dailydatewithgod

I was reminded yesterday as I was experiencing myself fighting reality-wanting things to be different than they are–that it always comes down to trust.  Either I believe that God is with me no matter what happens or I don’t.  It is my decision to make.  When I chose to question whether God will be there through this particular experience is directly proportional to the amount of fear and anxiety I experience.  When I remember that I am connected to the greatest source of power and abundance and my circumstances are not who I am, then whatever I am experiencing does not feel so bad or anxiety ridden.  It is so easy though to get caught up in my ego–thinking my circumstances are my reality and I am responsible for survival all on my own.  My ego likes that because it keeps me separate, not only from God but from you.  That is the illusion of my ego–that it is all on its own.  Mind you, I said illusion.  But being connected to God calls me into reality and when I look around there are a bunch of people.  My humble guess is that I am meant to be connected to others; otherwise why would we all be here together?  My prayer for you today is that you reach out and look around you when you feel disconnected in any way and ask God to show you how to connect.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

Life has a great deal of enchantment in it.  We only need to focus on what is mysterious about it to notice it.  Usually we look at the mysterious as something to either disregard or move past–to “figure” out instead of be embraced by the uncertainty.  We fool ourselves into thinking that there is certainty built into life, when the only thing certain is that it will change.  When I stay connected deeply in my heart to the Creator of all change, then I can ride out the waves of uncertainty without being thrown about.  It is then that I see reasons to cherish all that is around me because I recognize that it is here in this moment and will soon pass.  My prayer for you today is in that moment of frustration over change, that you ask to see the change as something to be enchanted by.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

God is the Great Creator! God is and does love at all times, no matter the circumstance.  God is full of hope and joy and promise even at the moments of no hope and joy and promise. Our minds, however, do not always see things as God sees things.  I find it important to distinguish that when I am in a place of scarcity, fear, and it’s not going to happen that I am not operating from God who dwells within me.  I am operating from my limited resources and understanding.  I am relying only on what I can see as possible.  God is infinite and has the vision that surpasses all things. But before I can be open to that I need the power of God to come between me and my limiting thoughts.  I see God as being a protector of doom and gloom.  It is easy for such thoughts to snowball and with little provocation.  It is humbling to admit that I cannot overcome my own thinking and need help, but I am more grateful that the help is there.  Once I acknowledge that the path I am headed down has no hope, then I look to the Creator of hope and say, “Help.”  My experience has taught me that God will be there to help direct my thinking if I turn it over to Him.  My prayer for you today is that you be willing to let go of the idea that you need to figure it out and call for reinforcements.  Make it a great one! Peace~Colleen

You awake and the sun is rising, the birds are chirping, the plants are growing, the air is moving, your heart is pumping, your lungs are expanding and contracting, one leg moves and the other follows–all these things happen without you having to do anything.  Is there a doubt in your mind that the God of Creation has provided a new day for you?  If this is done in simple and concrete ways, would it not also be done in grand and complex ways?  Perhaps we need to awaken to all the ways that we are provided for and looked out for by God and be grateful for them in order to trust that we will be provided for in grander ways.  So often I doubt that God will show up, so I take on the responsibility of trying to make it all happen instead of just showing up authentically and playing my part.  Sometimes, I think when I do that God just shakes his head, smiles and laughs as he sees me taking so long to show up because I am trying to carry the world on my shoulders.  He looks me in the eye, tells me He is glad that I am here and then asks if I want to give him back the world to take care of.  Then I realize that that was what was burdening me and getting in the way of being able to just show up.  God uses all things for the good.  If I truly believe that God created this entire universe and everything in it, then nothing I can experience will separate me from God unless I choose to view it as separate from God.  Usually the only thing that separates me from God is my ego (EGO=Edging God Out).  My prayer for you today is that you have the willingness to believe that you are provided for in every way possible with Love and trust that all you have to do is show up and be you.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

The other day I was speaking with a friend of mine and remembering that there was a time in my life when I felt I had to apologize for my existence.  I was not consciously aware of it at the time but I had created a way of being out the thinking that I owed you, whomever you were, an explanation.  When I began to notice my own words I could hear it in that–I often began by saying, “I’m sorry” or “I’m afraid” even if those two statements were out of context with what was happening.  It was a posture of victim-hood or martyrdom.  I somehow thought that if I took on responsibility for whatever it was, then everything would be okay and no one would be angry.  As though I could save the day by “taking care of it all.”  (Insert picture of me with a Super Woman cape flowing in the wind behind me–lol!)  The “I’m afraid” statement was evidence that I lived in a mindset of fear.  I didn’t even recognize it until someone once asked me, “Why would you be afraid that we are out of straws?” (A question asked by a McDonald’s coworker when I was in high school.)  Good question, huh?  Both of those statements were a reflection of my thinking about myself.  Then there was the notion that I needed to give you all the details and excuses so that you understood why I didn’t do something perfectly.  I have since come to realize that most people do not listen to your explanations, especially if they are long.  Keeping things short and sweet and providing the other person with an opportunity to respond is best.  I also have learned to distinguish the things that I am truly responsible for and afraid of and catch myself, most of the time, so that what comes out of my mouth is reflective of that truth.  I cannot possibly be responsible for everything–I am not the Greek God Atlas that keeps the world spinning.  Sometimes things happen that are unfortunate and people are hurt and dismayed, but my taking on responsibility does nothing except in my own mind to weigh me down (literally and figuratively).  I am not only selective with the things that I claim responsibility for but also with the words that I speak.  Because I turn to God to seek guidance on who I am being and where my source of love comes from, I do not have to expect you, whomever you are, to approve of what I say and do.  Therefore, I do not owe you anything.  I am only responsible to myself and to God.  If it turns out, after reflection, that I played a part in what happened, then I can own up to it.  But, I do not need to rush into to claim responsibility. As I evolve more each day into the best person I can be, I am shown through trial and error, what I am responsible for and what I am not.  I no longer need to wear the cape. God wears a cape, not me.  My prayer for you today is that you first listen to the words that you speak about yourself.  Then, bring them to God to ask you to select those that are true for the best version of you and live those out.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

If you find yourself on the path of seeking and knowing God in whatever fashion you choose, sometimes we think that we must master that like we are expected to master things of the world.  Let’s face it, we look to religious and or spiritually minded people to be something more than they are.  There is a great line from one of my favorite films, “Keeping the Faith” about a lifelong friendship between a priest and a rabbi and they are talking about the difficulty of their roles as spiritual leaders and the rabbi says that his congregation doesn’t relate to him as a man but as “Rabbi Jake” which makes dating difficult because these women expect a spiritual leader on a date, not just a man.  So his friend,the priest, reminds him that they both knew this would happen–that their congregations would expect them (the priest and the rabbi) to be the kind of people that they (the members of their congregations) didn’t have the time or the discipline to be.  We often imagine that if people who lead a spiritual or religious life, they somehow transcend their humanness.  Think about all the times we have been disappointed when someone in a religious role has done something immoral or offensive.  Aren’t we doubly offended?  Why?  Did they somehow not become human when they took on that vocation?   Sure, these folks spend more time communing and getting to know God, but knowledge does not translate into a heart experience.  We can all be very knowledgeable about things but it is our hearts that moves our behavior.  The point is that at any moment we can all think we got it figure out.  Then after a while we find ourselves burdened by the very thing that our hearts sought out because we are trying to do it on our own.  God calls us to rely on him.  Belief means reliance.  I personally must rely on my connection to God for everything in my life.  It is a humbling realization but one that keeps me connected to the greater purpose of life–the manifestation of love that knows no bounds.  God is willing to lift my burden, if I turn even my spiritual practice over to him.  My prayer for you today is that if you find your spirituality or lack of it a burden–bring it to the feet of God and watch how he lifts it to your heart and your eyes so that you may see what action to take.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

The God I believe in is a God of courage. One that calls me to step away from my fear and stand up to what I know in my heart to be true. God does not want me to wait for the fear to disappear before I take action. He wants me to acknowledge the fear–turn that over to him and focus on how I can be in action in my life. In the Hebrew and Christian scriptures, God is recorded as saying “Be not afraid and fear not” many times over. God knows that we are going to experience fear.  God knows that we will let it stop us in our tracks and be dismayed by it.  But we are called to go ahead anyway.  Not wait for everything to be perfectly lined up, not wait to feel like doing it, not to wait for a neon sign over our heads indicating that we are headed in the right direction.  God’s love is stronger than any fear or mistake we might experience.  It is safe to take action even if we mess up.  God is bigger than any mess-up that we incur.  He is not a Santa Claus that is keeping track of all our rights and wrongs to determine who big our afterlife gift will be.  He is here and now in the present and invites us to be in the same place.  Not in the future in the results of our actions, but right here, right now.  The “Christmas” gift that we are waiting for is called “the present moment.”  We need to stand up and claim our connection to a God that stands with us despite our fears, despite our mistakes, and despite our discouragement.  My prayer for you today is that you might let go of the notion that God is anywhere but right here, right now and have the courage to stand up and be present with Him and thus with you.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

This idea is not one that is hard to grasp. If you were raised in any kind of Judeo-Christian home the idea that you should serve others come straight from scripture.  The difference is how we understand what that means.  Many of us are very giving.  But do we give to justify our existence or because our hearts are so full of love that we will burst at the seams if we don’t share it with others?  Sometimes we get into such a pattern or way of being that we don’t even recognize our own motivation.  I do not think there is a perfect way to be of service any more than there is a perfect was to follow God, but I have to stop and ask myself, if no one saw me do this would I still do it?  How many ways can I be of service that won’t be found out?  It is a balance.  Over the years I have learned that being of service does not mean depleting myself of all my energy.  When that happens, I know that I am drawing from my own resources only.  When I give from a place of being connected with God–the energy flows through me.  I also know that I have taken time to connect with God in the best way possible so that I am giving in a way that God wants me to give.  It requires us to stop and get quiet and ask, “God how do you want me to be of service in this situation?” and then listed for the answer.  We might be surprised that the message we get back is to pray for someone, or to not say something, or even to walk away.  My prayer for you today is that before you jump into being of service to someone you take a moment to connect with the Great Servant and see what His plan is for your giving today.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

I still remember my first trip to Yosemite National Park.  As I walked around I found myself in complete and total awe of the beauty around me everywhere I looked.  I was blown away by the creation of such majestic cliffs and beautiful fields. It triggered in me a humility and wonder for the grace of God.  Who or what else could have created such beauty all within such a small space to be seen all at once.  Nature is an easy way for me to come back to the reverence for life, but it is all around me if my mind and my heart are attuned with it.  When I stop to recognize how my body functions-the heart beating, lungs expanding and contracting, one foot in front of the other-I find another reason to revere God.  Who else would have created such an intricate system of atoms and cells that flow and function without much thought?  The ebb and flow of life is all around me, I need only to pause and recognize it.  It reminds me to honor all that I have and all that I experience.  So then I think, perhaps the challenging experiences and circumstances that I face today can also be revered.  If ultimately they are opportunities to bring me closer to God and to my heart, then are they not due the same attitude?  I can be grateful for the opportunity for growth and expansion of my heart, chance for a new perspective, and the recognition of the need for God in every moment of my life.  My prayer for you today is that you may find a reason to revere a troubling experience or thought–ask God to help you see His presence in the challenge.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen

If given the option of letting go or holding on, which are you most inclined to do?  Does it depend on the situation?  I suppose everything depends on the situation.  Have you ever stopped to think that the reason you are more inclined to hold on is because you are holing on to the idea of something rather than the reality of something.  In other words, you are holding on to the hope or the possibility that it will be different this time?  You put up with a behavior in yourself or someone else because you have built excuses around it?  I am fascinated by my capacity to hold on to something because I am hoping it will get better even when there are no signs of it doing so.  I believe the expression is “the devil you know is worse than the devil you don’t.”  But why hold on to a devil?  Why not embrace the uncertainty that is God if I know that God is greater than anything I might already “know.”  There is so much that I don’t know and even more that I don’t know that I don’t know, but my mind always takes the posture that it knows exactly what is going to happen.  It thinks it is a great predictor but I have no psychic abilities, I only have matching capabilities.  In other words, my mind will automatically look for what it knows in a given situation.  This is not a bad thing–it is most necessary for survival, but I want to thrive, I want to live a spirit-filled life.  That means that for today, I am willing to relinquish the idea that I know how it is going to turn out so that I can be surprised by God.  Many scriptures of different faiths express the idea of God knowing the grand plans for our lives–it only requires us to trust in Him and let go of the ideas we have of how we want it to be.  If I truly trust in God then I can be willing to be surprised.  My prayer for you today is that you be open to letting go of one idea of how you know something is going to be.  Ask God to help you to be open to how the Grand Designer has set up the beautiful outcome that you could not even imagine.  Make it a great one!  Peace~Colleen