Courage to Create

Create. It’s what we do. At our very core, our very essence, we are natural creators. You are the one who creates your reality based on what you think, know, and believe. You are the one who forges your destiny by the choices that you make, nanosecond by nanosecond, hour by hour, year by year, lifetime by lifetime. So, being creative is something we do naturally without realizing it, without knowing it, and oftentimes, with no forethought at all. That gives it a double edged sense of a couple of dynamics… on one hand, it’s exciting and at the same time, it can be a little scary… in other words, it takes courage to deliberately create something.

The word “courage” in the title indicates that in order to talk about courage, one must first be familiar with fear. So that’s where we’ll start… We’ll get the scary stuff out of the way and then have our creative desserts…

A famous author was dealing with “writer’s block,” he was looking to find inspiration; so he decided to take a walk in the mountains. He was enjoying the scenery when he stepped too close to the edge of a cliff and started to fall. In desperation he reached out and grabbed a limb of a gnarly old tree hanging onto the side of the cliff.

Full of fear, he assesses his situation. He was about 1000 feet from the floor of the canyon below. If he should slip again he'd plummet to his death. He cries out, "Help me!" But there was no answer. Again and again he cried out but to no avail.

Finally he yelled, "Is anybody up there?"
A deep yet serene voice replied, "Yes, I'm up here."
"Who is it?"
"It's God."
"Can you help me?"
"Yes, I can help."
"Please help me then!"
"Let yourself go."
Looking around the man became full of panic. "What?!?!"
"Let yourself go. I will catch you."
"Uh... Is there anybody else up there?"

None of us are immune to fear at one level or another… being enlightened doesn’t make you impervious to fear… it simply makes you willing to turn it into a teacher.

Fear manifests in very subtle energies in a myriad of ways. It’s not the “thing” itself, right? It’s only our perception of it that makes it scary. The job of your ego is to protect you and it does it through subversion. Your ego says, “I know what’s best for you so I’ll take care of you… all you have to do is listen to me.” And what do we say before we have our epiphanies? “Okay.”

However, ego knows it’s got to be tricky. If you just out and out knew that that was what was happening, you’d be able to fend it off… So, it’s very subtle and conniving. The ego sets itself up as your internal guidance system and, if and when you allow it, runs your life.

As we become “awakened,” we start to understand that the reason that we’re fearful of something is because we don’t know what the outcome will be, which means we’re not in control and not being in control means that anything could happen… and that brings us to the first blockage that keeps us from becoming deliberately creative…

Learn to release control. Detach from the outcome. You don’t have to know how it will turn out. Learn to embrace the mystery. Become comfortable in the uncomfortableness.

It starts with a spark, a divine glimmer of an idea that something needs to shift. Something needs to change. Tony Robbins says, “When the pain of staying in the situation becomes greater than the fear to change it, that’s when the change can & will occur.” But what about when there’s no pain… it’s just sedentary energy. We just become lethargic and unwilling to move forward… 

All you have to do is show up. Become present. Be here now.

Here’s the one that we turn into the greatest challenge: Be willing. Be willing to. Be willing to become fully present and simply do the next right thing. What’s the next right thing? Not letting fear or externalizations control you anymore. Move through the subversion and the coercion and put the first piece of the puzzle into place. Connect with your TRUE internal guidance system by allowing that spark of divine communion and communication to move in you and through you. You have all you need within you. All you have to do is approach yourself with reverence and love. That’s the epiphany. Where people get caught up is in self defeat. This is a tremendous epidemic in the world; we’re unwittingly taught and developed as children to become victims and that there’s always “someone better, someone smarter, better looking, more athletic, more successful, more abundant” than we are… even in this world of new thought and spirituality, we look at luminaries, sages, gurus and bodhisattvas as liberators. That’s what makes them so popular… the information they present is not new, in fact it’s ancient as time itself… All you have to do is be willing to show up for yourself with kindness, reverence, great self care and love. And know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are a Divine expression of Source, of pure Love itself. Know that you are worthy.  

An epiphany is simply a remembrance. The reason that “seeing the light” seems so natural and is a part of everyone’s journey is because you’ve “seen” it before. It’s a feeling of familiarity. Then we say, “Why didn’t I remember this?” It’s simply because we’d forgotten. The “Ah Ha” moment is simply a connection that helps you remember, it helps you form a relationship between two or more ideas or concepts. It’s kind of like putting together a jig saw puzzle but you think you already know what the picture is. You’ve seen it many times, perhaps hundreds or thousands of times and then you allow yourself to insert the last piece before you finally say, “Look, there it is… It’s me!” Only then you realize that it’s not complete yet, there’s more to the puzzle. In fact, your puzzle reconstruction is just beginning! The puzzle is infinitely large; puzzles locked within puzzles, waiting to be reassembled. Your job is merely to start with one piece, wherever you are.

Once we have a deeper understanding that fear is only our ego creating a perception… Fear is “I don’t know what the outcome will be…” How do you fix it? You don’t. There is no elimination or destruction fear… we just learn to see through it like seeing through a veil. We let go of the outcome. We even learn to become friends with it. Fear happens only because we don’t have enough information… It’s like an onion… peel a layer, find another layer… and another, and another… it’s simply a matter of getting to know your onion.

That brings me to point number two: You can be afraid of success as much or more than you can be afraid of failure… I never understood this concept until recently. Zig Ziglar said this many years ago… “People are afraid of success as much as they are of failure.” How could that be so, I wondered. How could anyone be afraid of getting everything they want? And then it hit me… if you create it, you have to nurture it and care for it… in other words; you have to be responsible for it. Who needs that kind of pressure? No, much easier to not do anything. “If you need me, I’ll be over here on the couch with a bag of Doritos watching Scoobie Doo…”

So why even think of being creative?

Because being creative allows your Soul to express itself and that gives you happiness, purpose and fulfillment. It must be joyful; otherwise you won’t stick with it very long. If creation becomes a chore or a job, it won’t be long before you’ll give it up. That only reinforces in your mind that creation is not fun and you’ll talk yourself out of it every time. Plus, perhaps most importantly, your Soul wants and needs to be creative and expressive… if you don’t allow yourself to do that, you’re telling yourself that you’re not good enough… that what you’d create is not worthy or worthwhile… that you are not worthy of creating something… and that’s self defeating, self damaging and more importantly, Self damaging… (Big S)

So what can you do? 

Make a Routine for 4o Days. Here’s the regimen: Awaken in the morning, express gratitude in whatever way serves you and your Higher Power. Pray, meditate, reflect on your dreams, etc…And then, it’s coffee and morning pages, not always in that order… Doing “Morning Pages” are from Julia Cameron and her work, “The Artist’s Way.” Write 2-3 pages of longhand writing about whatever… it could be what you’re feeling, something you’re working through, somewhere you feel blocked, your gratitude, your beliefs, your prayers, insights, your expression of your Soul… if you’re blank and can’t think of what to write, simply write the words “Even though I don’t have anything to write about I’m going to fill this space with gibberish and empty words until they form themselves into a cohesive statement or feeling.” Writing it in longhand on a piece of paper makes neural connections between your brain and your hand and allows your thoughts to express as authentically as possible instead of being translated into or through a computer program… so don’t type them on a device.

Next, make a list of everything that you can think of to do that you enjoy. Gardening, listening to music, going to the park, riding a Ferris wheel, canoeing, working out, going to a show, being in a show, helping your neighbors, doing civic organizations, volunteering at the hospital or a shelter, attending this church… etc… it’s unlimited.

Do Vision Work:  Envision yourself doing it… make a vision board… put emotion into it… imagine what it would feel like to do it. The emotion is the catalyst… the wave of energy that transforms it from thought to manifestation. Have you ever seen an Olympic bobsled driver before a race? They stand at the top of the run, close their eyes, crouch down into the position of driving the sled and then they envision the course in as much detail as possible; every turn, every angle and straightaway... they see themselves going through the whole thing start to finish. 

Sign a Contract: Sign a contract with yourself to do these things and stick with it for 40 days!

Imagine What it Will Feel Like! The emotion and passion that you put into this will be the catalyst or wave that brings it into manifestation. Imagine what it feels like to live without fear, to be able to experience joy and release the outcome of whatever you're moving through. It doesn't mean you don't care, in fact, it means you care enough to remain centered, fully present and grounded; available for whatever shows up and whatever you need to do to help facilitate it. 

Namaste' friends...

Frequency and Transmission

You (Self, Soul, Heart, Christ Consciousness, even your cells, tissues and organs) operate, transmit and receive frequencies much like a radio station. Science is now showing that the heart transmits greater and higher frequencies than the brain.You're in control of the dial. Raise the frequency and broadcast and receive higher and higher frequencies (communication, thoughts, feelings, emotions, etc). The higher the frequency, the closer to God Consciousness. How does one go about it? You do this by meditation and the expression of joy and emotion in whatever ways that work for you... meditation, creating or listening to music, creating and enjoying art, painting, writing stories, serving and supporting those who are less fortunate, creating poetry, smiling at people, playing with dogs, nourishing your body and exercising, raising your children in healthy ways, creating sculpture and pottery, planting a garden, on and on the list goes... This is how we are like God; we are creators. How are you creating joy?

On the other end of the spectrum are those who operate, oftentimes without being conscious of it, at lower frequencies. This is where shame, guilt, fear, depression, unworthiness, self loathing and similar values reside. The farther away from God Consciousness one broadcasts and receives, the darker things look and one begins to operate as a victim. The world happens to them and not for them. A great many people create and live in this reality for themselves and I believe it's the number one epidemic on the planet.

At the core of it all is choice. We all have the power to choose our perceptions of this realm, of this world, of this "reality." You have the power to raise your vibration or lower it... things like church doctrines and rules and what someone else believes doesn't really matter... so it's part of your journey to figure out what it means for yourself and how you will apply it. The greeter at Walmart who smiles and says a big "HELLO!" to everyone who walks in the door is a minister. So are you when you sing your song. Wayne Dyer's got a great quote which helped me change my life. He stated, "Don't die... with the music still in you." Your Soul wants and needs to create and express itself with and as love. Your job is simply to allow that to happen in whatever form it takes.

Namaste'

God is for the birds!

I've recently begun a new spiritual practice; birdwatching. Now, I'm sure many might question the validity of calling such a thing a spiritual practice... afterall, where is the spirituality in watching a bird or two gaily flitting about a precariously perched acrylic feeder hanging on the outside of our large picture window in our living room? They're simply doing what birds do... going about their daily lives as only they know how; sleeping, waking, grabbing a bite to eat, going to work gathering bits of nest materials, stopping at the bath to cool off with a little dip and a drink, bringing home a worm or two for the babies. Someone told me that Cardinals mate for life. There's certainly a spiritual guidance in that bit of natural instinct. The whole thing sounds vaguely familiar, doesn't it? In fact, the whole thing is quite laden with spirituality.

God is in everything, then certainly God is for these little wrens, robins and finches. They're lovely, with their vibrant colors of reds and blues; and so very unique when it comes to their sizes and shapes... and yet all so similar in where they came from. Funny, how nature works, isn't it? The notion that these little birds descended from dinosaurs is spectacular to me and then, again, maybe not so much... we all came from somewhere or something... just take it back far enough and you find the source of everything in the universe. We're all made of the stuff of stars, the dust of galaxies.

Anything that allows us to look deeper inside ourselves is a spiritual practice. God is within the birds, the trees they inhabit, the worms they eat and the instincts that move them about their lives. God is within you, me and everyone of us on this planet. It's what we are made of; God stuff... How you look for it is the diversity of the search and connection, whether it's meditating, playing with a drum circle, yoga, taking long walks in the park and doing a little birdwatching. Make it fun... and keep it up please! It's good for you, those who you come into contact with and, ultimately, the whole planet. Everything you do, think and feel affects the collective consciousness of everyone.

I'm sending a little bird your way right now, see it?

Looking at "I Am." What are YOU?

I watched a GREAT movie last night called "I Am." It's an introspection of the state of civilization around the globe; how we got here, where we might be going and what it could possibly look like for our future. As the movie's creator, director & producer states, "What's wrong with our world?," "What's right with our world?" and "What are we going to do about it?" The film comes from director Tom Shadyac (Bruce Almighty, Ace Ventura-Pet Detective, The Nutty Professor, Liar-Liar) so at first one might think this would be a terrific comedy, but it's not. It's beautifully made and wonderfully thought provoking. It's Tom's story of how he dramatically altered his way of life after a bicycle accident left him severly traumatized and wounded, depressed and considering ending his life. Instead of giving up, Tom decided to ask a couple very important questions of some of today's luminary thinkers and scientists of our time; "What's wrong with our planet and what can I do about it?" The answers are consistent, "All we need is love." "All are one, and one is all." "Create brotherhood with everyone on the planet." "Erase war, famine, poverty, and social imbalance, and replace it with love." Sound impossible? Many will think so and some will refuse to believe it would ever be possible to create a Utopian world-wide unified society that lives in peace for the betterment of mankind, the animals and the planet that we all inhabit together. Why? Are we too far gone down the road toward destruction? Will industrialized competitive nations crumble like others before them when they become so gorged on the resources of the planet that they simply self destruct? When will we start to realize on a global scale that society is not naturally and genetically programmed to be competitive, to aquire for security, to dominate others and to rule unaccompanied and in solitary dominion over others? Our natural state is to cooperate, to assist, to provide strength and support to those who need it most. It wasn't God's design for humans to try "fill their holes" with stuff! I do know this; until we can teach our children that their worth is not measured by what they have, what they do, what they accumulate, the job title they become, and that in order to be successful, they must dominate others in their midst, we'll have a tough road ahead. So what's the answer? What do we do? What can one person do? Learn how to love yourself and branch out from there. Love your environment, your neighbors, your friends & family, your animals, and ultimately, and perhaps most challenging, love your enemies. Teach others that we are not measured by what we have and aquire, who we defeat and dominate over. We are to be measured by how we love. Sending YOU love and my highest intentions for your greatest Joy and Well Being... Namaste'

Processing Feelings...

It never ceases to amaze me that I can read any number of books, listen to a year's worth of audio, attend seminars on the subject, share the message, counsel and coach others about it, meditate, pray, light candles, but when it comes to applying the wisdom of the sages to my own stuff, I fall so desparately short of hitting the mark.

I'm speaking of simply being okay in the "shaky" stuff. The unsteadiness. The "life is throwing curve balls at me" kind of feeling. The feeling of "overwhelm" that seems to happen at the juxtaposition of the proper forces. My biorhythms are in the red and all of my external relationships, things and scheduled events, are coming with what appear to be challenges. In droves. I'm not complaining, mind you, it's just a way for me to process feelings and move through with intuition, grace and a deeper understanding. This is not a "why me" letter; it's a "who me" introspection that by sharing with you, perhaps you'll see a reflection and come away with a deeper understanding as well.

I have the tools to be alright with the uncomfortableness, the mystery, the "letting go" and knowing that it ultimately will be just what it should be. I use them on a regular basis and for a period I am grounded. I just think it's interesting that someone can know all this great stuff about being connected at a higher level of consciousness and still feel like the rug is being pulled out from underneath them. Ahhhh, the mysteries of the human condition.

Remember that it's not the "stuff" that trips us, it's merely our perception of it that affects our feelings, thoughts, emotions and behavior. We're the ones creating our fear. We can just as easily create love and open our hearts to what needs to come through.

Without the roller-coaster of the emotions we'd be pretty flat and there's not nearly as much fun in that. So the trick is to learn to be grateful, even in the low times. To be forgiving to ourselves and others and to move through it, or "intuit" (in to it) as I like to say. I've learned that by "preaching" and teaching others to do the work, even holding their hands as they go through it allows me to avoid it in myself, right? I can easily show someone the mountain, explain how to use the proper gear, tell them where to set up camp, even which flowers and rock formations to take pictures of and which direction to face into the wind at the top for the most beneficial experience but actually climb the mountain again myself, over and over? Well, that's scary!

So here's the bottom line... Living a well constructed life at a higher connection to truth and Spirit does not exclude you from being a human being and being succeptable to a an emotional roller-coaster ride once in a while. Even mystics get the blues. Maybe it will help to know that it will cycle around at some point and let you coast in the sunshine again. That's where faith comes into play; that'll be the topic for a future blog entry.

For more inspiration and information about living well in the mystery, check out Pema Chodron here: The Pema Chodron Foundation

Sending you love and radiant light for your healing and success!

Namaste'

John

Connecting to your ♥, conversations with God.

Opening up your heart, becoming more open... your heart is at the center of your being... scientific studies have now shown that the heart produces more electromagnetic waves than your brain... your heart is the organ, or tool, that receives and emits feelings, thoughts, emotions, prayers... waves that go out into the field, the "Matrix," to God... Your heart is what you communicate with on the more subtle levels... it makes perfect sense to become in touch with and to know when someone asks you, "What does your heart tell you to do?" You know because you become open and clear when activating this "tool," your heart.

The way to do this is meditation. Becoming silent and focusing within is the only way. There is no other practice for this. Some say that prayer is "speaking" to God, meditation is "listening." Open your heart like a receiver for the Universe to "stream" into you. You have it within you to know this and much, much more... you only need to be open to the possibility of it. It doesn't mean that you need to become the monk on the mountain, it only means giving yourself a few minutes a few times a day for a little break; a few deep breaths and a connection to your center. Someone who is grounded is like an unmovable, immutable force. Nothing can shake you from knowing the deeper truth, that the "stuff" that happens in the world, all the junk, the hype and the lies... they aren't YOUR truth. They don't make you into who you are at your deepest core, you radiant child of God, you Spirit in a human suit. You are only beauty, truth, freedom, grace, forgiveness, love, God.

When you can make God into a verb, you've got a good start. It takes courage, fortitude and brevity to stay on the path you've embarked upon. I'm wonderfully proud of you.

Self-Esteem, Energy & Love

I’d like to share some of my thoughts with you about the relationship of self-esteem, energy and love and what the blending of these three ingredients could mean for us. I’m not speaking about the energy that powers your computer, or the energy that powers your car, I’m speaking about the energy you feel when you connect yourself to something of great value. It’s the energy of relationship. It’s the feeling in your heart when you accomplish a powerful goal. It’s the goodness you feel when you help another individual, not for pride or for selfish gain, but just because they needed help and you have the resources to give them exactly what they need at the perfect time… energy. Imagine, for a moment, how you feel when someone you admire and respect walks into the room. The excitement you feel and the charisma they convey to you is a verifiable exchange of energy. It’s the type of energy that can make a difference in your soul and that can make a difference in the world. Scientists have now declared that the human heart is a bigger producer of electro-magnetic energy waves than the brain.

Now, the world may not care if you have self-esteem, in fact the “world,” especially as it’s portrayed in mainstream media, would like nothing more than for all of us to become self-serving, self-righteous little androids with no sense of esteem at all. You want some great advice? When the TV news comes on, turn the channel to PBS or the History or Science channel. Or better still, turn it off completely. If something you need to know happens, someone will let you know about it. If the weather is inclement, keep your eye on the weather channel.

In order to create that within ourselves which will allow us to communicate with higher energy and become positive examples of self-assurance, self-regard, and self-esteem for our children and students, we need to develop a practice of selfless love in its truest form. I would venture to say that many of you already do this. Love is the highest form of communication in the universe. It’s the one thing that every ancient and modern spiritual tradition agrees on. God is love. All you need is love. Jesus said, “Love your neighbor, as you love yourself.” I think we’ve touched on a key point here.

Teachers and sages will all tell you that you must love yourself before you can truly love another. Self-esteem, self-assurance, and self-confidence are all derivatives of healthy self-love. So why is it so elusive for so many? As a Relationship & Energy Coach, I see this time and again with my clients. They’re searching for something missing in their lives. They’re looking for meaning, purpose, reasons…They’re looking for energy. I say love yourself, love your family and friends, love all fellow human beings unconditionally and give your self in service to what needs to be done. Interpret and gain from the lessons of past wounds and, then put them behind you and move forward with self-love and self-respect. Come to know the practices of Acceptance, Releasing, Forgiveness, and Healing… Energy.

Here’s a valuable tool which will increase your self-esteem on a daily basis. It’s not difficult but it takes a little practice to make a positive change. To change your thoughts you need to reprogram your mind and the only way to do that is through repetition. One of the things that we do as human beings as a result of our programming is to develop and hold dialogs with ourselves. We call this chatter self-talk. More often than not, my self-talk really takes place when I feel it’s time to berate or belittle myself. Has anyone ever had this experience? You’ve missed the exit on the freeway and what do you say to yourself? “Oh, you bumbling idiot!” or worse… right? Or you’ve gotten yourself worked up about a project or an idea and you say to yourself, “Now, what makes you think you can do that? You can’t do that!”

Here’s a way to fix that: catch yourself in the middle one of those dialogs. Picture a tape recorder in your mind, every time you make one of those statements to yourself, picture yourself pressing the STOP button and at the same time say “Stop!” Picture yourself pressing the REWIND button and say “Rewind.” Picture yourself pressing the RECORD button and say “Record.” Now boldly state to yourself, “I forgive myself; I was only doing the best I could with what I had to work with at the time.” Pretty soon, you’ll be verbally beating yourself up less, and holding yourself up more. More self-love; creating more self-respect, more self-assurance, and more self-esteem.

-from an article on my site: namaste-energetics.com