015)

Grieving, With Gratitude for (June 1, 2016)

Grit and Gratitude, The Grace of (November 1, 2016)

Healers, With Gratitude for (February 1, 2016)

Health, With Gratitude for (January 1, 2016)

Human Spirit, The Grace of the (March 1, 2015)

Inclusiveness, The Grace of (March 8, 2013)

Index to Blog Posts (June 1, 2017)

Inspiration, The Grace of (August 1, 2015)

Inspiration, With Gratitude for Words of (September 1, 2015)

Invisible Hands, The Grace of (April 6, 2014)

Joy, The Grace of (December 1, 2016)

Kindness, With Gratitude for (February 1, 2015)

Leaders, With Gratitude for (November 2, 2014)

Life, The Unbelievable Grace of (April 1, 2017)

Lives, The Grace of Those Who Have

                                Given Their Lives for our Country (May 27, 2013)

             Love, The Grace of (February 1, 2017)

Maidenhair Ferns, With Gratitude for (August 16, 2014)

Memory, The Grace of (April 1, 2016)

Mystery, The Grace of (June 4, 2014)

Nature, The Grace of God’s Abundant (June 2, 2013)

Park, Grace at Woodland Lake (May 15, 2012)

Path, With Gratitude for our (August 1, 2016)

Peace, With Gratitude for (July 1, 2016)

Pope Francis, With Gratitude for (October 1, 2015)

Prayer, The Grace of (May 2, 2013)

Prayer, National Day of (May 3, 2012)

Prayer, National Day of (May 1, 2014)

Prayer, National Day of (May 6, 2015)

Prayer, National Day of (May 4, 2017)

Redemption, The Grace of (December 1, 2015)

Resilience, The Grace of (October 21, 2013)

Responsibility, With Gratitude for (September 1, 2014)

Self, With Gratitude for the (May 1, 2016)

Spirit, The Grace of Connecting to (August 5, 2013)

Spiritual Growth, The Grace of (November 8, 2013)

Spontaneity, the Grace of (July 3, 2014)

Story, The Grace of our (November 1, 2015)

Soul, With Gratitude for our (March 7, 2014)

Surrendering, The Grace of (January 1, 2017)

Survival, The Grace of (April 2, 2013)

Trust, With Gratitude for (September 1, 2016)

Twin, With Gratitude for my (March 1, 2016)

“Unstuck,” The Grace of Becoming (September 1, 2013)

Will, The Amazing Grace of God’s (October 4, 2012)

(By Date)

             January 1, 2017 – The Grace of Surrendering

             February 1, 2017 – The Grace of Love

             March 1, 2017 – The Grace of our Beliefs

             April 1, 2017 – The Unbelievable Grace of Life

             May 1, 2017 – National Day of Prayer

             June 1, 2017 – Index to Blog Posts

December 1, 2016 – The Grace of Joy

November 1, 2016 – The Grace of Grit and Gratitude

October 4, 2016 – With Gratitude for Faith

September 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for Trust

August 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for our Path

July 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for Peace

June 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for Grieving

May 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for the Self

April 1, 2016 – The Grace of Memory

March 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for my Twin

February 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for Healers

January 1, 2016 – With Gratitude for Health

December 1, 2015 – The Grace of Redemption

November 1, 2015 – The Grace of our Story

October 1, 2015 – With Gratitude for Pope Francis

September 1, 2015 – With Gratitude for Words of Inspiration

August 1, 2015 – The Grace of Inspiration

July 1, 2015 – The Grace of Character     

June 20, 2015 – With Gratitude for my Dad

May 6, 2015 – National Day of Prayer

April 1, 2015 – The Grace of Divine Presence

March 1, 2015 – The Grace of the Human Spirit

February 1, 2015 – With Gratitude for Kindness

January 1, 2015 – With Gratitude for Gratitude

December 1, 2014 – With Gratitude for Compassion

November 2, 2014 – With Gratitude for Leaders

October 1, 2014 – With Gratitude for God’s Sacred Grace

September 1, 2014 – With Gratitude for Responsibility

August 16, 2014 – With Gratitude for Maidenhair Ferns

July 3, 2014 – The Grace of Spontaneity                

June 4, 2014 – The Grace of Mystery      

May 1, 2014 – National Day of Prayer

April 6, 2014 – The Grace of Invisible Hands

March 7, 2014 – With Gratitude for our Soul

February 19, 2014 – The Grace of Creativity                                        

January 18, 2014 – The Grace of Giving

December 14, 2013 – The Grace of Christmas Memories

November 8, 2013 – The Grace of Spiritual Growth

October 21, 2013 – The Grace of Resilience

September 1, 2013 – The Grace of Becoming “Unstuck”

August 5, 2013 – The Grace of Connecting to Spirit

July 1, 2013 – With Deepest Gratitude for the Grace of 19 Heroic Arizona Firemen

June 2, 2013 – The Grace of God’s Abundant Nature

May 27, 2013 – The Grace of Those Who Have Given Their Lives for our Country

May 2, 2013 – The Grace of Prayer

April 2, 2013 – The Grace of Survival

March 8, 2013 – The Grace of Inclusiveness

February 20, 2013 – The Grace of Gratefulness

January 31, 2013 – The Grace of Forgiveness (cont.)

January 10, 2013 – The Grace of Forgiveness

December 7, 2012 – The Christmas Present of Grace

November 16, 2012 – The Grace of Acceptance

October 17, 2012 – Even the Tiniest Graces

October 4, 2012 – The Amazing Grace of God’s Will

September 17, 2012 – Being Receptive to Grace

              August 21, 2012 – Message of Grace

July 9, 2012 – Settle Into Grace

June 14, 2012 – Peaceful Grace (Canaan in the Desert)                                  

May 15, 2012 – Grace at Woodland Lake Park                                                     

May 3, 2012 – National Day of Prayer

May 2, 2012 – Recognition of Grace

National Day of Prayer - May 4, 2017

The Theme for this Year’s National Day of Prayer is:

“For Your Great Name’s Sake. Hear us… Forgive us… Heal us!”

(Taken from Daniel 9:19)

There is so much going on in our nation and in our world right now that can cause anxiety and concern. Prayer is a very effective means of getting that fear out of ourselves by calling upon a Higher Power to guide us, to protect us and to give us courage. And, so we pray:

Dear God,

Today, as I go about my day, please help me to feel the trust that You so beautifully provide to each one of us. Please help me to see beyond my issues to those of the fellow souls around me. Please help me to know and feel Your presence.

When I extend myself to the world’s issues, I lose my sense of security – please help me to bring that outer world closer in, to my nation, to my state, to my community, to my town, to my home and finally to my heart. Please help me to feel the sense of strength, courage and protection always available to me. Help me to realize that extending myself to the wider, outer world, only lessens myself by becoming too easily distracted and discouraged. Please help me to find the real sense of security in my heart.

Please help me to face the silence and not be afraid. Please help me to face my anger and not be afraid. Please help me to face my sadness and not be afraid. Please help me to face my lack of belief and not be afraid. Please help me to face any illness and not be afraid. Please help me to face my insecurities and not be afraid. Please help me to face all my fears and not be afraid ever again.

Please help me to rise above it all – the shame I may feel, the feelings of insecurity, the lack of belief in myself, the wrongs that I have done, the petty inequities to which I cling.

Please help me to be a person to whom others can count on, a person who faces his/her trials, a person who doesn’t complain, a person who seeks forgiveness instead of holding grudges.

Please help me to be cognizant of the beauty always surrounding me – that of humanity, of nature, of writings and creativity, of gifts of Grace, always available to me and continually being showered upon each one of us.

Please help me to dispel my feelings of boredom – how could I be bored with all that You have provided; please help me to let go of any addictions that take me away from my true self and get in the way of my relationships; please help me to release any need to prove myself in order to be accepted or approved of; please help me to stop vacating or escaping when I feel Your lessons coming toward me.

Dear Lord, please help me to be grateful for positively everything, to find gratitude for the hills that You’ve helped me climb, to be appreciative of all that I’ve become and all that is yet to come. Please continue to heal me and to bless me.

I ask this, as always, in Your Name. Amen.

The Unbelievable Grace of Life

As you breathe in new life each day, please remember…

You came here for a purpose and it took great courage and the full love of your Soul to make this excursion – find deep reverence for that and know that you have the strength and courage to do it.

Know, too, that many Souls (on this side and on the other side) made a Sacred Contract to support you in this experience.

Know very deeply in your heart that everything is happening exactly as it’s meant to happen, for your Soul’s expansion and the further expansion of All That Is. Trust that deeply.

Know, too, that each of us on this beautiful place called Earth agreed to come here together (the loving ones and the warring ones) – each to provide a presence, each to provide a contrast – for each of us to decide how we will create our own life. Choices – they’re very important; they’re very sacred.

Know that you are always and at every moment connected – connected to the Whole, the Universe, to God, to the Source, to Spirit; the name you choose to call that Gift of Grace is your choice. That energy is instilled in each one of us...feel It…live It…breathe It…be It. That’s it – allow yourself to be…to be within.

Don’t be afraid. Find a quiet place of silence to truly know yourself within. It is a place of beauty and calm and wonderment, of love and peace.

Pay attention to your feelings, they are the transmitters of wisdom…the guiding posts, letting you know if you’ve wandered off and away from your Soul’s plan.

Throughout the day, feel your heart, feel your gut, feel your throat; they are places of energy. When any of those places feel the pain of worry, anger, resentment, revenge, depression, know that you have wandered away from love and trust, to doubt or fear; you have wandered away from your Soul’s plan.

Know that your Soul is guiding you inward when you feel those feelings that hurt or scare you or bring about anger. At that very moment, when the pain of sadness or anger is so strong, breathe, breathe, breathe…deeper and deeper. Feel the pain release. Catch yourself when you want to preoccupy yourself, instead, with trivial things; that will only push the pain deeper inside. Stay focused. Breathe the pain away and accept that very moment as a Gift of Grace for your healing, your Divine Healing. It is sacred; find reverence. Accept it. Believe it. Know it.

In order to hear and feel and sense that inner wisdom, we must find silence, which is hard to find in our world. Shut off the television and the smart phones and the tablets and the social media sites, turn off the noise in your head, stop thinking about what you have to do, that’s not why we’re here. Those are the gimmicks, those are the “hooks” and the things we attach to – but they provide us with nothing, nothing at all. They are only addictive attachments that keep us from spiritually expanding.

In the midst of all that’s happening in our country, the divisiveness, the resistance; the more we “fight” against one another, the more we move further away from our Soul’s plan on this earth. The earth is lovely; there will be warring, there will be scars, just as there are scars on our hearts; but those are the lessons. We are meant to face those lessons and rise above them, not linger within them – that is negative energy, which eventually causes illness. It takes trust, lots of trust. We are, very strongly, moving to a better, lighter, more radiant energy; in that process, many will be scared, that is what we are seeing. Fear begets fighting and anger. But this, too, shall pass. We really do not understand how powerful we are – not in the way of weapons, but in the way of the love and peace we can each bring to the world – it begins with us, individually.

Start now, pay attention to what’s going on within, not without. You will get distracted if you attach to all that’s going on exteriorly.

“If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.”

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”

(Mother Teresa)

The Grace of our Beliefs

September 11, 2001 changed our lives and our beliefs in a very dramatic way. I remember very well, shortly after 911, I began to see huge Hummers driving down Central Avenue in Phoenix as I drove to work. I couldn’t help but wonder – do you really think that “monstrosity” is going to keep you safe in the kind of attack that hit the Twin Towers? Feeling safe and secure is one of our core beliefs; however, expending thousands of dollars on a vehicle will not provide a true feeling of security. Ever since 911, there has been a steady change in our core beliefs related to safety and security; more recently, we have seen a rise in the anxiety level of members of our society because of the change in our leadership. Change is constant; however, when it threatens one of our core beliefs, it makes a personal impact.

Another core belief relates to our self-worth. Building a child’s self-worth begins as soon as he or she is born. They say a child gleans his/her self-worth by the energy that is given off by his/her parents or guardians until he/she is able to communicate. Every day, depending on the level of nurturing society we’re in, we either grow in self-worth or our self-worth is harmed. As we go through life, we create beliefs around that nurturing – or lack of. We come to a belief that we are worthy or we are not.

Love is a very important core belief. Once again, based on the nurturing and guidance we receive, we create a belief as to whether we are loveable or not – deserving of love or not. At a recent spiritual conference, I learned that children are no longer being taught the touching aspect of life. With everyone’s concern for potential child abuse, people are hesitant to touch children any more. Also, we are connecting so much through the Internet and social media; yet, we’re not really connecting through the heart. The heart brings about feelings and involves a stronger connection with the eyes and that of touch, warm hugs, radiating energy. So, remember to extend that as you go about your day.

Lastly, another core belief that sums up how we’re doing is whether or not we feel whole. I remember in my 20s not feeling whole. I had no idea how to fix it. I read as much as I could and little by little I healed but it took many years. This is why it is so important to make sure our little children are attaining good and positive beliefs from the start.

Remind yourself throughout the day to keep yourself in check as to your core beliefs – pay attention to whether your beliefs are positive or negative. Listen to your self-talk. Do you see yourself as loveable or not; do you feel safe and secure or not; do you feel worthy of human decency, respect and acceptance; do you feel whole or detached. Reading inspirational passages or stories, getting guidance from counselors, prayer and meditation are all beneficial to pull us up and out when we’re feeling as if we’re lacking. Sometimes, we have to actually re-parent ourselves.

Positive beliefs bring fulfillment and broaden our life’s experience. Negative beliefs cause us to project them upon others and create dysfunction in our relationships. Everyone comes here whole, fully worthy, loved and in full safety and security. As we go through life, when any of those are waning or lacking, our core beliefs are compromised. Remember that God never sees us as less than or unworthy. If you have a negative belief of yourself, you will probably be able to zero in on how that was created; however, try not to spend a lot of time on that. Change your belief, align with God’s belief in you and your life will change for the positive.

“What you believe about yourself is always reflected back to you.”

(Deepak Chopra)

I credit Deepak Chopra’s 21-day Meditation on Belief and our Core Beliefs for input.

The Grace of Love

Love is Grace at its very best! Love comes in all shapes and sizes and in numerous forms. At this time of year, we often think of romantic love, when hearts melt over flowers and chocolates. But love is happening every single moment and deserves to be recognized!

The love I’m thinking about today is more celestial. It’s the love that’s being expressed throughout our day in the form of the air we breathe, the energy in our bodies and the sun on our shoulders. It’s very personal – what would we do without the love that’s expressed in that way?

God’s love is forever and always and that love is with us every minute. I’m sure we have no idea how many interventions are made during any given day that bring us protection and safety, guidance and wisdom, ideas and breakthroughs and much-much more; and we think we’ve done all that on our own!

The most amazing act of love, however, is how our lives got configured initially. The timing of our coming to earth, the people in all the roles that touch our lives, the interactions throughout life and the lessons – the many lessons. We don’t get through life without them!

Caroline Myss (author, speaker, intuitive) calls these relationships our “sacred contracts.” Sacred they are. The easiest and most comfortable ones to understand include the nurturing mother or grandmother, the doting father or grandfather. Those are such gifts and provide such golden moments of memory for our lives. The more difficult and harder ones to understand are the relationships of conflict – the people who know how to push our buttons, the people who treat us not so nicely. As hard as it may be to believe, each of these beautiful souls agreed to make that sacred contract with us – to be present so we could make that “hero’s journey” that Joseph Campbell so beautifully expressed – in order to go within, to find faith and trust, to surrender the ego, to find our inner self – to realize the Divine has been in charge all along…purposefully, beautifully, with loving intent and out of the purest form of personal regard for each one of us. Thank God!

Be blessed on this Valentine’s Day – find love in positively everything. Below are some quotes about love from some of my favorite authors – you’ll see many relate to self-love, which is often the toughest one. Open your heart – allow your beauty to flow. Be amazed and in awe!

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Love is what we are born with. Fear is what we learn. The spiritual journey is the unlearning of fear and prejudices and the acceptance of love back in our hearts. Love is the essential reality and our purpose on earth. To be consciously aware of it, to experience love in ourselves and others, is the meaning of life. Meaning does not lie in things. Meaning lies in us. (Marianne Williamson)

When you’re at peace with yourself and love yourself, it is virtually impossible to do things to yourself that are destructive. (Wayne W. Dyer)

Self-love means caring for ourselves enough to forgive people in our past so that the wounds can no longer damage us – for our wounds do not hurt the people who hurt us, they hurt only us. (Caroline Myss)

Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it. (Jalalaludin Rumi)

As a doctor, let me tell you what self-love does: It improves your hearing, your eyesight, lowers your blood pressure, increases pulmonary function, cardiac output, and helps wiring the musculature. So, if we had a rampant epidemic of self-love then our healthcare costs would go down dramatically. So, this isn’t just some little frou-frou new age notion, oh love yourself honey. This is hardcore science. (Christiane Northrup, M.D.)

If you knew your potential to feel good, you would ask no one to be different so that you can feel good. You would free yourself of all of that cumbersome impossibility of needing to control the world, or control your mate, or control your child. You are the only one who creates your reality. For no one else can think for you, no one else can do it. It is only you, every bit of it, you. (Abraham-Hicks)

Love is not selective, just as the light of the sun is not selective. It does not make one person special. It is not exclusive. Exclusivity is not the love of God but the “love” of ego. However, the intensity with which true love is felt can vary. There may be one person who reflects your love back to you more clearly and more intensely than others; and if that person feels the same toward you, it can be said that you are in a love relationship with him or her. The bond that connects you with that person is the same bond that connects you with the person sitting next to you on a bus, or with a bird, a tree, a flower. Only the degree of intensity with which it is felt differs. (Eckhart Tolle)

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you simply, without problems or pride: I love you in this way because I do not know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep, your eyes close. (Pablo Neruda)

Because I always have a choice, I choose love. (Deepak Chopra)

Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength; loving someone deeply gives you courage. (Lao Tzu)

One who has been touched by grace will no longer look on those who stray as “those evil people” or “those poor people who need our help.” Nor must we search for signs of “love-worthiness.” Grace teaches us that God loves because of who God is, not because of who we are. (Philip Yancy)

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. (1 Corinthians 13:4)

The Grace of Surrendering

The New Year is always exciting because it gives us a chance to start the year off with a clean slate. So, possibly, a great way to start this New Year would be to find the willingness (that’s all it takes), to surrender. I know it may not sound like fun but it will be the very best thing you could do for yourself, ever. Here’s an example:

Scene 1: You go to work and learn there’s a new budget that’s been created for the new fiscal year and your department’s been eliminated. You’re in shock. You find out you have two weeks until you’re out of work. You go home, thrash your anger on everyone and place blame on some third party for why this happened to you. You feel horrible, you’re miserable, you’re scared – this is suffering.

Scene 2: The same thing happens except you do not take anything personally because you know this is all outside yourself. Even though there may be some initial shock, you determine you will look at this differently from the start and see this as a gift; and now you’re excited to find out how this is all going to play out. You know everything always goes toward the good, so you lead with trust and allow that to burn off any concerns that might arise. You surrender your control. You’re not miserable – you’re not suffering. In this scene, you don’t take your mind to the negative, you trust and find positive thoughts that relate to your circumstances. You find gratitude – for positively everything.

This concept carries over to much larger situations, as well. If we’ve been suppressing pain for many years over something that happened long ago, it restricts us and creates blockages in our energy – we resist going near that pain, which only makes things worse and eventually causes illness. It’s a hot burner that we don’t want to touch but it doesn’t actually exist – it’s only in our belief. What we may not realize is that pain is holding us back. So, we miss out on a lot of opportunities in life. Once again, if we find acceptance for exactly where we’re at, we can transmute that pain and fear into love. This is surrendering to the situation.

Eli Jaxon-Bear, a spiritual teacher, speaks of “opening your heart and welcoming the fear.” Fear is created by our beliefs – think of how many beliefs you’ve had in life that never actually existed, never came to fruition, carried no weight or no longer served you. We are much more than our outer circumstances. So, instead of resisting, accept the situation – open your heart and welcome the fear – surrender to the situation. Find gratitude for the fact that the fear or pain served its purpose at one time but it’s no longer serving us now. In fact, it’s become toxic.

Surrendering requires willingness and trust. I remember, as a little girl, a group of kids in our neighborhood tied a thick rope to a large tree branch – we climbed the tree, hung onto the rope and swung over to an open lot next to the tree. It took me a while to gain the nerve to try it; but once I did, it was exhilarating! This is a similar situation, when we take away our belief that it’s going to hurt or be painful to surrender, we step into trust so we can surrender, which is a special kind of Grace and Enlightenment, too.

Reach deeply inside, find what’s holding you back, be willing to face the pain or fear and make this the year you transmute any pain or fear into love. Remember to recognize and release the negative thoughts, find even the slightest positive thoughts to reframe the situation, welcome any fear and move into trust. Surrender to the situation. Relinquishing what’s holding us back is life changing. Find Gratitude. Know you are fully loved and loveable and fully worthy. Find the courage – you can do this!