Universal Peace

August 2014 Newsletter:

I am sitting here, as I imagine many of you are, wondering about the pain filled events that are happening in the world and wondering what I can do to help. It is just plain and simply sad, very sad. We have Iraq, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Egypt, Israel, Gaza, Syria, Russia, and the US who are all at war or in escalating conflict (I’m sure there are more that I am not aware of). We have the 220+ young girls who were kidnapped from school and still have not been returned. We have children flooding through the Mexican border to flee horrible violence in their own countries and mass shootings in our own country becoming part of the normal daily news. Then this past week, (as I am writing this) the Malaysian flight shot down and 298 innocent people perished in a flash, sparking the world to attention. In addition there are the weather disasters of fires, floods, earthquakes and volcanos. Now, add to it all, our own personal problems, family and work issues and we are suddenly in overwhelming crises of faith. Yvonne and I are not immune to this crises of faith, which inspires us to go deeper into our own meditations; it is not always easy to make the choice to do this, but, from our perspective, it beats feeling distressed, powerless and helpless.

Being called to assist others to remember the spiritual perspective of life has its own challenges. Remembering that we are all spirit, and as spiritual beings, we are one with every person, everything AND every event, and somehow, all of these things are reflective of energies within all of us that need to be healed.   The human expression of emotions were created for us to feel feelings, such as grief, sadness, anger, rage and these emotions can push us to seek out ways to take revenge and strike back. We are also created to feel love, compassion, peace and kindness that drive us to seek harmony in the world. The question is; which way will we all, individually, and as a global society, choose?

How do we balance such dynamically opposed and strong expressions that surge through our body? When in South Africa, working with the people there, they talk about keeping your eyes on the Ancestors, the divine, and God. An Elder shaman I conversed with advised NEVER taking your eyes off of the Divine no matter how much is going on around you as this ultimately leads to losing our spiritual focus, feeling overwhelmed and hopeless! This man reminded me of the turmoil that took place during apartheid and how Nelson Mandela continued to remind the people that “this will pass and we will become a unified nation”. This was during a time when it did not seem possible at all. Then, Nelson Mandela went on to remind his country that one day others in the world will reach out to us as an example of peace. He held the vision for his entire country he called the rainbow nation, until they could hold the vision for themselves.

As I considered all of this, I returned my confused gaze toward God and on the divine wisdom and I had a profound experience. I imagined looking up and all I could see was black tumultuous clouds of violence, grief, and hatred. Soon there was a parting of those dark clouds and a large space opened to reveal beautiful blue skies and radiant golden light. I felt a light peace deep in my heart where moments before there was a sad heaviness. I then heard the words, “Don’t give up!”  I began to hear the Josh Groban song titled, “don’t give up”, and took a deep breath drawing on the emotion the words brought to the surface for me.  The breath filled my being with hope again and as I exhaled a weight was released off of my shoulders.

We all have beliefs: some believe these events are punishments to the world for not taking care of the earth, others believe that God punishes if we are not practicing the “right” religion and yet others believe it is just life and there is no God dictating these problems. Then, there is the belief that we are shifting to a Feminine Divine consciousness that comes in 5000 year cycles and that the old patriarchal ways of handling adversity is kicking and screaming as it rotates out causing crises after crises to unfold. No matter what your beliefs are, we can all agree that we have about reached our limit with world crises, power struggles and of unnecessary suffering. In South Africa they have 13 national languages and a variety of religious practices and beliefs. However, if you ask anyone of them how did they come together as a unified nation, you will hear everyone say over and over again…because we were all tired of fighting and we ALL wanted peace. Peace is a choice, and we can choose peace one person at a time. We can choose to not give up on each other, the God of our hearts, and especially not on ourselves to know we truly as One, CAN make a difference.

Join us in holding the vision, in your hearts, of the possibility for the unification of a world community that embodies Peace. Energy follows thought; consider finding that peaceful place in your heart and radiating the hope that springs from it out into the world.