goodwill
The Real Rewards Of Paying It Forward
What does it mean to ‘pay it forward’ from a spiritual perspective? On a simple level, paying it forward means we take a gift of kindness and pass it along to the next recipient, almost like a karma chain. We’ve all probably experienced such a gift, whether it was a cup of coffee, or a new car. But why do it in the first place? We’re all told that humanity is selfish, not selfless.
If we look at paying it forward beyond the superficial ‘it feels good,’ we see that it really does make us feel better on a physical and psychological level. Stress and depression rates are much lower for those who regularly volunteer, or perform acts of charity and kindness. Our brain experiences a ‘happiness boost’ almost immediately. Life expectancy is also higher for those who volunteer, compared to people who don’t. Doing selfless things simply does make us feel good. Continue reading
Spiritual Guidance On Organized Religion
Sitting at a local café, drinking my smoothie, I couldn’t help but overhear a conversation behind me. They were talking loudly and were not really going out of their way to be discreet by any means. The one girl was talking about how her mother had passed. She spoke of chemotherapy and did not want the same ordeal for her friend, who is obviously going through something similar.
She then shared a story of how her aunt called her a few weeks ago and told her about a dream she had. In this dream the aunt was visited by the girl’s departed mother, who told her that if she could do it all over again, she would do two things differently when she was alive. She would not have taken the chemotherapy and she would not have spent so much time in church. Continue reading
A Tale Of Two Wolves
As a child, I always enjoyed parables, and even in my middle years I still like listening to a story that has real meaning behind it. Recently, I discovered a fabulous story.
A young Cherokee child gets into an argument with one of his peers whom, until now, he felt he had been on good terms with but on this occasion, however, felt that the other boy had been most unjust to him.
In anger, the Cherokee boy runs off to seek advice from his wise grandfather, an elder of the Cherokee tribe, who loves teaching his grandchildren all about life. After telling his grandfather of his injustice, the old man wistfully looked at his grandson and said that he too, in his life, had similar experiences that resulted in him feeling great anger. “It is like there is a fight between two wolves going on inside you,” said the old man, “and indeed a terrible fight.” Continue reading
Staying True To Love And Light
Sometimes we wonder if there is really any good left on this little, blue planet of ours. It can at times be depressing to see all the strife, anger, and hostility. Where is the love and light?
For example, the recent presidential election seems to have divided so many friends and family members. Not everyone seems to have the same thoughts as I do on this matter, since I feel we should embrace our differences, celebrate that we all have different views and respect others opinions. We should rejoice that we all have something different to bring to the table.
Not everyone appreciates a difference in opinion. Instead they wish to control others and they want everyone to see and think the way they do. If you don’t, well they might even become hostile and say and do hurtful things.
Recently, while praying, I asked spirit for a message to show there is still light, and love, and kindness, and compassion on this planet. I received a vision and a very strong message of affirmation. Continue reading